In history, Benjamin Franklin died on this day. I was always intrigued by Mr. Franklin. I mean really, look at his face, doesn't it just make you want to reach out your hand and ask to join him and chat the evening away? I am going to just list a few of the things Benjamin Franklin is credited with and see how that fills a blog page.

Lightning Rod; Glass Armonica; Franklin Stove; Bifocal Glasses; Flexible Urinary Catheter; Charted and Named The Gulf Stream (assisted by cousin, Timothy Folger); Worked in Sciences including Wave Theory of Light; Meteorology; Refrigeration; Electricity; Heat Conductivity; Oceanography;

He was a musician: Violin, Harp, Guitar, Glass Harmonica; Composed music/String Quartet in Early Classical Style; An avid Chess Player: Wrote Moral of Chess, Dec, 1786, Columbian Magazine. Used Ches to learn Italian.  Inducted into the US Chess hall of Fame, 1999. And he founded or Created: American Philosophical Society; Union Fire Company; Anti-Counterfeiting Techniques; Pennsylvania Hospital (first in US); Pennsylvania Militia.

He was also President of The Academy and College of Philadelphia (University of Pennsylvania), a Councilman, a Justice of the Peace in Philadelphia; Pennsylvania Assemblyman; a Joint Deputy Postmaster General of North America; he headed Pennsylvania delegation to the Albany Congress; member of the Society for the Encouragment of Arts and Manufactures & Commerce (Royal Society of Arts); a Member Club of Honest Whigs; received an Honorary Doctor of Laws from University of St Andrews and Freedom of the Borough of St Andrews in Edinburgh and an Honorary doctorate, scientific accomplishments, Oxford University.

Okay, I guess I could go on, but it looks like it is getting long, so, Just take my word for it, he was VERY versatile.  He is one man I would like to go back in history to meet...How about you?