~★~♥~♥~★~ El Morno! ♥~★~★~♥ ~
August 19, 2012

★~ Today’s Quote: When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been, and there you will always long to return.  ~Leonardo Da Vinci

★~ National Aviation Day:

Today we appreciate the work of aviators throughout the years who have helped make the skies friendlier.

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt established  National Aviation Day to recognize the development of aviation. Today is the birthday of Orville Wright, who worked with his brother Wilbur to invent the world’s first successful airplane. Are you wondering why FDR pick the b-day of Orville instead of Wilbur’s?  Was it because he liked Orville better or because Orville had an awesome mustache and Wilbur didn’t? Check out “Did You Know” if your inquiring mind wants the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

★~ Hot and Spicy Day:

Your tastebuds are going to tapping out a tasty tango because today is National Hot And Spicy Food Day. Let the fiery food celebration begin! Just be sure to keep a glass of milk close by if the burn proves a touch too much for you.Our forebears discovered the joy of spices in 7000 BC, and we’ve been using it ever since. Pungent hot sauces followed as a favorite condiment. Certain cultures acquired a taste for spicy food, and centered their entire cuisine around it, and we’re still reaping the benefits today.

One of the greatest perks for lovers of hot, spicy dishes is that they can follow the sizzle all over the globe. Indian, Japanese, Chinese and Mexican dishes are famed for their spicy nature, but flaming hot flavor can be found almost anywhere.

Hot spices also fire up the immune system, libido and even stimulate the brain. So douse your lunch in hot sauce, chomp on a hot chili, throw some wasabi in the wok or light your fire with a fiery beef and rice noodle salad. Just beware of flamethrower breath – it’s just not cool.

★~ Potato Day:

Fried, baked or mashed, everyone loves a good old-fashioned potato. Cheap and easy to prepare, spuds are America’s favorite side dish. Accompanying everything from a juicy burger to a Thanksgiving turkey, potatoes are versatile and can be served with almost anything. The average annual diet of a global citizen is 73 pounds of potatoes, and the world’s top potato producer is China.

Potatoes in pasta? Mario Batali uses spuds in his gnocchi recipe. And potatoes for dessert? Emeril uses sweet potatoes in this pudding   Click here for Potato Lore.

★~ Today in History:

♥~ 1856 – Gail Borden of Brooklyn, NY patented his process for condensed milk. You’ve heard of Borden’s condensed milk … “The milk from contented cows.” This slogan was used in one of the great American advertising campaigns. The familiar flat- topped cans of Borden’s condensed milk are still available, as are Borden’s ice cream, cheese and other products — all with the seal of approval by Borden’s famous mascot, Elsie, the cow.

♥~ 1993 ~ Speaking of Cows Frank J. Wisner, owner of Cripple Creek Brewing, served the first root beer float in Cripple Creek, CO. Inspired by the moonlit view of snowcapped Cow Mountain, he added a scoop of ice cream to his Myers Avenue Red root beer and began serving it as the “Black Cow Mountain.” Kids loved it and shortened the name to “Black Cow.” Cripple Creek Brewing still sells beverages based on the original formulas.

♥~ 1972 – Chicago V hit #1 on U.S. album charts. It top the album charts for nine weeks with these tracks: A Hit by Varese, All is Well, Now That You’ve Gone, Dialogue (Part I),Dialogue (Part II), While the City Sleeps, Saturday in the Park, State of the Union, Goodbye and Alma Mater.

♥~ 1981 – Charlie’s Angels, starring Farrah Fawcett, Kate Jackson, Jaclyn Smith and the voice of John Forsythe as Charlie, was seen for the last time on ABC-TV. The show went into syndication and is still seen on cable TV.

★~Born Today:

♥~ 1871 – Orville Wright aviator: one of the Wright Brothers: pioneers in aviation; died Jan 30, 1948

♥~ 1883 – Coco (Gabriel Bonheur) Chanel fashion designer; perfume creator: Chanel #5; died Jan 10, 1971

♥~ 1902 – (Frederic) Ogden Nash poet; Ogden Nash, the undisputed American master of light verse, wrote quite frequently for The New Yorker. One of his most well-known couplets from Reflections on Ice-Breaking reads: “Candy is dandy, but liquor is quicker.” Mr. Nash had fun with just about any subject. Consider this little ditty from his observations at the dinner table: “Celery, raw, develops the jaw. But celery, stewed, is more quietly chewed.” died May 19, 1971

♥~ 1940 – Johnny Nash singer: I Can See Clearly Now, Stir It Up, Hold Me Tight, A Very Special Love

♥~ 1955 – Peter Gallagher actor: Sex, Lies, and Videotape, Short Cuts, The Hudsucker Proxy, The Man Who Knew Too Little, American Beauty

♥~ 1969 – Matthew Perry, Actor “Friends”

★~ Did You Know: The real real reason Orville birthday was picked instead of Wilburs…. 

Monday, December 14, 1903. Brothers Orville and Wilbur Wright, having worked and planned for months for this day, were ready to attempt the first flight in their revolutionary airplane, the Flyer.They’d actually been in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, since late September, but engine problems had continually delayed the project.

Realizing that winter was coming and time was running short, when they made their final adjustments to the plane, they decided to go ahead and attempt the first powered flight without further testing. Ever the team, the brothers chose to flip a coin to see which one of them would be the first to take to the air. Older brother Wilbur won… sort of.

He won the coin toss, all right. But amazingly, the elevator control on the plane proved too powerful, and Wilbur overcompensated upon takeoff. While the craft did get off the ground, it traveled only a few feet before slamming back to earth, causing some damage.

It took two days to repair the Flyer, and when the brothers made their next attempt on December 17, it was Orville’s turn to man the controls. This he did in a famous fashion, becoming the first human being to successfully pilot a mechanically-powered, heavier-than-air vehicle. Each brother had two flights that day, and although Wilbur’s final flight was the most impressive one (traveling 852 feet in just short of one minute), Orville was, and would always be, the first.

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The air and water show is going on in Chicago as I type. Love watching them swoop and swore over Lake Michigan. Very cool!  Will be back later…I have bunches to share. Including pictures of our new fish–Joy the Koi!

Until we meet again….have a beautiful Sunday

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