Dinner Time!

Today November 5th is National Men Make Dinner Day.
That's right girls you heard me, take off the apron and hand over the whisk. Get yourself a nice glass of wine and put your feet up!

It's Men Make Dinner Day.
The thought of some men making dinner can be a scary proposition. Perhaps you man's idea of dinner is a frozen pizza and a two-liter of soda. Let him know that there are loads of recipes on the web that can help him out. One of my favorite is recipezaar they have a recipe for everything. If you are one of the lucky ones and your man is well acquainted with your kitchen and can whip up a fabulous gourmet meal in no time, have him pour you a glass of wine and provide an amuse bouche. My man is more of a breakfast chef(that's one of his creations above), you know my solution...Breakfast for Dinner!

In case your man needs a bit more convincing below is a list for why your guy should participate in this fun National Day.

TOP TEN REASONS TO PARTICIPATE IN ‘NATIONAL MEN MAKE DINNER DAY’

10. While cooking, you can still wear your tool belt, simply replace the hammer with a whisk.
9. Several recipes include beer as a legitimate ingredient.
8. The blender, the electric mixer and the food processor are loud enough to drown out anyone in the house who is learning a musical instrument.
7. Whoever is cooking always gets the most attention from the dog.
6. Whatever recipe you choose, you can name it after yourself. Example: tonight’s dinner is called ‘Doug’s Surprise’.
5. Discovering that ‘250 ml’ is the same as ‘8 ounces’ AND ‘1 cup’ is half the fun.
4. Since YOU choose the recipe, it can be a turnip-free night.
3. Some desserts, such as crème brulee, require the use of a propane torch. How much fun is that?!
2. Since other husbands in your neighborhood are also cooking dinner, ironically this could be the ultimate male bonding experience
1. Participating in ‘National Men Make Dinner Day’ gives you optimum points with your wife. Use those points wisely!

If your man is still wary about this and just thinks you are trying to put one over on him, Have him google it (or click on the link above)...it's the real deal.

Turkey and the Television

Today in 1953 Swanson began selling it's first TV dinner. What has grown into a huge portion of the American way of life all started out as a quick solution to a pressing problem. Gerald Thomas, a Swanson executive was faced with 10 railroad cars full of unsold turkeys. So....Thomas thought, why not package the turkey with the usual side dishes, put them in segmented trays and sell them as a complete meal for the busy family. What a stroke of genius. The best part however was to tie it into the current rage in households across America...television. The perfect meal to have and not miss a show. The meal was hot, complete and could be easily eaten in it's segmented container right in the livingroom in front of the "tube". Swanson came out with 5,000 TV Dinners featuring turkey, cornbread dressing, gravy, peas ans sweet potatoes. The selling price was 98 cents and the box was cleverly designed to resemble a television. The original 5,000 dinners was no where near enough. Swanson sold 10,000,000 TV Dinners that first year....who knew! Check out the 1953 commercial for Swanson, the dinners are "all that" and more. Nowadays my tastes run a bit more on the expensive "foodie" side . Although, I have been know to eat a frozen dinner and even fondly remember the "treat" it was to get one as a kid complete with the little chocolate cake in the upper right hand corner..yum, yum. I also tend to spend less time in front of the TV and more time in front of the computer. I'm thinking though that the hot meal in the segmented tray may come in handy in front of the computer too. I may need these great napkins from marywibis etsy shop

As well as these felt coasters/trivets from moufelt on etsy

And what meal would not be complete, yes even a frozen dinner, without a nice glass of wine. Bon Appetit !

School Days, School Days

Ahh, the crisp cool air, the sound of bus brakes squealing, the rise of children's voices in laughter. All signs that school has again begun. In the spirit of shopping for school supplies for the kids I have developed my own list of necessary school supplies. These items come from the shops of those talented artists on etsy. These are the items that I would want if I were going back to school.

If you or someone you know is going back think about outfitting them with great supplies from the etsy community of artists. If you have special memories you wish to capture

look at my shop for this great photo journal.

Love Conquers All

Today is National Kiss-and-Make Up Day. Usually when we have an argument with someone and then go to make amends we call that "kiss & make-up".  That means we have forgiven each other and have made peace with each other.  Of course we don't really need to actually kiss someone to make up with them.  We can often times hug, shake hands or even just give a pat on the back.  It's not the actual physical action that creates the peace between us but the heart action. The forgiveness comes out of our love for the other person and our desire to keep that love whole and undamaged. That kind of love was the inspiration for this card from my shop.  The words are latin but the feeling is the same no matter the language.  If you are quarelling with someone kiss and make-up, if not just give those you love a reminder today, after all that's what today is for.

Sneaky Art of the Spitball

On this day in 1982 Gaylord Perry of the Seattle Mariners was ejected from a game for throwing an illegal spitball. A spitball is an illegal pitch in baseball. The idea is to coat the ball with some kind of substance that will then alter the aerodynamics of the ball and thus alter it's path and make it more difficult to hit. The invention of the spitball has been credited to a number of individuals, however it was Elmer Stricklett who introduced it to the majors. The pitch was widely popular in the 1900's but was banned from use by the 1920's. The league however allowed an exception for up to two pitchers on each team, who would be allowed to throw spitballs but no other kind of defaced ball pitch. While the exemption was originally intended to last for just one season, the leagues backed off slightly after the season. They identified 17 "bona fide" spitball pitchers who were allowed to continue throwing the spitball for the remainder of their careers. The art of the spitball lied greatly in it's decption. The pitcher had to be sneaky in his actions so that the batter would never know it was coming. The most popular methods were to hide petrolleum jelly behind the knee or under the brim of the hat. Once the pitch was banned the players had to be even more creative in there methods of secrecy because if caought they would be ejected from the game. Gaylord Perry, who went so far as to title his autobiography Me and the Spitter, would put vaseline on his zipper because umpires would never check there.

If you have a baseball fan in your life impress them with your knowledge of the spitball and it's sorted history. If you are looking for a baseball themed card check out my etsy shop for one like this.

You could even add a special gift like these awesome cufflinks from qacreates shop to the card for any special occasion, even for finally mastering the sneaky art of the spitball...just don't tell the umpire.

Signed, Sealed, and Delivered.

Although now a familiar sight at busy intersections in every city, mailboxes were not used until the 1850s, after the introduction of postage stamps. Before 1847, everyone had to take his or her letters to the post office, pay the postage, and have the postmaster mark each item “paid.” After the introduction of stamps, people wanted a more convenient place to drop-off their mail than the post office. In the 1850s, the Post Office Department began installing collection mailboxes outside of post offices and on street corners in large cities. People can drop their letters in these mailboxes throughout the day, and the postal service collects the accumulated mail at specific times, usually marked on the box.
On March 9, 1858, the first U.S. patent for a street mailbox was patented by Albert Potts of Philadelphia (No.19578). It comprised a simple metal box designed to attach to a lamppost. By August, these boxes were found along the streets of Boston, Mass., and New York City, N.Y. His patent described the "object of this improvement is to afford greater facilities to the inhabitants of large cities for the depositing of letters, and to enable the carriers to collect, or the citizens to deposit therein, at any period of time." The boxes had a central hole for the shaft of a lamp post, lids covering the drop hole to exclude weather, a sight hole so a carrier could see if any letters had been deposited, and a small door secured with a lock for the carrier to empty the box.

Even though e-mail has become the first method by which most of us now "mail", there is nothing like the thrill of pulling out a real, honest to goodness card or letter from your mailbox. It almost makes all that junk mail bearable!

In honor of Albert Potts and the ease with which his invention made "depositing a letter", send a real letter to someone today. There are loads of great note cards out there. Etsypaper has many talented artists that design cards and stationary. Etsygreetings even has a blog dedicated to the beauty of the handmade card that often includes giveaways. Of course you can always stop by my etsy shop and pick up a few things to have handy to "drop in the mailbox". When you do, think of Albert and smile.

Inspired to Sing Out Loud!!

Today in 1931 Congress adopted the song "The Star Spangled Banner" as the National Anthem. It was in 1814, that 35 year old Francis Scott Key penned the song that now is sung thousands of times a year. In fact "The Star Spangled Banner" is one of the most well known national anthems, and has been translated into numerous languages. During the war of 1812, Key and a friend were sailing down the Chesapeake Bay when the British began their attack on the city of Baltimore. Key and others watched the British bombarded Fort McHenry for two days. During all those blasts of canon fire, and the haze of gunpowder, the group was able to occasionally catch glimpses of the HUGE American flag that flew above the Fort. The Flag was 42 feet long and was made to be big enough that the British couldn't miss seeing it. As the last of the shelling stopped Key peered out into the early morning fog and smoke to see if the flag was still flying....it was. He was so inspired that he began to write a poem on the back of an envelope which he called "The defense of Fort M'Henry" Key was quoted as saying, "Then, in that hour of deliverance, my heart spoke: 'Does not such a country, and defenders of their country, deserve a song?'" The flag that inspired Key (pictured above) and a nation is in the care of the Smithsonian Institute. On their website, you can find out interesting facts not only about the song Key wrote, but the woman who sewed the flag, Mary Pickersgill, how it came to be a National Treasure, and why it is so much smaller than it started out. Not the reason you would think!

If you are feeling patriotic please visit the shop for a selection of patriotic cards suitable to send for any occasion that inspires your inner Francis Scott Key.