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The LA Bakeries I Find Myself Returning To Over And Over Again...

Sony's Afeela electric vehicle will offer digital license plates Sony's perpetually upcoming electric vehicle is going to allow for a degree of license plate customization never thought possible before.According to TechRadar, Sony's Afeela EV (which has been showcased at multiple CES events in previous years but still isn't on sale)...

William Tecumseh Sherman was one of the most important Union generals of the Civil War. Sherman helped turn the tide early in the war with victories in the Western Theater and later with his infamous March to the Sea. After the war, he played a key role in the Reconstruction, served as commanding general of all US forces, and remained an influential voice in American affairs until his death. Shermans legacy remains one of the most powerful in American military history.Early LifePortrait of a young William T. Sherman. Date Unknown. Source: Wikimedia CommonsWilliam Tecumseh Sherman was born in Ohio in 1820 to Charles and Mary Sherman. When Sherman was only nine, his father died of typhoid fever, leaving his mother to care for eleven children. Sherman was sent to live with a neighbor, Thomas Ewing, a future US Senator from Ohio. Ewing sponsored the young Shermans application to the US Military Academy at West Point when he was just 16 years old. He wasnt a top student academically, but stood out for his practical knowledge and leadership skills.Graduating in 1840, at the age of 20, Sherman was commissioned as an officer into the artillery and served in Florida during the Seminole Wars before being sent to California during the Mexican-American War in 1848. While he didnt see as much combat as other officers, his time out West gave him experience in the logistics of warfare, skills he would later use on his infamous scorched earth campaign across the American South.It was during this war that Sherman met another junior officer, Ulysses S. Grant. The friendship between the two would become crucial in the conflict to come. After the war, he briefly left the army to work as manager of the San Francisco branch of the Bank of Lucas, Turner & Co. Sherman quickly found that civilian life did not suit him. In 1859, he became the first superintendent of the Louisiana State Seminary of Learning & Military Academy, now known as Louisiana State University (LSU).The Western Theater of WarBattle map depicting the third day of fighting at the Battle of Shiloh. Source: Wikimedia CommonsAfter several Confederate states seceded from the Union in 1861, Sherman resigned his position as superintendent. He initially did not rejoin the army in defense of the Union. He felt politicians had made a mess of halting secession, famously saying to his younger brother John, a Congressman from Ohio, you politicians have gone and got things in a hell of a fix. Sherman spent the next year as a civilian in St. Louis. When the Civil War broke out, Sherman rejoined the Army and was quickly assigned to key commands in the Western Theater.Portrait of General William T. Sherman by Matthew Brady, c. 1864. Source: National ArchivesWorking closely with his old friend Ulysses S. Grant, he helped secure major Union victories at battles like Shiloh, Vicksburg, and Chattanooga. At Shiloh in 1862, Shermans leadership under fire helped prevent a total Union collapse during a surprise Confederate attack. A year earlier, Sherman was battling severe mental stress as a corps commander in Kentucky. Rumors swirled that he was unfit for command, and the press published newspapers calling Sherman mad and insane. In October of that year, he was relieved of command and spent several months at home recovering. Grant stood by Sherman during that time and welcomed him back to command in December 1861.Shiloh, and the leadership Sherman showed during that time, proved that he had regained his mental state. By late 1863, newspapers no longer saw him as a liability; in fact, following successful engagements at Shiloh, Vicksburg, and Chattanooga, Sherman was seen as a rising star in the Union Army. His understanding of warfare was about to be put to the test as the war entered into its final years.The Atlanta CampaignVarious engagements of the Atlanta Campaign, in May-Sept 1864. Source: Wikimedia CommonsIn 1864, Sherman was given command of Union forces in the West as Grant was reassigned to the East to take on Robert E. Lee. Sherman launched the Atlanta Campaigna months-long effort to take one of the Confederacys last major metropolitan cities and a hub for commerce.Capturing the city would devastate Southern morale and drastically diminish their capability to continue the war effort. Sherman faced off against Confederate generals like Joseph E. Johnston and John Bell Hood, pushing his troops through tough terrain and constant resistance as he made his way south from Tennessee into the heart of Georgia. While difficult, Sherman was able to consistently force the Confederates south towards the capital.In September, Sherman finally took Atlanta. The victory was more than just a military winit came at a critical time politically. President Abraham Lincoln was up for re-election and facing growing criticism over the wars progress. Shermans capture of Atlanta helped turn public opinion in Lincolns favor and boosted Northern morale, leading to his reelection.The March to the SeaShermans March to the Sea, by F.O.C. Darley, c. 1868. Source: Library of CongressAfter taking Atlanta, Sherman launched what would become his most famous, and controversial, campaign: the March to the Sea. In November 1864, he led 60,000 troops from Atlanta southeast to Savannah. Atlanta had not been enough to demoralize the South. The March to the Sea would showcase for the first time what Sherman called scorched earth tactics, more commonly known today as total war. His troops burned crops, bent rail lines, which famously became known as Shermans neckties, and raided supplies from local populations along the way. Sherman believed that by bringing the war directly to Southern civilians, he could force the Confederacy to surrender faster. The strategy worked. His army reached Savannah in December, facing little resistance. The city was spared destruction as Sherman believed it was too beautiful to burn, and Sherman offered it as a Christmas gift to President Lincoln.The March to the Sea was effective, but it impacted the way military operations would be waged in the future. Sherman showed that to successfully wage a war, you must bring its devastation to everyone involved.South Carolina CampaignShermans neckties, confederate railroads destroyed by heating the rails in a bonfire and then twisting them, ruining them for later reuse. Source: Wikimedia CommonsFollowing his success in Georgia, Sherman turned his attention north. In early 1865, he marched his army through the Carolinas, aiming to link up with Grants forces in Virginia for a final push on Lees forces. The campaign was brutal. Shermans troops faced harsh weather and difficult terrain, but they pressed forward, capturing key cities like Columbia and Fayetteville. In Columbia, fires broke out, Sherman denied that he ordered the burning, but the event added to his already growing controversial legacy.As he advanced, Confederate resistance crumbled. By April, General Joseph E. Johnston surrendered to Sherman in North Carolina, just days after Robert E. Lee had surrendered to Grant at Appomattox. Shermans campaign through the Carolinas helped seal the Confederacys fate. It also showed his commitment to this new tactic of total war. Though often overshadowed by the surrender at Appomattox, Shermans work in the final months of the war was crucial.Reconstruction EraSherman after the war, c. 1870. Source: Wikimedia CommonsAfter the war, Sherman stayed in the Army and took on several key roles during Reconstruction. He served as commander of the Military Division of the Mississippi, overseeing large portions of the South as it was being rebuilt. Sherman shared Lincolns view of restoring order and the old Union quickly, but had little patience for politicians. He often clashed with Radical Republicans in Congress who wanted more aggressive policies that would punish the South for secession and give sweeping rights to newly emancipated slaves.While Sherman was firm in his belief that the Union had to be preserved at all costs, he didnt always agree with the vision of what the postwar South should look like, as many at the time had differing viewpoints on the methods and goals of reconstructing the country. Many urged Sherman to run for President, and while he helped enforce federal law, it was clear he was more comfortable on the battlefield than in the halls of government, as he often said, if he were elected, he would never serve.LegacyDedication of the William Tecumseh Sherman Memorial in 1903, designed by Carl Rohl-Smith, and is located near the White House (E and 15th Street). Source: Wikimedia CommonsWilliam Tecumseh Sherman remains one of the most talked-about figures of the Civil War. His tactics helped bring the conflict to a close, and his partnership with Grant was one of the most effective in US military history. His total war strategyespecially during the March to the Seahas been used to demonstrate effective scorched earth tactics in todays military institutions.After retiring from the Army, he remained outspoken and continued to write about his experiences, eventually publishing his memoirs. He famously turned down several offers to run for political office, once saying, I will not accept if nominated and will not serve if elected. Sherman died in 1891, but his influence lives on. Whether viewed as a ruthless warrior or a brilliant strategist, he left a mark on American history that wont be forgotten.

Angelica Schuyler Church, the charming Revolutionary era socialite, had her fair share of admirers, but none may be more intriguing than walking, talking, and writing contradiction in a greatcoat, Thomas Jefferson. While the third President of the United States had a reputation for solemnity after the early death of his wife, Angelica, a married woman herself, became the subject of Jeffersons letters and attention. Did the flirtatious exchanges between the two hint at something more, or was it simply the 18th-century equivalent of breadcrumbing?Angelicas Many LovesMiniature believed to be of Angelica Schuyler Church, by Samuel Shelley, 18th century. Source: PicrylAs depicted in the Broadway smash Hamilton, Angelica Schuyler was no stranger to male attention. Known for her cutting wit, beauty, and intellect, she corresponded with many of the Founding Fathers, from George Washington to the worlds favorite fighting Frenchman Marquis de Lafayette. However, her most famous admirer might be Alexander Hamiltonher brother-in-lawthough historians heatedly debate whether this relationship was playful but platonic or something significantly more. Her letters, to both Hamilton and Jefferson, reveal a woman who could charm with ease.Angelica was romantically inclined, so much so that her marriage started off with a bang that shocked her wealthy and well-connected family. Angelica eloped with John Barker Church, a British businessman and man on the run. Hed fled England after a duel (he literally shot a man and ranhe would also go on to make duels a throughline in Angelicas life). Despite his scandals, Angelica became famous for something far more gossipworthy: flirting. In this, as in many other areas, Angelica had a desire for the finer things. She only bestowed her interest on the most powerful men of the time.Letter from Angelica to Jefferson, July 21, 1788. Source: Get ArchiveMrs. Schuyler Churchs platform was Europes elite salons and Americas glittering New York ballrooms. As biographer Ron Chernow once pointed out, Angelicas connection with Hamilton was so intense that some of their contemporaries assumed they were lovers. Yet, Hamilton was not the only statesman caught in Angelicas web of charm. She also exchanged playful correspondence with Thomas Jefferson, who at one point all but begged her to join him on a leisurely trip to America. Six months after they met, Jefferson proposed (in true Jefferson fashion) that they negotiate her visit as if he were trying to clinch an international trade deal. Angelica didnt take him up on his offer.In a time when women were expected to remain behind the scenes, Angelica Schuyler Church refused to stand quietly by the men in her life. Whether she truly had affairs or just knew how to write a saucy love letter, one things for sureAngelicas pen was a force to be reckoned with.Both Knew Alexander HamiltonAlexander Hamilton, by Charles Shirreff, c. 1790. Source: PicrylIt is impossible to talk about Angelica and Jefferson without acknowledging the elephant in the roomoverachiever Alexander Hamilton. Not only was he married to Angelicas beloved sister, Eliza, but he was also one of Jeffersons most bitter political enemies.Angelica Schuyler and Thomas Jefferson both had front-row seats to the Alexander Hamilton Showand lets just say, the reviews were vastly different. On the one hand, Angelica was, like many women of the time, captivated by the handsome, well-spoken man. Hamilton was the 18th-century version of a modern-day heartthrob. His aura was less powdered wig and more troubled genius with a great jawline. Even his contemporaries described him as the youngest, best-looking, most controversial, and arguably the most brilliant of the major founders.Whether or not Angelica and Hamilton were ever more than dedicated friends has been the subject of many loud scholarly debates. Some argue that their relationship was purely platonic, driven by mutual respect and affection. If you write to someone saying you, seldom write to a lady without fancying the relation of lover and mistress, as Hamilton did in a missive to Angelica, youre either angling for a scandal or youve got the flirt game on lockdown. Meanwhile, Angelicas response to Hamiltons charm was equally flirtatious. In a letter to Hamiltons wife (yes, that Eliza), she joked that if her sister was as generous as the old Romans, shed lend her husband out for a bit. How Eliza felt about this muddle of a relationship has never been proven by documentation or a primary source.Eliza Hamilton, c. 1795. Source: PicrylOn the other side of this Hamilton-loving coin, theres Thomas Jefferson. The two mens dynamic was more clenched teeth and thinly veiled rage. They started out on vaguely cordial terms when they were both appointed to Washingtons cabinetHamilton as the Treasury Secretary and Jefferson as Secretary of Statebut things quickly turned sour. While Hamilton was all about building a strong, centralized government, Jefferson had a very different vision of America. He envisioned an agrarian utopia where noble farmers toiled in the sun, free from the clutches of big government, corporate greed, or monarchists.Quickly Jefferson became Hamiltons arch-nemesis. He organized an entire political partythe Republican Partyto make Hamiltons every move a bureaucratic nightmare. Jefferson suspected that Hamilton harbored secret plans to reinstate the monarchy and make himself king, something he didnt mind sharing with their fellow movers and shakers. While Hamilton was busy winning over the hearts of the Schuyler sisters, Jefferson was crafting bitter manifestos about corrupt, money-loving Federalists plotting behind closed doors.In the end, Angelica and Jefferson both experienced the Hamilton effectbut in very different ways. For Angelica, he was the dashing intellectual she could banter with, someone who would make her pulse race just a little faster. For Jefferson, Hamilton was more like a personal nemesis in a political cartoon: a larger-than-life character who seemed determined to ruin his idyllic pastoral vision for America. These men had one thing in commonthey found themselves waiting on Mrs. Schuyler-Churchs next letter.What Their Letters SayLetter from Angelica, 1804. Source: New York Public LibraryJeffersons letters to Angelica are filled with affectionate musings, frequently bordering on flirtation. In one, he writes about the sadness he felt after she left Paris, comparing the sunlight to an unwelcome guest during his loneliness. While Jefferson often wrote intimately to women, the tone of his letters to Angelica shows a man deeply attached to her, yet with an awareness of her marriage. It is unknowable if they ever acted on the sentiments in their letters, but the letters themselves tell modern minds about their deep and decades-long affection.One gem from Jefferson to Angelica says: The morning you left us, all was wrong, even the sunshine was provoking, with which I never quarreled before. Jefferson writes that mourning her departure, he quite literally hopped upon his horse and rode off in the direction shed gone, presumably casting longing glances at the horizon.Angelica and Jeffersons friendship was deepened by the fact that their families were quite intertwined. Jeffersons daughter, Martha, and Angelicas son, Philip, became fast friends while they were all in France. Angelicas daughter even stayed with the Jeffersons for a time. What an interesting household this must have made; Martha and Thomas daughters, Angelicas own child with John Barker Church, and a young Sally Hemmings, who would go on to give birth to at least three of Thomass future children.Daughters, by C.W. Eckersberg, 1820. Source: Raw PixelIn August 1788, he boldly invited Angelica to join him in America, proposing a kind of rendezvous that sounds more suited to a lovers getaway than a diplomatic mission. The letter lays out the flirtation, saying, Think of it, my friend, and let us begin a negotiation on the subject. You shall find in me all the spirit of accommodationYet for all the innuendo, there was something else happening in these lettersa mutual admiration for the revolutionary ideals of the time. Angelica wasnt just some charming figure in a pretty gownshe was actively involved in the political landscape, dabbling in espionage and intrigue. When she pitched in to organize a plot to free the Marquis de Lafayette from an Austrian prison, Jefferson must have been impressed.By the 1790s, Jeffersons letters still carried that warm undercurrent of affection, even while he was locking horns with Angelicas brother-in-law, Alexander Hamilton. It is a testament to their friendship that despite all the political drama, Angelica kept corresponding with Jeffersondodging his invitations to America but holding onto their connection all the same. Jefferson might have been a vice president by then, but to Angelica, he was still that sentimental man who couldnt stand the sunshine when she was gone.How History Remembers ThemRemembrance Statue, The Founders of the Daughters of the Revolution. Source: Wikimedia CommonsAngelica Schuyler remains celebrated for her intelligence and grace, while Jeffersons complex relationships with women continue to be a source of speculation. Whether or not their relationship was romantic, Angelica Schuyler and Thomas Jefferson certainly left an impression on each other, and on history.Angelica Schuyler Church may not have achieved household name recognition until Hamilton gave her a few unforgettable solos, but she was making waves long before Lin-Manuel Miranda brought her sass and brilliance into the spotlight. It is a shame her fame today tends to focus on the men she was tied to. Angelica was a renegade, navigating a world that did not quite know what to do with a woman who was both sharp as a tack and unafraid to get her hands dirty. It was because of her patronage that many male painters were able to fund their art.In a letter from Thomas Jefferson, he waxes poetic about Angelicas wit and charm: The urn is well worth acceptance, my dear Madam, on its own account but it is more flattering to me to accept it on account of the giver. He goes on to say, I am with you always in spirit: be you with me sometimes. That is 18th-century code for, I really wish I could hang out with you more.Angelicas death in 1814 didnt end her influence. Though her exact grave remains a bit of a mystery, her marker stands at the Livingston Family vault in the Trinity Churchyard, right where tourists flock to visit her more famous in-laws, Alexander and Eliza Hamilton.Thomas Jefferson, presidential portrait, by Rembrandt Peale, 1801. Source: The White HouseIt appears that brilliance and a streak of independence runs in the Schuyler blood. Take Angelicas descendant Marian Cruger Coffin, for example. Born in 1876, Marian became one of Americas pioneering landscape architects, designing gardens for an East Coast elite clientele. At a time when women were expected to pick flowers rather than design where they bloomed, Marian broke the mold. She studied at MIT, one of just four women in her field at the time, and went on to craft some of the most famous gardens in the country. Angelica would have been proud.Thomas Jefferson, a man who was just as obsessed with his legacy as he was with writing flowery letters, was no stranger to self-promotion. In his final years, he meticulously shaped how future generations would remember him, going so far as to draft his own epitaph. In classic Jefferson fashion, he highlighted his authorship of the Declaration of Independence and his founding of the University of Virginia, purposefully omitting his role as president. Perhaps he preferred to be remembered for writing the Declaration of Independence rather than for governing a nascent nation with messy politics. To Jefferson, education, and liberty were the cornerstones of his legacy. Despite his heavy-handed propaganda, the critics came for him, questioning his commitment to individual freedom while conveniently ignoring his role as a slaveholder.Jeffersons descendants have been making their own waves in the modern era. Shannon LaNier, his DNA-proven sixth great-grandson through Sally Hemings, has taken the complicated legacy of Jefferson head-on. LaNier, now an author and TV host, has been vocal about how he hopes his familys history can play a role in healing the divisions in the United States. He continues to engage in conversations about race, identity, and the complexities of Americas past, navigating the mixed legacy Jefferson left behind.Thomas Jefferson Statue at University of Virginia, by Kipp Teague. Source: FlickrAngelica Schuyler and Thomas Jefferson were not simply characters in the background of revolutionary history. While Jefferson has been etched into marble and textbooks, Angelica, for all her social connections, intelligence, and audacity, has only recently started getting the credit she deserves. The small town of Angelica, New York, named in her honor by her son, might be far from the glamorous places she once called home, but it stands as a testament to the kind of woman she wasone who left her mark, whether or not history was paying attention. It might be time to give Angelica a bit more of the spotlight and recognize her as the feminine influencer she was. After all, a woman who could charm Jefferson and offer casual political advice to Hamilton is not someone who should be reduced to a footnote in someone elses story.

Fighting games, as a genre, have been around for decades, bringing people into arcades by the bucketfull to see the latest characters and combos. Of course, as with any genre of game, not every game can safely weather the passage of the ages. More than a few top-shelf fighting games have sadly been lost to the tides of time, barring perhaps the occasional cameo in another of the same publishers games or a token legacy collection.

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