MUTILATED

My grandmother loved using big words (oh, my, maybe it's genetic) but she was also the mistress of mangling the words with her unique mispronunciations. She would say "in-come-pet-unt" instead of incompetent; "re-seep" instead of recipe; "per-cue-lator" instead of percolator; "heighth" instead of height; and the WORST of all: PRO-NOUNCE-E-ATION" instead of pronunciation!

She told my mother about receiving a government document which had written on it: "Do not fold, spindle, or mutilate" but when she told my mother mutilate came out as "mutt-uh-late".

To this day, whenever we mispronounce a word, someone in the family will say
"mutt-a-late" to bring us back to our senses.

My brother reminded me that I mispronounced "oligarchy" which I did NOT, as it has TWO acceptable pronunciations.  Of course, I have been ridiculed  about my saying
"POE--tassium" and my friend who says "CEE-ment"!

CRAWFISH PIE AND A FILLET GUMBO

At The Table Of Contents cafe in Xenia, "Jambalaya" was listed as the soup of the day. When I ordered a bowl, I asked the waitress, "Do you have crawfish pie?" I saw that she was dumbfounded, so, of course I started singing, "Jambalaya, crawfish pie and fillet gumbo." Seeing that she also did not GET that, I said, "Hank Williams, it's a very famous song." She said she didn't KNOW Hank Williams. (I thought better of mentioning Junior and the Third) I said, "You're too young." She answered, "I'm 41." I said, "Oh, you're just a baby." A woman, sitting at a table, waiting to have her food delivered, said, "I'm 53 and I don't know it, either." I had gauged this woman as being OLDER. She had dreads longer than Bob Marley and Lenny Kravitz and she was wearing a long skirt and sweater that looked reminiscent of hippie clothes from the sixties.

When my luncheon companion joined me, he also did not GET the reference.

So, there I was, a person who doesn't even like country and western music, singing Jambalaya, in public, to five people who didn't GET it.

When I related the story to my brother Les, he said, "It doesn't do any good to make cultural references when your audience isn't going to GET them."

CRANBERRY BEANS

Continuing the conversation about "Bulgarian buttermilk", Mona Lisa, knowing my fondness for beans asked, "So, what kind of beans did you have with the cornbread?"  I laughed and said, "Cranberry beans."  She said, "Are you fooling with me?  I've never heard of them."  I told her that I had written about them.  Below is a Sue's News article from 2016:

                                                          OCTOBER BEANS


Years ago, on one of our shopping excursions, my sister-in-law Jean and I discovered cranberry beans at Big Bear.  We both bought a bag and cooked them.  Cranberry beans soon became one of my family's favorite beans and cornbread meals.  After Big Bear went out of business, it became difficult to find them;  K-Mart carried them for awhile. Whenever one of us would locate the beans, an APB (or "APBB", as Les remarked!) alert would go out. Last week, Jean called and said that Kroger had them.  She and I bought all the bags that were on the shelf.  

As well as being healthful, the beans are economical and the cranberry beans are aesthetically pleasing.  The bean has cranberry-colored striping on an off-white background.  To me, the beans have a nutty flavor compared to navy beans.  I have found several interesting recipes on internet sites.  I have piqued the interest of several of my friends, but not enough to share my stash of beans.  Our larder has six bags in stock and Les exclaimed, "No more beans until I put beans on the grocery list;  there's enough to last a year;  these will expire!"

Cranberry beans are also known as "October beans" because, unlike most beans, they are harvested in the fall, rather than in the summer.  Other names include:  "shelly beans", "horticulture beans", "wren's eggs", "bird egg beans", and "speckled beans";  in Italy, they are called "borlotti".  An interesting note:  nearly all "borlotti beans" used in Italy are imported from the United States.

I like a wide variety of meals and we do not prepare the same dinner entrees in a month but once a month we have some kind of bean soup.  We like beans so much that we have a rating system for soup beans:

1.  LIMA BEAN SOUP
2.  PINTO BEAN SOUP
3.  NAVY BEAN SOUP
4.  CRANBERRY BEAN SOUP
5.  GREAT NORTHERN BEAN SOUP
6.  BUTTER BEAN SOUP
7.  BLACK BEAN SOUP
8.  15-BEAN SOUP

Those are my preferences;  Gerald's favorite is 15-bean soup the and he does not like lima bean soup.  During my birthday week, I have lima bean soup as one of my favorite meals.

So, when you were a kid, did you recite the Miracle Fruit jingle?

"Beans, beans, the miracle fruit,
The more you eat, the more you toot,
The more you toot, the better you feel,
So why don't you eat them every meal?"

When I was a youngster, my mother did the laundry on Mondays and every Monday she would serve beans, because a pot of beans did not require much tending.  We would have either cornbread or skillet bread, along with fried potatoes, and some kind of dessert.  When the washboard, wringer washer, and hanging clothes on the clothesline were replaced by the modern conveniences of a washer and dryer, she seldom cooked beans.  A pot of beans became a treat.

Oftentimes, on the second day, Mother would put "dumplins" or "rivlins" in the leftover beans;  Grandpa called the left-over second-day creation "daddlins".

At school, our meals were usually good, but when the school cooks fixed beans, they were never "done";  we called them "bullets";  the only time we packed lunches was on "bullet day".

How did we ever tolerate each other without BEANO?  Les calls it the MIRACLE PILL.

ETHNIC RIVALRY

My friend Mona Lisa called and, as usual, she asked, "What new thing did you learn today?" because, years ago, I had told her that I learned something new every day.  

Today, I answered, "BULGARIAN BUTTERMILK."

She asked, "Is that something real?" I told her that Les had made beans and cornbread for dinner and another friend had said, "Boy, I'd like to have some Bulgarian buttermilk to go with that cornbread!" I said that I'd never heard of Bulgarian buttermilk and I went to the computer to be educated about it.

I learned that Bulgarian buttermilk is a version of cultured buttermilk in which the cream cultures are supplemented or replaced by yogurt cultures and fermented at higher temperatures for more acidity. It can be more tart and thicker than cultured buttermilk.

When used in cooking, Bulgarian buttermilk makes a richer product.

I couldn't find why it is "Bulgarian" buttermilk except that, in a little ethnic rivalry,  Bulgarians claim they invented yogurt and the Turks stole it!

TILLAMOOK

In my article about SCHADENFREUDE, I noted that when one sees a new word, how quickly one hears it again.  It's the same with products.

Recently, my friend Judy and I were in Xenia and we ate at the cafe Table Of Contents.  All menu items containing cheese noted that they used "only Tillamook cheese";  I asked Judy if she had ever heard of it and she had not.  I looked on the internet and learned that Tillemook is from a Co-op in Tillamook, Oregon, and has been in operation since 1909.

The next day I saw Tillemook ice cream at Kroger.

SCHADENFREUDE

   

The cartoon is from The New Yorker.  If you cannot read the sign, it states:  SCHADENFREUDE THE NEXT 20 MILES.  The word schadenfreude is a favorite word of mine because there is no word in the English language that expresses its meaning.  At dinner recently I used the word and one person had not heard of it.  I told him to call me to let me know when he heard it.  Just three days later he called and said he'd heard THAT word.  I have noticed that as soon as I see a word for the first time, how often I hear or see it used.  I have several friends who call, text, or write to me to let me know their latest encounter with the word.  Below is a Sue's News article published in 2010.

                                                           SCHADENFREUDE

"SCHADENFREUDE": the pleasure or satisfaction derived from the misfortunes of others.

I had never attended class reunions because I still had great bitterness from my school experiences. My husband finally convinced me to attend one of my class reunions as we always had a good time at his own class reunions.  I was always surprised by his lack of bitterness, but he is the kind of person not to bear grudges.

What I learned from attending my class reunion was that the more people change, the more they stay the same. In school, one of my classmates was a particularly snobbish, mean-spirited person that I will refer to as "Mean Girl" in this article. As a grownup she was even a worse person than she had been in school as she remained just as snobbish and mean-spirited and yet proselytized about her religious beliefs.

At the reunion which was held at Deer Creek Park, I was standing under a tree, as I am allergic to the sun. Another classmate, Don, was talking to me and Gerald,and he gestured toward "Mean Girl" and said, "You must know her husband Jerry as he works at the same place you do." I told Don, "There are 18,000 people there, so I probably don't know him." Don went over to them and then all three came over to where I was standing and "Mean Girl" said, "Oh, Phyllis,we saw you over here under the tree so I thought you were worried about the sun changing your hair color." (I guess that was her idea of charitable Christian humor.)   I was Phyllis in school, but was always called Sue in my family and I used Sue at work.

Don said, to "Mean Girl's" husband, "I was telling Phyllis that you also worked at Rockwell."  Jerry asked where I worked at Rockwell and I answered, "In the FIF."   Jerry asked for whom I worked and I answered, "Al Smith--but, Jerry, at work--I'm known as Sue Raypole."  Obviously surprised, he asked, "You're THE Sue Raypole?" "Mean Girl" immediately responded with the question, "What do you mean by THE Sue Raypole?"  Jerry replied, "She runs the whole FIF!" "Mean Girl" immediately struck a confident pose, tossed her hair, and said to me, "Well, Jerry's an ENGINEER, and he also works for Smitty."  Jerry said, "That's a different Smith; she's a MANAGER; she reports to the VICE PRESIDENT AL Smith; I report to C.W. Smith; she's equal to my boss." "Mean Girl" said, "Well, lah-di-dah, isn't our little Phyllis SO special?"

Then I laughed at her and said, "But we pronounce it special, NOT "spay-shul", unless, of course, we're referring to something being spatial." and I spelled it out: S-P-A-T-I-A-L.  It was clearly evident that "Mean Girl" was very angry, probably because I had laughed at her, corrected her, and, of course, most importantly, because I outranked her husband at work.  She turned away from us in a snit while Jerry, Don, and I continued with an enjoyable conversation.  "Mean Girl" never spoke to me again that day and she and Jerry left shortly afterward.

SCHADENFREUDE! Twenty-five years of bitterness wiped away! Laughter IS the great equalizer.

When we completed the contract at Rockwell, I moved on to BMY in Marysville. "Mean Girl's" husband had worked at Rockwell for a long time, but was too young to retire. When I attended a funeral for the mother of another classmate, "Mean Girl" was also there. "Mean Girl" walked up to me and without any attempt of small talk, asked if I could help Jerry get a job where I worked. I asked how she knew where I was working.  She said that Jerry had told her he'd heard where I'd gone. I opened my purse, took out a business card, and told her to have Jerry to call me.  Jerry called me and although we had no position for him at BMY, I was able to help him by being a reference.

My husband said, "Wow!  I can't believe you were able to overcome your animosity."  I told him, "In our lives, we probably have to make only a few moral decisions;  I wasn't being NOBLE: I just thought of how much the guy had suffered being married to such a thoroughly nasty person."

SCHADENFREUDE!

Since then I actually look forward to class reunions, but at the last two reunions "Mean Girl" conspicuously avoided me, but Jerry and I always have great conversations.

CROTCHETY, CONTINUED--IRRITATIONS

IRRITATIONS:

People texting other people while talking to me--right in front of me--they don't even try to conceal it.

Also, they must not realize that I can hear them typing away on the computer at home while they are supposed to be talking to me on the telephone.

Addressing me by my first name before I have given permission. My doctor calls me "Ms. Raypole" and I call her "Doctor"; at our first meeting, she actually asked me which I would prefer. I like formality and distance.

Parents allowing their children to run wild in stores. Today, a girl was running and she brushed me and I yelled, "Did you say EXCUSE ME?"

At Aldi's it is clearly marked that "sitting, standing, and walking" is NOT permitted on the counters where groceries are sacked. PARENTS, why are you so peeved when I tell you?

If I hear another person say, "NO PROBLEM" in a situation where there is obviously a problem, I am going to scream. An example: In a restaurant, I had no eating utensils at my place and as the waitress drifted by, I said, "May I have my silverware?" Her answer: "NO PROBLEM." Of course, it should be NO problem as I was supposed to have my damned eating utensils.

AM I THE ONLY ONE?--CROTCHETY CONTINUED

Am I the only one who is irritated by the clerks in stores asking if I want to donate a dollar to the Miracle Kids Network or other such organizations?

It's bad enough that we have to endure panhandlers coming up to our cars at stop lights or those Shriners with their buckets, but now the store clerks are "guilt-tripping" me. Today I was in the Family Dollar Store and the clerk asked if I wanted to donate my "change" to a Kids Reading Program. Although that is a cause which is close to my heart, I resented feeling coerced. I told the Manager at Kroger that I did not appreciate being "guilt-tripped".

Perhaps it's my imagination, but I think they raise their voices so other people in line can hear whether one chooses to donate.

I usually ask, "Would I receive a receipt for that for my taxes?" When they aren't dumfounded they will usually say that it's on the receipt for the groceries. I'll say, "No, I would need a formal receipt."

Once in a drive-through, I had 2 cents change coming. The clerk tossed the two pennies into the "Ronald McDonald House" receptacle right below the window. I said, "I want my change." She looked startled and said, "I put it in there.", pointing downward. I said, "Yes, I saw that, but you didn't ask me; I need the money OR your manager." She got into her pocket and said, "I only have a nickel." I said, "Make change." She then asked, "Do you really mean that?" I said, "Yes, I want my 2 cents."

CROTCHETY

My brother Les says I am getting "crotchety" with my whining and peevishness; thus, CROTCHETY will be the vehicle for my crankiness.

For example, I am querulous when other people are "on top" of me at a checkout. I don't want them to see my entering my PIN , writing a check, or using a credit card. I seldom use an ATM, but when I do, I don't want anyone close to me.

I respect the spaces of other people; why can't they respect mine?

In stores, when I am finished loading my items on the conveyor belt, I deliberately leave the cart behind me instead of pulling it forward. I do leave enough room for people to put some of their groceries on the conveyor, but I don't want them in my space.

It offends me when I see able-bodied people who continue sitting down when elderly or disabled people, or pregnant women, are waiting in line.

Recently we were at an Olive Garden and there was a large number of people waiting to be seated. I was fortunate to have a seat while waiting. A very-pregnant woman came in and her husband went to register and receive one of the pagers. Among the people sitting and waiting were several young people. I said to one young male who was sitting beside me, "Get up and let her sit down." He didn't budge, so I rose and gave her my seat. She said, "No, that's OK, I'm OK." I said, "No, it isn't OK!" I went and stood next to Gerald. An elderly couple came in and the man was using a cane. I stood in front of the same young male I had spoken to earlier, and I asked, in a low voice, "Excuse me, but do you see that man with a cane who is old enough to be your grandfather?" He nodded, and I said, "Younger people such as you and I should offer one's seat to an older or disabled or pregnant person." [I thought that including myself as "younger" was rather amusing, yet effective.] He got up as did the young woman with him. I went to the elderly couple and said, "There's a place for you!"

I realize that the people must have had "no raisins", but what happened to common decency?

IN MEMORY OF ANDY GOODMAN

I publish this every year.  LEST WE FORGET.

"HE TRAVELED A SHORT WHILE TOWARDS THE SUN AND LEFT THE VIVID AIR SIGNED WITH HIS HONOR"--from Andrew Goodman's tombstone (paraphrasing a quote from Stephen Spender's poem, I Think Of Those Who Are Truly Great)

Andrew Goodman (photo above) was born on November 23, 1943, in New York City and was reared on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, the second of three sons of Robert and Carolyn Goodman, and brother to David and Jonathan. The Goodmans were an intellectual family committed to progressive activism and social justice. They believed in "doing well by doing good";  Andy was an activist from the age of fifteen; he graduated from the progressive Walden School which was known for its anti-authoritarian approach to learning. While a sophomore at Walden, Goodman traveled to Washington D.C., to participate in the "Youth March For Integrated Schools".  As a senior, he and a friend visited a depressed coal mining region in West Virginia to prepare a report on poverty in the United States. He interviewed Jackie Robinson, one of his heroes.

Goodman attended the Honors Program at University of Wisconsin--Madison, for a semester but withdrew after falling ill with pneumonia. He transferred to Queens College, New York City, partly because of its strong drama department. With his brief experience as an off-Broadway actor, he originally planned to study drama, but switched to anthropology.

In April, 1964, he applied for and was accepted into the Mississippi Summer Project. He volunteered, along with Michael Schwerner, to work as part of "Freedom Summer", a CORE (Congress Of Racial Equality) project to register blacks to vote in Mississippi. Having protested U.S. President Lyndon Johnson's presence at that year's World's Fair, Goodman then left for training at the Western College For Women (now part of Miami University) in Oxford, OH. In June, Schwerner and Goodman were sent to Mississippi to begin registering blacks to vote.

On the night of June 20, 1964, the two reached Meridian, Mississippi, where Schwerner (photo left) was designated to be the head of the field office. There they joined with James Earl Chaney, a black man who was also a civil rights activist. On the morning of June 21, 1964, the three set out for Philadelphia, Mississippi, in Neshoba County, where they were to investigate the recent burning of a local black church, the Mount Zion Methodist Church, which had been designated as a site for the Freedom School for education and voter registration.

The three were initially arrested by Deputy Cecil Price for allegedly driving 35 miles over the 30-mile-per-hour speed limit. The three were taken to the jail in Neshoba County where Chaney (photo left) was booked for speeding, while Goodman and Schwerner were booked "for investigation".


After Chaney was fined $20, the three men were released and told to leave the County. Price followed them on State Route 19 to the county line, then turned around at approximately 10:30 p.m. On their way back to Meridian, they were stopped by two carloads of KKK members on a remote rural road. The men approached their car and then shot and killed Schwerner, followed by Goodman and finally Chaney.

Eventually the Neshoba County Deputy Sheriff and conspirators were convicted by Federal prosecutors of civil rights violations but were never convicted of murder. The case formed the basis of a made-for-television movie Attack On Terror:  The FBI versus The Ku Klux Klan and also the feature film Mississippi Burning.

On September 14, 2004, the Mississippi State Attorney General Jim Hood announced that he was gathering evidence for a charge of murder and intended to take the case to a Grand Jury. On January 7, 2005, Edgar Ray Killen was arrested and later found guilty of three counts of manslaughter--not murder--on June 21, 2005, exactly 41 years to the day after the murders. Killen, then age 80, was sentenced to 60 years in prison.

Andy's parents, Robert and Carolyn Goodman, set up the Andrew Goodman Foundation in 1966. The mission of the Foundation is "to recognize, encourage and inspire creative and effective local and individual action in support of civil rights, human dignity and social justice".  Visit www.andrewgoodman.org

Goodman Mountain, a 2,176 foot peak in the Adirondack Mountain town of Tupper Lake, NY, where Andy Goodman and his family spent many of their summers, is named in Andy Goodman's memory.

New York City named "Freedom Place" a four-block stretch in Manhattan's Upper West Side, in honor of Goodman. A plaque on 70th and West End Avenues tells his story.



Queens College has a memorial to honor Andy Goodman. The day of his murder is acknowledged each year on campus and the clock tower of the campus library is dedicated to Goodman, Chaney and Schwerner.


The Walden School, at 88th Street and Central Park West, named its middle and upper school building in honor of Goodman's memory. The Trevor Day School now occupies the building and has maintained their building's name as the Andrew Goodman Building.

An outdoor memorial theater exists at Miami University in Oxford, OH, dedicated to the Freedom Summer alums. Miami University's now defunct Western College for Women also included historical lectures about Freedom Summer.

Those Were On My Mind was written by Pete Seeger to commemorate the three victims.

The Simon & Garfunkel song, He Was My Brother was dedicated to Goodman. Paul Simon had been a classmate of Goodman at Queens College.

Andy lives forever in the hearts of his family and friends.

REDUNDANCY, PLEONASM, AND TAUTOLOGY

I used the phrase "PIN number" but I was immediately  corrected by my brother Les because that usage would be, literally, "PERSONAL IDENTIFICATION NUMBER number".  I was glad I didn't make the grievous mistake of saying  "ATM machine" as that would be "AUTOMATIC TELLER MACHINE machine"!

Les asked, "Have you checked your VEHICLE IDENTIFICATION NUMBER number?"

There is actually a description for people suffering from RAS SYNDROME (REDUNDANT ACRONYM SYNDROME syndrome) or RAP SYNDROME (REDUNDANT ACRONYM PHRASE SYNDROME syndrome).

Les suggested: PNS SYNDROME for PIN NUMBER SYNDROME syndrome!

Among other pleonastic mistakes are:

HIV virus
SAT test
ACT test
APR rate
UPC code
ABS system
CAD design
AC current
DC current
PC computer
CNN network
ABM missile
DMZ zone
GOP party
LCD display

and my favorite:

AM in the morning!

HAPPY 47TH ANNIVERSARY, SWEETHEART!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, SWEETHEART.

In planning our wedding anniversary for today, I said to Gerald, "How about doing what we did 47 years ago after our wedding?"  He looked at me curiously and I said, "Remember, we were so tired that we went back to my apartment and I fixed omelets and I fell asleep on the couch and you fell asleep sitting on the floor with your back up against the couch?"  To this day, I always serve tomatoes and parsley with omelets.

JUNETEENTH

Celebrates the liberation of black American slaves in Texas on June 19, 1865.

On June 19, 1865, the Union General Gordon Granger rode into Galveston, Texas, to inform inhabitants of the Civil War's end two months earlier. Two and a half years after Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, Granger's General Order Number 3 finally freed the last 250,000 slaves whose bondage, due to the minimal Union presence in the region, had been essentially unaffected by Lincoln's efforts. June 19th—which was quickly shortened to "Juneteenth" among celebrants—has become the African-American addendum to our national Independence Day, for, as Juneteenth jubilees remind us, the Emancipation Proclamation did not bring about emancipation, and the prevailing portrayal of Independence Day ignores the ignominious incidence of slavery entirely.

Observance of Juneteenth has traditionally tended towards church-centered celebrations featuring food, fun, and a focus on self-improvement and education by guest speakers. Although initially associated with Texas and other Southern states, the Civil Rights Era and the Poor People's March to Washington in 1968, in particular, helped spread the tradition all across America—to the extent that Milwaukee and Minneapolis now host two of the largest Juneteenth celebrations in the nation.

The state of Texas made Juneteenth an official holiday on Jan. 1, 1980, and became the first to grant it government recognition. Several states have since issued proclamations recognizing the holiday, but the Lone Star State remains alone in granting it full state holiday status, a day when government employees have the day off. Nonetheless, supporters and celebrants of Juneteenth continue to grow in number and in diversity; today, Juneteenth is promoted not only as a commemoration of African-American freedom, but as an example and encouragement of self-development and respect for all cultures.

THE SIMPLE PINEAPPLE

The pineapple is a member of the bromeliad family. It is extremely rare that bromeliads produce edible fruit. The pineapple is the only available edible bromeliad.

It is a multiple fruit. One pineapple is actually made up of dozens of individual flowerets which grow together to form the entire fruit.  Each scale on a pineapple is evidence of a separate flower.

Pineapples stop ripening the minute they are picked. No special way of storing them will help ripen them further. Color is relatively unimportant in determining ripeness. Choose the pineapple by smell. If it smells fresh, tropical and sweet, it will probably be a good fruit.

The more scales on the pineapple, the sweeter and juicier the taste.

After you cut off the top, you can plant it. It should grow much like a sweet potato does.

This delicious fruit is not only sweet and tropical; it also offers many benefits to one's health. Pineapple is a remarkable fruit.

We find it enjoyable because of its lush, sweet, and exotic flavor, but it may also be one of the most healthful foods available today. If we take a more detailed look at it, we will find that pineapple is valuable for easing indigestion, arthritis, and sinusitis.

The juice has an anthelmintic effect; it helps get rid of intestinal worms.

Pineapple is high in manganese, a mineral that is critical to development of strong bones and connective tissue. A cup of fresh pineapple will give you nearly 75% of the recommended daily amount.

It is particularly helpful to older adults, whose bones tend to become brittle with age.

Bromelain, a proteolytic enzyme, is the key to pineapple's value. Proteolytic means "breaks down protein", which is why pineapple is known to be a digestive aid. It helps the body digest proteins more efficiently. Bromelain is also considered an effective anti-inflammatory.

Regular ingestion of at least one half cup of fresh pineapple daily is purported to relieve painful joints common to osteoarthritis. It also produces mild pain relief.

In Germany, bromelain is approved as a post-injury medication because it is thought to reduce inflammation and swelling.

Fresh pineapple is not only high in this Vitamin C, but also because of the Bromelain, it has the ability to reduce mucous in the throat. If you have a cold with a productive cough, add pineapple to your diet. It is commonly used in Europe as a post-operative measure to cut mucous after certain sinus and throat operations.

Those individuals who eat fresh pineapple daily report fewer sinus problems related to allergies. In and of itself, pineapple has a very low risk for allergies.

Pineapple is also known to discourage blood clot development. This makes it a valuable dietary addition for frequent fliers and others who may be at risk for blood clots.

An old folk remedy for morning sickness is fresh pineapple juice. Fresh juice and some nuts first thing in the morning often make a difference.

It's also good for a healthier mouth. The fresh juice discourages plaque growth.

VALUABLE LESSON

Recently, we were at dinner with a couple and their two young children, a boy and girl.

I was paying a great deal of attention to the boy and when there was a lull in the conversation, the father said to his daughter, "Why don't you tell Sue about your science project?" The girl's project was very interesting and then I spent a great amount of time talking to her, going into detail and asking questions.

Later, when both the children had gone to the concession area, I leaned over and said to the father, "Thank you for directing my attention to your daughter." He looked surprised and I asked, "Did you think I didn't get the message that I was ignoring her?"

I told him that I grew up with seven brothers and I always gravitated towards boys and that I have always made a conscious effort to be attentive to my nieces as I am naturally inclined toward the nephews. He said that he'd noticed that tendency in several women.

I was very impressed with his deft handling of the situation and I just want to tell him what a wonderful father he is and thanks for the valuable lesson. 

MEGLOMANIA

Beth, a friend since the 1970s, sent this amusing story. I don't know if her story is apocryphal, but following her story IS a true story:

If you've ever worked for a boss who reacts before getting the facts and thinking things through, you will love this. 

Arcelor-Mittal Steel, feeling it was time for a shakeup, hired a new CEO. The new boss was determined to rid the company of all slackers. 

On a tour of the facilities, the CEO noticed a guy leaning against a wall. The room was full of workers and he wanted to let them know that he meant business. He asked the guy, "How much money do you make a week?" 

A little surprised, the man looked at him and said, "I make $400 a week. Why?" 

The CEO said, "Wait right here." He walked back to his office, came back in two minutes, and handed the guy $1,600 in cash and said, "Here's four weeks' pay. Now GET OUT and don't come back." 

Feeling pretty good about himself, the CEO looked around the room and asked, "Does anyone want to tell me what that goof-ball did here?" 

From across the room a voice said, "Pizza delivery guy from Domino's." 

MY TRUE STORY:

In 1979, at International Harvester, the Plant Manager, a retired Marine named Bill Duvall, toured the plant daily, with a huge cigar in his mouth. One morning, in Department 28, Duvall stopped in his tracks and called a Supervisor, to come over to him.  The Supervisor was my friend John Steinhauer, and Duvall pointed to a guy sitting on the edge of a conveyor, eating a sandwich. Duvall screamed at John, "Go fire that lazy S.O.B.; doesn't he realize the line is running?" John didn't change a word, but simply went over to the guy and after a short dialogue, walked with him out of the department, as he noticed Duvall's approving look.

JOHN'S SIDE OF THE STORY:

John said that he went to the guy and said, "You see that S.O.B. standing over there chomping on the cigar?" The guy nodded that he did. John said, "He thinks you work here and he wants me to fire you." The guy asked, "Do you want me to act upset?" John told him that would make it perfect. The guy was from Ohio Bell and was there in the plant to fix the phones. John and the repairman had quite a laugh as they circled the department and returned to the same spot.

Years later when Duvall was leaving the Company for another company, John called the Ohio Bell repairman and asked him to come for the Farewell Party. He introduced the guy to Duvall and told Duvall that the story about firing the Ohio Bell repairman was legendary. After the introduction, the Ohio Bell repairman said to Duvall, "I guess all bosses are A-holes!"

FLAG DAY

Between the fields where the flag is planted, there are 9+ miles of flower fields that go all the way to the ocean. The flowers are grown by seed companies. It's a beautiful place, close to Vandenberg AFB. Check out the dimensions of the flag.

The Floral Flag is 740 feet long and 390 feet wide and maintains the proper Flag dimensions, as described in Executive Order #10834. This Flag is 6.65 acres and is the first Floral Flag to be planted with 5 pointed Stars, comprised of White Larkspur. Each Star is 24 feet in diameter; each Stripe is 30 feet wide. This Flag is estimated to contain more than 400,000 Larkspur plants, with 4-5 flower stems each, for a total of more than 2 million flowers

PLATITUDES

A recent tragic death prompted this exchange at the funeral home:

One person said, "Those poor little girls.", in referring to the death of a young mother who left behind a husband, a daughter and step-daughter.

The second person said, "I feel sorry for the husband, the kids will be OK; they're young; they'll get over it."

The first person said, "Get over it? They'll NEVER get over it; they'll always have a hole in their hearts; they might be raised by their dad or by the grandparents, but they'll never have that mother."

The second person either missed the point or the passion of the first person, and answered, "But kids are so resilient."

The first person answered, "I couldn't disagree more! They will never be able to grow up to be the people they should have been."

How I admired the passion of the first person and detested the platitudes of the second person, but I decided for once to keep my mouth shut as the first person had said it all.

ASSOCIATION

Watching Jeopardy! the answer was: name the Greek god who wore winged boots or a designer scarf.





Gerald and I answered simultaneously, both saying, "What is Hermes?" However, Gerald pronounced it "HER-MEEZE", like the Greek God, and I pronounced it "AIR-MEZ", like the scarf!

The difference in association!

GENERAL GRANT AND THE JEWS

Mona Lisa asked me to re-print the Sue's News posting from 2012 as she had an argument about Ulysses Grant.

      WHEN GRANT EXPELLED THE JEWS

I attended the Fayette County Historical Society Civil War Program at the Fayette County Museum. The Ulysses S. Grant Homestead Association from Georgetown, OH, which maintains the boyhood home of Grant, provided the program which celebrates the life, history, and legacy of Lieutenant General Grant during the Civil War and as the eighteenth President of the United States. The displays regarding the daily lives of soldiers, weapons, and photographs of Grant were very interesting to me, and the performers, attired in their woolen Civil War style uniforms on a hot summer day, were especially impressive.

Lieutenant General Ulysses Simpson Grant was performed by Michael Miller of Georgetown, OH. Grant, born in Galena, OH, moved to Georgetown, OH, when he was 11 months old and resided in Georgetown, OH, until he went to West Point. 

It was good to see someone of the correct physical stature playing Grant: during the Civil War, Grant was 5' 7" and weighed between 135-150 pounds. Mr. Miller's portrayal was a fitting homage to Grant and when Miller completed his speech, he said, "If there are any questions, I would be glad to answer."

I stood and asked, "Yes, General Grant, I have a question: would you comment on your General Orders Number 11?" Mr. Miller looked stunned and replied, "I'm sorry, I don't know about that; could you tell me what it is?" I said, "Yes, it's your Orders where you expelled the Jews from your war zone and you expelled them as a class because of smuggling."

It was actually exhilarating to hear the shocked intake of breath from members of the audience and the titters as people looked to see the questioner. [I love debates about history!] I continued, telling that Grant had been upset by rampant smuggling, but that he had unfairly singled out Jews to punish, when his own father Jesse Grant was also known to be smuggling during that time.  I said, "You might want to read the new book on the subject." He asked the title and I said, "When General Grant Expelled The Jews." Someone close by, within my earshot, said sarcastically, "Did she write it?" A school classmate of mine, Alice, said, "Oh, Phyllis knows what she is talking about--you can be sure of that!" [Thank you, Alice!] My nephew Michael was with me and he whispered, "She had to go to school with you since she called you Phyllis."

Within half an hour, the moderator of the program came to the microphone and commented about General Orders 11. [It was great to know that someone actually cared enough to go quickly to Google, to check my assertion.] When the moderator said that President Lincoln had "overruled" Grant, I said, "Actually, the President RESCINDED the orders."

After the program, I went to speak to Mr. Miller and I complimented his "grace under pressure". His "significant other", who sometimes portrays Julia Dent Grant in performance, said, "That's the first time in 15 years that he's ever been stumped!" Mr. Miller asked how I became an expert on Grant. I said, "Oh, I'm not, I'm much more interested in Sherman."

Several people approached me and said that I should join the Historical Society. I said, "I'm a Lifetime Member!" I guess I should attend more meetings.

The book I mentioned, When General Grant Expelled The Jews, by Jonathan Sarna is on my birthday wish list.

CLICK HERE to read the article at Townhall.com by Jeff Jacoby entitled When General Grant Expelled the Jews.

BUTTER LEAF OR BIBB?

A wonderful friend called and asked if I could use some free lettuce. [As FREE is my favorite word, you now know why I described the friend as "wonderful"] It seems as if a truck was stalled and the refer unit was out and could not deliver on time; the distribution center refused to take it as the refer unit had been out. The produce company said to dump the lettuce. 

Fortunately, my friend was called and she was able to get 3 crates. How many in a crate, you might ask. 24 heads to a crate! My friend delivered a crate to my house. Thank goodness we have an extra refrigerator in the garage.

I immediately put the word out to family and friends--FREE lettuce. I now have 6 heads left.

When my friend called, I assumed it was iceberg lettuce, but when I looked in the refrigerator, I said, "WOW, it's Bibb, I love Bibb!" Les pointed to the label and said, "No, it's BUTTER LEAF." I said, "It sure looks like Bibb!" He said, " Your first indication that it's NOT Bibb is the label on the crate." I said, "I've had butter leaf lettuce when I've bought bags of mixed lettuces, [Yes, I said LETTUCES!] but this looks like Bibb." He said, "Just admit that you don't know EVERYTHING in the world--it's butter leaf!"

Of course I had to check on google and guess what? "Butter leaf" and "butter head" lettuces are also known as BOSTON BIBB.

So there, Les!

PRODUCE PICKS: Butter Leaf Lettuce
By–Michael R. Marks

"For many people, digesting lettuce salads is tough, especially as they get older. So for many older diners, lettuce salad is no longer on the menu.

Whenever George Burns entered a restaurant, his first question was,“Do you have butter-leaf?” Chefs who served Burns knew that when he walked in, the butter-leaf came out of their walk-in. That's because butter-leaf is the easiest of all lettuces to digest.

Cut a head of butter-leaf lettuce in half and you will know how it got its name – from the buttery yellow color inside. It's also marketed as butter lettuce, butterhead, Bibb, Boston or limestone lettuce.

You can also find it still “alive,” hydroponically grown, which I love. The leaves are soft, and the flavor is delicate and sweet. Field-grown butter-leaf retails for about 99 cents to $1.49 a head. The hydroponic lettuce will cost about $3.99, but it lasts a long, long time. You will never have to throw lettuce away again."

CRUMBLING CAKE ll

We made German's Chocolate Cake for Gerald's birthday.  This article is a repeat from Sue's News from 2012.


Les made the best German's Chocolate cake--EVER--for Gerald's birthday. I have been making German's Chocolate cakes from scratch for Gerald's birthday since 1969 and they've always been good. Les has been making them the last several years and each time they've also been good. Les greased and floured the pans the same way as usual, but when he started to release the cakes from the pans all three layers were stuck to the pans (We are blaming the use of "old" Crisco).  He did everything he could think of to get the layers to release, but one layer was torn apart into three sections; the second layer had some some chunks remaining in the pan and the third layer had just one piece adhering to the pan. I said, "Make extra filling!" We pieced the first layer together and added the filling; we camouflaged the second layer with filling and on the top layer, we heaped on the filling.

Julia Child would have been proud of us!

That damned cake got rave reviews. We had six guests for dinner and each had a piece of cake and I sent pieces home with some people. Gerald asked, "Why were you sending my cake home with people?" I said, "Because it's so rich we can never eat it all and I'd have to throw some away." He asked, "What did Les do differently--the cake was better than usual?" I said, "We only make it once a year!"

Les finally told Gerald about the Crumbling Cake and our artwork.

HOW TO DRIVE PEOPLE CRAZY

FROM MONA LISA

HOW TO DRIVE PEOPLE CRAZY


1. At lunch time, sit in your parked car with sunglasses on and point a hair dryer at passing cars. See if they slow down.
2. Page yourself over the intercom. Don't disguise your voice!
3. Every time someone asks you to do something, ask if they want fries with that.
4. Put decaf in the coffee maker for 3 weeks. Once everyone has gotten over their caffeine addictions, switch to Espresso.
5. In the memo field of all your checks, write "for marijuana".
6. Skip down the hall rather than walk and see how many looks you get.
7. Order a diet water whenever you go out to eat, with a serious face.
8. Specify that your drive-through order is "To Go".
9. Sing along at the opera.
10. Five days in advance, tell your friends you can't attend their party because you have a headache.
11. When the money comes out the ATM, scream "I Won! I Won!".
12. When leaving the zoo, start running toward the parking lot, yelling "Run for your lives! They're loose!".
13. Tell your children over dinner, "Due to the economy, we 're going to have to let one of you go".

AND THE FINAL WAY TO KEEP A HEALTHY LEVEL OF INSANITY:

14. PICK UP A BOX OF CONDOMS AT THE PHARMACY, GO TO THE COUNTER AND ASK WHERE THE FITTING ROOM IS.

CLANDESTINE

Recently I watched a documentary about the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 and I vividly recalled how we were gathered around our television set as President Kennedy addressed the nation.

In his address, President Kennedy used the word "clandestine";  he pronounced it CLAN--DUH--STINE instead of CLAN--DES--TUN. Although I was a teenager, I thought I knew the correct pronunciation. I could not believe that MY President had mispronounced a word. Mother said, "He was probably just reading from cue cards and stumbled over it."

I was torn--of course, I wanted to be right--but I didn't want my President to be wrong.

I rushed to our one lone dictionary and it gave only my pronunciation, not his. The next day I went to the library and I checked three different dictionaries. All gave only my pronunciation.

After that, every time I would hear the word clandestine, I would recall the President's pronunciation.

After watching the documentary, Les said I should I check all the internet possibilities. I learned that the President's pronunciation is British.

I said to Les, "He studied at the London School Of Economics; he probably picked it up there."

Les said, drily, "Just like Madonna and Gwyneth sounding British!"

MENDING FENCES

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my husband.  The article below is from Sue's News, published in 2010. It is still my favorite story about my husband.

 

        MY FAVORITE STORY ABOUT MY HUSBAND

When we moved into our home in 1984, I was aware that our back-door neighbor was Bob Mace, one of our County Commissioners.

At the time, my husband still had his hippie long hair.  Shortly after we had moved in, Gerald was outside, tearing down a rotted fence.  He was dressed in shorts, muscle shirt, and flip-flops, with his hair tied in a pony tail. 

Gerald came in the house and told the following story:  Mr. Mace had leaned across the fence and asked him, "How much do they pay you for that kind of work?"  Gerald said that he answered, "Oh, they don't pay me anything, but the lady of the house lets me sleep with her."

I screaked, "Oh, no, tell me you didn't say that!  What did he say?  Do you think he believed you?"   I was incredulous and asked, "Why on earth did you say that?  You usually have good manners."   Gerald said, "I didn't give the old fart a chance to answer;  I thought he was condescending so I wanted to shock him!" 

The next evening, Mr. Mace and his wife came to the door, with a pan of apple strudel, and said they wanted to welcome us to the neighborhood.  I invited them to come in and visit.  Mr. Mace had obviously checked the voter registration roll as he said, "We just wanted to welcome some good Democrats to the neighborhood."

I told him that we had always voted for him.  He proceeded to ask where we worked, etc. When he asked about my "hubby", I said, "You actually met him yesterday;  let me tell him that you're here; he'll be glad to see you again!" Gerald was not aware that the Maces had come to welcome the "good Democrats" to the neighborhood

I went to the staircase and yelled for Gerald to come down.  Gerald came bounding down the stairs with his hippie hair bouncing freely.

Mr. Mace began to apologize to Gerald but Gerald stopped him mid-sentence by saying, "I've already told the story ten times and I'll probably tell it a hundred more!"  

Gerald also told him that the quote wasn't original but that Carl Rowan had said it to a neighbor who was quizzing him when he moved into an upscale neighborhood in Cleveland.

Gerald said, "If you're going to swipe something, make sure it's a good quote!"

Over the years, whenever I have told this story, I say that it was ALMOST worth the price of the house to see the priceless expression on Bob Mace's face when he saw the one who slept with the lady of the house.

'WHY NOT?"

R.I.P. ROBERT FRANCIS KENNEDY

"My brother need not be idealized or enlarged in death beyond what he was in life.  To be remembered as a good and decent man, who saw wrong and tried to right it, who saw suffering and tried to heal it, who saw war and tried to stop it.

Those of us who loved him and who take him to his rest today, pray that what he was to us and what he wished for others will some day come to pass for all the world.

As he said many times in many parts of this nation to those he touched and who sought to touch him:  some men see things as they are and ask "Why?";  I dream things that never were and ask "WHY NOT?"

THE MIND OF A RACIST

Chris Rock is quoted: "There's a new app that lets you know if your friends are racist--it's called Facebook."

I have said that the only good thing about the Trump ascendancy is the fact that the racists and bigots have come out of the woodwork.  I am shocked daily by the examples of  bigotry, racism, sexism, and homophobia I receive from people on Facebook.  In the past I would answer all of them, but now I just DELETE the comments.  Gerald says I should "UNFRIEND" them but I told him I want to see what they are really like and I quoted Oliver Wendell Holmes.:  "The mind of the bigot is like the pupil of the eye;  the more light you pour on it, the more it will contract."  However, I actually don't want them to contract;  I want them to be exposed.  One thing I think we can count on:  these bigots are so vainglorious that their being exposed does not matter, just as it doesn't seem to matter to Mr. Trump, and they will continue exposing themselves.

The following is an article I wrote in 2010 for Sue's News.  It is titled:

                     YOU NEVER KNOW WHO YOU ARE TALKING TO

My employer was married to a woman whose mother was Japanese and there were several Asian women employed by the Company.

One day at work a sales representative came to give a demonstration of an "improved" version of a product which we used. Two of the women who were working at the equipment where the demonstration was conducted were Asian.  After the demonstration, as we were walking away, the sales representative made a repugnant remark about the sexual proclivities of Asian women. My boss saw that I was ready to respond and he motioned for me to leave. I walked away from the site greatly angered, not only because one of of my sisters-in-law is Korean, but also because of the women who worked for me who were Asian. I waited as I saw my boss bid him goodbye. My boss called me to his office and motioned for me to sit down. He calmly picked up the telephone and called the sales representative's superior and told him that we would not be ordering material from them ever again. I could tell from the conversation that the other person was asking for an explanation, but he gave no reason or explanation, just a simple cancellation of the contract.

I was shocked and asked why he hadn't told the man WHY we were declining the material. He answered, "I want that S.O.B. to keep making those kinds of mistakes and for him to explain to his boss WHY he lost the contract." I asked, "Did you tell the sales rep why?" He answered, "Yeah, I told the M-F'er that he was talking about MY daughter and that you never know who you're talking to!" I am sure that I would have told the sales rep's boss the reason, but perhaps my boss' actions were more effective.

However, "You never know who you're talking to" became a defining moment in my life because I knew that I, myself, had been guilty of untoward remarks.