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

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

Santa Claus (Part 3) = From St. Nick to Santa in America

December 18, 2006

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

The month of December brings thoughts of Christmas delight and, for me, the research on the origins of Santa Claus. Part 3 of the story focuses on how his image evolved in America from a pious saint to a jolly, red-clad, sleigh riding gift-giver.

In the early 1800s the American press and a multitude of writers began to weave a tapestry, which thread by thread developed into an elaborate story about the life and times of Santa Claus. One of the best of the early image makers was a New Yorker, Clement Clarke Moore, who wrote a series of verses to read to his children on Christmas Eve, 1822.

His poem was published a year later as “An Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas” (aka “‘Twas the night before Christmas…”) Moore gave St. Nick eight reindeer, named them all, and devised the now familiar entrance into the home by chimney. However, the poem described a “minature sleigh” with a “little old driver.”

The man-sized image of Santa Claus became the dominant version around 1841, when a Philadelphia merchant named J. W. Parkinson hired a man to dress in “Criscringle” clothing and climb the chimney outside his shop. By 1885 the chubby, red-cheeked Santa with a red suit began to replace the fur-dressed Belsnickle image and the multi-colored Santas.

Please read the attached pdf posting. As always, I hope this stimulates your own personal research into the origins of Santa Claus, and I would appreciate your feedback.

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 – Santa Claus – Part 3.pdf

Santa Claus (Part 2) = The gift-giver!

 December 11, 2006

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

The month of December brings thoughts of Christmas delight, and the research continues on our favorite secular symbol, Santa Claus. Last week the focus was on St. Nicholas, who many believe was the true origin of gift giving that is now associated with Santa Claus.

So, how did this evolution from a pious saint to jolly, red-clad, sleigh riding gift-giver take place? This Part 2 will briefly show the early part of the transformation.

10^th century: Metaphrastes, an early Christian author, collected and wrote many traditional legends about St. Nicholas.

11^th century: The Roman Catholic Church taught that St. Nicholas’ remains were transferred to Bari in Italy during the Muslim invasion of Asia Minor. In Italy he became known as Nicholas of Bari.

16^th century: The Protestant Reformation had a very dim view of saints, and they actively focused on removing all St. Nicholas-related customs. This action actually enhanced the gradual rise of secular celebrations of Christmas.

19th century: St. Nicholas was gradually superseded in much of Europe (including France and Germany) by Christkindlein (the Christ child). He traveled secretly, typically at night, with a dwarf-like helper called Pelznickel (a.k.a. Belsnickle) or with St. Nicholas-like figures to deliver gifts to children. These three entities combined to create the Santa Claus we all know and love.

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

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 – Santa Claus – Part 2.pdf

Santa Claus = An American Symbol of Christmas

December 4, 2006

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

The month of December brings thoughts of Christmas delight – greeting cards, wrapping gifts, decorations, family and friends. As we think of the holidays, there are many symbols that come to mind, but one secular symbol stands out – Santa Claus.

There are several names and origins for Santa, such as:

1) Kris Kringle

2) Saint Nicholas

3) Father Christmas

4) Saint Nick

The most accepted origin of Santa Claus is Saint Nicholas, who was recognized by the early church as Archbishop of Myra, and it is from there that the fame of his good deeds began to spread across the Mediterranean. It is believed that desperate sailors who called upon the Good Bishop to calm stormy seas were heard and prison walls crumbled when victims of persecution prayed to him. However, his fame as protector of children soon took precedence.

So, it appears that the character of Santa Claus is copied from the life of a real person, a saint named Saint Nicholas. The name ‘Saint Nicholas’ even sounds like ‘San-ta claus,’ especially in the Dutch language. The Dutch veneration of ‘Sinter Klaus’ was brought to North America with the Dutch settlers and eventually became the story of Santa Claus that everyone knows.

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

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 – Santa Claus – Part 1.pdf

Thanksgiving Day = The original celebration was not what we thought!

November 23, 2006

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

The term for this week is Thanksgiving Day, which is strictly an American holiday. It has been drilled into us from a very young age that the first Thanksgiving was a feast thrown by the pilgrims to give thanks for surviving their voyage to the New World, their arrival at Plymouth Rock in the Winter of 1620, and the first several months that followed.

However, there now many things about Thanksgiving that we thought were gospel that appear to have been twisted through time, as will happen to all all stories that are verbally handed down from generation to generation. Let’s take a look at some of the most common elements of the annual Thanksgiving Day Feast.

1. The first settlers did not call themselves “pilgrims,” a term that came into use after a few years. In fact, the term really did not become popular until it was used by Daniel Webster some 200 years later in a bicentennial speech extolling “our pilgrim fathers.”

2. The first settlers did have a 3-day celebration after their first harvest in 1621 and invited native indians. The “feast” was not repeated nor was it referred to as a “Thanksgiving Feast” – it was a Harvest Day celebration.

3. The first settlers were a very devout people; therefore, if they wanted a day of thanksgiving, they would have spent the day or days in prayer and fasting.

4. The first harvest feast included turkey, fish, lobster, and venison, which very common in those early days. Other items would have been corn, beans, squash (Native Indian name = “askutasquash”), and succotash (Native Indian name = “misickquatash”).

It is interesting to note that by late 17th century “Thanksgiving” was associated more with food and the harvest than it was with religion and giving thanks.

Please read the attached pdf. As always, your feedback would be appreciated, and I hope this posting will entice you to do more research on your own.

1) Did you find the posting informative?

2) How would you improve this posting?

Jim C Quiz – Thanksgiving Day.pdf

Red-Letter Day = Still, a day to feast

November 13, 2006

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

The mid-term elections on 11/07/06 could be called a “red-letter day” for the Democrats, because they gained control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

The term has actually been around for a very long time; in fact, ever since the Catholic Church in medieval times began marking special Feast Days on their calendars in red.

Actually, the system of highlighting important messages in red goes back to the Romans, and is the source of our word rubric [circa 1375, "directions in religious services" (often in red writing), from Old French rubrique, from Latin rubrica "red ochre, red coloring matter."]

“Red-letter day” was in use around the late 1500s primarily as a result of the first printing in 1549 of the Book of Common Prayer in which the calendar showed special holy days in red ink. For example, Annunciation (Lady Day), 25th March, was designated in the book as a red letter day.

Although the term began being used only in strict association with religious events, it gradually gained popularity in the non-secular community. Now, it is commonly used to denote an important day or an unforgettable event for an individual, as well as a group.

Current Examples:

Saturday was a red-letter day for Suzanne – she aced her exams and graduated with honors.

Jason got promoted and engaged to be married yesterday; it was truly a red-letter day for him.

Please read the attached pdf. As always, your feedback would be appreciated, and I hope this posting will entice you to do more research on your own.

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 – Red-letter Day.pdf

Veterans Day = American Recognition of Military Service

November 6, 2006

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

The first posting for the month of November is about Veterans Day, which was established by Congress and signed into law by President Dwight D. Einsenhower in 1954.

Actually, this new holiday replaced a long recognized day of remembrance – Armistice Day, which celebrated the end of fighting in World War I.

Why is the date for the holiday on November 11th? The end of significant armed fighting in World War I was announced on the 11th hour (11:00 AM) of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918.

However, Armistice Day was exclusively devoted to the veterans who only served in World War I. The enactment of Veterans Day expanded recognition to all military veterans.

Today, it should also be a reminder to put aside our concerns with unfavorable military involvement in Vietnam and Iraq. This holiday truly presents an unique opportunity for all of us to reflect on all veterans, whose past and present efforts are all too often forgotten or go unappreciated.

Please read the attached pdf. As always, your feedback would be appreciated, and I hope this posting will entice you to do more research on your own.

1) Did you find the posting informative?

2) How would you improve this posting?

3) Should a “Moment of Zen” be used for a posting concerning a holiday?

Jim C Quiz – Veterans Day.pdf

Conspicuous Consumption = Flaunting it!

October 30, 2006

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

The last posting for the month on common economic terms will be “conspicuous consumption,” which was a term first introduced by Thorstein Veblen in his 1899 book entitled The Theory of the Leisure Class. 

Personally, I found a connection between this term and the thoughts offered by Adam Smith’s Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations.  It appears that wealth is tied to power and, as we know, power tends to corrupt the moral fiber.

Conspicuous consumption is a phrase with a definite negative connotation; like the word vanity, the phrase has been used to depict a moral deficiency. 

In the attached pdf, we follow the concept of wealth from Adam Smith to the coining of the actual phrase, then add on the denigrations of the 1960s.  The current slang word for conspicuous consumption is “Bling Bling,” which captures the essence of the phrase.

Please read the attached pdf.  As always, your feedback would be appreciated, and I hope this posting will entice you to do more research on your own. 

1) How could this posting be improved?

2)  Yes, the phrase “Flaunting it” was derived from Zero Mostel’s comment in movie The Producers .  Can you suggest a better alternative Conventional Wisdom? 

3) Do you have a better Moment of Zen?

Jim C Quiz – conspicuous consumption.pdf 

Law of Diminishing Returns = An Economic Proof of Less

October 23, 2006

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

We continue to look at common economic terms this month with the phrase “Law of Diminishing Returns,” which is a term that has been used since the late 18th century.

The concept is also called the law of variable proportions and can be defined as a supposed point at which additional effort or investment in a given endeavor will not yield correspondingly increasing results. 

The use of the term initially was used in relation only to agriculture, but then spread to the whole economy. 

Please read the attached pdf posting on “The Law of Diminishing Returns and your feedback would be appreciated.  I take special wordsmith pride in the opening sentence and the Moment of Zen.

 As always, I hope this posting will entice you to do more research on your own. 

1) How could this posting be improved?

2) How could this economic issue relate to the mid-term elections?

3) Do you have a better Moment of Zen?

Jim C Quiz – Law of Diminishing Returns.pdf