Weather ~ Friday the 13th ~ Picture of the Day ~ Bicycles History ~ Broccoli Cornbread Mini Muffins ~ National Apple Pie Day

 

 

Good 45º cloudy morning. 

Predictions for us is a "chance of rain".

 

 

Yesterday we had a couple drops of rain and topped at 64º. 

 

 

 

 

FRIDAY THE 13TH MYTHS

Do you have a fear of Friday the 13th? If so, you have a condition called paraskevidekatriaphobia. Some people are so fearful of this date that they don’t even leave their homes. As a result of so many people staying indoors on Friday the 13th, airfares are cheaper, and there is less traffic. But what’s the big deal about this date? Why do people consider it unlucky?

Since 7 is considered a lucky number, we thought we would balance things out by giving 7 myths about Friday the 13th and the supposedly unlucky number 13.

7 MYTHS SURROUNDING FRIDAY THE 13TH

1. The Last Supper Had 13 Guests

Jesus had one last meal with his 12 disciples before his crucifixion. This means there were 13 guests at the last supper. It is believed that Judas was the 13th person to take his seat. Judas is infamous for betraying Jesus and committing suicide afterward.

2. The God of Mischief and Disorder was the 13th Guest

According to Norse mythology, when 12 gods sat down together at a feast, an unwelcome guest named Loki showed up. Loki was the god of mischief and disorder. Because there were 13 guests at the table, one of the gods died during the meal. Still, to this day, some hosts refuse to have 13 guests at their table for fear, one of them will die.

3. The Biblical Meaning for the Number 13 Isn’t Good

In the Bible, the number 13 is often associated with rebellion and lawlessness. This number represents all the governments that were created by man and inspired by Satan. In the book of Mark, Jesus says 13 things defile a person. Some of these things include evil thoughts, murders, thefts, wickedness, pride, and an evil eye.

4. Friday Is an Unlucky Day of the Week

Many people love Friday. In fact, you have probably exclaimed, “Thank God It’s Friday.” However, Friday is historically an unlucky day of the week. This goes back to the 14th century when Geoffrey Chaucer wrote Canterbury Tales. Chaucer wrote, “and on a Friday fell all this mischance.” In Britain, Friday was the day when criminals were hung. For this reason, Friday became known as Hangman’s Day.

5. The Arrest of the Knights of Templar Began on Friday the 13th

The Knights of Templar were a Catholic military order founded in 1119. They were also known for being proficient bankers. After losing the war to England, King Philip IV of France became heavily indebted to the Knights. On Friday the 13th, the king ordered the arrest of all Templars. Following a trial in Paris, some of the Templars were burned at the stake.

6. The Curse of 13 Letters in a Name

According to an old superstition, if you have 13 letters in your first and last name, you are cursed. You might laugh at this idea, but here are some names with 13 letters:

• Charles Manson
• Jeffrey Dahmer
• Adolfus Hitler (the baptismal name of Adolf Hitler)
• Saddam Hussein
• Osama bin Laden

Of course, this doesn’t mean that if you have 13 letters in your name, you are an evil person. But, interestingly, so many evil people have 13 letters in their name.

7. An Italian Composer Died on Friday the 13th

This might not seem like such a big deal. There are probably a lot of people who die on Friday the 13th. However, the Italian composer Gioachino Rossini, regarded Fridays as an unlucky day. He also regarded the number 13 as an unlucky number. He died on November 13th, 1868. It was a Friday.

What do you think of Friday the 13th? Do you stay indoors? Do you purposely avoid having appointments or events on this day? If so, you’re certainly not alone.

 

 

Picture of the Day  Manhattan New York....

 

 

Interesting about bicycles....

The "dandy horse", also called Draisienne or Laufmaschine ("running machine"), was the first human means of transport to use only two wheels in tandem and was invented by the German Baron Karl von Drais. It is regarded as the first bicycle, but it did not have pedals; Drais introduced it to the public in Mannheim in 1817 and in Paris in 1818. Its rider sat astride a wooden frame supported by two in-line wheels and pushed the vehicle along with his or her feet while steering the front wheel.

 

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Wooden draisine (around 1820), the first two-wheeler and as such the archetype of the bicycle.

 

The first mechanically propelled, two-wheeled vehicle may have been built by Kirkpatrick MacMillan, a Scottish blacksmith, in 1839, although the claim is often disputed. He is also associated with the first recorded instance of a cycling traffic offense, when a Glasgow newspaper in 1842 reported an accident in which an anonymous "gentleman from Dumfries-shire... bestride a velocipede... of ingenious design" knocked over a little girl in Glasgow and was fined five shillings.

 

In the early 1860s, Frenchmen Pierre Michaux and Pierre Lallement took bicycle design in a new direction by adding a mechanical crank drive with pedals on an enlarged front wheel (the velocipede). This was the first in mass production. Another French inventor named Douglas Grasso had a failed prototype of Pierre Lallement's bicycle several years earlier. Several inventions followed using rear-wheel drive, the best known being the rod-driven velocipede by Scotsman Thomas McCall in 1869. In that same year, bicycle wheels with wire spokes were patented by Eugène Meyer of Paris. The French vélocipède, made of iron and wood, developed into the "penny-farthing" (historically known as an "ordinary bicycle", a retronym, since there was then no other kind). It featured a tubular steel frame on which were mounted wire-spoked wheels with solid rubber tires. These bicycles were difficult to ride due to their high seat and poor weight distribution. In 1868 Rowley Turner, a sales agent of the Coventry Sewing Machine Company (which soon became the Coventry Machinists Company), brought a Michaux cycle to Coventry, England. His uncle, Josiah Turner, and business partner James Starley, used this as a basis for the 'Coventry Model' in what became Britain's first cycle factory.

 

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^{1886 Rover safety bicycle at the British Motor Museum. The first modern bicycle, it featured a rear-wheel-drive, chain-driven cycle with two similar-sized wheels. Dunlop's pneumatic tire was added to the bicycle in 1888.}

 

^{In the 1870s many cycling clubs flourished. They were popular in a time when there were not cars on the market and the principal mode of transportation was horse-drawn vehicles, such the horse and buggy or the horsecar. Among the earliest clubs was The Bicycle Touring Club, which has operated since 1878. By the turn of the century, cycling clubs flourished on both sides of the Atlantic, and touring and racing became widely popular. The Raleigh Bicycle Company was founded in Nottingham, England in 1888. It became the biggest bicycle manufacturing company in the world, making over two million bikes per year.}

 

^{If you want to read a whole lot more about bicycles, go here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycle}

 

 

 

 

These savory, cheesy, mini muffins bake up in no time at all, making them the perfect last-minute appetizer or side dish. You may have to bake up a couple of batches though, because these Broccoli Cornbread Mini Muffins will be popular

 

• 1 (8-1/2-ounce) package corn muffin mix
• 1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped broccoli, thawed
• 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded Cheddar cheese
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup butter, melted

 

Preheat oven to 375º.

Coat mini muffin tins with cooking spray.

 

In a large bowl, combine muffin mix, broccoli, cheese, and onion; mix well. Add eggs and butter to broccoli mixture, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened. Spoon into mini muffin cups, filling each 3/4 full.

Bake 12 to 15 minutes, or until golden. Let stand 2 to 3 minutes before removing from pans.

 

 

Historically this date....

1846 – Mexican–American War: The United States declares war on Mexico.

 

1861 – American Civil War: Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom issues a "proclamation of neutrality" which recognizes the Confederacy as having belligerent rights.

 

1864 – American Civil War: Battle of Resaca: The battle begins with Union General Sherman fighting toward Atlanta.

 

1865 – American Civil War: Battle of Palmito Ranch: In far south Texas, the last land battle of the Civil War ends with a Confederate victory

 

1913 – Igor Sikorsky becomes the first man to pilot a four-engine aircraft.

 

1958 – Ben Carlin becomes the first (and only) person to circumnavigate the world by amphibious vehicle, having travelled over 17,000 kilometres (11,000 mi) by sea and 62,000 kilometres (39,000 mi) by land during a ten-year journey.

 

1994 – Johnny Carson makes his last television appearance on Late Show with David Letterman.

 

 

 

 

And births this date include...

 

1914 – Joe Louis, American boxer (d. 1981)

 

 

1922 – Bea Arthur, American actress and singer (d. 2009)

 

 

 

1941 – Ritchie Valens, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1959)

 

 

1961 – Dennis Rodman, American basketball player, wrestler, and actor

 

 

 

All I know. Nuff said. Have a good safe day. Ciao.

xo Sue Mom Bobo

National Apple Pie Day, America’s favorite dessert, is observed annually on May 13th.

The first apple pie recipe printed was in England in 1381. The list of ingredients included good apples, good spices, figs, raisins, pears, saffron, and cofyn (a type of pastry crust).

While the apple pie existed well before the Pilgrims landed on the eastern shores of what is now The United States, Americans wax poetic about how American apple pie is. The phrase “as American as apple pie” has been around for more than 100 years.

During the turn of the 20th century when whole toasted cereals were becoming the ‘health food’ fad, pie gained a bad reputation.  Apple pie saved the day of sorts, being more nutritious than other pies according to some.

Teddy Roosevelt was impressed to have a taste of home when he was served an American apple pie while traveling in Africa.

Soldiers during World War II were often quoted they were fighting “for Mom and apple pie.”   In 1970, advertisers used the patriotic connection with a commercial jingle “Baseball, hot dogs, apple pie, and Chevrolet.”