Soup = Ageless Nourishment

January 29, 2007

HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED HOW A WORD, IDIOM OR PHRASE ORIGINATED IN THE AMERICAN LANGUAGE?

Many unique events happen in the month of January, which is also known as National Soup Month in America. Did you know that we consume an estimated 10 billion+ bowls of soup annually?

The origin of soup may have been when our early ancestors invented waterproof and heatproof containers, which allowed them to use hot water to heat foods in natural containers. It is estimated that the cooking technique of boiling was not commonly used until about six or seven thousand years ago.

These early attempts at primodial soup – things thrown into boiling water – produced a variety of key benefits such as:

1) Boiling permited the fuller use of animal and plant products

2) It expanded the range of foods that our ancestors consumed

3) Boiling extracted a huge nutritional benefit – previously unused parts of meat (bone) added value, and some inedible plant parts in their natural state became consumable.

For more detail, please read the attached pdf posting. As always, I hope this stimulates your own research, and I would appreciate your feedback on this posting.

1) Did you find the posting informative?

2) How would you improve this posting?

3) Can you provide a better “Moment of Zen?”

Jim C Quiz - Soup.pdf

Forty-niners = California Gold Rush

 January 22, 2007

HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED HOW A WORD, IDIOM OR PHRASE ORIGINATED IN THE AMERICAN LANGUAGE?

Many unique events happened in the month of January. One event that had a significant impact on the State of California was the discovery of gold at Sutter’s Mill on January 24, 1848.

James Marshall was foreman of a work crew building a saw mill for John Sutter on the American River at Coloma near Sacramento. When Marshall showed his boss a few tiny gold nuggets, they both wanted to keep the discovery quiet. 

But word slowly spread from coast to coast and across the globe during 1848, which created a huge gold rush in 1849.

Some say this was the start of one of the largest human migrations in history as people from around the world descended upon California in search of instant wealth.

Please read the attached pdf posting. As always, I hope this stimulates your own research, and I would appreciate your feedback on this posting.

1) Did you find the posting informative?

2) How would you improve this posting?

3) Can you provide a better “Moment of Zen?”

Jim C Quiz - Forty-niners.pdf

Civil Disobedience = Nonviolent Resistance To Promote Change

January 15, 2007

HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED HOW A WORD, IDIOM OR PHRASE ORIGINATED IN THE AMERICAN LANGUAGE?

The federal holiday in January to celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. Day should also be closely associated to a better understanding of the term “Civil Disobedience.”

This term was originated by Henry David Thoreau in his 1849 essay, Resistance to Civil Government. He promoted individual resistance and stated, “There will never be a really free and enlightened State until the State comes to recognize the individual as a higher and independent power, from which all its own power and authority are derived, and treats him accordingly.”

This philosophy by Thoreau had a significant impact on Leo Tolstoy, Mahatma Gandhi, as well as Martin Luther King, Jr., all of whom drew upon his work to motivate their efforts to improve their world.

Please read the attached pdf posting. As always, I hope this stimulates your own research, and I would appreciate your feedback on this posting.

1) Did you find the posting informative?

2) How would you improve this posting?

3) Can you provide a better “Moment of Zen?”

Jim C Quiz – Civil Disobedience.pdf

Martin Luther King Jr. Day = 1/15/2007

January 8, 2007

HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED HOW A WORD, IDIOM OR PHRASE ORIGINATED IN THE AMERICAN LANGUAGE?

January is one of the few months of the year that has two federally recognized holidays – New Year’s Day (January 1) and Martin Luther King Jr. Day, which is celebrated on the third Monday of January. 

This federal holiday was approved in November 1983 and first celebrated in 1984.

Please read the attached pdf posting. As always, I hope this stimulates your own research, and I would appreciate your feedback on this posting.

1) Did you find the posting informative?

2) How would you improve this posting?

3) Can you provide a better “Moment of Zen?”

Jim C Quiz – Martin Luther King Jr Day.pdf

New Year’s Resolution = More a fond wish than commitment

January 1, 2007

HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED HOW A WORD, IDIOM OR PHRASE ORIGINATED IN THE AMERICAN LANGUAGE?

For most cultures of the world that use a 365-day solar calendar, the New Year starts on January 1st. That date became the beginning of the New Year in 46 B.C., when Julius Caesar developed a solar rather than lunar calendar to more accurately reflect the seasons.

The month of January comes from Janus, the Roman god of beginnings and endings or gates and doors. Janus is represented with a double-faced head, each looking in opposite directions; therefore, he could look back on past events and forward to the future. We believe for that reason Janus also became the ancient symbol for resolutions.

Why resolutions? Because at the end of a year, we seem to have always had a natural inclination to reflect on the past and set goals for the new year.

Please read the attached pdf posting. As always, I hope this stimulates your own research, and I would appreciate your feedback on this posting.

1) Did you find the posting informative?

2) How would you improve this posting?

3) Can you provide a better “Moment of Zen?”

quiz-new-year-resolution.pdf