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(06-09-2016, 10:10 AM)IceWizard Wrote: [ -> ]

Full name: Donald Fauntleroy Duck

In neolithic times, swarms of neo ducks would darken the sky.  Their wings, not evolved to elevate themselves from rifle fire, would bring them dangerously close to fidgety hunter gatherers.  So, "duck!"  From the Encyclopedia Spanktorium.

Friday 10 June 2016

National Iced Tea Day



Americans tasted their first sip of this cooling beverage as early as the 19th century. Since then, the country's love affair with iced tea has only grown

This iconic hot-weather drink that makes you want to lazily drawl your vowel sounds as you leisurely rock back-and-forth on your porch has been a popular refreshing elixir for more than a century. Sweetened or unsweetened and sometimes mixed with other flavors such as lemon, mint, peach, apple, cherry, strawberry - however you enjoy it let’s raise a glass of our beloved bevy and say cheers.

A little History with that Iced Tea

Did you know that next to water, tea is the most consumed beverage in the world? In 2014, Americans consumed over 80 billion servings of tea, or more than 3.60 billion gallons.

Approximately 85 per cent of the tea consumed in America is iced. Ready-to-Drink iced tea has spiked over the last ten years with sales conservatively estimated to be more than $5.2 billion.

We have the 1904 World’s Fair to thanks for the lift-off in popularity of iced tea. That exceedingly hot summer meant fair goers were looking to cool down and what better way than with a glass of iced tea.

By the First World War, Americans were buying tall glasses, which became commonly known as iced-tea glasses, long spoons suitable for stirring sugar into taller glasses and lemon forks.

Prohibition, which ran from 1920 to 1933, helped boost the popularity of iced tea as Americans looked at alternatives to drinking beer, wine and hard liquor, which were made illegal during this period.

Cold tea reared its head in the early nineteenth century when cold green tea punches spiked with booze gained in popularity. Recipes began appearing in English and American cookbooks. Generally referred to as punches, the recipes called for green tea and not black tea.

While most iced teas get their flavor from tea leaves, tisanes or herbal teas are also sometimes served cold and referred to as iced tea.

Iced tea is sometimes made by a particularly long steeping of tea leaves at a lower temperature (one hour in the sun versus five minutes at 80-100 °C). Some people call this sun tea. In addition, sometimes it is also left to stand overnight in the refrigerator.



Ahhhhh ..... I can taste a good cold glass of sweet tea even now....

I LOVE TEA!  Most kinds! 
(some with honey)

Had no idea tea was so popular, but it makes sense when one considers all the many types of tea.


Today is a Great National Day!   Thanks, Ice!

Good one Ice,

No correction, but tea was an essential drink in the colonies before "America".  Had to look up a date:  1773, Boston Tea Party, rest off my head, so go easy on me.

Tea became so popular in England that iit endangered the economy.  The import from China got out of hand, resulting in a lopsided trade with China, and a big part of the pound going there.  The answer was opium.  The U.S. got China hooked on opium, which resulted in near war with China as the dynasty and nascent nationalists tried to stop the continuing import of opium.  So, soon, through addiction, the trade imbalance was corrected.  When Sam Adams and his fake Mohawk pals through the tea into Boston harbor, they were expressing their objection to a heavy "tea" tax being levied by England on the colonies.  It also sent a message to Britain that the colonists could do without tea, which was already a staple.  The tea tax was lifted.  The Chinese remained hooked on opium. 

Spanky

Saturday 11 June 2016

World Doll Day



~ History of WORLD DOLL DAY ~

The First World Doll Day was established on June 14th, 1986 with a letter by Mildred Seeley. It was created to spread the universal message of happiness and love.

The day is not owned by any company, club or person and no fees, permission or obligations are required.

Many have celebrated the day by giving a doll to someone--a child or adult, but freedom of expression and celebration are left up to the individual.

In the past, the day has been observed with exhibits, sales, seminars, doll shows and other doll related activities.

And

National Corn on the Cob Day



Millions of people love sweet corn on the cob. As summer nears, we can't wait to bring out the salt and pepper, and boil, steam or grill some fresh, sweet, corn on the cob.

National Corn on the Cob Day encourages us to celebrate and enjoy this tasty summer time treat.

Plainview, Minnesota celebrates National Corn on the Cob Day in a big way. They hold a parade and other festivities.

Did you Know?

Sweet Corn originated in Mexico. It dates back to about 9,000 BC.

Our research did not find the creator of this special day. We also did not discover when this annual tradition began.

We found it a bit odd to celebrate this special day in June.

In mid June, Sweet Corn is still being planted in home gardens. In most areas, home grown sweet corn will not be ready to harvest for several more weeks.

We found no documentation supporting this to be a formal "National" day, which requires a presidential proclamation, or an act of Congress.



+++At this point... I don't care.... Let's get that corn a roastin!

Sunday 12 June 2016

Superman Day



In 1938, Action Comics #1 introduced the world to Superman, one of the first, and most enduring, superheroes to ever grace a comic book.

Since then, Superman has appeared in countless comic books, comic strips, movies, TV shows and video games. And one of his most defining features is the shield that adorns his barrel chest: the iconic "S." That "S" isn't just Superman's shield, though, it's also his logo, which has become so popular that people instantly recognize it as representing the Man of Steel.

The Superman logo as most fans know it is usually a big red "S" sitting within a yellow shield. Not only did the "S" originally stand for "Superman," but it also represents "Saving Lives, Stopping Crime" and giving "Super Aid" when needed. It could potentially also represent Superman's creators, whose last names both started with an "S," Jerry Siegel and Joseph Shuster.

Superman's first "S" actually resembled a shield, with a big "S" in the middle. Although modern iterations of the logo insist that it is not an "S" at all, but the symbol of House Zor-El, it was definitely originally meant as an "S."

In Superman's first appearance in Action Comics #1, the shield resembles a police badge.



Eventually, though, the "S" symbol started changing and the police badge shape disappeared, replaced by a triangle, as in here, Action Comics #7:





Artists continued to tweak the colors and size of the "S" within the triangle, but this style remained fairly consistent. Sometimes the triangle was black, sometimes it was yellow. Once Superman had his own comic book series, the logo began to vary even more.

Superman #1:



Superman #4



Superman #6:



In 1944, though, the trademarked version of the logo appeared. It's similar to previous versions, but the triangle evolved into a five- sided shape. This set the standard for the logo as fans see it today.

Here's Superman #26:



After the logo became trademarked, it remained consistent throughout Superman's illustrious career, although occasionally, artists like to go back to some of the original designs, honoring the shield's history.

Alex Ross's Superman #1 reverted back to the triangle shape:



Today's iteration of Superman, though, is classic: the red "S" on a yellow triangle encased in red. Here's the latest Superman in Action Comics:

Rebirth #1:



Finally, here's an infographic showing how the logo changed, not just in comic books, but also in other media, as well.

Monday 13 June 2016

Sewing Machine Day



Long ago, when mankind first started working with fibers to produce clothing, things were long and arduous. Fiber had to be laboriously broken down and spun into yarn and thread, and then thread woven into cloth. That cloth would then be cut and stitched together using a needle and thread, with someone laborious picking out every stitch by hand.

Then something amazing happened, the Sewing Machine was invented, and with it the process of making clothing grew ever more efficient. Sewing Machine Day celebrates the invention of this amazing device.

History of Sewing Machine Day

In 1755 there was a man who saw a need, and decided that he would be the one to fill that need with a miraculous device that took all the labor out of hand sewing. Charles Frederick Wiesenthal created the idea of a double pointed needle with an eye at an end, but it wasn’t until 1790 that the true revolution in sewing was conceived of by Thomas Saint, but alas, it failed to be properly introduced to the world, no sign of a working version of his invention still exists.

So the tale goes on until 1829, when Barthélemy Thimonnier invented and patented an amazing machine that would go on to revolutionize the textile industry. From that point forward the development of the sewing machine has only gotten better, with high power surgers and programmable embroidery machines coming along to fill every possible niche in the sewing world.

Sewing Machine Day celebrates the creation of this device, and all the men and women who have worked diligently over the years to produce the next best sewing machine. These wonderful people are directly responsible for the ease with which clothing is obtainable today, and how easily someone can pick up the age old art of sewing.

How to Celebrate Sewing Machine Day

Well first, if you’re an experienced seamstress or tailor, take some time to work with a piece of cloth without the benefit of a sewing machine. This may seem like a strange way to celebrate a device that made this method unnecessary, but by the time you’re finished, you’ll understand without question how important the sewing machine is in your daily life.

Alternately, if you’ve never sewn a stitch in your life, now is the time to finally pick up a trade that will be useful to you your whole life. Beg, borrow, buy, or rent a sewing machine and start putting needle to thread. Who knows, you may have found your new passion in life!



The 165 day of the year 201 days left to go.

1888: Congress created the Department of Labor.

1789: Mrs. Alexander Hamilton served a new dessert treat for General George Washington. The highlight of the dinner party was ice cream!

1916: A U. S. patent was issued for the Peeping Tom Rifle. It featured a curved barrel and periscope and was designed to shoot around corners.

1898: The Yukon Territory was organized in Canada; Dawson was named its capital.

1920: The U.S. Post Office Department rules that children may not be sent by parcel post.

1927: the American flag was displayed from the right hand of the Statue of Liberty for the first time.

1948: the New York Yankees retired Babe Ruth's uniform number three.

1966: In a case involving 23-year-old Ernesto Miranda, the U.S. Supreme Court granted criminal suspects the right to remain silent and to have an attorney present during questioning. Miranda was retried, convicted, sent back to prison, paroled, and stabbed to death during a 1976 card game in Phoenix.

1991: An Atlanta firm paid $2.4-million for an original copy of the U.S. Declaration of Independence in New York. A flea market buff had found the document stuffed in the frame of a $4.00 painting.

1967: President Lyndon Johnson appointed U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Thurgood Marshall to fill the seat of a retiring Supreme Court judge, making him the first African-American in the high court.

2003: A fisherman in Surin, Thailand, had emergency surgery to remove a live fish from his throat. The 26-year-old man was holding the fish in his mouth so his hands would be free to hold a fishing rod and rebait the line. But the fish pushed its way further into his mouth and got jammed in his throat. He managed to get home and his wife took him to a hospital.

2004: a day after celebrating his 80th birthday, former President H.W. Bush successfully completed a skydive at the Texas A and M campus in College Station, Texas. Bush performed a tandem jump with a member of the Army's Golden Knight's skydiving team.

HISTORY SPOTLIGHT

Miranda Rights

On this day in 1966, the Supreme Court hands down its decision in Miranda v. Arizona, establishing the principle that all criminal suspects must be advised of their rights before interrogation. Now considered standard police procedure,

"You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can, and will, be used against you in court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford one, one will be appointed to you,"

has been heard so many times in television and film dramas that it has become almost cliche.

QUICK TRIVIA

The Banana Split, according to several sources, came to life in 1904. They were created by David Evans Strickler, a young 23-year-old apprentice at a pharmacy in Pennsylvania, who loved creating new sundaes.

While Strickler was its originator, Walgreens is ultimately credited with spreading banana split's popularity after adopting the dish as its signature dessert.

WORD OF THE DAY

cater-cousin [key-ter-kuhz-uhn] – noun

an intimate friend a person treated as a cousin who is not a blood relative.

Tuesday 14 June 2016

National Bourbon Day



You may have heard the saying that all bourbons are whiskey, but not all are bourbon. For a whiskey to classify as bourbon it must be made in the U.S. While any state will do, most are made in Kentucky.

In addition, its mash which is that mix of grains from which bourbon is distilled must comprise at least 51 per cent and no more than 79 per cent Indian corn. Most recipes use about 70 per cent corn, which gives it its nickname corn whiskey.

Besides corn, the other grains used in the making of bourbon include malted barley and either rye or wheat. Some Kentucky bourbon makers say the limestone spring water in that area of the state lends bourbon its distinctive flavor.

Bourbon must be aged at least two years in a new, charred oak barrel made from American White Oak. But many types of bourbon are aged four years or longer. Bourbon gains its color and much of its flavor from barrel aging. The charred wood provides caramelized sugars that add flavor to the whiskey.

The barrels can only be used once for bourbon so many become furniture or firewood. Others are used for aging soy sauce, while most end up in the United Kingdom for their Scotch whiskies.

Bourbon barrels are stored in large, multi- storey warehouses called rick houses. The wood barrels expand and contract based on the weather outside which eventually penetrates these rick houses. Hot weather causes the pores of the wood to open up more and impart their flavor. The result is barrels on the top floor will have a slightly different flavor than those on lower floors.

Most distillers make their bourbon between 80 and 100 proof. This means it contains 40 to 50 percent alcohol by volume.

And

World Blood Donor Day



Every year on 14 June, countries around the world celebrate World Blood Donor Day (WBDD). The event, established in 2004, serves to raise awareness of the need for safe blood and blood products, and to thank blood donors for their voluntary, life-saving gifts of blood.

World Blood Donor Day is celebrated every year by the people in many countries around the world on 14 June. World Blood Donor Day is celebrated every year on the day of birthday anniversary of Karl Landsteiner on 14 June in 1868.

World Blood Donor Day celebration brings a precious opportunity to all donors for celebrating it on national and global level as well as to commemorate the birthday anniversary of the Karl Landsteiner (a great scientist who won the Nobel Prize for his great discovery of the ABO blood group system).

And Last but not Least

National Flag Day
(Recognized by America only)




Flag Day Celebrated June 14, 1777

Today is Flag Day! On May 30, 1916, President Woodrow Wilson issued a presidential proclamation establishing a national Flag Day on June 14.

Many Americans celebrate Flag Day by displaying the Red, White and Blue in front of homes and businesses. The day commemorates the adoption of the Stars and Stripes as the official flag of the United States.

Get More About the US Flag Here



Finally.... Bourbon Day! I think that I can really get into this particular 'special' day

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The 166 day of the year 200 days left to go.

1642: Massachusetts passed the first compulsory education law in the colonies.

1775: The Continental Army is established by the Continental Congress, marking the birth of the United States Army.

1777: The Stars and Stripes is adopted by Congress as the Flag of the United States.

1789: Mutiny on the Bounty: HMS Bounty mutiny survivors including Captain William Bligh and 18 others reach Timor after a nearly 7,400 km (4,600 mi) journey in an open boat.

1834: Isaac Fischer, Jr. of Vermont patented sandpaper.

1846: A group of American settlers in Sonoma proclaimed the Republic of California.

1900: Hawaii becomes a United States territory.

1937: Pennsylvania becomes the first (and only) state of the United States to celebrate Flag Day officially as a state holiday.

1943: The Supreme Court ruled schoolchildren could not be compelled to salute the U.S. flag if doing so conflicted with their religious beliefs.

1954: U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower signed an order adding the words "under God" to the Pledge of Allegiance.

1965: Paul McCartney recorded "Yesterday," a song he affectionately called "Scrambled Eggs".

1976: The Gong Show debuted on NBC. Host Chuck Barris introduced amateur acts, the worst of which were "gonged" by a panel of judges.

1989: Actress Zsa Zsa Gabor was arrested in Beverly Hills for slapping a motorcycle patrolman.

1996: Cal Ripken Jr. played in his 2,216th straight game with Baltimore, breaking an endurance record set by Japan’s Sachio Kinugasa. The Orioles beat the Royals 6-1.

1997: A 1939 comic book that featured the debut of Batman was auctioned in New York for $68,500.

2005: A woman searching for aluminum cans in a trash bin in Framingham, Massachusetts, was dumped into the back of a garbage truck after the driver emptied the bin without realizing she was inside. The 38-year-old woman avoided major injury after a worker installing carpet nearby heard her screams and alerted the truck driver, who was about to press the compacting button.

This is one of those threads that Must be Checked Daily!

Fall behind too easily.  I Love It!

My favorite of ones I missed - National Sewing Machine Day
Made me think of old pedal sewing machine my grandmother had.
Nice memory.

Thanks, ICE

Yeah Pops... I remember my G-G-Mother had a "treadle" type as well... No need for a plug or electricity... My mom's sister still has it I believe...

Better days for sure...

Ice