Charlie Brown’s favorite baseball player is
a guy whose career was anything but spectacular. After batting .004
in one season in the majors, Joe Shlabotnik was sent back down to
the minor leagues, where his most notable highlight was throwing out
a runner who fell down between first and second base.
When Shlabotnik became the manager for the Waffletown Syrups,
Charlie Brown finally got to meet his hero. While in the stands,
Charlie Brown snagged a foul ball, and he wanted Shlabotnik to sign
it. Unfortunately, Shlabotnik had been fired in the middle of the
game.
Like all adults, he is never actually seen in Peanuts.
---------------
Jul 27, 2012
Hires Root Beer
Like several other soft drinks, Hires Root
Beer (now owned by Dr Pepper Snapple) was developed by a pharmacist.
According to one of the many stories behind the origin of America’s
oldest root beer, Philadelphia’s Charles E. Hires discovered an
herbal tea made of roots, berries, and herbs while on his honeymoon.
Hires introduced a root beer powder mix that consumers could use to
make their own root beer at the 1876 U.S. Centennial Exposition in
Philadelphia, where Alexander Graham Bell showcased his telephone.
Charles developed a soda fountain syrup version of his root beer in
1884 and began bottling the drink in 1893. Only Detroit's Vernor's
Ginger Ale is older, introduced in 1866 and is now also owned by Dr
Pepper Snapple.
His decision to market the beverage as a beer rather than a tea, as he had originally considered doing, appealed to the Pennsylvania miners and added to Hires’ popularity during Prohibition. Incidentally, the R-J on the bottle stood for Root Juices.
His decision to market the beverage as a beer rather than a tea, as he had originally considered doing, appealed to the Pennsylvania miners and added to Hires’ popularity during Prohibition. Incidentally, the R-J on the bottle stood for Root Juices.
Get Sick Saving the Planet
Plastic grocery bags may harm
the planet. Paper grocery bags deplete the forests. Reusable grocery
bags may contain lead and also cause illness from germs and cross
contamination.
Los Angeles became the largest US city to ban the use of plastic grocery bags, along with four dozen other California municipalities. Every county in Hawaii also prohibits them. Austin goes them one better and passed one of the broadest bag laws in the nation, agreeing to ban disposable paper and plastic bags starting in March 2013 in favor of reusable bags.
Reusable grocery bags carry E. coli germs along with a variety of other bacteria and some bags contain seven times the lead limit of many states. According to one study, Grocery shoppers must us their reusable bags 131 times to see the environmental benefits touted by global warming zealots. To be safe, reusable bags need to be washed and preferably bleached to prevent cross contamination, especially bags that transport meat, fish, fresh vegetables, or fruit.
Another source of potentially dangerous infectious comes from the checker scanning foods over the same surface of the scanner that everyone else's food passes over.
Many people reuse plastic bags for garbage, pet cleanup, transporting wet clothing, etc., so not using them causes these people to buy plastic garbage bags, which helps defeat the purpose of bag bans.
Lower priced reusable bags found in stores are either plastic themselves or made from 100% non-woven polypropylene. In 2010, a study found that over half are contaminated with bacteria, some even with E. coli, because 97 percent of shoppers say they never wash their totes.
Wash counters and cabinets where bags are stored and never let them rest on the floor, because they pick up germs from food packaging, shopping carts, car trunks, etc. Some suggest putting reusable bags in a microwave for a minute or two after each use to sanitize them.
An average family of four would need to keep at least a dozen or more bags for a normal shopping trip.
Los Angeles became the largest US city to ban the use of plastic grocery bags, along with four dozen other California municipalities. Every county in Hawaii also prohibits them. Austin goes them one better and passed one of the broadest bag laws in the nation, agreeing to ban disposable paper and plastic bags starting in March 2013 in favor of reusable bags.
Reusable grocery bags carry E. coli germs along with a variety of other bacteria and some bags contain seven times the lead limit of many states. According to one study, Grocery shoppers must us their reusable bags 131 times to see the environmental benefits touted by global warming zealots. To be safe, reusable bags need to be washed and preferably bleached to prevent cross contamination, especially bags that transport meat, fish, fresh vegetables, or fruit.
Another source of potentially dangerous infectious comes from the checker scanning foods over the same surface of the scanner that everyone else's food passes over.
Many people reuse plastic bags for garbage, pet cleanup, transporting wet clothing, etc., so not using them causes these people to buy plastic garbage bags, which helps defeat the purpose of bag bans.
Lower priced reusable bags found in stores are either plastic themselves or made from 100% non-woven polypropylene. In 2010, a study found that over half are contaminated with bacteria, some even with E. coli, because 97 percent of shoppers say they never wash their totes.
Wash counters and cabinets where bags are stored and never let them rest on the floor, because they pick up germs from food packaging, shopping carts, car trunks, etc. Some suggest putting reusable bags in a microwave for a minute or two after each use to sanitize them.
An average family of four would need to keep at least a dozen or more bags for a normal shopping trip.
What's in a Name, Balaclava
It has been a favorite headgear
of skiers and robbers and before that was worn by British troops
unaccustomed to the bitter cold Russian weather during the Crimean
War. They were also used as helmet liners as they could be rolled up
to just cover the head.
It started being called Balaclava almost 30 years later and the name comes from the town of Balaclava in present-day Ukraine where an important battle in the Crimean War was fought.
It started being called Balaclava almost 30 years later and the name comes from the town of Balaclava in present-day Ukraine where an important battle in the Crimean War was fought.
Cups and Balls
Sometimes it takes a new twist to make things
interesting again. Here is a master of the cup and balls illusion. LINK
Caskets and Coffins
The words coffin and casket are often
used interchangeably to describe a box used to bury a dead body in.
Although the general purpose of each is the same, there are small
differences between the two.
The term coffin has been used since the early 16th century to describe a container that holds a dead body for burial. The shape of a coffin typically resembles the shape of a body and has six or eight sides. It is wider at the top for the shoulders and gradually decreases in width toward the end where the feet are placed. The shape is considered to save wood for construction and can be cheaper than a casket. The word coffin is derived from the Greek word kophinos, meaning basket.
A casket originally described a box used to store jewelry and other small valuable items before coming to have an additional meaning with coffin around the mid-19th century. A casket is typically a four-sided rectangular box and, when used for burying people, often contains a split-lid for viewing purposes.
Interestingly, it is thought that the word casket was adopted as a substitute word for coffin because it was deemed less offensive, especially when morticians and undertakers began operating funeral parlors instead of mortuaries. The shape of a casket also was thought to be less dismal because it did not depict the shape of a dead body.
The main difference between a coffin and a casket is essentially just the shape. A casket may still refer to a jewelry box and not necessarily a box to bury a body in.
When a coffin is used to transport a deceased person, it can also be called a pall, a term that also refers to the cloth used to cover a coffin. The word pall bearers comes from those carrying the pall or coffin.
The term coffin has been used since the early 16th century to describe a container that holds a dead body for burial. The shape of a coffin typically resembles the shape of a body and has six or eight sides. It is wider at the top for the shoulders and gradually decreases in width toward the end where the feet are placed. The shape is considered to save wood for construction and can be cheaper than a casket. The word coffin is derived from the Greek word kophinos, meaning basket.
A casket originally described a box used to store jewelry and other small valuable items before coming to have an additional meaning with coffin around the mid-19th century. A casket is typically a four-sided rectangular box and, when used for burying people, often contains a split-lid for viewing purposes.
Interestingly, it is thought that the word casket was adopted as a substitute word for coffin because it was deemed less offensive, especially when morticians and undertakers began operating funeral parlors instead of mortuaries. The shape of a casket also was thought to be less dismal because it did not depict the shape of a dead body.
The main difference between a coffin and a casket is essentially just the shape. A casket may still refer to a jewelry box and not necessarily a box to bury a body in.
When a coffin is used to transport a deceased person, it can also be called a pall, a term that also refers to the cloth used to cover a coffin. The word pall bearers comes from those carrying the pall or coffin.
Jul 20, 2012
Happy Friday
Maturity is gratification delayed, opportunity parlayed, and
self-denial repaid.
I have delayed a week but parlayed the delay and repaid myself with a Happy Friday!
I have delayed a week but parlayed the delay and repaid myself with a Happy Friday!
Crwth
The crwth (Prounouced Crooth) is also called a crowd
and is an archaic stringed musical instrument, associated
particularly with Welsh music, once widely-played in
Europe.
Played like a violin. It has six strings tuned e e' a' a b' b'' and a flat bridge and fingerboard. It has begun to make a mini comeback in folk music circles.
Played like a violin. It has six strings tuned e e' a' a b' b'' and a flat bridge and fingerboard. It has begun to make a mini comeback in folk music circles.
'Merica Burger
Received this from my niece and a friend
on Facebook. Too good not to share. LINK
California burger chain Slater's 50/50 has a menu that features a burger made of 100 percent ground bacon and comes topped with a slice of thick-cut bacon, bacon island dressing, and bacon flavored cheddar cheese. It's only non-bacon topping is a sunny-side-up egg. Alas, it is only offered in July and it is called 'Merica
Its regular flagship burger is made of half ground beef and half ground bacon.
The 'Merica follows previous burgers-of-the-month, including a Pulled Pork Burger and a Chili Cheese Frito Burger. Slater's offers several other bacon-themed goodies, including a bacon brownie and the Bakon Mary, a twist on the Bloody Mary cocktail featuring bacon-infused vodka, a rim of bacon salt and a slice of thick-cut bacon as garnish. Almost makes me wish I was still back there, except for the fact that it is California.
California burger chain Slater's 50/50 has a menu that features a burger made of 100 percent ground bacon and comes topped with a slice of thick-cut bacon, bacon island dressing, and bacon flavored cheddar cheese. It's only non-bacon topping is a sunny-side-up egg. Alas, it is only offered in July and it is called 'Merica
Its regular flagship burger is made of half ground beef and half ground bacon.
The 'Merica follows previous burgers-of-the-month, including a Pulled Pork Burger and a Chili Cheese Frito Burger. Slater's offers several other bacon-themed goodies, including a bacon brownie and the Bakon Mary, a twist on the Bloody Mary cocktail featuring bacon-infused vodka, a rim of bacon salt and a slice of thick-cut bacon as garnish. Almost makes me wish I was still back there, except for the fact that it is California.
Looking at Tomorrow
There are two islands known as the
Diomedes, about two and a half miles apart in the middle of the
Bering Strait, between Siberia, Russia and Alaska. One of them,
Little Diomede, belongs to the US, and has a population of about
150. The other island, Big Diomede belongs to Russia and is
uninhabited, except for Russian border guards.
The space between these two islands marks not only an international border, but the International Date Line as well, making it possible for the folks on Little Diomede to wake up on a Sunday and look across the water to Big Diomede, where it’s already Monday. I guess this means the Russians are ahead of the US, at least by a day.
The space between these two islands marks not only an international border, but the International Date Line as well, making it possible for the folks on Little Diomede to wake up on a Sunday and look across the water to Big Diomede, where it’s already Monday. I guess this means the Russians are ahead of the US, at least by a day.
Four Fun Food Facts
NECCO Wafers - New England
Confectionery COmpany.
The Quaker Oats guy's name is Larry.
Barbie’s full name is Barbara Millicent Roberts.
Kool-Aid was originally marketed as “Fruit Smack.”
The Quaker Oats guy's name is Larry.
Barbie’s full name is Barbara Millicent Roberts.
Kool-Aid was originally marketed as “Fruit Smack.”
Going Dutch
Some pejorative expressions using Dutch were
created through cultural enmity between the English and the Dutch
during their fight for naval supremacy in the seventeenth century.
Some included: Dutch reckoning (a bill presented without any
details and which gets bigger if you argue), Dutch widow (a
prostitute) and Dutch feast (an alcohol-fueled event in which the
host gets drunk ahead of his guests).
Others, including Dutch courage and Dutch uncle, Going Dutch, Dutch lunch, Dutch treat, Dutch party, and Dutch supper, all with closely similar meanings, are American creations from the nineteenth century.
They were used in the literal sense of a meal reflecting a particular culture. The evidence shows they were more correctly German, as in Pennsylvania Dutch. A newspaper report in 1894 mentions that for a Dutch supper to be successful everything must be “consistently expressive of the fatherland” and mentions rye bread, cabbage salad, Wienerwursts (hot dogs), and beer. Americans invented the terms based on their observations of the habits of the immigrants. Early users applied them as straightforward descriptions and not as derogatory terms. So, let's do lunch, Dutch treat.
Others, including Dutch courage and Dutch uncle, Going Dutch, Dutch lunch, Dutch treat, Dutch party, and Dutch supper, all with closely similar meanings, are American creations from the nineteenth century.
They were used in the literal sense of a meal reflecting a particular culture. The evidence shows they were more correctly German, as in Pennsylvania Dutch. A newspaper report in 1894 mentions that for a Dutch supper to be successful everything must be “consistently expressive of the fatherland” and mentions rye bread, cabbage salad, Wienerwursts (hot dogs), and beer. Americans invented the terms based on their observations of the habits of the immigrants. Early users applied them as straightforward descriptions and not as derogatory terms. So, let's do lunch, Dutch treat.
Chantilly Lace
Some of you might remember the Big
Bopper’s hit of the same name in 1958. LINK
Some will remember what it looks like. This style of lace-making dates to the 1600s. While the majority of the lace was actually produced elsewhere, it gets its name from the town of Chantilly, France.
Some will remember what it looks like. This style of lace-making dates to the 1600s. While the majority of the lace was actually produced elsewhere, it gets its name from the town of Chantilly, France.
Jul 19, 2012
Sons of the Desert Convention
The 18th annual (held every
other year) international convention is being held July 17 - 22 in
Manchester New Hampshire. It is attended by folks who love a good
time and follow Laurel and Hardy. I have attended a few and had a
great time. During one convention in California, we staged a pie
fight to commemorate a scene from another of L&H movies. It
turned out to be the largest pie fight in the world and we were on
the TV show 'Real People'. Took me days to get the lemon custard out
of every nook and cranny of my body.
The 'Sons of the Desert' name is taken from a lodge that the boys belonged to in the movie of the same name. It is an international fraternal organization devoted to lives and films of comedians Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. Each participating city has a "tent" with the name taken from one of their movies. The exception is Detroit, which took the name 'Dancing Cuckoos' from the theme song.
The group is loosely formed and has never approved the bylaws, which Stan Laurel said must maintain a 'half-assed dignity'. Meetings consist of watching their old movies and enjoying drinks and popcorn. Each year the bylaws are brought up for vote and ceremoniously ignored. The leader of the group has the title 'Exhausted Ruler', also taken from one of the movies. It was formed in 1964.
The 'Sons of the Desert' name is taken from a lodge that the boys belonged to in the movie of the same name. It is an international fraternal organization devoted to lives and films of comedians Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. Each participating city has a "tent" with the name taken from one of their movies. The exception is Detroit, which took the name 'Dancing Cuckoos' from the theme song.
The group is loosely formed and has never approved the bylaws, which Stan Laurel said must maintain a 'half-assed dignity'. Meetings consist of watching their old movies and enjoying drinks and popcorn. Each year the bylaws are brought up for vote and ceremoniously ignored. The leader of the group has the title 'Exhausted Ruler', also taken from one of the movies. It was formed in 1964.
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