Going ‘full Cleveland’ on Inauguration Day

On January 20, 2025By Littum

You’ve heard of “full Cleveland,” right? If not, it usually refers to a fashion statement favored by men of a certain age, wearing white patent leather belts with matching white shoes. Bonus points for knee-high compression stockings. They think it’s the cat’s meow.

And if you’ve never heard of the term “the cat’s meow,” you’re definitely not in the age group likely to find yourself dressed “full Cleveland,” and for that, you can count your lucky stars.

But today we’re talking about another Cleveland – Grover Cleveland. And we are reminded of him because, until this week, he was the only American president to serve two split terms.

Cleveland was the 22nd president, in office from 1885 to 1889. But he narrowly lost his re-election bid. That didn’t stop him though. He ran for office four years later and won, serving as the 24th president from 1893 to 1897.

Now comes Donald Trump, who follows in Cleveland’s footsteps. As we know, he failed in his re-election bid after his first term, but last November Trump ran again and won. So after serving as the country’s 45th president, he will soon be reinstated, this time as the no. 47.

JC Bruce is a Florida journalist and author of the award-winning Strange Files series of mystical adventures. Check out his website, jcbruce.comfor details on how to order your very own copies. They are fun to read and make excellent doorstops (though not so much the audiobook versions).

It will take place on Monday 20 January. Which, as it turns out, is also the date of two other important events.

While Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. has a birthday on January 15, the national holiday celebrating his life meanders from year to year to create a three-day weekend. And this year we have the day off to celebrate MLK on, yes, January 20th.

But that’s not all. January 20 is also the date of national collegiate football championship game as the final two contenders in the 12-team playoff series meet in Atlanta. Kick-off is 19.30

So mark your calendar for the busiest day of the month. That said, let’s not ignore the other events in the coming week. That would be rude.

The week ahead

January 16. Appreciate a Dragon Day. Why? Well, the idea is that dragons are popular characters in literature, especially sci-fi and fantasy. Choose your favorite. Mine is the baby dragon that Oscar Gordon accidentally stepped on in Robert Heinlein’s “Glory Road.”

17 January Hat Day. If you want to try the “full Cleveland” look, I suggest a wide-brimmed straw hat, the kind popular at political conventions.

18 January Thesaurus Day. A great (fantastic, memorable, wonderful) time to show (demonstrate, show, present) your amazing (fantastic, amazing, creepy) language skills.

January 19 National Popcorn Day. There is no truth to the rumor that popcorn was invented as a way to sell more microwave ovens, although their popularity is certainly related. It’s also Confederate Hero Day in Florida, but can we just give it a rest already?

January 20. Of course, there’s the inauguration, MLK Day, and football. But let’s not forget that it is Penguin Awareness Day!

January 21. It’s Squirrel Day. Launched by naturalists as a way to emphasize the role of the little creatures in the environment, I think anyone who has ever had them in their attic might not be such a fan. Oh, a common cause of house fires is squirrels chewing through electrical wires with their ever-growing front teeth. It is also one of the leading causes of squirrel electrocution.

January 22. Today is Ukraine’s Independence Day. If they can keep it.

Florida facts

Florida is home to several different types of squirrels: the eastern gray squirrel, the fox squirrel, and the southern flying squirrel. Now, if we’re going to appreciate squirrels one day a year, I can get behind the flying kind because, you know, Rocky the Flying Squirrel and his friend, Bullwinkle the Moose. Everyone loves those characters.

Important to note: Florida is not a natural home for moose outside of the Loyal Order of Moose. Moose like water. Florida’s waters are teeming with gators and pythons. It just wouldn’t work.

The strange files

A Florida man was arrested in Volusia County after he drove his pickup truck through a closed beach into the ocean. He told sheriff’s deputies that he just wanted to go surfing and that it wasn’t his fault that “the truck doesn’t surf.” ¦