~★~♥~♥~★~ El Morno! ♥~★~★~♥ ~
May 2, 2011

Post updated: May 2, 2012

★~  Today’s Quote: “There are far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind.” ~ C.S. Lewis

★~ Scurvy Awareness Day:

“Eat your greens and drink your juicy . . . you don’t want SCURVY,” my mama would say to me when I was growing up; and of course, I now say it to Cole. I had no idea what scurvy was, but it sounded just awful, so I always ate my greens and drank my juicy. Today, for the first time, I Googled ‘scurvy,’ and just like my mama said, you don’t want it. I have no intention of sharing the gruesome details with you over a morning cuppa . . . suffice to say, make sure you get, what pirates call, ‘yer daily glass of arrr-ange juice.’

Moving right along to a more pleasant celebration…Today is also National Truffle Day. There are two types of truffles: Tasty truffle fungus and a rich heavenly chocolate truffle.

It is a lot of truffle to find the truffle fungus; highly trained pigs sniff them out on the forest floor. A truffle fungus has a very pungent flavor, and a little goes along way—which is good thing, since highly trained pigs don’t work cheaply making the fungus an expensive gourmet delicacy.

And then there is the lovely chocolate truffle.

Chocolate truffles were named after the truffle fungus because of the physical resemblance, but the similarities end with the looks. Chocolate truffles are filled with ganache, caramel, cream or other delights. And according to Dying for Chocolate, the chocolate bourbon ball is a truffle in disguise and would be the perfect truffle to compliment Kentucky Derby weekend. Dying for Chocolate also shares a very simple truffle recipe.

★~ Today in History:

♥~ 1885 – A new magazine for homemakers went on sale. You can still get it by mail or find it right next to the cash register at your favorite grocery store. The magazine is Good Housekeeping. It has our seal of approval.

♥~ 1953 – Dark Star defeated the heavily favored Native Dancer to win the Kentucky Derby. A $2 wager to win on this dark horse would have put some change in your pocket. Dark Star was a 25-1 long shot.

♥~ 1969 – The British liner Queen Elizabeth 2 (QE2) left on her maiden voyage to New York.

♥~ 1981 – Scottish singer Sheena Easton made it to the top spot on the pop music charts for her first — and only — time. Morning Train (Nine to Five) knocked Kiss on My List, by Daryl Hall and John Oates, out of the top of the music charts.  Morning Train pulled into the top spot for a two-week stay.

★~Born Today:

♥~1903 – Benjamin Spock baby doctor, author: The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care; died Mar 15, 1998

♥~1904 – Bing Crosby, US singer who recorded an estimated 2,600 songs in his lifetime including ‘White Christmas’, which was written by Irving Berlin. Crosby had 317 other hits in the USA. Died of a heart attack on a golf course in Madrid, Spain, on October 14, 1977.

♥~ 1936 – Engelbert Humperdinck (Arnold George Dorsey) singer: After the Lovin’, Release Me, There Goes My Everything, The Last Waltz, A Man Without Love, Winter World of Love, Les Bicyclettes de Belsize

♥~ 1937 – Lorenzo Music actor: voice of Garfield, Carlton the Doorman [in Rhoda]; Emmy Award-winning producer: Carlton, Your Doorman [5/21/80]; died Aug 4, 2001

♥~ 1945 – Bianca Jagger actress, model; Mick Jagger’s ex

♥~1952 – Christine Baranski actress: The Good Wife, Chicago: The Musical, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, The Odd Couple II, The Birdcage, Addams Family Values, Welcome to Mooseport

★~ Did You Know:

♥~ 1 baby is born every 8 seconds in the U.S.

♥~ During the nine months between conception and birth, a baby’s weight increases 3,000 million times. On average. And this doesn’t even take into account for multiple births.

♥~ Wednesday’s is the day of the week most babies are born on and August wins the title for most babied born (US).

♥~ Babies born today have life expectancy of 78.11 years: Science now says that the average life expectancy for today’s newborns is an average of 78.11 years — 80.60 years for females and 75.65 years for males.

♥~ A tribe in Africa whose diet consists mostly of yams was recently found to have exceptionally high rates of twins and multiple births.

♥~ A Turned Head Means A Full Belly :  If a newborn turns her head at a spoonful of food, it is because they are full. This is also where shaking your head “no” comes from.

♥~ 105 boys are born for every 100 girls – worldwide

♥~ Men change diapers more efficiently than women accomplishing the task in only 1 minute and 36 second, while women take an average of 2 minutes and 5 seconds.

♥~ About 1 in five toddlers can open bottles with child-resistant tops.

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An elderly man lay dying in his bed.
In death’s agony, he suddenly smelled the aroma of his favorite chocolate chocolate truffles wafting up the stairs. Gathering his remaining strength, he lifted himself from the bed. He slowly made his way out of the bedroom, and, with even greater effort, forced himself down the stairs, gripping the railing with both hands. With labored breath, he leaned against the door, gazing into the kitchen. Were it not for death’s agony, he would have thought himself already in heaven: there, spread out on the kitchen table, were hundreds of his favorite chocolate truffles. Mustering one final effort, he threw himself toward the table. His aged and withered hand painstakingly made its way toward a truffle when it was suddenly smacked by a spatula. “Stay out of those,” said his wife, “they’re for the funeral.”

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I am still thinking about the pig and the truffles--are you? What happens after the highly trained, very large pig sniffs out the very hard to find, delicious truffle, how does the harvester talk the pig out of the truffle? I’m doubtful the command DROP works!! I bet the harvester follows the pig, lets him sniff out the truffle, and then offers the pig a trade for the truffle . . . but what kind of trade?

Drop me a comment if you have the time–Odd Loves Company!

Kb