Today is...
National Maple Syrup Day!

Maple syrup is a distinctly North American product. Canada, the largest supplier of maple syrup, produces over 5 million gallons of it each year!
Native Americans were the first to harvest and boil the sap of the maple tree into a thick syrup—a process that was documented and adopted by early settlers in the 1600s. Tapping a maple tree does no permanent damage to the tree and only 10% of the sap that is produced in a year is actually collected. Many maple trees have been tapped for 150 years or more! Did you know that it takes 30-50 gallons of sap to make one gallon of maple syrup? Maple syrup can also be boiled down to produce maple cream, maple sugar, and maple sugar candy.
Whether you like your maple syrup as a topping on pancakes, waffles, or vanilla ice cream, enjoy some today in honor of National Maple Syrup Day!

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December is National Fruit Cake Month & National Egg Nog Month

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History for December 17th 1843 - Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol is first published. 1900 - First prize of 100,000 francs offered for communications with extraterrestrials. Martians excluded-considered too easy 1955 - Carl Perkins wrote Blue Suede Shoes. Less than 48 hours later, he recorded it at the Sun Studios in Memphis. 1976 -  WTCG television station in Atlanta becomes WTBS, first satellite station to cover all of U.S.   1989 -  The premiere of The Simpsons. ______________________________________________________ "A failure is a man who has blundered, but is not able to cash in on the experience." -- Elbert Hubbard

Today is...
Chocolate Covered Anything Day!

Chocoholics, rejoice! Today is your opportunity to top everything that you eat with chocolate. Indulge in chocolate covered waffles for breakfast, chocolate covered crepes for lunch, chocolate covered pretzels for a snack, and chocolate covered strawberries for dessert! You can also get creative and experiment with more unusual dishes like beef tenderloin smothered in a rosemary, chocolate, and wine sauce.
There are many different types of chocolate that you can use to top your food: sweetened, unsweetened, bittersweet, semisweet, milk chocolate, white chocolate, dark chocolate, cocoa, and more. Fun fact: Cacao beans, the main ingredient in chocolate, were so valuable in the ancient Mayan and Aztec civilizations that they were used as currency to pay for commodities and taxes!
Cover your food in chocolate today, and, in spirit of the holiday season, share some of your chocolate covered treats with your friends and family. Enjoy!

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Today is also Boston Tea Party

December is National Fruit Cake Month & National Egg Nog Month

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History for December 16th 1497 - Vasco da Gama travels around the Cape of Good Hope. 1653 - Oliver Cromwell is named lord protector of England, Scotland and Ireland. 1707 - Mount Fuji's last recorded volcanic eruption in Japan 1773 -  The Boston Tea Party: Disguised members of the Sons of Liberty dump crates of tea into Boston harbor to protest the Tea Act.   1916 -  Gregory Rasputin, a monk with considerable influence over the Russian court, is murdered by noblemen. ______________________________________________________ "A good many things go around in the dark besides Santa Claus." -- Herbert Hoover

Today is...
National Cocoa Day!

Nothing warms you up better on a cold winter day than a nice cup of hot cocoa! Cocoa (the dried, fully fermented seeds of the cacao tree) is the basis for cocoa powder, which is used to make the hot cocoa beverage we all know and love. Did you know that monkeys were the first creatures to discover that the cacao plant was edible and quite tasty? Over 1500 years ago, monkeys began to consume the pulp of the plant and spit out the beans. Humans soon began to follow the monkey's example and the rest is history.
Cacao trees are grown all over the world, but it is believed that the first cacao trees grew in South America. Cocoa is similar to wine in that its flavor differs depending on the location where it is grown. It's a good thing that cacao trees are plentiful because approximately 300 to 600 cocoa beans are needed to make just two pounds of chocolate!
To celebrate National Cocoa Day, make your favorite type of cocoa to enjoy. For a holiday twist on a traditional cup of cocoa, try adding a candy cane!

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December is National Fruit Cake Month & National Egg Nog Month

images and text courtesy of MyPunchbowl.com" -- http://www.mypunchbowl.com/

History for December 13th 1642 - New Zealand discovered by Dutch navigator Abel Tasman 1769 - Dartmouth College is founded. 1928 - George Gershwin's "An American In Paris" premieres (New York NY) 1971 -  John Sinclair (sentence: 10 yrs, sold 2 marijuana joints) is freed   2003 -  Former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein is captured near his home town of Tikrit. ______________________________________________________ "They can because they think they can." -- Virgil

Today is...
National Poinsettia Day!

Celebrate National Poinsettia Day! The poinsettia is a blossoming plant with beautiful red and green foliage, which makes it a very popular decoration during the holiday season. Although it is native to Mexico, 90% of all poinsettias are exported from the United States. The Aztecs considered poinsettias a symbol of purity because of their brilliant red color.
Joel Roberts Poinsett, the first U.S. ambassador to Mexico, introduced these gorgeous flowers to the United States in the 1820s. While visiting Taxco, Poinsett found the flowers growing on a hillside and sent some of them to his home in South Carolina. The flowers grew well in his greenhouse and Poinsett began distributing them. The name “poinsettia” soon became the accepted name of the flower in English-speaking countries.
To celebrate National Poinsettia Day, purchase a beautiful poinsettia plant for a friend or for yourself!

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December is National Fruit Cake Month & National Egg Nog Month

images and text courtesy of MyPunchbowl.com" -- http://www.mypunchbowl.com/

History for December 12th 0627 - Battle of Nineveh: Byzantines vs. Persia 1913 - The "Mona Lisa," stolen from the Louvre Museum in 1911, recovered 1914 - The largest one-day percentage drop in the history of Dow Jones Industrial Average, down 24.39%. 1963 -  Number one hit on UK music charts - The Beatles - I Want To Hold Your Hand   1964 -  Shooting starts for "Star Trek" pilot "The Cage" (shown in 1988 in a two-part episode "The Menagerie"). ______________________________________________________ "Dream big and dare to fail." -- Norman Vaughan

Today is...
International Mountain Day!

This day was designated in 2001 by the United Nations General Assembly to create awareness about the important role that mountainous regions play in the global ecosystem. Mountains are essential to the world’s freshwater supply. They also safeguard many natural resources and protect communities against natural disasters.
The symbol for this holiday consists of three equilateral triangles on a single horizontal line. The left triangle has a blue diamond shape at the top, representing ice and snow on mountain peaks. The middle triangle has an orange circle, representing the resources that are continuously mined from the inside of mountains. The triangle on the right has a small green triangle at the base, representing the crops that grow on mountains. To learn more about this holiday and the events going on in your area, check out the official website.

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Today is also National Noodle Ring Day

December is National Fruit Cake Month & National Egg Nog Month

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History for December 11th 1620 - 103 Mayflower pilgrims land at Plymouth Rock 1792 - French Revolution: King Louis XVI of France is put on trial for treason by the National Convention. 1941 - Germany and Italy declare war on US 1967 -  Popular front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) established   1978 -  Lufthansa Heist at New York Kennedy Airport, $5.8 M in cash and jewelry stolen ______________________________________________________ "If you do not hope, you will not find what is beyond your hopes." -- St. Clement of Alexandra

Today is...
National Lager Day!

Lager is a type of German beer that is bottom fermented and lightly hopped. It is usually stored for at least three weeks after brewing before it is served.
Lager is the dominant style of beer throughout the world, except in England where ale is the favorite style. The only real difference between ale and lager is that ales ferment and age quickly at warm temperatures, while lagers ferment and age slowly at cool temperatures. These different types of fermentation allow for a vast difference in flavor and aroma.
To celebrate National Lager Day, head to your favorite pub and enjoy a refreshing brew of your favorite lager or try brewing your own!

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Today is also The Nobel Day & Dewey Decimal System Day

December is National Fruit Cake Month & National Egg Nog Month

images and text courtesy of MyPunchbowl.com" -- http://www.mypunchbowl.com/

History for December 10th 1684 -  Edmund Halley reads Isaac Newton's derivation of Kepler's laws to Royal Society 1965 - The Grateful Dead play first concert. 1968 - Japan's unsolved 300 million yen robbery 1971 - William H. Rehnquist was confirmed by the Senate as U.S. Supreme Court Justice   2009 - U.S. President Barack Obama accepts the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo, Norway. ______________________________________________________ "Fortune favors the brave." -- Publius Terence

Today is...
National Pastry Day!

Did you know that pastries have been around since 2600 B.C.? The Egyptians made doughnut-like pastries out of crude flour and honey, and then dipped them in wine.
In the 7th century, pastry-making developed as a culinary art form in the Middle East. It spread to Europe after the Crusades, and French and Italian chefs developed their own version of the recipes and experimented with new techniques. There are now many different types of pastry including shortcrust, flaky, puff, choux, and phyllo.
Make a trip to your favorite local bakery to pick up your favorite kind of pastry in honor of National Pastry Day!

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December is National Fruit Cake Month & National Egg Nog Month

images and text courtesy of MyPunchbowl.com" -- http://www.mypunchbowl.com/

History for December 9th 1888 -  Herman Hollerith, inventor of one of the first computing devices and precursor to IBM, installs a computing device at the US War Department. 1967 - Jim Morrison, arrested on stage for disturbing the peace 1992 - The separation of Charles, Prince of Wales and Diana, Princess of Wales is announced 2009 - Tens of thousands of people rally in several cities in Indonesia demanding the government do more to tackle political corruption.   2010 - An armed man robbed a craps table at the Bellagio casino of about $1.5 million in chips before escaping on a motorcycle, Las Vegas -USA ______________________________________________________ "Everyone needs to be valued. Everyone has the potential to give something back." -- Princess Diana