'twas the 18th of April, in 75...

[Matt McKeon]

Got up with my daughter at 3:00AM on Monday, Patriot's Day here in Massachusetts. We drove in the dark to Lexington, and at 4 AM we joined a huge crowd of people around the Green. Some minutemen were walking about the common, as they had patrolled in 1775. It was freezing. One of the colonial ladies spoke with me. I attract people because of my pleasant and open expression, giving an impression of intelligent interest. She told me that one of the British general's bastard brothers or nephews was named Smithson, who donated the money for to establish the Smithsonian. Was she flirting with me?

 

[Matt McKeon]

There is this one loud minuteman who seeks to engage and educate a bunch of cold and tired people. He was failing to read the room. His method was to ask an obscure question, which affirms he's smarter, then monologue.
Who was George III's wife he suddenly asked my daughter, "Charlotte" she answered. He was a little surprised I guess and asked where Charlotte was from, "Germany" "Where in Germany?" "Jesus Christ" I said loudly. "Well, actually," my kid replied, demonstrating she had earned a liberal arts degree, "there wasn't a Germany per se," I interjected by taking the Lord's name in vain again.

 

[Matt McKeon]

Anyway this guy went to say North Carolina had a Meckelberg County, named after Charlotte's home region. Who the fuck cares, I thought. "Tobacco and Repubicans," I said loudly. "I hope the British kill him," I whispered to my kid. She laughed and took my picture, I flinched at the flash. She showed me her phone. I looked awful, "this is like a post mortem photograph." I said, "His body was pulled out of the water after two days," she intoned, news anchor style.

 

[jgoodguy]

Got up with my daughter at 3:00AM on Monday, Patriot's Day here in Massachusetts. We drove in the dark to Lexington, and at 4 AM we joined a huge crowd of people around the Green. Some minutemen were walking about the common, as they had patrolled in 1775. It was freezing. One of the colonial ladies spoke with me. I attract people because of my pleasant and open expression, giving an impression of intelligent interest. She told me that one of the British general's bastard brothers or nephews was named Smithson, who donated the money for to establish the Smithsonian. Was she flirting with me?

Depends on her age.

 

[Matt McKeon]

It was getting a little lighter. The Green was surrounded by a sea of people, and the reviewing stand was filling with town officials. For such a large crowd, it was silent. The "Battle" of Lexington was basically a straight up massacre and we knew we were going to see an atrocity.

 

[Matt McKeon]

Depends on her age.

Depends on my age too, sexist.

 

[Matt McKeon]

Captain John Parker called his company together, formed them in double ranks and marched them back and forth a little. They were pretty ragged looking.

Thumping drums from the east, and I glimpsed red coated men reflected on a bank window. Two mounted officers and a column of red coated troops, a company in bearskins(grenadiers), some in leather caps(light infantry) the rest in cocked hats, The expedition in 1775 was made up entirely of light troops and grenadiers. They deploy on the Green. The mounted man, Major Pitcairn, I think tells the rebels to disperse and lay down their arms. Parker has ordered his men not to fire, "unless fired on" They begin to back up. There is some disorder in the British ranks, as some of the fatigued soldiers shout at the minutemen. The officers call them to order.

 

[Matt McKeon]

The tension builds. The British "charge bayonets" with a growl. The minutemen edge backward. A shot and the pause, one second, two. then the soldiers was lunging forward firing their muskets and surging across the grass, while the minutemen flee westward off the green, lettng off a scatter of shots. British troops continue to fire, some at the buildings, some towards the fleeing minutemen. Their officers bringing them back into order, and form them up, while Pitcairn chews them out. Sending a contradictory message, the troops give three cheers over the scattered bodies, and the with the fifes and drums playing a sneering Yankee Doodle, the British march on to Concord. The mayor reads the names of the dead.

 

[Matt McKeon]

We drive to Concord to see a parade and an extraordinaryily sedate exchange of blanks at North Bridge. "Time to break up the British Empire," encourages my kid. "I hate those red coated bastards." "Fuck them," I agree. Another woman thanks me for being a teacher. Still got it, despite corpse like appearance.

The North Bridge ceremony was bloodless and noneducational in every sense, while the Lexington one still works.

 

[rittmeister]

Anyway this guy went to say North Carolina had a Meckelberg County, named after Charlotte's home region. Who the fuck cares, I thought. "Tobacco and Repubicans," I said loudly. "I hope the British kill him," I whispered to my kid. She laughed and took my picture, I flinched at the flash. She showed me her phone. I looked awful, "this is like a post mortem photograph." I said, "His body was pulled out of the water after two days," she intoned, news anchor style.

mecklenburg

Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[O' Be Joyful]

mecklenburg

Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

The "Windsor"/ Saxe-Coburg-Gotha branch.

The "Windsors" didn't jump out of the royal closets until mid WW I when Vickie's grandson--Willie II-- went total ape- .

 

[rittmeister]

The "Windsor"/ Saxe-Coburg-Gotha branch.

The "Windsors" didn't jump out of the royal closets until mid WW I when Vickie's grandson--Willie II-- went total ape- .

as did everybody else in europe - someone even lured the yankees into that bar browl