January 11

Amelia Mary Earhart was a woman who got around, and I mean that in only the most complimentary way. She was a woman with great stamina and an unceasing love of flying. In the period from 1930 to 1935, she set seven women’s speed and distance records for flying. On the 11th in 1935, she set her plane down in Oakland, California, successfully completing the first solo trans-pacific flight by either a man or a woman. I have been unable to discover why she chose to land in Oakland, although my guess is that she had never been there before because if she had she certainly would have chosen some place else.
Whenever you think that your life is far too busy, take a moment to consider that in addition to this trans-pacific flight Earhart was also the first woman to fly across the Atlantic. She was the first woman to fly the Atlantic alone and the first person to fly the Atlantic alone twice. Furthermore, she was the first woman to fly an autogyro and the first person to cross the United States in an autogyro. On top of all that, she was the first woman to receive the Distinguished Flying Cross, the first woman to fly non-stop coast-to-coast across the US, and the first person to fly solo nonstop from Mexico City to Newark, New Jersey.