★~♥~♥~★~ El Morno! ♥~★~★~♥ ~
July 22, 2013

★~ Today’s Quote:

“I’m making a list
I’m making a list of things I must say
For politeness,
And goodness and kindness and gentleness
Sweetness and rightness:
Hello
Pardon me
How are you?
Excuse me
Bless you
May I?
Thank you
Goodbye
If you know some that I’ve forgot,
Please stick them in you eye!”
― Shel Silverstein, Where the Sidewalk Ends

★~ Spoonerism Day:

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If you have ever been pit nicked for turning words outside in you have meet Reverand Archibald Spooner.  Spoonerisms are a kind of word or phrase pun that have humorously switched or transplanted sounds, named after the Reverend William Archibald Spooner (1844–1930), who often spoke these aloud.

A few favorite Spoonerisms

“Swell foop” instead of fell swoop and “half-warmed fish” instead of half-formed wish.

“It is kisstomary to cuss the bride,”

“Mardon me padam, this pie is occupewed. Can I sew you to another sheet?.”

Enjoy your slips of  tongue today in honor of Mr. Spooner.

★~ Rat Catchers Day:

Most of us know about the story of the Pied Piper of Hamelin, a colorfully-dressed stranger who arrives in the vermin-infested town of Hamelin, Germany, and for a promised fee lures the town’s rats away by playing a tune on his pipe. When the town refuses to pay the stranger for his services, however, the man lures the town’s children away, too.

However, one of the most famous rat catchers was Jack Black, appointed rat-catcher and mole destroyer to Queen Victoria in the middle of the 1800’s. He wore a scarlet top coat, waistcoat and breeches, with a huge leather belt inset with cast iron rats.

When he caught any unusually colored rats, he bred them, to establish new color varieties. He would sell his home-bred domesticated colored rats as pets, mainly, as Black observed, “to well-bred young ladies to keep in squirrel cages”. Beatrix Potter is believed to have been one of his customers, and she dedicated the book Samuel Whiskers to her rat of the same name.

The more sophisticated ladies of court kept their rats in dainty gilded cage and even Queen Victoria herself kept a rat or two. It was in this way that domesticated — or fancy — rats were established. Black also supplied live rats for rat-baiting in pits, a popular mid-Victorian past-time. (source, Wikipedia)

If you have a rat for a pet, please don’t tell me.

★~ Hammock Day:

Summer is in full swing, and it’s time to slow down and relax! Stretch out in a hammock, and snooze to the swoosh of a gentle breeze. If you don’t own a hammock, consider napping on your chez lounge under a shady tree.

★~ Penuche Fudge:

Penuche fudge is chocolate free; instead it has a golden brown color and a caramel flavor that comes from brown sugar. It’s lighter than its siblings — chocolate fudge and white (blonde) fudge — making it the perfect summer time fudge, if you enjoy fudge without chocolate.  Martha Stewarts Penuche Fudge

★~Grill Day: 

July is National Grill month and today is National Grill Day. This means its time to get outside and fire up that grill, if you haven’t already and enjoy the sizzle, the smoke, and the mouth-watering aromas that come from a grill ….

♥~ 3 out of 4 American households own a grill and they use it on average of 5 times per month.

♥~ People in the Northeast U.S. are the heaviest barbecuers in the nation. The next most frequent barbecues are in the North Central region of the U.S., followed by the South and then the Western U.S.

♥~ You can baste fruit with coconut milk,lime juice,or orange juice to caramelize its natural sugars and enhance the flavor.

♥~ Turn, Don’t stab. The proper way to turn meat on a grill is with tongs or a spatula. Never stab the meat with a carving fork – unless you want to drain the flavor-rich juices on t0 the coals.

♥~ Let it rest.Beef, steak, chicken – almost anything you grill-will taste better if you let it stand on the cutting board for a few minutes before serving. This allows the meat juices, which have been driven to the center of a roast or steak by the searing heat, to return to the surface. The result is a juicier, tastier piece of meat.

♥~ According to Google, Lexington North Carolina is the barbecue capital of the United States followed by Tennessee and Alabama. Wondering where Texas shows up? Number 9 out of 10. How could this be true? North Carolina? Get a gun!

★~ Today in History:

♥~ 1376 –  The anniversary of the legendary feat of the Pied Piper of Hamelin, who used his musical prowess to play a little ditty and lead the rats out of town. Rat catcher are honored today for riding towns of the dirty low down varmints.

♥~ 1934 – Public enemy number one, the notorious John Dillinger, was gunned down and mortally wounded by FBI agents at the Biograph Theatre in Chicago, IL.

♥~ 1967 – The Billboard singles chart showed that Windy, by The Association, was the most popular record in the U.S. for the fourth straight week. The Los Angeles-based sextet would make way for Jim Morrison and The Doors a week later when Light My Fire became the hottest record of the mid-summer.

♥~ 1989 – The youngest pilot to fly around the world, 11-year-old Tony Aliengena, completed his globe-circling trip. The 4th grader returned to John Wayne Airport in Orange County, CA, nearly seven weeks and 21,567 miles after taking off in a Cessina 210 Centurion.

♥ ~ 2006 – 3,000 people gathered at the Stardust Hotel in Las Vegas for the annual Lifestyles conference, a five-day, $700-per-couple event that offers a mix of seminars, socializing and sex.

★~ Born Today:

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♥~ 1898 – Alexander (Stirling) Calder sculptor: wood, bronze, mobiles; 1898. Internationally acclaimed American abstract artist who invented the mobile.  Calder took a degree in mechanical engineering but was drawn into art in the 1920s. By the 1930s he was the most famous American artist in the world. Editors of Chase’s Calendar of Events (2010). Chase’s Calendar of Events, 2011 Edition (Kindle Locations 26095-26097). McGraw-Hill. Kindle Edition. Click to see more of Alexander Calder’s Work. 

♥~ 1908 –  Amy Vanderbilt: American journalist and etiquette expert born at New York, NY. Her Amy Vanderbilt’s Complete Book of Etiquette (1952) became the bible for manners of courtesy and society. Vanderbilt also hosted the television program “It’s in Good Taste” from 1954 to 1960. Cause of death was speculated as suicide,  December 24, 1974

♥~ 1932 – Oscar De La Renta fashion designer

♥~ 1947 – Albert Brooks (Einstein) actor: Broadcast News, Lost in America, Private Benjamin, Taxi Driver

♥~ 1947 – Don Henley drummer, singer: groups: Shiloh; The Eagles: Hotel California; solo: Dirty Laundry, All She Wants to Do is Dance, The End of the Innocence; songwriter: The Boys of Summer

★~ Good to Know: Minding your manners in the 1950’s

♥~ Whose job is it to end a date? The boy’s or the girl’s? “The girl’s. She places her napkin unfolded at the left of her plate, looks questioningly at her escort and prepares to rise. If he suggests they linger she may do so if she wishes. However, her decision must be abided by.”

♥~ What to do when you find your child smoking brown paper or corn silk? “The first signs of ersatz smoking should be treated in a relaxed manner and with some words such as these: “I see you’ve been smoking corn silk. It doesn’t taste very good as I recall!” (surprise on the child’s part.) “When you feel you must try your first real cigarette, tell me and I’ll let you do it here at the home. No, I wouldn’t like you to smoke regularly yet, for a great many reasons you’re hearing in school. I would like you to wait until you’re 18 or even 21.”

♥~ I am a woman executive. Is it permissible for me to pick up the check for a male customer I am entertaining as a representative of our firm? “Yes you may, saying something such as ‘This is business—you’re the firm’s guest.’ If the bill is to be paid at the desk, quietly put money to cover it on the check and ask your customer to take care of it. Either leave the tip yourself or ask him to take care of it out of the change. Try to avoid passing any money yourself, for other diners in the restaurant would not necessarily understand the circumstances.”‘

♥~ How do I eat corn on the cob? The tricky part here is that you may only butter and season one row at a time. And then you can eat that one row. Then you butter and season another row, and eat that one row. However the preferred method is cutting the corn off the cob with a knife and fork.

♥~ Is it proper for a single girl to have dinner in a bachelor’s apartment without a chaperone?“Social conventions can do very little to protect a girl really bent on getting into difficulties [zing!]. In this case, a girl not out of her teens would do better to avoid such a dinner engagement unless others, considerably more mature than she, are present. A career girl, from her twenties onward, can accept such an invitation but should not stay beyond ten or ten-thirty. An old rule and a good one is ‘Avoid the appearance of evil.’ It is still very true that men value little those girls who have no strong sense of propriety themselves.”

♥~ On paying dudes to dance with you when traveling abroad: “In many large continental hotels, paid dancing partners are frequently on duty at tea time and dinner where there is a dance orchestra. These gentlemen, who do not care for the word “gigolo” usually move discreetly among the tables seeking partners for a small fee”…”For unaccompanied women to employ these dancing partners in public places is correct, but for them to put the arrangement on any kind of personal plane is begging for trouble. It is no shame to employ a dancing partner abroad– the most conservative women do it. But everyone knows on what basis such a man is in a woman’s company and it is ridiculous to pretend he is anything more than he is.” The customary charge was 10 cents

♥~ What should I wear to private my audience with the Pope? Men: Dark blue or Oxford Gray suits or formal evening wear. No boutonnieres are ever worn, but you can wear your ribbon of Chevalier or the Legion of Honor. Women: Must wear black high-necked dresses with long sleeves, and head must be covered by a black mantilla. Any jewelry must be strictly functional.

♥~ Getting Pinned: “Pinning, in college contemporary parlance means “engaged to be engaged.” She wears the boys fraternity pin. It means more than they are just going steady. It means they are contemplating marriage, without the forthright public avowal of a formal engagement. At this stage, parents are not brought together and the parties to the pinning may, in the opinion of some, date occasionally with other people, although on some campuses this is considered beyond the pale.”

♥~ A “Special” Problem: “Young teen and pre-teen boys need to be warned against the male stranger who may seek him out or sit next to him on any public transportation or in other public places and try to strike up a conversation. While such an overture may be perfectly innocent, the boy should be told gently about the necessary facts concerning deviants.”

♥~ Discretion on the street: Dress discreetly, talk discreetly, and never do anything which would draw attention to oneself.  Mentioning names of friends is indiscreet. The gentleman always walks on the road side of the sidewalk – to protect the lady or ladies from passing traffic. Resist looking  at or talking to strangers passing and never call out to a friend on the other side of the street.

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Merry Monday Morno! Hope everyone had a terrific weekend. I must dash, because as I may have mentioned Cousin Carla is arriving today! This very morno, we’ ll pick her up at the airport and I have a few things left to do before we leave for the airport. See you later alligators! And you say. . .

Odd Loves Company!

 

Big News !! Thank You El Morno Aussie Antoinette  “The duchess of Cambridge is now officially in labour and has been admitted into hospital. You heard it first from me in Aussie land.”