Avocado

What is there not to love about Avocado.

avocado = alligator pear = midshipman's butter    
Pronunciation:  AV-uh-KAD-oh

It is healthy, tastes yummy and there are so many recipes out there.

Did you know that California produces most of the avocadoes grown in the United States? One-fifth of an avocado, typically considered a serving, contains:

• 50 calories
• 4.5 g of fat
• Nearly 20 nutrients including potassium, vitamin K, folate, B vitamins and vitamin C
• No cholesterol

While almost three-quarters of the avocado's calories come from fat, most of it is healthy fat. More specifically, the avocado contains monounsaturated fats are known to reduce low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and are believed to help increase the good kind of cholesterol, high-density lipoproteins (HDL's).

The avocado also has 60 percent more potassium than a banana. In addition, the avocado’s nutritional composition includes a large amount of fiber. Almost three-quarters of that fiber is insoluble with the rest being soluble fiber. Without getting too detailed, let’s just say all that insoluble fiber helps things go smoothly in the bathroom.

Not only can you eat the green inside of an Avocado but you can also (try) grown your own Avocado Tree.  Check it out: http://faq.gardenweb.com/faq/lists/seed/2002114535011263.html

According to Webmd.com Avocado is also good for some other things.

Avocado fruit is used to lower cholesterol levels, to increase sexual desire, and to stimulate menstrual flow. Some of the oils in avocado (chemists call these oils the “unsaponifiable fractions”) are used to treat osteoarthritis. The seeds, leaves, and bark are used for dysentery and diarrhea.

Avocado oil is applied directly to the skin to soothe and heal skin and to treat thickening (sclerosis) of the skin, gum infections (pyorrhea), and arthritis. Avocado oil is used in combination with vitamin B12 for a skin condition called psoriasis. The fruit pulp is used topically to promote hair growth and speed wound healing. The seeds, leaves, and bark are used to relieve toothache.

There are so many ways you can use an Avocado for and plenty of recipes on how to enjoy them.

Thanksgiving

Did you know that different countries in the world celebrate Thanksgiving on different days?

Canada celebrates on the 2nd Monday in October
Liberia celebrates on the 1st Thursday in November
Norfolk Islands celebrate on the last Wednesday in November and
the USA celebrates on the 4th Thursday in November.

Thanksgiving proclamations were made mostly by church leaders in New England up until 1682, and then by both state and church leaders until after the American Revolution. During the revolutionary period, political influences affected the issuance of Thanksgiving proclamations. Various proclamations were made by royal governors, John Hancock, General George Washington, and the Continental Congress, each giving thanks to God for events favorable to their causes.  As President of the United States, George Washington proclaimed the first nation-wide thanksgiving celebration in America marking November 26, 1789, "as a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favours of Almighty God".

Other observances known as Thanksgiving

Germany

The Harvest Thanksgiving Festival (Erntedankfest) is an early October, German festival. The festival has a significant religious component to it but also, like its North American counterpart, includes large harvest dinners (consisting mostly of autumn crops) and parades. The Bavarian beer festival Oktoberfest generally takes place within the vicinity of Erntedankfest.

Grenada

In the West Indian island of Grenada, there is a national holiday known as Thanksgiving Day which is celebrated on October 25. Even though it bears the same name, and is celebrated at roughly the same time as the American and Canadian versions of Thanksgiving, this holiday is unrelated to either of those celebrations. Instead the holiday marks the anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion of the island in 1983, in response to the deposition and execution of Grenadian Prime Minister Maurice Bishop.

Korea

On Thanksgiving Day (Chuseok) is a harvest celebration, which is celebrated according to the lunar calendar, typically in late September, early October. CV

Japan

Labor Thanksgiving Day (勤労感謝の日 Kinrō Kansha no Hi ? ) is a national holiday in Japan. It takes place annually on November 23. The law establishing the holiday, which was adopted during the American occupation after World War II, cites it as an occasion for commemorating labor and production and giving one another thanks. Ithas roots in an ancient harvest ceremony (Niiname-sai (新 嘗祭 ? )) celebrating hard work.

Liberia

In the West African country of Liberia, which beginning in 1820, was colonized by free African Americans (most of whom had been formerly enslaved), Thanksgiving is celebrated on the first Thursday of November.

The Netherlands

Many of the Pilgrims who migrated to the Plymouth Plantation had resided in the city of Leiden from 1609–1620, many of whom had recorded their birth, marriages and deaths at the Pieterskerk.

To commemorate this, a non-denominational Thanksgiving Day service is held each year on the morning of the American Thanksgiving Day in the Pieterskerk, a Gothic church in Leiden, to commemorate the hospitality the Pilgrims received in Leiden on their way to the New World.

Norfolk Island

In the Australian external territory of Norfolk Island, Thanksgiving is celebrated on the last Wednesday of November, similar to the pre-World War II American observance on the last Thursday of the month. This means the Norfolk Island observance is the day before or six days after the United States' observance. The holiday was brought to the island by visiting American whaling ships.

In short, it really only matters what you are thankful for!

Arms length

Can you measure your height by measuring the length of your arms and hands being spread out straight?

You will find that it's pretty close.

Have someone measure you from your longest finger of one hand all the way across to the longest finger of your other hand, you will find that the measurement is (pretty close) the same as your height.

  

Now quit making fun of my stick people!

Is it the correct shoe size?

Have you ever been shoe shopping and either didn't feel like trying on a shoe or didn't have socks on and really didn't want to use the store supplied funny socks/cut up penny hoses?

I know I have done that several times.  Most of the time I am wearing socks and tennis shoes and it just happens to be that I see a really cute dress shoe but I can't try it on because we all know that socks and dress shoes just don't go together.

Here's an easy trick on how to avoid having to try on shoes.

Your foot foot and your forearm are the same length!

Seriously!  Don't believe me?

Put your foot up on top of your forearm.  See, it's true!

Now try the same thing with your shoe.

Ha, told you so!

Does the sock fit?

You may think I am crazy but this is true, it really works!

Did you know that you can measure if a sock fits you by using the sock from heel to toe as your measure? (I did!)

Place the heel of one sock at the thumb and wrap it around the fist from thumb to other side so the toe comes around to the thumb again.

If the toe doesn't quite reach the heel; the socks are too small.
If the toe goes over and past the heel; the socks are too big.
if the toe touches the heel or over a little bit the socks will fit. BUY THEM.

So next time you buy socks and you can't try them on, you can use this technique to find out if the sock fits you or not.

Stranger Danger

It’s nearly unthinkable, but every year thousands of children become victims of crime—whether it’s through kidnappings, violent attacks, or sexual abuse.

Our kids learn from an early age about stranger-danger in school but do they really listen and would they really apply the rules/ideas they have learned?

Yes, I am paranoid but I'm also worried about my children in now-days society.  I don't think I am alone here!

Here is my question though....Does 'Stranger-Danger' warnings really help your child?

The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children doesn't think so.  Why not, you ask?  Well, read this article and you'll find out:  Child Safety is More than a Slogan

Do you know what to do if your child is missing?  PANIC, right?  Nope, stay calm and follow some of these great tips: Your Child Is Missing

What Parents/Guardians Should Know:

One of the most important tools for law-enforcement to use in the recovery of a missing child is an up-to-date, good-quality photograph along with descriptive information.

Download the Best Practices Guide for Child ID Kits (PDF Format)

Understand the importance of having a good quality photo of your child.

Learn which identification tools you should have for your child.  You may think some of these are pretty extreme but guess what....it will help!

The FBI even offers a Child ID App - Putting Safety in Your Hands

You can download a FREE child-id kit from this web-site: http://www.registeredoffenderslist.org/child-id-kit.pdf  

Do you still worry about your child's safety?  Do you think your child would never do this?  REALLY?  Think again.

Dateline had a special show about this.  You may find this interesting to watch by clicking HERE!

Fingerprints & Other Biometrics

This info has been copied directly from the FBY web-site.  Better think twice before yo commit a crime next time!

Biometrics are the measurable biological (anatomical and physiological) or behavioral characteristics used for identification of an individual. Fingerprints are a common biometric modality, but others include things like DNA, irises, voice patterns, palmprints, and facial patterns.
Over the years, biometrics has been incredibly useful to the FBI and its partners in the law enforcement and intelligence communities—not only to authenticate an individual’s identity (you are who are say you are), but more importantly, to figure out who someone is (by a fingerprint left on a murder weapon or a bomb, for example), typically by scanning a database of records for a match.

All About Fingerprints
Fingerprints vary from person to person (even identical twins have different prints) and don’t change over time. As a result, they are an effective way of identifying fugitives and helping to prove both guilt and innocence.

Check out the Fingerprint Identification Overview (http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/fingerprints_biometrics/fingerprint-overview)

Biometric Initiatives
The FBI continues to look to new scientific advances to increase the range and quality of our biometric identification capabilities.

You’re seen it before in spy movies—someone gains access to a secret room through a thumbprint or eye scan.  It’s not just fiction anymore.  Check out this great story (http://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/2010/march/biometrics_031110)

Through the Global Collections Program, the FBI fosters national and international relationships related to biometrics in support of counterterrorism and other law enforcement efforts.

The Foreign Fingerprint Exchange facilitates the acquisition, review, analysis, and comparison of biometric samples and related information from foreign governments against comparable information within the IAFIS. In addition to receiving and processing ad-hoc biometric inquiries from international sources, CJIS also makes similar requests of agencies in foreign countries, channeling them through the FBI Office of International Operations, Legal Attachés, or the INTERPOL.

The Quick Capture Platform allows front-line investigators to acquire tactical intelligence on-site through biometric collection. Able to simultaneously query the FBI’s IAFIS and the Department of Defense Biometric Fusion Center’s Automated Biometric Identification System, the QCP provides real-time, direct access to over 81 million records. Amazingly, the entire platform weighs approximately 22 pounds and can be loaded into a backpack. Initially developed for combat theatre operations, the QCP has proven to be invaluable in the operational investigations of known or suspected terrorists, transnational criminals, and illegal aliens. In addition to the combat theatre, the QCP is deployed to hostile environments and other remote access areas.

The Flyaway Program assists domestic and international law enforcement with critical on-site fingerprint identification. At any given moment, a team of seven members from a pool of 46 CJIS employees can be notified of a mission with a 4-hour recall to deploy. The intelligence gained from o

"MY" Holiday - October 3, 1990

I betcha not many, if any, can say that they have a Holiday made just for them on their Birthday.  OK, I really didn't have one made just for me but it just happens to fall on my birthday.  Happy Birthday to me!

East and West Germany reunite after 45 years

Less than one year after the destruction of the Berlin Wall, East and West Germany come together on what is known as "Unity Day." Since 1945, when Soviet forces occupied eastern Germany, and the United States and other Allied forces occupied the western half of the nation at the close of World War II, divided Germany had come to serve as one of the most enduring symbols of the Cold War. Some of the most dramatic episodes of the Cold War took place there. The Berlin Blockade (June 1948--May 1949), during which the Soviet Union blocked all ground travel into West Berlin, and the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961 were perhaps the most famous. With the gradual waning of Soviet power in the late 1980s, the Communist Party in East Germany began to lose its grip on power. Tens of thousands of East Germans began to flee the nation, and by late 1989 the Berlin Wall started to come down. Shortly thereafter, talks between East and West German officials, joined by officials from the United States, Great Britain, France, and the USSR, began to explore the possibility of reunification. Two months following reunification, all-German elections took place and Helmut Kohl became the first chancellor of the reunified Germany. Although this action came more than a year before the dissolution of the Soviet Union, for many observers the reunification of Germany effectively marked the end of the Cold War.

(Source: History.com - You can check out what happened on your birthday at: http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history)

JFK: 'I Am a Jelly Donut' ('Ich bin ein Berliner')

Born and raised in Berlin, Germany, I just couldn't resist this post.

You probably have heard and read from several different sources the story that John F. Kennedy made a major German language blunder in his famous "Ich bin ein Berliner" speech in Berlin, Germany.  

The story goes that he should have said "Ich bin Berliner" ("I am a citizen of Berlin"), and that "Ich bin ein Berliner" really means "I am a jelly doughnut."  (A "Berliner" is in fact a type of jelly doughnut made in Berlin.)  

Is it true?  President Kennedy said the phrase absolutely correctly, although possibly with a thick American accent.  The German language is simply not that trivial — it has subtleties that very few non-native speakers grasp.  

If President Kennedy had said "Ich bin Berliner," he would have sounded silly because with his heavy accent he couldn't possibly have come from Berlin.  But by saying "Ich bin ein Berliner," he actually said "I am one with the people of Berlin." 

Although someone would have to verify it, that President Kennedy actually didn't know German very well, if at all.  He had a German journalist translate the phrase for him, and that journalist coached him at length on exactly how to say the phrase.

You should have seen this coming....How about the recipe on how to make a "Berliner"!

Ingredients

• 1 cup whole milk
• 3/4 ounce (4 1/2 teaspoons) instant yeast
• 1/4 cup sugar, plus more for coating
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/4 teaspoon mace
• 2 tablespoons nonfat powdered milk
• 1 large egg
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup bread flour
• Oil, for coating bowl
• Vegetable shortening, for frying
• 1 1/2 cups raspberry, strawberry, blueberry or your favorite jelly for filling doughnut

Directions

Set a small saucepan over low heat and add 1/4 cup of the milk. Heat the milk long enough to remove the chill and raise the temperature just slightly so that it is just warm. Place the yeast in a small bowl with 1 tablespoon of the sugar and pour the heated milk over the yeast. Stir the milk into the yeast and allow it to bloom for 5 to 10 minutes. In a stand mixer fitted with a whip attachment, combine the remaining 3 tablespoons of sugar, butter, salt, mace, and powdered milk and mix until just well combined. Do not overmix. Add the egg and mix gently. Add the remaining 3/4 cup of milk and mix briefly. Add the flours and yeast mixture and mix to form a smooth dough, about 6 to 8 minutes at second speed.

Transfer dough to a lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a damp kitchen towel. Set aside to rise in a warm, draft free place until doubled in size, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
Place the dough on a lightly floured work surface. Sprinkle the dough lightly with flour and, using a rolling pin, roll to a thickness of 1/2-inch. Let dough sit undisturbed for 5 minutes to allow the dough to relax. Using a biscuit cutter or the rim of a glass, cut doughnuts into rounds about 3 inches in diameter.
Add enough solid vegetable shortening to a large saucepan or deep-fryer to come halfway up the sides of the pan when melted. Heat over medium heat to a temperature of 350 degrees F. Fry the doughnuts, a few at a time so as to not overcrowd, turning once midway through the cooking, 2 to 2 1/2 minutes per side. Drain on a paper towel-lined plate. While donuts are still warm, place them in a paper bag with some sugar and shake to coat. Transfer the cooked doughnuts to a cookie rack set over a sheet pan to cool.
When cool, place the jelly in a pastry bag fitted with a plain tip and, using the tip, poke a small hole in the side of the doughnuts and fill the centers with 2 tablespoons of the jam. Serve.

Once in a Blue Moon

Although the full moon on Aug. 31, 2012, will look like an ordinary full moon, it's actually a bit extraordinary—a blue moon.

What is a Blue Moon?

There are in fact two definitions for a blue moon. According to the more recent definition, a blue moon is the second full moon in a calendar month. For a blue moon to occur, the first of the full moons must appear at or near the beginning of the month so that the second will fall within the same month (the average span between two moons is 29.5 days). The full Moon on Aug. 31, 2012, will be this type of blue moon; it will be the second full moon in one month.

The Other Kind of Blue Moon

The older definition, which is recorded in early issues of the Maine Farmer's Almanac, states that the blue moon is the third full moon in a season that has four full moons. Why would one want to identify the third full moon in a season of four full moons? The answer is complex, and has to do with the Christian ecclesiastical calendar.
Some years have an extra full moon—13 instead of 12. Since the identity of the moons was important in the ecclesiastical calendar (the Paschal Moon, for example, used to be crucial for determining the date of Easter), a year with a 13th moon skewed the calendar, since there were names for only 12 moons. By identifying the extra, 13th moon as a blue moon, the ecclesiastical calendar was able to stay on track.
For more background information on the controversy over the two definitions of blue moon, see the Sky and Telescope article, "What's a Blue Moon?" In it they explain how the two different definitions of a blue moon came about—including their own role in introducing the second, modern definition.

A Star Rating for the Modern Blue Moon

Although Sky & Telescope calls the modern blue moon definition "trendy" and a "mistake," the fact that there is an older, preexisting (and more complicated) definition does not necessarily make it the more interesting or meaningful definition. Charting the "third full moon in four full moons" in a season isn't everyone's idea of an fascinating enterprise. The modern, "trendy" definition, however, points to an intriguing astronomical phenomenon—every so often two moons can manage to position themselves in the same month. Given that full moons occur once every 29.5 days, this is quite an accomplishment!

How Often Does a Blue Moon Occur?

Over the next 20 years there will be about 15 blue moons, with an almost equal number of both types of blue moons occurring. No blue moon of any kind will occur in the years 2011, 2014, and 2017.
The more recent phenomenon, where the blue moon is considered to be the second full moon in a calendar month, last occurred on December 31, 2009. Two full moons in one month may occur in any month out of the year except for February, which is shorter than the lunar cycle.
The other, older blue moon event, which happens when there are four full moons in a season, last occurred in May 2008 and will again on Nov. 21, 2010. Since this type of blue moon is reckoned according to the seasons, it can only occur in February, May, August, or November, about a month before the equinox or the solstice.

Twice in a Blue Moon

The rare phenomenon of two blue moons (using the more recent definition) occurring in the same year happens approximately once every 19 years. 1999 was the last time a blue moon appeared twice, in January and March.
The months of the double blue moons are almost always January and March. That is because the short month that falls in between them, February, is a key ingredient in this once-every-19-year phenomenon. For January and March to each have two full moons, it's necessary for February to have none at all. Since February is usually 28 days long, and the average span between full moons is 29.5 days, if a full moon occurs at the end of January, it's possible for the next full moon to skip February entirely and fall in the beginning of March.

Once in a Blue Moon

"Blue moon" appears to have been a colloquial expression long before it developed its calendrical senses. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the first reference to a blue moon comes from a proverb recorded in 1528:

If they say the moon is blue,
We must believe that it is true.

Saying the moon was blue was equivalent to saying the moon was made of green (or cream) cheese; it indicated an obvious absurdity. In the 19th century, the phrase until a blue moon developed, meaning "never." The phrase, once in a blue moon today has come to mean "every now and then" or "rarely"—whether it gained that meaning through association with the lunar event remains uncertain.