~★~♥~♥~★~ El Morno! ♥~★~★~♥ ~
July 9, 2014

★~ Today’s Quote: Pot smoking in Colorado parks has strained Mounted Patrol units. Second-hand smoke is giving horses the munchies, raising the price of oats. . .

★~ Sugar Cookie Day:

Delightfully buttery and simplistically sweet. All you need to make a batch of sugar cookies is flour, butter, eggs, vanilla, and baking powder. Enjoy them with a cup of coffee or a tall glass of lemonade, pack them in your picnic lunch, or enjoy them on your patio and they won’t get all gooey. If you want to dress them up, you can add a few sprinkles and take them anywhere.

Americans consume over 2 billion cookies a year, or 300 cookies for each person annually. Are you keeping up?

Soft and Chewy Sugar Cookies 

Vanilla Sugar Cookies

★~ Today in History:

♥~ 1872 – The doughnut cutter was patented by John F. Blondel of Thomaston, ME.

♥~ 1878 – The corncob pipe was patented by Henry Tibbe of Washington, MO.

♥~ 1893 – Dr. Daniel Hale Williams performed the first successful open-heart surgery. at  Provident Hospital on Chicago’s South Side.

♥~ 1956 – Dick Clark made his debut as host of Bandstand on Philadelphia TV station WFIL. He took over from Bob Horn, who had been charged with driving while intoxicated during a highly-publicized police crackdown. In 1957 the program was retitled American Bandstand and aired across the U.S. and Canada on ABC-TV. Clark hosted the show for 37 years.

♥~ 1968 – The first All-Star baseball game to be played indoors took place at the Astrodome in Houston, TX. The game produced only eight hits over nine innings and no runs were batted in. Willie Mays of the San Francisco Giants scored the only run on a single in the first inning. He moved to second on an errant pick-off play, went to third base on a wild pitch and scored on a double play. The National League beat the American League 1-0.

♥~ 1972 – Paul McCartney appeared on stage for the first time since 1966 as his group, Wings, opened at Chateauvillon in the south of France,

♥~ 1977 – Undercover Angel, by songwriter (turned pop singer) Alan O’Day, reached the top spot on the Billboard chart. It was not the first visit to the top of the pop music world for O’Day, though the million-seller would be his last as a singer. He wrote Angie Baby, a number one hit for Helen Reddy and the #3 hit, Rock And Roll Heaven, for The Righteous Broth

♥~ 1995 – The Grateful Dead played its last live show — at Chicago’s Soldier Field.

★~ Born Today:

♥~ 1764 – Ann Radcliffe  English novelist famous for her Gothic novels (fiction works especially popular in the late 18th and early 19th centuries). Among her works are The Romance of the Forest, The Mysteries of Udolpho and The Italian.

♥~ 1901 – Dame Barbara Cartland, romance novelist featuring virginal heroines: Jigsaw, Etiquette Handbook, The Herb for Happiness, Lights, Laughter and a Lady, The Passionate Pilgrim, Search for a Wife, Woman – The Enigma; authored 723 books, sold over 1 billion copies worldwide [in 36 languages]; advocate of feminine virtues and commanding men

♥~ 1945 –  Dean Koontz,  sold the first short story he ever wrote and then got 75 rejections before selling his next story. Now, he’s one of the most highly paid authors in the world — the sixth highest, to be exact, tied in that place with John Grisham at 25 million dollars of earnings per year. (The top five, in order: J. K. Rowling, James Patterson, Stephen King, Tom Clancy, Danielle Steel). Koontz’s books have sold 400 million copies. Eleven hardcovers and more than a dozen paperbacks have been No. 1 New York Times best-sellers.

♥~ 1956 – Tom (Thomas Jeffrey) Hanks Academy Award-winning actor: Forrest Gump [1994], Philadelphia [1993]; Apollo 13, Sleepless in Seattle, Big, Joe Versus the Volcano, Splash, The Money Pit, You’ve Got Mail, The Green Mile, Cast Away

♥~ 1957 – Kelly McGillis actress: Witness, The Accused, Top Gun

♥~ 1964 – Courtney Love musician, guitar, singer: groups: Babes In Toyland, Faith No More

★~ Gallimaufry Today: 

Tea drinking is a cultural touchstone of Great Britain and has been for centuries. Over the years, the traditional stovetop teakettle has fallen from favor, with the electric kettle—which plugs into the wall and heats up much more quickly— taking its place. In general, the electric kettle has few downsides relative to its predecessor.

Unless there’s something important on TV.

On July 4, 1990, England and Germany confronted one another in the semifinals of the FIFA World Cup.  The winner would face off against Argentina in the finals; the loser went to the consolation/ third-place match against host Italy. At the end of regulation and extra-time, the two countries were tied, 1– 1. The match went to a penalty kick shootout, and England’s fans sat on the edges of their seats watching.

Germany prevailed, disappointing millions of British. And many sought solace— a bit of it, at least— in a fresh cup of tea. So they took to the electric kettles, turning on approximately a million of them, all within a few minutes of each other. Suddenly, the British National Grid—the electricity network— was being asked to provide a massive amount of power, all on a moment’s notice.

This phenomenon, called a “TV pickup,” is unique to the United Kingdom. More than 2,500 megawatts of additional power may be needed— that’s roughly the equivalent of firing up three nuclear power plants, to capacity, immediately. And, according to the BBC, to time the need properly, an engineer at the National Grid Control Centre is assigned to watch TV. Some of the most popular shows, such as the soap opera EastEnders (and of course, soccer matches) do not end at a specific time, as the BBC at times fails to adhere to its schedule.

To compensate for the tea-driven energy needs, the UK has two on-demand power sources. First, France has provided as much as 600 MW of power at times. And second, there’s the Dinorwig Power Station in North Wales, a hydroelectric plant. Dinorwig, typically, is idle, and therefore produces no electrical output. But when needed, the water stored in the reservoir above it is released, allowing the power station to produce up to 1,800 MW in roughly sixteen seconds (so says Wikipedia). Combined with other at-the-ready power plants, the National Grid has been able to mostly handle the nationwide impromptu tea times. Thank Goodness!

Yes Beth Ann, El Morno’s tea pot collector, this one was for you 😀 because you rallied and liked my pun posts on Facebook last night.

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I don’t want to leave you out of the Pun fun….

I missed you yesterday! Cole and I took a field trip, Post coming up. Hope you have a wonderful Wednesday and a sugar cookie or two or three.

Odd Loves Company,