Voting Begins, Passover Continues

Today is Wednesday, April 20, 2011. Venice's weather forecast is calling for partly cloudy skies, with highs in the mid-60s. Sunset will be at 7:31 p.m.

Today marks the first day of voting in the 36th congressional district special election to replace former Rep. Jane Harman. Registered voters will begin receiving mail-in ballots today. Stay tuned to Patch for profiles of all the major candidates.

Passover, which began on the 18th, continues through the 26th. Running out of recipes? Check out this one for . Yum.

Fifty years ago this week, a group of CIA-trained Cuban exiles attempted to overthrow Fidel Castro's government. The unsuccessful invasion went down in history as both a huge debacle and a narrow avoidance of full-blown war with the U.S.S.R. While the U.S. has gone through nine presidents since then, Castro only resigned as head of his country's communist party yesterday.

Finally, one more celebration: College students across the country are observing a different kind of holiday today. The origins of 420 are obscure, some saying that it was the police code for marijuana, but according to a High Times article, it started the way most of pot culture started: with a bunch of people sitting around and getting high. To all of Venice's medical marijuana dispensaries, to the dudes on the boardwalk who seem to always emit that certain smell, and to everyone celebrating quietly in their homes: Happy 420, Venice.