Happy Thanksgiving To All !

While many of my readers are preparing a holiday dinner or traveling to relatives' homes, I'm  at work - caring for my oncology patients and their families.

I am happy to spend my holiday with these very special folks.  No turkey dinner can make me feel as fulfilled as caring for my patients.

It is a privilege to be able to be a blessing to those who bless me far more than I can ever bless them.

  I am thankful for the opportunity to have a job on the oncology unit every day ... and especially on this day when we all pause to reflect upon the many blessings we've received.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of my friends and family!

Presidential Pardons for Turkeys

At approximately 11:00 this morning, two 19 week old, 45 pound turkeys received an official Presidential pardon!  Liberty and Peace were pardoned by President Obama in what some believe to be a long-standing tradition.....

But....
Have you ever wondered who started the practice of pardoning turkeys?   And when?  And most of all, WHY?

Every year I watch the news clips that bring a bright spot to the usually gloomy reports.  And, every year I tell myself that I'm going to look into the history of such a thing. But, I never do -- well, I never did until today!


I did some snooping around on the internet and came up with a few fun facts - trivia mostly - but not a sound accounting of the history of the Presidential Pardon of the Thanksgiving Turkey. 


If you have one of those inquiring minds that wants to know, here's what I did find:


1.  Turkeys presented for pardoning come from the National Turkey Federation which has provided turkeys to the White House since the 1940's but the Presidential pardon did not start back in the '40's.

2.  Harry Truman is credited with being the first President to officially pardon a turkey but the Truman Library has no official documentation of such an event.  It has been said that the turkey Truman pardoned was for Christmas, not Thanksgiving -- AND that the Trumans ate him!


3.  Others tell a story from Abraham Lincoln's days where he interrupted a cabinet meeting to call a halt to a possible "turkey execution" in the kitchen.   The turkey had been befriended by Lincoln's son.  Again, there is no official documentation to substantiate the tale.

4.  In 1963, just a week before his assassination, John F. Kennedy announced that he wouldn't eat the turkey and suggested that they "just keep him". 

5.  Ronald Regan joked with reporters about pardoning a turkey named Charlie while fielding questions of a more serious nature about the Iran Contra affair.


6.  President George H W Bush was the first to officially pardon a turkey in 1989

With the questions who and when essentially answered, some might have moved on... but there was still no answer to the "why" of it.... nor could I find any no matter how hard I looked!  And then, I wondered  what happens to those pardoned turkeys... I was able to uncover some details to anwer that question:

Many of the earlier ones were sent to a petting zoo in Virginia until 2004.  From 2005 to 2009, the turkeys went to Disney World in Florida and Disneyland in California where they were the grand marshalls of the Thanksgiving Day parades.  After the parade, they took up residence at Disneyland's Big Thunder Ranch.  The 2010 and 2011 Obama turkeys have been sent to George Washington's Mount Vernon Estate. 





 

The Queen of Probing Prompts

Readers who know me fairly well already know that I love quotes!  They also know that for several years now, I've been crafting the weekly writing prompts for Story Circle Network's Internet Chapter.  That means that for years, I've been on the search for inspiring quotes by women, for women... and then incorporating some writing prompts to coincide with the quotes. 

For the past ten weeks, I've been facilitating a co-ed writing group at church. With all of my years' experience with Story Circle Network, I am quite comfortable with the idea of helping others find ways to tell their own stories.  The real challenge came when I had to switch my focus from "for women" to "for co-ed groups."  I hoped that I'd be able to come up with prompts that were meaningful... prompts that would help writers begin to craft their own personal stories.  I knew what sorts of prompts work well for women.  But could I come up with prompts that would work just as well for men and women? 

The writing group at church has gone on hiatus for the holidays.  Its members have expressed the desire to keep writing and to come together again after the first of the year.  This pleases me to no end!

On our final session before the hiatus, one of the members gave me a new nickname - one that has me smiling every time I think of it... one that is definitely fitting... one that proves that I did my job and did it well since it was given to me by the man in the group!

 And so, dear readers, this and every subsequent blog post is being written by "The Queen of Probing Prompts."   Stay tuned for more blog posts - and perhaps more probing prompts in the days and weeks ahead!

Four Score and Seven Years Ago....

Today is the anniversary of the Gettysburg Address.On November 19, 1863, Abraham Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg
Address, which is one of the most famous and shortest political
speeches of all time.

Did you have to memorize it in school?  Can you still recite it?
Go ahead!  Try it!  See how much of it you remember.

Tomorrow is THE GREAT AMERICAN SMOKEOUT

The American Cancer Society is marking the 36th Great American Smokeout on November 17 by encouraging smokers to use the date to make a plan to quit, or to plan in advance and quit smoking that day. By doing so, smokers will be taking an important step towards a healthier life – one that can lead to reducing cancer risk.

Tobacco use remains the single largest preventable cause of disease and premature death in the US, yet more than 46 million Americans still smoke.

 However, more than half of these smokers have attempted to quit for at least one day in the past year.

Quitting is hard, but you can increase your chances of success with help. The American Cancer Society can tell you about the steps you can take to quit smoking and provide the resources and support that can increase your chances of quitting successfully. To learn about the available tools, call the American Cancer Society at 1-800-227-2345.

Sadie Hawkin's Day

Sadie Hawkins Day, an American folk event, made its debut in Al Capp's Li'l Abner strip November 15, 1937. Sadie Hawkins was "the homeliest gal in the hills" who grew tired of waiting for the fellows to come a courtin'. Her father, Hekzebiah Hawkins, a prominent resident of Dogpatch, was even more worried about Sadie living at home for the rest of his life, so he decreed the first annual Sadie Hawkins Day, a foot race in which the unmarried gals pursued the town's bachelors, with matrimony the consequence. By the late 1930's the event had swept the nation and had a life of its own. Life magazine reported over 200 colleges holding Sadie Hawkins Day events in 1939, only two years after its inception. It became a woman empowering rite at high schools and college campuses, long before the modern feminist movement gained prominence. The basis of Sadie Hawkins Day is that women and girls take the initiative in inviting the man or boy of their choice out on a date, typically to a dance attended by other bachelors and their aggressive dates. When Al Capp created the event, it was not his intention to have the event occur annually on a specific date because it inhibited his freewheeling plotting. However, due to its enormous popularity and the numerous fan letters Capp received, the event became an annual event in the strip during the month of November, lasting four decades.

SPF-ing Each and Every Day

SPF !


When I was first diagnosed with malignant melanoma thirteen years ago, my sister Lisa began using SPF as her signature on her notes, cards and e-mails.  She was not referring to Sun Protection Factor for sunscreen as you might think....  She was telling me to Stay Properly Focused.  She was reminding me that everything in this life is the Lord's and focusing on Him no matter what is the way to face challenges big and small.

Through the years, that little reminder has been shared between us more times than I can count.  Sometimes I even remind myself to SPF.  Staying Properly Focused isn't always easy.  But, just like everything else, daily practice brings positive results.  It becomes easier to do so on a more regular basis.  Then, there are days that defy that logic and I find myself needing that small inner voice to whisper SPF over, and over, and over again.

Today was just that kind of day.  I don't know how many times I told myself to SPF but I know it was more than just a few!  There were challenges at work... There were family concerns far away... There were joys and there were heartaches.  But through it all, thanks to my sister, I was able to SPF!
Even on days when she and I don't have the opportunity to speak to one another her gift keeps on giving me just the right amount of encouragement to move forward no matter what life throws my way.

I don't know what I'd do if I couldn't practice the act of SPF! 

When there's only one day off...

So... what's a gal to do when there's only one day off and so many things she wants to do ???
Well, I suppose that depends on what day of the week that day off is.  Today, Sunday, was my day off sandwiched in between several work days before and after. 

My intentions were to get up early, go to Sunday School and church and then see how my day unfolded.  But, I slept right through the alarm.  So much for going to Sunday School!  But I did make it to church.  Afterwards, as has become my habit, I took myself and my Kindle to lunch.  The Kindle makes a great lunch or dinner date !

I managed to squeeze a few errands and chores into the mix and then head back to church for the 6 p.m. service.  I love the smaller gathering in the chapel, the "old" hymns I grew up singing and the intimate nature of the evening service. 

And now, it's time to get uniforms ready for the next few work days.  I keep telling myself that I'm going to take one of my days off to just lounge and read or write.  But, there always seem to be so many things that I want to do -- things that make being a lounge lizard impossible.  I guess that's why my muse and I make the most of every day -- all those things I want to do and only so many hours in between work shifts!

Out of this world Delicious! Cranberry Swirl Pumpkin Bars

If you're looking for a really really yummy treat that is chock full of the flavors of fall, this recipe is for you!  I tried it the other day and I am hooked!   These are incredible.  If you want an even more tart, cranberry influence, you can toss in some dried cranberries as well.  The bars are reportedly equally yummy without the cream cheese frosting but.... I am not convinced!  The cream cheese frosting is truly the "icing on the cake" -- adding just the right amount of sweetness to the bars.

Cranberry Swirl Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled
1 1/3 cups brown sugar
1 large egg
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup toasted pecans, chopped
2/3 cup whole berry cranberry sauce

Cream Cheese Frosting
3-oz cream cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp milk
1-2 cups confectioners’ sugar

Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking dish.
In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt.
In a large bowl, whisk together sugar and melted butter until well combined. Beat in egg, all of the spices and the vanilla extract. Stir in pumpkin puree, then stir in the flour mixture. When all of the flour has been incorporated, fold in the chopped pecans.
Spread batter into prepared pan. Dollop cranberry sauce on top and swirl through gently with a butter knife.
Bake for about 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bars comes out clean.
Cool bars completely before frosting.

To make the frosting: In a medium bowl, beat together butter and cream cheese at medium speed. Beat in vanilla and milk, then gradually add in in the confectioners’ sugar until frosting reaches a thick, but spreadable consistency.
Spread in a thin layer over cooled bars (there may be frosting leftover; if so, store in the fridge in a ziploc bag for another batch).
Makes 24 bars

ENJOY!

Second History Lesson in Two Days - Veteran's Day

 "...it is well for us to pause, to acknowledge our debt to those who paid so large a share of freedom's price. As we stand here in grateful remembrance of the veterans' contributions we renew our conviction of individual responsibility to live in ways that support the eternal truths upon which our Nation is founded, and from which flows all its strength and all its greatness."                             ~  Dwight D. Eisenhower

Click here to view Veteran's Day 2011 Tribute



Veteran's Day 101

On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918, World War I ended. This day became known as "Armistice Day." In 1921, an unknown World War I American soldier was buried in Arlington National Cemetery. Similarly, unknown soldiers had been buried in England at Westminster Abbey and at France at the Arc de Triomphe. All of these memorials took place on November 11th to commemorate the end of the "war to end all wars."

In 1926, Congress resolved to officially call November 11th Armistice Day. Then in 1938, the day was named a national holiday. Soon afterwords war broke out in Europe and World War II began.





Soon after the end of World War II, a veteran of that war named Raymond Weeks organized "National Veterans Day" with a parade and festivities to honor all veterans. He chose to hold this on Armistice Day. Thus began annual observances of a day to honor all veterans not just the end of World War I. In 1954, Congress officially passed and President Dwight Eisenhower signed a bill proclaiming November 11 as Veteran's Day.



 Due to his part in the creation of this national holiday, Raymond Weeks received the Presidential Citizens Medal from President Ronald Regan in November 1982.

History Lesson: Iwo Jima

Today is Iwo Jima Memorial Dedication Day.  In 1954, the Iwo Jima Memorial, which commemorates one of the most stirring events of World War II (the raising of the flag at Iwo Jima), was dedicated at Arlington Cemetery.  The iconic image is well-known to most of us.  But, how much of the actual history of this moment do you remember?   

Invasion Beach

The invasion of Iwo Jima began on February 19, 1945, and continued to March 26, 1945. The battle was a major initiative of the Pacific Campaign of World War II. The Marine invasion, known as Operation Detachment,  was charged with the mission of capturing on the island.  Once the bases were secured, they could then be used in the impending invasion of the Japanese mainland.


The battle was marked by some of the fiercest fighting of the War. The Imperial Japanese Army positions on the island were heavily fortified with bunkers and hidden artillery and 18 Km (11 mi) of tunnels. The battle was the first U.S. attack on the Japanese Home Islands and the Imperial soldiers defended their positions tenaciously. Of the 21,000 Japanese soldiers present at the beginning of the battle, over 20,000 were killed and only 1,083 taken prisoner.

According to the United States Navy "the 36-day (Iwo Jima) assault resulted in more than 26,000 American casualties, including 6,800 dead."

Mount Suribachi

One of the first objectives after landing on the beachhead was the taking of Mount Suribachi.


 At the second raising of a flag on the peak, Joe Rosenthal photographed six Marines:  Ira Hayes, Mike Strank, Rene Gagnon, Harlon Block, Franking Sousley and U.S. Navy corpsman John Bradley raising the U.S. flag on the fourth day of the battle (February 23). The photograph won the Pulitzer Prize in Photography that same year, and ultimately came to be regarded as one of the most significant and recognizable images of the war, and possibly the most reproduced photograph of all time.

Within the next month of fighting, three of the Marines raising the flag were killed: Strank, Block and Sousley. Contrary to popular belief, the famous picture of the six men raising the flag, was not the first time they raised it. The raised it about twenty minutes before hand, and then the photographer got there. The photographer had them take it down so he could get a famous picture of them putting it up "for the first time."

National Diabetes Awareness Month

November is National Diabetes Awareness Month       




With nearly 26 million children and adults in American living with diabetes, and another 79 million at high risk for developing type 2 diabetes, the disease is taking a devastating physical, emotional and financial toll on our country. Yet, most Americans don’t consider diabetes a serious matter. They feel it is someone else’s responsibility; someone else’s problem.
Recent numbers by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention paint a desperate situation of where we are at, and where we are headed:

• Every 17 seconds, someone is diagnosed with diabetes.
• Diabetes kills more people each year than breast cancer and AIDS combined.
• Recent estimates project that as many as 1 in 3 American adults will have diabetes in 2050 unless we take steps to Stop Diabetes.

Now is the time to act.
Become Involved in American Diabetes Month® 2011
November is American Diabetes Month, a time to rally individuals, communities and families to Join the Millions^SM in the movement to Stop Diabetes®. This year, the American Diabetes Association is asking individuals to take a pledge and raise their hand to Stop Diabetes.

)from the American Diabetes Association website)

Rare and Precious....

"Growing into your future with health and grace and beauty doesn't have to take all your time. It rather requires a dedication to caring for yourself as if you were rare and precious, which you are, and regarding all life around you as equally so, which it is." —Victoria Moran

November 6th is "I LOVE NACHOS DAY" !!

Nachos are a popular snack food, originating in Mexico. In their simplest form, nachos are usually tortilla chips covered in melted cheese. First created circa 1943 by Ignacio "Nacho" Anaya, the original nachos consisted of fried tortilla chips covered with melted cheese and jalapeño peppers. The International Day of the Nacho is celebrated on 11th September with the International Nacho Festival held at Piedras Negras, Coahuila, Mexico.

Origin of Nachos

Nachos originated in the city of Piedras Negras, Coahuila, Mexico, just over the border from Eagle Pass, Texas, around 1943 at a restaurant called the Victory Club. The account goes that the wives of several U.S. soldiers from nearby Eagle Pass, who were in Piedras Negras on a shopping trip, arrived at the restaurant after it had closed for the day, so chef Ignacio "Nacho" Anaya invented a new dish for them with what little he had available in the kitchen: tortillas and cheese. Anaya cut the tortillas into triangles and fried them, then added yellow Wisconsin cheese, calling the dish nachos especiales, or "Nacho's Specialty". The Moderno Restaurant in Piedras Negras uses the original recipe.

The popularity of the "nacho" spread throughout Texas, but did not become well known outside of Texas until the 1970s, when Howard Cosell was given a plate of nachos during a taping of Monday Night Football at Arlington Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Cosell enjoyed the dish, and was amused by the unusual name. He talked about them throughout the game, and for several weeks following it.

Long Time No Posts....

Dear Faithful Blog Followers

I know, I know... Long time no posts here at Lee and Her Muse Make the Most of Each Day. 

I've wanted to be here - really I have!  But, life has somehow gotten in the way of that for far too long.
My muse threatened to find a new mentee if I didn't get back on track... but I promised her she didn't need to move on - I'd buckle down and start posting in November.  So, even though we're five days into the month, here I am - posting and begging for your understanding and forgiveness for my long absence.

Sometimes making the most of each day is more of a challenge than one would think.  Even when I really really tried to get here sooner, my muse and I got railroaded by the situations at hand.  Some of those situations may or may not make their way into my blogging in the days and weeks to come.  But in the meantime, I am here now and am planning on trying to revive the daily posting energies that once flowed freely here on this site!

Thanks for still checking the site and remaining a friend even during my silent periods.

Time to Turn Back Time

It's that time again!  A return to Eastern Standard Time...
That's right.  Tonight, we turn our clocks back. 

When I was growing up, Daddy used to always say that we neither gained nor lost an hour when the clocks changed.  He argued that there were still 24 hours in every day and it was silly to say that we'd lost or gained one.

Scientifically I suppose he was right, but no matter how I look at it, the changing of the clocks before I go to bed tonight means that I will GAIN an hour of allowable sleep time! 

For me, it's always sad when the clocks are turned back and the days grow shorter.  It signals a time for going to and from work in the dark, fewer hours to spend outside on days off, and the fast-approaching end of my favorite season of the year:  Autumn.

Ice Cream Trivia x 2

1.) Today is the birthday of Cherry Garcia.   In 1987,  lawyers for Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream and Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead came to an agreement that would allow Ben & Jerry to create a new flavor of ice cream: Cherry Garcia.

2.) Can you name one famous person who chooses Ben & Jerry's Cherry Garcia as his/her favorite ice cream? ** (see below) 

What's your favorite ice cream flavor?  

Jerry Garcia



(Mine is Pralines and Cream)

And on that note, I think I'll have some right now!!   Yummy Yum !!

**Former President Bill Clinton enjoys an ice cream cone. 
Perhaps it is his favorite flavor:  Ben & Jerry's Cherry Garcia!

Moina Michael - The founder of the memorial poppy

Miss Moina Michael is credited as the founder of the memorial poppy movement in the United States.  As a volunteer for the YMCA"s Overseas War Workers she hoped to be sent overseas.  But she was barred from doing so because of her age (49 years).  Instead the University of Georgia professor was given a job with the Overseas YMCA War Worker's training headquartes in New York City, NY.


The idea for the poppy movement came to her as she read  "We Shall Not Sleep" (later named "In Flanders Fields") by the Canadian Army doctor John McCrae.  The last verse - "To you from failing hands we throw the Torch; be yours to hold it high. If ye break faith with us who die, we shall not sleep, though poppies grow in Flanders Fields." so deeply affected Michaels that she wrote of it in her book 'The Miracle Flower'   In it she described the experience as deeply spiritual, and she felt as though she was actually being called in person by the voices which had been silenced by death.


  According the the cal-mum web site,    "On the morning of Saturday 9 November 1918 three men from the Twenty-fifth Conference of the YMCA Overseas Secretaries appeared at Moina Michael's desk. On behalf of the delegates they asked her to accept a check for $10 in appreciation of her efforts to brighten up the headquarters with flowers."


   "She was touched by the gesture and replied that she would buy twenty-five red poppies with the money. She showed them the illustration for John McCrae's poem "In Flanders Fields" in the Ladies Journal, together with her poem "We Shall Keep the Faith", which she had written in reply. The delegates took both poems back into the Conference."


   "After searching the shops for some time that day Moina found one large and twenty-four small artificial red silk poppies in Wanamaker's store. When she returned to duty at the YMCA Headquarters later that evening delegates from the Conference crowded round her asking for poppies to wear. Keeping one poppy for her coat collar she gave out the rest of the poppies to the enthusiastic delegates."


   "According to Moina, since this was the first group-effort asking for poppies to wear in memory of "all who died in Flanders Fields", and since this group had given her the money with which to buy them, she considered that she had consummated the first sale of the Flanders Fields Memorial Poppy on 9 November 1918."


   "During the winter of 1918 Moina Michael continued working for the Staff of the Overseas YMCA Secretaries. She visited wounded and sick men from Georgia who were in nine of the debarkation hospitals in and around New York City, to find what could be done for them other than what the hospitals were doing."


  " By March 1919 she had moved back to Georgia to take up her place at the University of Georgia. With the return of thousands of ex-servicemen from that time Moina realized that there was not only a need to honor the memory of those who had died in the service of their country, but also a need to remember that those who were returning also had mental, physical and spiritual needs."


   "During the summer months of 1919 Moina taught a class of disabled servicemen, there being several hundred in rehabilitation at the University of Georgia. Learning about their needs at first hand gave her the impetus to widen the scope of the Poppy idea, to develop it so that it could be used to help all servicemen who needed help for themselves and for their dependents."


  " In September 1921 delegates at the Auxiliary to the American Legion Convention agreed that disabled American war veterans could make the poppies sold in the United States, thus generating much needed income for veterans who had no other income. The Auxiliary provided all the material and had it pre-cut for forming into flowers."

We Shall Keep the Faith by Moina Michael

Oh! you who sleep in Flanders Fields,
Sleep sweet - to rise anew!
We caught the torch you threw
And holding high, we keep the Faith
With All who died.

We cherish, too, the poppy red
That grows on fields where valor led;
It seems to signal to the skies
That blood of heroes never dies,
But lends a lustre to the red
Of the flower that blooms above the dead
In Flanders Fields.

And now the Torch and Poppy Red
We wear in honor of our dead.
Fear not that ye have died for naught;
We'll teach the lesson that ye wrought
In Flanders Fields.

In Flanders Field  by John McCrae

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Answers To Yesterday's Memorial Day Trivia Quiz

So, how do you think you did on yesterday's Memorial Day Trivia Quiz?

Check your answers against the correct answers listed below:

Q 1.  Civil War

Q 2.  Waterloo, N.Y.

Q 3.  May 5, 1866

Q 4.  Decoration Day

Q 5.  Poppy Day

Q 6.  Confederate fallen soldiers are honored on a separate day

Q 7.  Decoration of the graves of fallen soldiers

Q 8.  WW II

Q 9.  Civil War

Q10.  575, 377

How Much Do You Know About Memorial Day?

 When my girls were in school I was quite appalled to learn that they had absolutely no idea what Memorial Day was really all about.  Over the years, especially since the government switched to observing most holidays on the Monday closest to the originally designated day, Memorial Day - like so many other holidays - has become another excuse for lots of sales.  To me it seems as though the real essence of the holiday has been lost.


This became even more apparent to me earlier this week when one of my co-workers (an individual closer to my age than not so this really caught me off guard) was on the phone making plans for a Memorial Day picnic.  From her side of the conversation, I can only assume that the person to whom she spoke asked what Memorial Day was anyway....

She stumbled over her words and then looked at me to ask "What is Memorial Day?  Is it about the dead soldiers?"  As a nation it seems as though many have lost sight of the true significance of the day.

That being said, I decided I would dedicate a couple of weekend blog posts to making sure that my readers are "in the know".  I'd wager a guess that many of you do know what the real reason for Memorial Day is.  But, indulge me.  If I can shed light on it's true meaning rather than the concept of "Memorial Day = Weekend/Holiday Sales Days"  to even one or two of my readers, then I'll be happy!

So, today... take the quiz below (compliments of http://www.quizland.com/ ) to see how much you know about Memorial Day.  I'll post the answers tomorrow (in a blog post of its own).  Later tomorrow, I'll post a separate blog post with some other interesting facts about the holiday... And then, on Monday... well, you'll just have to keep coming back all weekend to see what else I have up my sleeve!

  MEMORIAL DAY TRIVIA QUIZ 

Q1:  

Memorial Day was founded to honor military personnel who died in... The Revolutionary War The Civil War The Spanish-American War World War I World War II

Q2:   

Which community was proclaimed in 1966 by the U.S. government as the birthplace of Memorial Day? Springfield, Pennsylvania Gettysburg, Pennsylvania Arlington, Virginia Waterloo, New York Bunker Hill, Massachusetts

Q3:   

On what date was Memorial Day first observed? May 30th, 1856 May 5th, 1866 May 25th, 1889 May 29th, 1901 May 15th, 1919

Q4:   

Memorial Day originated with another name. What was it? Honor Day Old Soldiers' Day Decoration Day Remembrance Day Bravery Day

Q5:   

Since the end of World War I, Memorial Day is also called which of the following? Poppy Day War Heroes' Day Armed Forces Day Military Day Old Soldiers' Day

Q6:   

Memorial Day is different in Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, North and South Carolina, Virginia, Louisiana, and Tennessee. How? These states celebrate Memorial Day on Jefferson Davis' birthday Instead of a somber, solemn observance, these states celebrate the memory of the fallen with gala festivals Memorial Day in these states excludes the Union dead in the Civil War These states choose to honor Confederate dead in the Civil War on a separate day In these states, the Confederate flag is flown alongside the American flag

Q7:  

Why is General John Alexander Logan important to the celebration of Memorial Day? He is the first officially documented casualty in a war He called for more official government recognition of the holiday He was the first to place a wreath at the Grave of the Unknowns He is responsible for accumulating and maintaining statistics of the U.S. war dead He ordered that the holiday be observed by decorating the graves of the war dead

Q8:   

In which war did the most U.S. service people die? The Revolutionary War The Civil War World War I World War II The Vietnam War

Q9:   

Which war had the highest percentage of U.S. casualties based on the number of troops served? The Revolutionary War The Civil War World War I World War II The Vietnam War

Q10:  

According to the Department of Defense, how many U.S. service men and women have died in battle in all wars in which the U.S. was involved? 186,203 575,377 923,846 About 1.4 million They don't even estimate

 

Come back tomorrow for the answers to the trivia quiz - and see how you did!

First Time For Everything ...

It's true  - there's a first time for everything....  It took nearly six decades but the time has finally come for me to experience my first cavity and filling...  If the dentists in my life had to depend on me to eat, they'd starve!  For the past 58 years, I've been blessed with very healthy teeth requiring only regular cleanings.  I don't know how or why I've been so fortunate.  My parents do not have such a dental history nor do my children.  But, I have been blessed.  However, on a recent routine visit, a cavity between two teeth (not on a chewing surface) was found.

 So, this morning I broke my long-standing record... and had a cavity filled.  It wasn't as bad as I thought it might be.  But, it isn't how I'd choose to spend a day off either.   Blogging about a cavity might seem a strange entry but for me, it is a first.... and so, even with a cavity I must find a way to make the most of the day.....    So now I can say, "been there, done that... no need to repeat any time soon! 

Roasted New Potatoes, Lemon & Dill

It's spring harvest time in many places.  Local farmers' markets are stocked with all sorts of locally grown vegetables.  I love this time of year - so many simple yet delicious and nutritious dishes made even more appetizing by the fact that they are the freshest of the fresh.  Sometimes, they're so fresh they were just brought in from our own gardens!  Although I'm not able to have my own garden, I do love to support the local farmers' market vendors and partake of their many offerings.

Here's a recipe that is quite simple ... and even better, it's beyond delicious!  It arrived in my In Box from "Real Simple" and I just had to try it... I'm so glad I did!  I think that you'll be glad you did as well.

 

Roasted New Potatoes with Lemon & Dill

Ingredients

• 2 pounds new potatoes, halved
• 1 lemon, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• kosher salt and black pepper
• 2 tablespoons fresh dill, coarsely chopped 

Directions

1. Heat oven to 450° F. On a rimmed baking sheet, toss the potatoes and lemon with the oil, ¾ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper.
2. Roast, tossing once, until tender, 25 to 35 minutes. Toss with the dill just before serving.

Thesaurus by Billy Collins

Thesaurus

It could be the name of a prehistoric beast
that roamed the Paleozoic earth, rising up
on its hind legs to show off its large vocabulary,
or some lover in a myth who is metamorphosed into a book.

It means treasury, but it is just a place
where words congregate with their relatives,
a big park where hundreds of family reunions
are always being held,
house, home, abode, dwelling, lodgings, and digs,
all sharing the same picnic basket and thermos;
hairy, hirsute, woolly, furry, fleecy, and shaggy
all running a sack race or throwing horseshoes,
inert, static, motionless, fixed and immobile
standing and kneeling in rows for a group photograph.

Here father is next to sire and brother close
to sibling, separated only by fine shades of meaning.
And every group has its odd cousin, the one
who traveled the farthest to be here:
astereognosis, polydipsia, or some eleven
syllable, unpronounceable substitute for the word tool.
Even their own relatives have to squint at their name tags.

I can see my own copy up on a high shelf.
I rarely open it, because I know there is no
such thing as a synonym and because I get nervous
around people who always assemble with their own kind,
forming clubs and nailing signs to closed front doors
while others huddle alone in the dark streets.

I would rather see words out on their own, away
from their families and the warehouse of Roget,
wandering the world where they sometimes fall
in love with a completely different word.
Surely, you have seen pairs of them standing forever
next to each other on the same line inside a poem,
a small chapel where weddings like these,
between perfect strangers, can take place.
Billy Collins

Who Needs a Special Month?

May is "Get Caught Reading Month"  But I ask you, who needs a special month designated for such a thing as this?  For me, every day is a get caught reading day!  And I like it that way!!  No special day or month, no particular reason, no designated time of day (or night).  Any old time is a good time to get caught reading if you ask me!

I was the kid who hung out at the library all day long then carried an arm-load of books home, and then spent half the night reading by flashlight under the bedcovers so as not to get caught reading "after bedtime."
And in some ways, I'm still that kid... well, kid-at-heart at least.  There's no more worry about getting caught reading under the covers after lights out.  Although some mornings I wish there had been such an imposition on my reading time.  (Those are the mornings when I kept telling myself one more chapter the night before  -- only thing is, one more chapter became another and another until the book's end and before I knew it the alarm was sounding.) 

Living alone (although that is soon to change as one of my daughters is coming to live with me in about 10 days) I frequently go out to eat with my "dinner date" -- my book!  Some people would never go out to eat alone.  But if I don't do that, I rarely get to go out to eat at all.  So, I go and enjoy my meal and my book at the same time. 

After church today, I went to lunch with book in hand.  After being seated I pulled out my book and began to read.  My salad was served and I enjoyed every morsel of it almost as much as I enjoyed every word on every page. 

Near the end of my meal, a woman at a nearby table leaned over and said "That must be some book!  You've been totally engrossed in it ever since we sat down.  I hope we didn't bother you too much."  I suppose she was concerned that her large family had been too loud or distracting to me.  But, to be perfectly honest with you, I didn't have a clue who was sitting nearby.  I assured her that (a) the book was very good and (b) her family didn't bother me in the least.

She went on to ask the title of the book.  When I shared it with her, she told me that she worked for the county library doing the cataloging of all new books and she hadn't heard of this title.  I went on to explain that it was a pre-release copy I'd received from Story Circle Network's Book Review and that it would soon be available to the public.   So much for my reading time - I'd been caught reading and that had elicited a conversation.  That conversation led to a discussion about one of my other passions in life - Story Circle Network.  At the end of the conversation, I gathered up my book and retreated to my apartment where I continued to read... and to get "caught" reading a couple more times when family members called and asked "What are you doing today?"  My response came as no surprise to them.  They are used to catching me reading.  They know I'd read 24/7/365 if I could!

Today, like every other day, is a get caught reading day - and I wouldn't have it any other way!

A Day At The Zoo

Today was another "Caleb & Nan Day" - a perfect way to spend a Saturday!  Since the weather was delightful and we both longed for something we could enjoy in the outdoors, we headed off to the Knoxville Zoo & Zoological Gardens.

Even though we've been there many times before, I've learned over the past five or so years that each visit is unique.  Each visit holds a new opportunity.  And, each visit just endears us to the place more and more.

Some zoos are depressing because they house their animals in small cages that are more like prison cells than homes.  But, not so here at the Knoxville Zoo.  The spacious habitats have been created with each species in mind.  And there is an ongoing effort to improve upon an already good thing.

The plants, flowers and trees that are indiginous to each species' place of origin are well cared for, healthy and thriving.  A butterfly garden blooms in a burst of color that resembles the colors in a 48 count crayon box.

All sorts of interactive opportunities exist at various points throughout the zoo.  Today we ...well, Caleb not I... petted a snake and a rat, explored the inside structure of a large turtle shell (the owner of which had died from old age some time ago), got up close and personal with an alligator that had been taxidermied and donated for educational purposes, and learned untold numbers of interesting little tidbits about some of the zoo's inhabitants.

Tallulah the albino alligator

Today, the new arrivals (or new to us since our last visit) included five penguins visiting for a while, a new set of red panda twins recently born there at the zoo, a summer guests  Buttercup - a 23 foot, 200+ pound reticulated python, and  Tallulah - an albino alligator. You can learn more about these two summer guests by clicking here .

Meerkats standing guard

My favorite area is the Meerkat Lookout.  Those adorable little creatures never tire of putting on a show.  They just stole my heart the very first time I saw them and they continue to be my favorites to this day.

 

Mother & Child

Beavers were busy building their dam, otters played and drifted in the "river" that is part of their habitat.  Baby chimpanzees cuddled their dolls and blankets while mom tried to get a little breathing space for herself. 

White tiger sun bathing

Of course all of the usual zoo animals were there:  elephants, zebra, rhinos, giraffes, camels, black bears, lions, tigers (including a white tiger which is Caleb's favorite resident), exotic birds, gazelles, gorillas, and many more.

We were blessed with sunshine, warm temps and a gentle breeze to make the day comfortable...and we were entertained at every turn by the zoo residents who were just being themselves but somehow seemed to be putting on a show just for us.  All in all, it was a wonderful day! 





Monkey see...Monkey do... !





Fruit or Vegetable ?

RHUBARB - is it a vegetable or a fruit?  Nicknamed "the pie plant" and therefore thought of as a fruit, rhubarb is actually a vegetable.  It's stalks are much like those of celery - except for their pink to red color and their tart "pucker up" flavor.

This mysterious and oft times misunderstood plant has a rich history - as I discovered while doing some research for this post.  Rhubarb was used for medicinal purposes as far back as ancient Chinese times.  Chinese herbalists have utilized rhubarb rhizomes and roots for thousands of years. The rhizomes and roots contain powerful anthraquinones and tannins that act as stimulant laxatives and astringents, respectively. In traditional Chinese medicine, rhubarb is also used to treat gastric ulcers, chronic renal (kidney) failure, and pregnancy-induced hypertension (high blood pressure), pre-eclampsia and eclampsia. European herbalists have recommended rhubarb as a laxative, diuretic, and to treat kidney stones, gout (foot inflammation), and liver diseases. Externally, it is recommended to heal skin sores and scabs.  Who knew? !!!

It has also been used to treat certain pests in gardens - aphids for one.  But, care must be used since the leaves are poisonous and therefore the insecticide prepared from rhubarb must not be used on edible plants.


May 20 & 21 are "Rhubarb Days" which is fitting since this is the time of year when fresh, local rhubarb is beginning to show up in the local farmer's markets. 

As a child, I remember my Gramm always making rhubarb pies and a stewed rhubarb compote - neither of which I liked back then.  But, what do childhood taste buds know?  Now, I love rhubarb concoctions!  I've made more than a few rhubarb or rhubarb/strawberry pies.  Additionally, I've indulged in rhubarb crisp, rhubarb muffins and rhubarb jams.

As the temperatures begin to climb, here's a yummy rhubarb recipe you might like to try:

Rhubarb Strawberry Daiquairi

First, prepare a Rhubarb Strawberry Sauce(Makes about 2 cups)

1/2 pound rhubarb, diced
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups sliced fresh strawberries
1 to 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice or to taste

In a medium saucepan set over medium heat, cook the rhubarb with the sugar until it’s very tender, about 5 to 8 minutes. Turn into a blender and puree with the strawberries and lime juice to taste. 

**This sauce can be used for a variety of desserts including over ice cream and can be stored in the refrigerator for a week.

To make a Rhubarb Strawberry Daiquiri: Leave the puree in the blender and add 1 ounce of white rum about 1 cup crushed ice. Puree and serve right away. This frosty savory/sweet drink is refreshing and unique!

**Make it virgin by omitting the rum.  Either way it's m-m-m good!