Sea Horses Antique Illustration

TRIVIA, HOMEMADE MAPLE SYRUP, QUICK QUESTION, SEA ART ILLUSTRATIONS, ANGEL TRUTHISMS

Hello Wonderful readers on a beautiful, warm Wednesday – at least it is here.

March is getting closer – I see its timing in the sunrise, sunset and general feeling that spring is rolling our way.

We totally appreciate all of you for sliding by and spending a piece of your day hanging out + sharing + caring.

Catch ya on Friday with another fabulous episode!

Ready.  Set.  Read On.

Wednesday Reader February 21

POP QUIZ

  1. SAPPHIRE COMES FROM THE SAME MINERAL AS WHICH OTHER PRECIOUS GEM?
    a) Amethyst
    b) Diamond
    c) Emerald
    d) Ruby
  2. WHAT FICTIONAL COMPANY’S PRODUCTS INCLUDE GIANT RUBBER BANDS, EARTHQUAKE PILLS, BIRDSEED AND ANVILS?
    a) Acme Corporation
    b) Evil Corp.
    c) Rich Industries
    d) Wayne Enterprises
  3. THE 1987 DOCUMENTARY  “HAIL !  HAIL!  ROCK  ‘N’ ROLL” COMMEMORATED WHOSE 60TH BIRTHDAY?
    a) Chuck Berry
    b) Bill Haley
    c) Jerry Lee Lewis
    d) Little Richard
Wednesday Reader February 21

QUICK QUESTION

WHAT HASN’T CHANGED ABOUT YOU OVER THE YEARS?

Quick Questions

POP QUIZ ANSWERS

  1.  Sapphire and ruby are color variations of the mineral corundum.
  2. “Looney Tunes” fans know Acme Corporation makes giant rubber bands, earthquake pills, birdseed and anvils.
  3. The 1987 documentary  “Hail! Hail! Rock ‘n’ Roll” commemorated Chuck Berry’s 60th birthday.

~ COPYRIGHT 2024 LESLIE ELMAN
DISTRIBUTED BY CREATORS.COM

ANGEL THOUGHTS

Many people will walk in and out of your life, but only true friends will leave footprints on your heart forever.

To handle yourself, use your head; to handle others, use your heart.

Anger is only one letter short of danger.

If someone betrays you once, it’s his fault; if it happens twice, it’s your fault.

Great minds discuss ideas;
Average minds discuss events;
Small minds discuss people.

God gives every bird its food, but does not throw it into its nest.

He who loses money, loses much; he who loses a friend, loses more; he who loses faith, loses all.

Beautiful young people are acts of nature, but beautiful old people are works of art.

Learn from the mistakes of others, you can’t live long enough to make them all yourself.

The tongue weighs practically nothing, but so few people can hold it.

~ Courtesy and with permission
poetic expressions.co.uk
Thanks Mike and the Team!

WHEN IN DOUBT
LOOK INTELLIGENT
~ GARRISON KEILLOR ~

RIDDLE ME THIS

WHAT GOES UP AND DOWN BUT NEVER MOVES?

Wednesday Reader February 21

HOMEMADE MAPLE SYRUP

My mom always made homemade maple syrup to drizzle over pancakes, waffles, french toast, oatmeal, grits or cornbread.  So way better than the bottle-stuff purchased off the shelf at the grocery store.  And it’s super easy to make.

HERE’S HOW WE MAKE IT:
INGREDIENTS

  • 1 cup water
  • 3/4 cup white sugar
  • 1 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1 TBSP maple flavored extract
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

COMBINE IN A SAUCEPAN OVER MEDIUM-HIGH HEAT
Water + sugars and bring to a boil stirring frequently with a wooden spoon.

ADD
Maple and vanilla extracts and continue stirring until all 5 ingredients have become one-beautiful-sweetness.  About another 5 minutes.

TAKE OFF BURNER HEAT
And let stand about 5 minutes.

SERVE HOT
Over breakfast pancakes, waffles, french toast, grits and/or cornbread.

VOILA!
Store any leftover syrup in a mason jar and simply zap for a “second time around”

Hippie Cowboy recipe box

RIDDLE ANSWER

A STAIRCASE

Riddle Answer

LOST IN SUBURBIA

RIDING THE WAVE
BY TRACY BECKERMAN

We hadn’t had the new microwave that long when, all of a sudden, it decided that it just didn’t want to microwave anymore.

“You had one job,” I sad to the microwave, chastising it after it failed to reheat some leftovers.  “Is that really so hard?”

Naturally, I had no idea what went into making a microwave microwave.  I assumed it probably had something to do with the sun, since it used microwaves, and maybe also radio waves or ultraviolet rays, and therefore there was surely a solar panel installed somewhere that made it work, as well as a transistor radio and sunscreen.  Since I had no experience with microwaves or radio waves or UV waves (except that one time when I was 7 and got a really bad sunburn), I thought this was all well out of my limited range of appliance repair knowledge and decided to call in a professional.

I looked online for a repairman in my area and chose Mike’s Microwave repair because it had a number of good reviews and also, Mike and Microwave both begin with an M, and I like alliteration.  I had to wait two weeks for Mike to show up because apparently, there was a sudden epidemic of of microwave deaths at the same time that mine pooped out.  It was like some kind of microwave flu that must have been transmitted over the airwaves, or maybe the radio waves.  I couldn’t be certain.

By the time Mike finally arrived, I was beside myself.  I was a child of the microwave generation and never realized that food could also be reheated in an actual oven, so for two weeks I ate cold leftovers and brooded about how difficult life was without a microwave.

“I think it might be the fuse,” said Mike when he finally arrived and did triage on my microwave.  “It should be an easy fix, but there’s a chance I might have to do open oven surgery.  I need you to sign a release.”

“A release?”  I said.  “For what?”

“Acknowledging that the appliance was not functioning when I arrived and nothing I did caused it to further malfunction.”

“Fine,” I said and signed the form.  “But before you do anything, you should try point the satellite dish in a different direction to see if that solves the problem, because not only is the microwave broken, but also, our TV isn’t getting very good reception.”

He looked at me like I was one burner short of a stovetop.  “They have nothing to do with each other.”

“What?”  I said.

“Your microwave and your TV,” he said.  “Completely unrelated.

“Got it,” I said.  “But could you check the TV when you’re done with the microwave, anyway?”

“But the TV is in the kitchen,” I replied.  Then I recalled that the ad said Mike’s Microwaves, and not Mike’s Microwaves and TVs, so I decided to let it go.

I watched the one TV channel that worked well while Mike did surgery on the microwave.  But when I decided to switch channels, all of a sudden, at the same the exact same time, the microwave whirred to life.

“Hah!”  I yelled.  “I fixed the microwave!”

“No, you didn’t,” said Mike.  “I did.  I put in a new fuse.”

“I’m not so sure, Mike,” I said assuredly.  ” I was on CNN and when I switched to HGTV, the microwave started to work again.”

“I told you, they’re not related,” he argued.

I shrugged.  “If you want to believe that, that’s fine,” I said.  “I don’t want to make waves.”

~ Tracy Beckerman is the author of the Amazon Bestseller, Barking at the Moon:  A story of Life, Love, and Kibble.
COPYRIGHT 2024 CREATORS.COM

Fascinating Stuff

FASCINATING STUFF

  • The “star” in a star sapphire is caused by natural deposits of a titanium-based mineral called rutile inside the stone.  Occasionally, those needle-shaped imperfections meet at their points to create a star shape called an asterism (from the Latin for star).  When that happens, the raw gemstone is cut and polished to highlight the natural star-shaped inclusion.
  • A full orchestra, plus the participation of 19 percussionists, is required to perform “Hekla, op 52” by Icelandic composer Jon Leifs, reputed to be the loudest orchestral piece ever written.  Incorporating the sounds of hammers on anvils, church bells, chains, cannons and shotguns, the piece was inspired by the Icelandic volcano Hekla, which erupted in 1947, about 14 years before Leifs completed his composition.
  • In April 1862, Union forces took control of the Confederate Fort Pulaski in Georgia.  The 48th Infantry, left to garrison the fort, spent most of its working hours repairing battle damage to the structure.  In the off-hours, the soldiers organized a baseball team, a band and a theatre troupe that performed everything from farces to Shakesperean tragedy in its own theatre.  When the 24th Massachusetts was moved in to replace the 48th New York, it continued the fort’s theatre tradition.
  • Kericho, Kenya, is known for two things:  tea and hail.  The high-altitude region near the equator yields more than 800 million pounds of tea each year.  It also typically sees hailstorms more than 100 days a year.  The trouble comes when the two coincide.  While the hailstones in Kericho tend to be small, they can play havoc with the tea crops, destroying plants and making harvests difficult.

~ COPYRIGHT 2024 LESLIE ELMAN
DISTRIBUTED BY CREATORS.COM

Wednesday Reader February 21
5 replies
  1. Carol says:

    Super-fantastic art work! Love the color and the variety of everything pictured.

    Mmmm! Homemade maple syrup. Warm. I feel pancakes coming on. . .

    And of course the wisdom of Garrison Keillor. When in doubt, look intelligent. I must remember that!!!

    Happy hump day!

    • Cheryl Clarson says:

      Hi Carol!

      The artwork is really cool – and you as an artist totally picked up on the colors and varieties.

      Yes, homemade maple syrup is the bomb-a-reeno!

      I agree Garrison Keillor’s quote totally hit home with me. Working in the film industry – Peter told me, “Bunny, if someone from another department asks you a question that you don’t know the answer to — simply tell them you’re not sure of the answer but you’ll get right back to them. And come and ask me and then you’ll be able to get back to them lickety-split.” I totally realize that’s what Garrison Keillor’s quote means to me – especially working on Set and I would’ve felt like a deer in head lights and perhaps stammered … uh, uh, uh. However, was able to answer any questions with intelligence *cough* ha because Peter taught me how to.

      So appreciate you + sharing + loving Daymaker. We are super grateful.

      Happy hump day back at ya!

      See ya Friday.

  2. Marty says:

    Such a great quote offered today in Daymaker: “To handle yourself, use your head; to handle others, use your heart.” I’m big on quotes that offer guidance for living. I recall my first awareness was in the 5th grade when at 4-H camp. In the dining room were poster board size quotes tacked to the walls. It was enjoyable reading them over and over. In later years I’ve adopted more. Here are three favorites. 1) “You don’t have to swing at every pitch.” 2) “Wisdom is knowing what to ignore.” 3) “Fall down 7, get up 8.”

    • Cheryl Clarson says:

      Hi Marty –

      How wonderful the Angel truism story brought back a piece of cool memory to you – 5th grade at 4-Camp!

      I’m particularly fond of your #2 takeaway memory from the poster board quotes tacked on the wall – “Wisdom is knowing what to ignore.”

      No kidding – Valuable message.

      Thanks so much for reading + engaging. We’re super grateful.

Comments are closed.