Patents, Potatoes, the Post Office and Other Fun Facts for February 17th…

I haven’t done a roundup of historical facts lately…figured today is a good day for that…lots of things happened on February 17th!

1. On February 17, 1691, Thomas Neale was granted a 21-year British patent for North American postal service (it was February 18th that the phrase, “The check is in the mail,” was first uttered…not really!).  In 1694, Thomas married England’s richest widow.  Sadly, Thomas died in 1699, heavily in debt, despite the fact that his franchise only cost 80 cents a year.  It seems he was a bit of a gambling addict…another one of his accomplishments was developing a pair of dice to prevent cheating at gaming.

Thomas Neale...

2. On February 17, 1795, it is said that Thomas Seddal harvested an 8.3 kilogram (about 18 lb., 5 oz.) potato from his garden in Chester, England.  The largest potato known in modern times was grown last year by amateur gardener, Peter Glazebrook, in Northampton, and weighed 8 lb., 4 oz.  Imagine how much butter you would need for this monster:

8 lb., 4 oz. potato grown by Peter Glazebrook...photo from The Telegraph...

3. On February 17, 1818, Baron Karl von Drais de Sauerbrun patented the “draisine”, an early bicycle.  I hope Anna doesn’t see this…she’ll probably want me to buy her one!  Karl is also credited with inventing the earliest typewriter with a keyboard in 1821.  Like poor Thomas Neale, Karl also died penniless, in 1851.

This is a draisine from 1820 made of cherry and softwood...it's in a museum in Heidelberg, Germany.

4.  On February 17, 1867, William Cadbury, English chocolate manufacturer, was born.  He was the third generation of Cadburys in the business (joining in 1887), but made some important changes.  William established pension funds for the employees in the early years of the 20th century.  Under his leadership, Cadbury stopped buying cocoa from Sao Thome and Principe Islands after slavery was discovered to be in practice there (he also convinced his competitors, Fry and Rowntree, to boycott Portuguese cocoa from West Africa).  In 1905, William commissioned French designer Georges Auriol to design the first proper company logo, a cocoa tree.  The Cadbury script logo introduced in 1921 is William’s signature.  Cadbury Easter Creme Eggs are amazing…

5. On February 17, 1876, sardines were first canned by Julius Wolff in Eastport, Maine.  Until 1871, Americans had imported their sardines from France and Spain, but the Franco-Prussian War ended that practice.  Julius was the owner of a New York brokerage firm which had been bringing in the European sardines.  He established the first sardine factory, Eagle Preserve Fish Company, on Passamaquoddy Bay.  Over the next 125 years, some 400 sardine factories operated along Maine’s coast.  In 2008, Ronnie Peabody opened the Maine Coast Sardine History Museum in Jonesport, Maine.  There’s even a Sardine Society…

Scene from a Maine sardine factory...

6. On February 17, 1924, Austro-Hungarian swimmer Johnny Weissmuller set a record for the 100-yard freestyle (52.4 seconds).  It was but one of the 67 world records he would set during his impressive swimming career.  Movie buffs will recognize Johnny as the actor who played the role of Tarzan in a dozen movies, and ”delivered” the famous Tarzan yell (which was actually a recording of three vocalists spliced together: a soprano, an alto, and a hog-caller).  After Tarzan, Johnny went on to play Jungle Jim in more than a dozen movies and a TV series.  Johnny was married five times, and fathered three children: his son, Johnny Jr., followed him into acting, but wasn’t nearly as successful.  Johnny died January 20, 1984.  At his request, a recording of the Tarzan yell was played three times as his coffin was being lowered into the ground.

Cheeta with Johnny Weissmuller...I was always confused about why the monkey's name was "Cheeta"...

7. On February 17, 1933, Blondie married Dagwood Bumstead in the comic strip, Blondie.  I bet there aren’t a lot of people that know that the bride’s maiden name was Boopadoop!  Or that Dagwood went on a 28-day hunger strike to convince his well-to-do parents to let him go ahead with the wedding!

The Bumstead Wedding Scene...

8. On February 17, 1969, Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash recorded an album together, which was never released.  They cut more than a dozen tracks, including renditions of “It’s All Right, Mama” and Cash’s “I Walk The Line.” However, only a version of Dylan’s “Girl From The North Country,” was eventually released.  It would become the first track of Dylan’s “Nashville Skyline,” which came out in April of 1969.  I found this bootleg album online:

Bootleg Album...

 I hope you’ve enjoyed this walk down Memory Lane…

Post #50…Random Observances…

I’ve been writing this blog for almost two months now, and as my title suggests, this is Post #50.  I feel like I should deliver some amazing wisdom to celebrate this momentous occasion (I have a fondness for statistics).  Since I’m not feeling particularly wise this morning, I think I’ll do something else…

1. A friend observed earlier this week that more people in Saint John were aware of the opening date for the long-awaited Costco than the fact that our city celebrated its 225th birthday on May 20th…I wonder how many people know that we are the oldest incorporated city in North America?  This is indeed a sad commentary…

Our current Saint John logo...

2. My father called himself a “numbnuts” yesterday…I didn’t have tape running…the man never admits when he’s wrong!

3. While watching the season finale of “The Middle” last night, the mother, Frankie, decided that she and Mike were “lazy parents” because their kids were having trouble at school…Mike countered with, “Maybe we’re not lazy parents…maybe we just got stuck with crappy kids!”  I’m with Mike on that one.  No offence to my “perfect” children (but when you forget your homework, it’s not my fault!).

Frankie and Mike's "Crappy Kids"

4. My peas and beans are up in the garden…hooray!  One of the squirrels has been digging in the big lettuce pot…bad squirrel!  Herbs are still hanging on…

5. My beloved Jim has become obsessed with birdfeeders…we have 2 regular ones, a suet feeder, and three hummingbird feeders on our back deck!  The squirrels and the starlings are having a field day!  Jim is also working on finishing a huge birdhouse that his dad started years ago…we may need heavy equipment to hoist it into the tree where he plans to put it!  He and Anna are getting some good photos though…

Anna took this one before the feeder got moved to the deck...

6. Our rhubarb is ready…wishing I knew how to can things…maybe I’ll make some pies (with pre-made pie crust, of course).  Anybody within driving distance is welcome to come and help themselves (to the rhubarb, not the pies!)…

How come my pie never looks like this?

7. My daughter, Kaylee, wants to reclaim her elliptical machine, which she refused to come and get when we were moving…it has resided in our back kitchen for the last year-and-a-half…there are at least ten boxes which have to be relocated before it’s going anywhere…oh, joy…

8. We were folding another massive amount of laundry last night…Jim repeated his idea of making the kids do their own laundry (while he was matching the full garbage bag full of socks).  I’m starting to think maybe he has a point…with three teenaged girls, it’s impossible to keep track of whose stuff is whose!  Another observance – when folding a towel, I fold it vertically first, and then horizontally.  My dad seems to think the other way is right…it’s really not helpful if I have to fold it again.  Just another peri-menopausal moment of rage…you’re welcome!

I need this guy to fold my towels...

9. We have overnight company coming from Ontario in about a month…wondering how we’re going to have the house in a “presentable” state by then…where did I leave that magic wand?  Oh…it’s over there, under the big pile of crap!

10. I rediscovered pesto and feta cheese recently…really enjoy spreading it on a tortilla and popping it under the broiler for a couple of minutes…discovered that writing a blog and cooking at the same time can cause the smoke alarm to go off…

Pesto...food of the gods...

11. I bought the new cookies with blueberries and brown suger – you know, the ones they’ve been advertising on TV like crazy?  They were on sale at Shopper’s…they are as good as they say…and they even have flax in them!  Delicious, and healthy too (at least that’s what I keep telling myself as I shove them down my throat, six at a time – they are kinda thin!).

You have to try these...

12. I might be getting that bike I was wishing for (http://writerwoman61.wordpress.com/2010/04/27/fear-of-falling-terror-on-two-wheels/).  Jim’s dad says there’s one in their shed they’re not using…yay!  I have to work off those cookies…

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog, and I hope you continue to enjoy it as much as I love writing it!

Fear of Falling…Terror on Two Wheels…

[Note to the reader...this story really isn't that scary...I just wanted to grab you with a catchy headline!]

She was beautiful!  Painted dark metallic blue, she hung suspended in a line with other vehicles of different colours.  The chrome on her handlebars shone, and the whitewalls on her 24″ tires were the colour of new-fallen snow.  Her seat was white padded leather, clean as a whistle!  On a metal plate screwed to the head tube, the brand name ”Columbia” was emblazoned.  She only had one speed (slow) and coaster brakes which one engaged by pedalling backward.  It was July of 1967, and my parents and I were standing in a hardware store somewhere near Toledo, Ohio – they were letting me pick out my first bike for my sixth birthday.

This bike is as close to mine as I could find...mine was darker blue with a white seat...

My dad paid for the bike ($33, I think), and loaded the box into the trunk of our Chevy Bel-Air.  In those days, you had to assemble your new bike…I don’t remember much about that process…Dad might have done it after I’d gone to bed. 

The bike did not come with training wheels.  My dad was a minister, so we lived in the parsonage next to the church.  They had a big parking lot behind the building with a square-shaped gravel driveway around the perimeter.  This was a perfect place to learn to ride.  As long as I stayed close to the edge of the driveway, I would hopefully fall into the soft grass if I lost my balance (it was a great theory – not always true).  Dad came out with me the first couple of days, and held the bike as I got the feel of it.  I spent many hours learning, until I could finally ride without falling – we went through a lot of Band-Aids that week.  There was a deep, water-filled ditch near the front of the parking lot…I remember one miscue when I dumped the bike rather than end up in the water.

Riding my bike became my new favourite activity…I can’t believe my skin wasn’t burned to a crisp…I don’t remember my mom ever putting sunscreen on us!

Two years later, my little brother was very excited when he got a two-wheeler for his fifth birthday – a green Sears Spyder with monkey handlebars and a banana seat!  Mom retired his little red tricycle for good.

Jeff on his bike...

Jeff was a lot more cautious than his big sister…those training wheels stayed on for three years!  He’s loosened up a little…here he is on his bike now (with his wife, Bev)…

"Look, Ma! No training wheels!"

We lived on a busy rural road, and weren’t allowed to ride our bikes there until we were older.  We had a well-worn path around our house that we rode on…Dad installed a wooden ramp over the little ditch at one side.  The driveway had a fairly steep rise…you had to stand up on your pedals to make it up.  If we were getting rowdy, my parents used to say, “Go out and run around the house!,” and we would!

When I was about 12, I had been working for a couple of years and saving my money…I wanted a 10-speed!  It would be a lot easier delivering papers, especially for customers with long, hilly driveways.  I bought it on a summer trip to visit our relatives in Ohio…it was $81, which was cheaper than it would have been had I bought it in Canada.  I opted for a men’s bike this time – I didn’t mind swinging my leg over the crossbar.  The new bike was a beautiful shade of magenta, and had drop handlebars with handbrakes.  I had a hard time getting used to the new brakes…I’d pedal backward, and nothing happened!  The seat was definitely not as comfortable as my old one!  It took me a while to figure out the gear-shifting system.

This bike is similar to my ten-speed - mine was magenta with black tape on the handlebars...

I moved out of my parents’ house for good in 1983…my bikes stayed in their barn for years.  Eventually, my mom probably had a yard sale and got rid of them.  In the cities I lived, I used my legs or public transit to get around…I was scared to even think about sharing the road with that many cars!  Also, St. John’s, Newfoundland and Saint John, New Brunswick are both quite hilly…hard work to maneuver a bike in!

Duckworth Street, St. John's, Newfoundland - notice the grade of the side street...

 Hope had been bugging me for weeks to go for a walk with her…I finally gave in last night.  She says, “I want to ride my bike.” 

“I can’t keep up with you if you ride your bike,” I countered.  After thinking for a minute, I said, “Maybe I could borrow Anna’s bike.”  On my way out the door, I gave Jim a stern warning, “There will be no photographs!”

Off we went to the garage.  “You can borrow my Hannah Montana helmet,” Hope offered.

Can You See Me Wearing This?

I passed, and wore Anna’s plain blue one!

I pulled Anna’s bike into the gravel driveway, and sat on the seat…it was a little low, but I went with it.  I was off!  I’d forgotten how much I enjoyed riding – it’s such a feeling of freedom.  On my second round of our circular driveway, my thighs started to ache.  Every time I headed for the end by the road, I’d have to stop and walk my bike the last twenty feet…I couldn’t make it up the hill!  I didn’t bother trying to figure out Anna’s gears…nowadays, they’re on the handlebars…imagine that!  By the fourth circuit, I decided I’d better stop…didn’t want to get too much of a good thing!  Hope helpfully told me that I “should get in shape!”  She then asked me how much weight I needed to lose.  After I told her, she replied generously, “I don’t think you look that fat…just a little bit in the bum…”

I’m contemplating asking for another bike for my birthday…I wonder if they make Harrison Ford helmets?