★~♥~♥~★~ El Morno! ♥~★~★~♥ ~
March 15, 2013

★~ Today’s Quote: Man will have replicated his own intelligence not when he teaches a computer to reason but when he teaches a computer to have a nagging feeling in its circuits.  ~Robert Brault

★~ The Ides Of March: 

“Beware the Ides of March” is good advice, especially if you happen to be an ancient Roman dictator. But what are ides anyway, and how do you avoid them?

The ancient Romans didn’t think there was anything particularly inauspicious about the Ides of March, or the ides of any other month, for that matter. The day was usually an occasion for honoring the deity of the month, Mars, by holding a military parade. In 44 BC, however, March 15 stood out as an especially bad day for at least one ancient Roman: Julius Caesar.

We hear a lot about the soothsayer who had foretold Caesar’s death, but his wife Calpurnia also pleaded with him not to leave his house on that fatal day. She had had a restless night, and she cried out three times in her dream for help. Calpurnia saw this as a sign, and urged her stubborn husband to heed her warning.

Caesar was not about to join that pathetic minority who give credence to the silly feelings of their wives. He would rather die than admit a woman’s intuition had any validity, and so he went out for the last time and died. Poof. The rest is history. You might want to share this story with your significant other over a glass of wine. Some people believe that every glass of wine that you drink on March 15 will add a year to your life.

★~ Pears Helene Day:

Pears Hélène or Pears Belle-Hélène is a delicious French dessert that combines warm poached pears, vanilla ice cream, and chocolate sauce. Auguste Escoffier created this dish and named it after the opera La belle Hélène.

To celebrate National Pears Hélène Day, poach your favorite kind of pears for dessert tonight! Pears Helene Recipe 

★~ Today in History:

♥~ 1776 – South Caolina Declares Independence: Prior to the start of the Revolutionary War South Carolina became the first American colony to declare independence from England and set up its own government.

♥~ 1820- Maine became the 23 state.  Maine,  is the Pine Tree State. Coincidentally, the white pine cone with its tassel is the state flower.  The chickadee is the state bird.  ‘I direct’ is the state motto which is ‘dirigo’ in Latin.  Augusta is the capital of Maine

♥~ 1948 – – Sir Laurence Olivier was on the cover of LIFE magazine for his starring role in Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

♥~ 1956 –  My Fair Lady, the musical based on George Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion premiered on Broadway at the Mark Hellinger Theatre on March 15, 1956. Rex Harrison and Julie Andrews starred in the production. The show ran for 6-1/2 years before 2,717 audiences. Nine years later, the film version, starring Audrey Hepburn (whose singing voice was dubbed by Marni Nixon), premiered.

♥~ 1964 – Wedding bells (the first time) for actor Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor. The couple wed in secret ceremonies in Montreal, Canada.

♥~ 1972 – “The Godfather,” Francis Ford Coppola’s epic gangster movie based on the Mario Puzo novel and starring Marlon Brando and Al Pacino, premiered in New York.

♥~ 1985 – The first Internet domain name, symbolics.com, was registered by the Symbolics Computer Corp. of Massachusetts.

♥~ 1987 – The place: Orlando, Florida. The golf course: the Arnold Palmer-designed Bay Hill layout. The tournament: the Bay Hill Classic.Don Pooley showed the golf world what a true million-dollar swing looked like, as he made a hole in one during the final round. The tournament sponsor had offered a million dollars to anyone making an ace. Pooley didn’t win the tourney, but won a lot more than anyone else.

★~ Born Today:

♥~ 1767 – Andrew Jackson  7th President of the United States.

♥~ 1935 – Judd Hirsch Emmy Award-winning actor: Taxi [1980-81,1982-83]; Ordinary People, The Good-bye People, Running on Empty, Numb3rs

♥~ 1940 – Phil Lesh (Chapman) musician: bass: group: Grateful Dead: St. Stephen, China Cat Sunflower, Dark Star, Uncle John’s Band, New Speedway Boogie, Truckin’, Box of Rain, Alabama Gateway; composer: electronic music

♥~ 1955 – Dee Snider composer, singer: group: Twisted Sister: We’re Not Gonna Take It, Ride Through the Storm, Hard Core [Lemmy’s Song], The Wanderer, Desperato

♥~ 1959 – Fabio (Lanzoni) model: covers of romance novels; writer: Pirate

★~ Did You Know:

♥~ Pears are a member of the rose family.

♥~ More than 95% of the pears sold in the United States are grown in Washington, Oregon or Northern California.

♥~ Pears ripen better off the tree and from the inside out.

♥~ There are more than 3,000 varieties of pears grown in the world.  The most popular variety in the United States, the Bartlett

♥~ Pears are very versatile. In addition to being served raw in almost anything, pears bake, poach, sauté, roast and grill very nicely. They can be used as an ingredient in baked goods, and can be made into preserves, jams and chutneys. Anything that can be done with an apple can be done with a pear!

♥~ The pears grown in Oregon and Washington have many subtle and different flavors and textures.

♥~ Different varieties of pears!

Anjou – refreshingly sweet and juicy with a hint of citrus
Red Anjou – aromatic, juicy, fresh and sweet
Bartlett – signature pear flavor with abundant juice
Red Bartlett – juicy and sweet with a floral essence
Bosc – crisp and woodsy with a honey sweetness
Comice – succulent, buttery, and exceptionally sweet
Concorde – crunchy and earthy with a hint of vanilla
Forelle – crisp, tangy, and refreshingly sweet
Seckel – bite-sized, crunchy and ultra-sweet
Starkrimson – aromatic, moist and sweet with a floral essence

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TGIF!

Odd Loves Company!