~★~♥~♥~★~ El Morno! ♥~★~★~♥ ~
October 8, 2012

★~ Today’s Quote:

Columbus sailed the ocean blue
Back in 1492.
He sailed across and spotted land,
A beach, and people on the sand.
He called them Indians because
He had no idea where he was,
India was just a guess.
When in doubt, declare success.
~   by Ramon Montaigne

★~ Happy Thanksgiving Canada! 
  

Thanksgiving looks much the same on either side of the border. In both the United States and Canada relatives come together around an excess of turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy and pumpkin pie.

But the roots of Thanksgiving diverge. The Canadians celebrated Thanksgiving 43 years before the Pilgrims reached Plymouth. In Canada the first Thanksgiving meal was salt beef served with rock-hard crackers and mushy peas. Seconds, anyone? It wasn’t much of a feast, but that’s what Sir Martin Frobisher and his crew had in their larder for the first Thanksgiving meal on what would be Canadian soil. After voyaging to Baffin Island they held a ceremony in 1578 to thank God for their safe arrival.Starting in 1604 Samuel de Champlain, began a custom of celebrating the harvest with annual feasts in New France, Canada.

Happy Thanksgiving O’Canada we are grateful to have you as a neighbor and El Morno friend! Now pass the turkey please!

Click for more fascinating facts about Canada.

★~  Columbus Day: 

(More about Columbus Day–Scroll down to ‘Did You Know’)

★~ Touch Tag Day:

You’re it! Got to run…

★~  National Pierogi Day

If you’ve never tasted these wonderful little Polish dumplings, you’re in for a real treat. Pierogis originated sometime during the 13th century and were a common peasant food. Probably the most popular variety is the potato pierogi, but you can also find them filled with cheese, sauerkraut, mushrooms and sometimes even fruit.

The best way to celebrate Pierogi Day is at the dinner table! Most grocery stores now carry good quality pierogi in their frozen foods section. If you’ve got the time, however, here is a traditional pierogi recipe to try out.

★~ Fluffernutter Sandwich Day: 

A Fluffernutter is a yummy sandwich made with bread, peanut butter, and marshmallow fluff.

Marshmallow candy can be traced back to ancient Egypt when people first began to harvest the marshmallow plant (Althaea officinalis). During the 19th century, French pharmacists extracted the juice from marshmallow plants and heated it with egg whites and sugar, creating a marshmallow cream.

Then, in 1917, Archibald Query of Somerville, Massachusetts created the special formula for the marshmallow fluff we know and love today. The city of Somerville celebrates with the famous “What the Fluff” festival every year!

Have a fluffernutter sammie for lunch and find out what all the fluff is about. This year (El Morno Friend Carol’s suggestion) I’m going to add some Hersey chocolate to my fluffernutter sammie!

★~ Today in History:

♥~ 1871 – The story : Mrs. O’Leary’s cow kicked over a lantern in her barn, on DeKoven Street in Chicago, the barn caught fire. The fire spread, scorching almost four square miles, killing about 300 people and leaving a path of destruction valued at over two hundred million dollars. The city of Chicago was virtually leveled. But out of the ashes, a phoenix, in the guise of a steel and concrete Chicago, rose — all because of one cow.

Now, more than 125 years later, a history buff, Richard Bales, says it may not have been Mrs. O’Leary’s cow, after all. It seems that Daniel ‘Peg Leg’ Sullivan, a neighbor of the O’Leary’s, was in the barn feeding his mother’s cow. He either kicked over a lantern or dropped a match or pipe, setting the famous fire. Sullivan, who had been questioned about the fire, said he was across the street when he saw the fire break out. A two-story building would have blocked his view. So, Bales theorizes that Sullivan lied and was the cause of the fire, rather than Mrs. O’Leary’s cow.

A camp song from the good old days (Thank you, El Morno Friend Cynthia)

One dark night, when we were all in bed.
Old Mother Murphey put a lantern in her shed.
When the cow kicked it over, she winked her eye and said,
“It’ll be a hot time, in the old town, tonight!” FIRE! FIRE! FIRE!

(faster) One night dark, when all in bed we were,
Old Murphey’s Mother put a shed in her lantern.
And when the kick cowed it over, she eyed her wink and said,
“There’ll be a time hot, in the town old, night to!” ERIF! ERIF! ERIF!

♥~ 1952 – The Complete Book of Etiquette was first published.

♥~ 1984 – Anne Murray won the Country Music Association’s Album of the Year Award  for A Little Good News. Murray was the first woman to win this award.

★~ Born Today:

♥~ 1943 –Actor-comedian Chevy Chase (Cornelius Crane Chase)

♥~ 1943 – Author R.L. [Robert Lawrence] Stine,  R.L. quit his job as a social studies teacher to author books for young adults. By the early 1990s, hie books were selling about a million copies per month. To keep up with demand, he had to write 20 pages a day, finishing a book every two weeks. His Fear Street series was the first modern book series for children that sold equally well to both boys and girls. Stein answers critics that say his books are aren’t good for children by saying  “I believe that kids as well as adults are entitled to books of no socially redeeming value.”

♥~ 1949 – Actress Sigourney (Susan) Weaver actress

♥~ 1950 – Singer Robert “Kool” Bell of Kool: Kool and the Gang

♥~ 1970 – Actor Matt Damon actor

★~ Did you know: 

Similar to just about every other national holiday, Columbus Day has a rich and colorful history. It was celebrated as early as 1792, became official under President Frankin D. Roosevelt in 1937, and then in 1972 got moved to the second Monday in October.

Often told in a narrative emphasizing Columbus’ challenging of the status quo (“The earth is round, not flat!”), the story of him discovering America  been used to teach countless young children such values as persistence, sharing and thinking differently. This is one story and many people stick to it but it’s not exactly how it happened. These days we know Columbus didn’t really “discover” America — it had already been discovered by the Native Americans. To put it harshly Columbus stole America from the Native Americans.  In an effort to be politically correct today we can just thank Columbus for discovering this day off.

Celebrating today can include refusing to ask for directions,  you can also go out and look for new continents or as one popular e-card suggests, just walk into your neighbors home saying, “Happy Columbus Day! and tell them your family lives there now.”

By the way, Native Americans know today as the anniversary of the day they discovered Christopher Columbus and while there may be plenty of good deals and sales out there, I guarantee you one thing you won’t see, Columbus Day specials at Native American-owned casinos!

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I never knew the secret to flipping pancakes, burgers or eggs was all in the back and forth motion until I watched this video and learned a cool new flipping tip. I thought that I would share with you!

Wishing you a Merry Monday!