BITS & PIECES OF A MISPLACED LIFE: FOOD & DRINK

FROM ICELAND

“…hakari , which is shark meat allegedly buried in the sand, and then preserved by fishermen who urinate on it as they go by every day for a few months, until it is truly inedible to everyone but Icelanders.”

        Jane Smiley. “Alone in Iceland” in BETTER THAN FICTION 2: True Adventures from 30 great fiction writers, edited by Don Georgia (London: Lonely Planet Publications, 2015)

GEE, LET’S BUTTER UP SOMEWHAT

“To butter someone up is to beguile them, or to lavish them with praise to get what you want. The idiom evolved from the very literal buttering that takes place as part of the Hindu tradition of throwing balls of clarified butter (called ghee) at the statues of deities. In exchange for the offering, it was thought that buttered-up gods would reward the faithful with a good harvest. ” 

Interesting Facts website Sept. 9,2023

**

STARCHY VEGETABLES AS WEAPONS OF WAR

Starchy vegetables aren’t usually top of mind when thinking of weapons of war, but potatoes played a vital role in a World War II battle — and not by feeding soldiers. Everyone’s favorite tuber took a break from being boiled, mashed, and stuck in a stew on April 5, 1943, when the crew of the USS O’Bannon was alarmed to see a Japanese submarine approaching. According to U.S. Navy Commander Donald J. MacDonald — who wrote that, prior to the incident, “the sea was calm; there was no moon; the night was very dark; the sky was overcast and there were intermittent squalls” — the vessel was first spotted at a distance of 7,000 yards traveling at a speed of 10 or 11 knots.

After initially engaging with depth charges and 20 mm guns, the O’Bannon was eventually close enough to its target for sailors to begin throwing objects at it — including, for lack of a better option, potatoes recovered from their deck lockers. One version of the story suggests the Japanese soldiers on the deck of the submarine, believing the spuds were actually hand grenades, panicked by throwing them both overboard and back at their attackers. Their efforts were for naught: The submarine sank and the Americans were victorious. Because the potatoes used were from Maine, the Maine Potato Growers Association presented the O’Bannon with a plaque “for their ingenuity in using our now proud potato” to sink an enemy vessel. The plaque remained on the ship until it was decommissioned in 1970.

INTERESTING FACTS (June 4, 2025)

THE ARNOLD PALMER

According to Arnold Palmer’s own website, the legendary golfer was thirsty one hot day in the 1960s when he ordered a mixture of lemonade and iced tea. A woman sitting nearby overheard the order and asked the server for “that Arnold Palmer drink.” Ever since then, iced tea and lemonade have been known as an Arnold Palmer….”

**

DIET IN ANCIENT ROME

“Cereal grains, particularly wheat and oatmeal, were part of almost every meal in ancient Rome. These grains were typically used to make bread, biscuits, or porridge, and were eaten by the common folk, the upper crust, and soldiers in the Roman army. Roman porridge recipes survive to this day, including one in Cato the Elder’s De Agri Cultura, a treatise on agriculture written around 160 BCE, which happens to be the oldest remaining complete work of prose in Latin. The simple recipe, which isn’t dissimilar to modern counterparts, suggests soaking wheat in boiling water before adding milk to create a thick gruel — a staple dish that anyone in Rome could have prepared.”

HISTORY FACTS WEBSITE –July 10, 2024

 **

Andrew Jackson & THE 1,400 POUND CHEESE

In 1835, Jackson received a present at the White House: a 1,400 pound wheel of cheese. It sat around idle for two years until Jackson, sick of the cheese, invited 10,000 visitors into the White House to get rid of it. As one resident recalled: “The air was redolent with cheese, the carpet was slippery with cheese, and nothing else was talked about at Washington that day.” Another called the event, “an evil-smelling horror.”

INTERESTING FACTS WEBSITE (January 18, 2025)

20 Interesting Facts About America’s First 20 Presidents

OF GREAT DETECTIVES AND TRIPE SAUSAGE

“Why we read is an interesting subject. I read Georges Simenon’s books to find out what kind meal Detective Jules Maigret is going to enjoy next. Please Maigret I say to myself, you have not eaten a tripe sausage – isn’t it time?”

Deborah Levy in “By the Book:” (The New York Times Book Review, December 15, 2019).

**

BAILEY’S IRISH CREAM The “Baileys” of Baileys Irish Cream does not refer to any real person or family. It was chosen in 1973 by two advertising consultants inspired by the name of a bistro near their office.   ONE GOOD FACT website February 18th, 2025 In the early 1900s, researchers discovered that pine trees near black currant plantings often became sick with a type of fungus known as white pine blister rust. The disease causes lesions on branches and trunks; as the blisters spread, the tree begins to die, and its evergreen needles turn a rusty hue. In an effort to protect the white pine logging industry — one of the most valuable in the nation at the time, and worth up to $1 billion — Congress banned black currants in 1911, going so far as to destroy currant farms with herbicides. Five decades later, botanists lobbied in favor of a return to currant farming, arguing that newly developed bushes were disease-resistant and posed little risk when planted away from pine trees. But despite federal approval for growing the currants in 1966, many states upheld their bans. Connecticut’s 1929 law fined anyone in possession of currant plants up to $25 until 1988, and New York — the top currant producer of old — held out until 2003. Today, black currants are making a slow comeback, with berry farmers in New York, Minnesota, Connecticut, and elsewhere hoping these fast-growing vines will be restored to their former glory.”:   INTERESTING FACTS WEBSITE  (July 17, 2024) https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/FMfcgzQVxbqKgstJwbhQJnJwlfLGQMpl

**WEIGHT WATCHING?

Why am I overweight?

Because of the stress

Of spreading myself too thin,

Louis Phillips