Fog ~ Sun ~ Dude & Bruiser ~ Woodpecker ~ New Year's Eve Celebration ~ Tournament of Roses Parade History ~ Frank Mize ~ New Year's Day ~ National Hangover Day ~ National Bloody Mary Day

Good 30º foggy morning.

Wow, 2019!

We have looked like this seems like forever. The fog just hung around all day yesterday like it has been doing .....

Then yesterday just after 1pm we got SUN!!! YIPPEEEEE! 

Dude and Bruiser were happy too....

By then we had left the 32º and warmed to 49º! Heat wave! LOL

While I was out enjoying the sun, Mr. Woodpecker seemed to be enjoying it too... poking holes in my utility pole.....

Last night it was chair, wine, cat napping in my lap, and TV. I watched the ball drop in New York at Times Square....

Snoop Dogg, Sting and Christina Aguilera welcomed in 2019 in a packed Times Square last night along with revelers from around the world who come to see the traditional crystal ball drop, fireworks and a blizzard of confetti. 

Spectators started assembling in early afternoon for the made-for-TV extravaganza. As has been the case for years, the celebration took place under tight security, with party goers checked for weapons and then herded into pens, ringed by metal barricades, where they waited for the stroke of midnight.

People who arrive early enough to grab a standing spot in Times Square itself may have had a good view of the stages where the entertainers performed. The rest of the throngs, stuffed into pens stretching several blocks north toward Central Park, were able to follow the action on viewing screens.

There are no public toilets in the pens, backpacks are banned and there are no garbage cans either, so picnicking for the event can be rough. But revelers had plenty of companionship, though experts say probably well short of the 1 million to 2 million spectators claimed by city officials and organizers.

Thousands of police officers were on hand to provide security, with the help of bomb-sniffing dogs, 1,225 security cameras and 235 "blocker vehicles" used to stop any potential vehicle attacks.

The ball dropped during the midnight countdown. This year, the ball was a 12-foot (3.5-meter) diameter geodesic sphere covered with 2,688 Waterford crystal triangles lit by 32,256 LEDs. The numerals "2019" burst into light at midnight accompanied by pyrotechnics and the release of 3,000 pounds of confetti.

You know what...... watching it on TV was much better! No public bathrooms? Locked inside a fenced area? My comfy chair, wine, and a bathroom close by was the BEST! 

The Tournament of Roses Parade, typically shortened to Rose Parade, is a parade held annually on the morning (8:00 am Pacific Time) of New Year's Day in Pasadena, California. 

It is produced by the non-profit Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association and includes flower-covered floats, marching bands, and equestrian units. The parade, whose route is mostly along Colorado Boulevard, is followed by the Rose Bowl collegiate football game in the afternoon. When New Year's Day falls on a Sunday, the parade and the Rose Bowl game are moved to the next day, Monday.

First produced on January 1, 1890, the Rose Parade is watched in person by hundreds of thousands of spectators on the parade route, and is broadcast on multiple television networks in the United States. It is seen by millions more on television worldwide in more than 100 international territories and countries. The Rose Bowl is a college football game that was added in 1902 to help fund the cost of staging the parade. Since 2011, the parade has been sponsored by Honda. Accordingly, the company has the parade's first float, which like all floats, follows the parade's theme.

Rose Parade 2018 featured 44 floats, 20 equestrian units with approximately 400 horses, and 21 marching bands. The theme of this 129th Rose Parade was "Making a Difference" and the Grand Marshal of the parade was Gary Sinise.

Members of Pasadena's Valley Hunt Club first staged the parade in 1890. Since then the parade has been held in Pasadena every New Year's Day, except when January 1 falls on a Sunday. In that case, it is held on the subsequent Monday, January 2. This exception was instituted in 1893, as organizers did not wish to disturb horses hitched outside Sunday church services. (This event was held even during both World War years.)

The stately Italian Renaissance-style mansion (391 Orange Grove Avenue, Pasadena) of William Wrigley Jr. (the maker of Wrigley's chewing gum) was offered to the city of Pasadena after Mrs. Wrigley's death in 1958, under the condition that their home would be the Rose Parade's permanent headquarters. 

Tournament House is the name given the former home where the organization is headquartered.

The first associated football game was played on January 1, 1902. Originally titled the "Tournament East-West football game," it is considered to be the first Rose Bowl. The next game was not played until New Year's Day 1916; they have been played annually since then. The game derives its modern name from Rose Bowl Stadium, which was built for the 1923 game.

Special birthday today... my great neighbor Frank Mize is celebrating. HAPPY BIRTHDAY FRANK! Hope your day is super!! xo

Historically this date......

1890 – The Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California, is first held.

1908 – For the first time, a ball is dropped in New York City's Times Square to signify the start of the New Year at midnight.

1954 – NBC makes the first coast-to-coast NTSC color broadcast when it telecast the Tournament of Roses Parade

1962 – United States Navy Seals established.

1971 – Cigarette advertisements are banned on American television.

And births on this first day of the year include....

1735 – Paul Revere, American patriot (d. 1818)

1752 – Betsy Ross, American seamstress (d. 1836)

1895 – J. Edgar Hoover, American FBI director (d. 1972)

1930 – Ty Hardin, American film actor (d.2017)

 Wow, 8 wives!! The last one he married in 2007!

1935 – B. Kliban, American cartoonist (d. 1990)

   "Love to eat them mousies. Mousies what I love to eat.

    Bite they little heads off and nibble on they tiny feet."

1938 – Frank Langella, American actor

All I know. Nuff said. Happy New Year. Ciao.

xo Sue Mom Bobo

Today we're celebrating 3 National Days..........

Probably one of the most recognized holidays around the world, New Year’s Day is observed January 1.

Celebrations will begin in the Pacific Ocean with Samoa celebrating the New Year before the rest of the world.  The latest stroke of midnight will occur in the middle of the Pacific Ocean near Baker Island which is halfway between Hawaii and Australia.

HOW TO OBSERVE

Traditions around the world:

• Kiss at midnight the one person you hope to keep kissing the rest of the year.
• Making noise, either in the form of fireworks, ringing bells, horns blasting or pistol shots are traditional around the world.
• Toasts to the new year are made with spiced wine in Holland, wassail in England or champagne in the United States.
• Resolutions are not a modern tradition. The Babylonians made commitments to return borrowed objects and to pay old debts.

HISTORY

The new year has been celebrated for millennia. The earliest record of new year’s celebrations occurred during Babylonian times and was celebrated on the first new moon after the vernal equinox. These festivities occurred in Martius (March), the first month in the early Roman calendar which only had ten months.

King Pompilius later added the months Januarius (named for Janus, the pagan god of gates, doors and beginnings) and Februarius bringing the calendar to 12 months. It was Julius Caesar who created the Julian calendar which most closely resembles the Gregorian calendar a majority of the world follows today.

Romans celebrated January 1 in honor of Janus, offering sacrifices, giving gifts and decorating with laurel branches. With his two faces, the god Janus was able to look toward the past and forward to the future. Celebrating the first day of the year in the appropriately named month of January, Romans made sacrifices to Janus, giving gifts and general revelry.

National Hangover Day is observed annually on January 1st.  The day follows New Year’s Eve, a day that traditionally is spent celebrating to bring in the New Year.

Symptoms of a Hangover

• Feeling tired: Alcohol is a toxin. Our bodies are designed to metabolize toxins (alcohol) at a certain pace.  When the pace of consumption exceeds the pace the liver can process it we become intoxicated and at a substantially higher risk for a hangover.  As the liver breaks down alcohol, it produces the toxic chemical acetaldehyde.  One of the substances the body produces to counter these toxins is glutathione.  The body can only make so much at a time and can be quickly depleted during a night of drinking.  Glutathione is a stimulant and when it’s depleted, we feel tired.
• Upset stomach:  Alcohol promotes secretion of hydrochloric acid in the stomach.  Excessive amounts of hydrochloric acid can lead to a queasy stomach, diarrhea or vomiting.
• Headache or muscle aches: Alcohol is a diuretic.  Dehydration can lead to aches and pains as well as the upset stomach listed above.

How to Prevent that Hangover

• Eat – A fat and protein loaded meal before or during the first round of drinks will slow the absorption of alcohol into the bloodstream. No, the food doesn’t act a sponge, soaking up the alcohol, but it does slow down the digestive process. Fats and especially proteins, take longer to digest and the alcohol will be released more slowly into the bloodstream.
• Drink water – Keep hydrated between beers or shots by drinking a glass of water in between.  This will dilute the alcohol, give the liver time to keep up and replace the fluids lost.
• Avoid diet cocktails – According to WebMD studies show cocktails mixed with fruits, fruit juices or other sugar-containing beverages lessen the intensity of a hangover.
• Pace yourself – The saying, “Beer then liquor, never been sicker. Liquor then beer, have no fear” has more to do with the amount of alcohol consumed than the type. Beer tends to be consumed more quickly than hard liquor and as the night goes on, each successive drink tends to go down easier. Starting with liquor and then switching to beer half way through, one might drink more beer, but less total alcohol than if the process is reversed.

Hangover Cures

The only sure fire cure for a hangover is time and lots of fluids.  There are some common remedies that may help ease the symptoms, and there are others that only delay recovery.

• The most common ‘cure’ is called “a hair of the dog that bit you”.  This suggests that having some of what caused the hangover will help cure it.  This will only delay recovery as it will further tax the liver, increase the secretion of hydrochloric acid and will not replace any of the fluids already lost to last night’s revelry.
• Eat a banana.  Bananas are high in potassium.  This is nutrient that is lost while consuming alcohol.  Potassium loss contributes to muscle aches and cramps.  Eating a banana will help ease these symptoms.
• In the movies, a strong cup of coffee is often shoved into the hands of the hangover victim in hopes of bringing some life back into them.  Coffee is a diuretic and while it may stimulate the body temporarily, the effect doesn’t last and will only delay recovery.
• Drinking plenty of water* during the party and replacing fluids after can help ease the symptoms of a hangover. Rehydrate with water or also try fruit juices and sports drinks.  These will replace electrolytes which have been lost and also help recover from low blood sugar.  Studies have shown that alcohol consumption has a direct correlation to an increase in insulin.
• Pain relievers may be the logical choice for that pounding headache which is a common symptom of a hangover. However, they also tax the already overworked liver.  If a pain reliever is necessary, aspirin will have the least effect on the liver but can irritate the stomach.  Either way, pain relievers may delay recovery more than ease the symptoms.
• Over-the-counter miracle cures may seem too good to be true, and they probably are.  Most of them require each pill to be taken with large quantities of water.  See * above about re-hydration.  These products may help ease the symptoms, but at an unnecessary expense.
• Eating a meal with complex carbohydrates, protein and a little fat can help ease the symptoms of a hangover.  Whole wheat toast can absorb some of the acid the stomach is producing.  A fried egg can give the stomach something else to do instead of producing acid and also replaces some nutrients the body lost during the party binge.

HISTORY

At a get together at the Oven and Tap, a restaurant in Bentonville, Arkansas in October 2015, people were talking about National Days.  The conversation then turned to what day on the calendar had little or no National Days attached to it.  When it was announced that January 1 was only known as New Year’s Day, Keegan Calligar and Marlo Anderson both stated simultaneously that it should be National Hangover Day.

National Hangover Day was submitted by Keegan Calligar and Marlo Anderson in October 2015.  The day was approved by the registrar of National Day Calendar in November of 2015.

For all those who celebrated more than they should have, National Bloody Mary Day serves up one of the world’s most popular hangover cures on January 1.

It would seem the Bloody Mary is the product of several hard day’s nights, lackluster cocktails and seemingly tasteless liquor.

When the Russian Revolution pressed fleeing men into Paris and to Harry’s Bar at The Ritz Hotel, bartender Ferdinand “Pete” Petiot mixed up a cocktail that eventually made its way to post-prohibition America.

According to Food and Drink in American History: “Full Course” Encyclopedia by Andrew F. Smith, the Bloody Mary made its debut in Paris at The Ritz Hotel in 1921. Originally named the Bucket of Blood, it also went by the name Red Snapper. Petiot later left Paris and introduced the vodka, tomato juice, lemon juice, Worcestershire, cayenne and salt cocktail to the New York King Cole Bar scene when prohibition ended.

Some attribute the name to notorious Queen Mary Tudor who executed hundreds of Protestants in the name of Catholicism during her short five-year reign from 1553 to 1558. Others claim Petiot’s girlfriend of the same name receives the credit.

Today’s Bloody Mary’s include a variety of ingredients from pickles, olives and celery to bacon, horseradish, Tabasco, and peppers.