Tommy Contest Page 5
of the River Region
May 1, 2018 Published by PTK Corp.
The Neatest Little Paper Ever Read® To place an Ad, call: (334) 202-7285 TIDBITS® READS A LITTLE
MOTHER GOOSE by Kathy Wolfe In honor of Mother Goose Day on May 1, Tidbits revisits those whimsical little rhymes we grew up on, as well as providing history on their origin. • A common image that comes to mind when Mother Goose is mentioned is that of an elderly lady in a bonnet and glasses reading to children in front of a fire. Sometimes she is depicted as riding an enormous white goose, while other drawings show an actual goose wearing a tall hat. • The origins of Mother Goose differ among sources. The most reliable is that she may have evolved from an 8th-century noblewoman named Bertrada II of Laon, wife of France’s King Robert II and the mother of Charlemagne, the first emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. She was known as “Goose-foot Bertha” and “Queen Goosefoot” due to a malformation of her foot, and was well-known as one who told many stories to children. • Other sources maintain that Mother Goose was Elizabeth Foster Goose, a Massachusetts woman who married Isaac Goose in 1692. They had a blended family of 16 children, to whom Elizabeth told stories and sang rhymes. Claims have been made that she authored a collection of her stories, published in 1719, but no evidence of its existence has been found. • The earliest recorded comment about Mother Goose is 1650, prior to Elizabeth Goose ’s birth. But that hasn’t stopped the City of Boston from making her gravesite a tourist attraction. • The term “Mother Goose” was a common one in the mid-1600s in France, and referred to a woman who enthralled children with charming tales. A 1697 volume by Charles Perrault was entitled “Tales from my Mother Goose.” In 1729, these were translated into English by British writer Robert Samber, who called the collection “Histories or Tales of Past Times, Told by Mother Goose.” The volume came to America (Continued next page)
Vol 7 Issue 18 paul@riverregiontidbits.com
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Tidbits® of the River Region (Front page continued)
1. Is the book of Hosea in the Old or New Testament or neither? 2. Which gospel does not contain the Olivet prophecy? Matthew, Mark, Luke, John 3. The prophecy of Obadiah is basically about what nation? Shem, Edom, Tabor, Nebo 4. Who said “Rabbi,” and kissed Jesus? Alexander, Mark, Mordecai, Judas 5. David was what relation to Boaz? Brother, Son, Grandson, Great-grandson 6. Who was Nun’s son? Jehoshaphat, Joshua, Zacchaeus, Meshach Comments? More Trivia? Visit www.TriviaGuy.com (c) 2018 King Features Synd., Inc.
By Chris Richcreek 1. Who are the three official Montreal Expos in the Baseball Hall of Fame? 2. How many times did Hall of Famer Steve Carlton win at least 20 games in a season for the Philadelphia Phillies? 3. When was the last time before 2016 that the Temple Owls football team won a conference championship? 4. Golden State’s Stephen Curry set a record in 2016 for most 3-pointers in a game (13). Who had held the mark of 12? 5. Who holds the NHL record for most consecutive games played? 6. Which two soccer greats have won the Ballon d’Or award as soccer’s best player five times each? 7. Name any of the three horses trained by Bob Baffert that won the Breeders’ Cup Classic between 2014 and 2016. (c) 2018 King Features Syndicate, Inc.
in 1786, printed by Isaiah Thomas, who called his edition Mother Goose’s Melody: Sonnets for the Cradle, a book that included old favorites such as Jack and Jill and Little Tommy Tucker. • In the first printed version of Jack and Jill in the 18th century, the rhyme was actually named Jack and Gill, and the accompanying woodcut illustration showed two boys rather than a boy and a girl as we know it today. Jack is the most common name used in English nursery rhymes, including “Jack Be Nimble,” “Jack Sprat,” “Jack A Nory,” “Jack, Come Give Me Your Fiddle,” and “Little Jack Horner.” • “Little Miss Muffet sat on a tuffet,” but what exactly is a tuffet? The definition differs depending on the source, with the 16th version leaning toward a tuft, as in a “bunch of something,” such as hairs or fur. In the 17th century, the word denoted a grassy hill or knoll. Later sources suggest a small footstool. And what were the “curds and whey” she was eating? The closest thing we have in modern times is cottage cheese! • How do you picture Humpty Dumpty in your mind? As an egg? If you read through the rhyme, you’ll notice that it never mentions that Humpty is an egg. Although the rhyme dates back to 1797, it wasn’t until Lewis Carroll’s 1872 book Through the Looking-Glass that he was described as an egg. In the original nursery rhyme, the last lines read: “Fourscore men and fourscore more could not make Humpty Dumpty where he was before.” In the 1600s, “humpty dumpty” was a hot drink of brandy boiled with ale, while in the 1700s, the term referred to a short and clumsy person. It’s believed that the 1797 rhyme was really a riddle for children, with the answer “an egg,” which could explain why he is always represented as such. • Is there more to “Little Jack Horner” than meets the eye? Legend has it that in the 1800s, Thomas Horner, steward to the Abbot of Glastonbury under Henry VIII, was sent to London carrying a huge Christmas pie, in which were hidden deeds to several English manors as a gift to Henry. It was the Abbot’s hope that he could convince the King not to nationalize lands that belonged to the Church. It’s said that Horner opened the pie and took the deed to one of the manors for himself. “He put in his thumb and pulled out a plum” perhaps might refer to the lead mines contained on that property, a play on words for the Latin word “plumbum,” meaning lead. Records show that Horner did indeed become the owner of the property, but his descendants strongly asserted that he came by the title lawfully. • “Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary” dates back to about 1744. Mary, who plants “silver bells and cockle shells” may be a reference to Mary, Queen of Scots, with the silver bells a reference to Catholic “sanctus bells” and “pretty maids all in a row” denoting her ladies-in-waiting. • “Georgy Porgy” also seems to have historic roots, with the title character believed to be George Villiers, First Duke of Buckingham, who had a romance with Anne of Austria (the Queen of France and wife of King Louis XIII). It might also be related to the 1666 Great Fire of London, which consumed 13,200 homes. The fire started in Pudding Lane and finished at Pye Corner, coinciding with the nursery rhyme’s verse “Georgy Porgy, pudding and pie.” “When the boys came out to play” could refer to the firefighters, with Georgy depicted as the arsonist. • In the nursery rhyme, Little Bo Peep lost her sheep, but in the 16th century there was a child’s game known as “bo-peep,” similar to the game of “peek-a-boo,” and one that was even mentioned by Shakespeare in his play “King Lear.” In the 1300s, the meaning wasn’t nearly as sweet. “Playing bopeep” referred to punishment similar to the stocks. Offenders’ hands and head were secured to a wooden post known as a pillory, situated in a public place so as to make the humiliation more severe. • “Lucy Locket lost her pocket, Kitty Fisher found it” goes the old rhyme. It’s believed these two ladies were courtesans in the court of King Charles II. The name Lucy Locket was mentioned in a 1728 opera, and Kitty – Catherine Marie Fischer – was a character in several 18th-century novels, as well as a 1945 film “Kitty.”
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by Samantha Weaver * It was Hungarian psychiatrist Thomas Stephen Szasz who made the following sage observation: “If you talk to God, you are praying. If God talks to you, you have schizophrenia.” * That iconic symbol of the Old West, the Pony Express, was based on the mail system used throughout the Mongol Empire in the 13th century. However, the Mongol riders often covered 125 miles in a single day, which was faster than the best record held by a Pony Express rider. * Someone with way too much spare time discovered that a quarter has 119 grooves on its edge. * What’s in a name? A great deal, it turns out, if you’re talking about housing prices. Those who study such things say that a house on a “boulevard” is valued at over one-third more than the same house that has “street” in its address. * Confectioner Milton Hershey suffered through founding two candy companies that ended in failure, then succeeded on his third attempt, and finally sold that company and used the proceeds to found the Hershey Company. After all his hard work, though, he seemed to be less interested in enjoying the fruits of his labors than in helping others. In 1909 he established the Hershey Industrial School for Orphaned Boys, and 10 years later he donated control of the company to a trust for the school. Today the institution is called the Milton Hershey School, and it continues to have a controlling interest in the candy company. * Southern California has more cars than India has cows. If cows are sacred in India, what does that say about how Californians feel about their automobiles? *** Thought for the Day: “Men are not against you; they are merely for themselves.” -- Gene Fowler (c) 2018 King Features Synd., Inc.
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Tidbits® of the River Region
* On April 30, 1933, Willie Nelson is born into a family of Texas musicians. He penned his first song at age 7. Years later he wrote “Funny How Time Slips Away,” “Night Life” and the Patsy Cline classic “Crazy” all in one week.
Ingram, Jacob Clinton White/Male 5’10” 270176 lbs Age: 33 Hair: Brown Eyes: Blue
Outstanding Warrants: Menacing x 2 counts
* On May 5, 1944, Bertha Benz, the wife of inventor Karl Benz and the first person to drive an automobile over a long distance, dies in Germany. In 1888, Bertha drove 65 miles to her mother’s, over unpaved roads. She refueled the car with Ligroin, a detergent then used as fuel. When the car’s fuel line clogged, she unclogged it using one of her hairpins. * On May 2, 1957, Sen. Joseph McCarthy (R-Wisconsin) succumbs to illness exacerbated by alcoholism and dies at age 48. McCarthy had been a key figure in the anticommunist hysteria known as the “Red Scare” that engulfed the U.S. after World War II. * On May 1, 1963, despite running out of oxygen, James Whittaker of Redmond, Washington, becomes the first American to reach the summit of Mt. Everest, the tallest mountain in the world. * On May 4, 1977, British journalist David Frost interviews former President Richard Nixon. In the televised interview, Nixon admitted that he had not thought the White House tape recordings regarding the Watergate scandal would come out. * On May 3, 1980, 13-year-old Cari Lightner of Fair Oaks, California, is killed by a drunk driver while walking along a quiet road on her way to a church carnival. Cari’s tragic death compelled her mother, Candy Lightner, to found the organization Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD). * On May 6, 2004, the familiar theme song (“I’ll Be There For You” by the Rembrandts) heralds the final original episode of NBC’s long-running comedy series “Friends.” The show had debuted in 1994 and ran for 236 episodes. (c) 2018 Hearst Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Outstanding Warrants:
Fleming, Albert DOB: 11/21/1968 Black/Male 6’0” 143 lbs Hair: Bald Eyes: Brown
Wanted for: Escape 3rd/Use Possess Drug Paraphernalia
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“Be known before you’re needed” Advertise with Tidbits (334) 202-7285 FIREFIGHTERS
1. Which group had a hit with “Georgy Girl”? 2. How many members were in the group that released “Hot Fun in the Summertime”? 3. Who had a hit with “The Love I Lost”? 4. What is “Sister Golden Hair” about? 5. Name the song that contains this lyric: “Anyone can make mistakes, And we both have made our share, But a life without your love, Is a life too hard to bear.” Answers 1. The Seekers, from Australia, in 1966. It was used as the title song in the film of the same name. 2. Seven, in Sly and the Family Stone, in 1969. The song came out after their exposure at Woodstock and went to No. 2. 3. Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, in 1973. The two-part song was released as sides A and B. It spent two full weeks at the top of the Hot Soul chart. 4. In America’s 1975 chart-topper, a man is telling his lover why he’s not ready to get married. 5. “Should’ve Never Let You Go,” by Neil and Dara Sedaka, Neil’s 17-year-old daughter. The song made it to the 1980 Top 20 list. (c) 2018 King Features Synd., Inc.
To honor International Firefighters Day on May 4, Tidbits looks into the history of firefighting, which dates back over 2,000 years. • In 24 BC, the Roman emperor Augustus instituted a corps of fire-fighting watchmen and set up regulations to prevent and check for fires. Their primary equipment was buckets, which were passed from hand to hand, delivering water to the fire. Much of early firefighting was simply removing the fuel to prevent the spread of the fire, accomplished with an ax or long hooks that pulled down buildings to create a firebreak. • Around 115 BC, Marcus Crassus created Rome’s first fire brigade of 500 men. When a fire was discovered, the men rushed to the scene, where they stood by while Crassus negotiated a price for services with the distraught building owner as the fire raged on. If a price could not be agreed upon, the brigade let the structure burn down. Crassus then offered to buy the property for a fraction of the value. • After the Great Fire of London occurred in 1666, burning 2 sq. miles of the city and destroying more than 13,000 homes, insurance companies began forming private fire brigades to protect their patrons’ property. Only the buildings of clients were saved from harm. The firefighters knew whether the home was covered by their insurance if there was a “fire mark” on the structure. This was an iron, copper, or lead emblem that was placed near the front door. • In 1631, in an attempt to reduce the number of fires, Boston city official John Winthrop outlawed wooden chimneys and thatched roofs. • During the 17th century, the first “fire engines” came on the scene, which were merely tubs carried on runners or wheels, which served as a reservoir for water. The tub also contained a hand-operated pump that pushed water through a pipe to fill buckets. Unfortunately, the bucket brigade was still the only way to fight the fire. In 1672, a flexible leather fire hose was invented, with brass fittings every 50 feet (15 m), enabling firefighters to bring water through narrow openings and up stairways into buildings, with the hose connected to a pump out in the street. • The 1800s brought more new innovations to the industry, including cotton-covered rubber hose and a steam-pump fire engine. Fire trucks became motorized in the 20th century with the invention of the internal-combustion engine. • Benjamin Franklin is usually credited as the originator of America’s first volunteer fire department, launched in Philadelphia in 1736. At first it was a “co-op,” meaning that members’ homes were protected from fire. But Franklin expanded his brigade to include all the property of the community, and it became knowns as The Union Fire Company, a group that gathered together every month to develop improved firefighting methods. • There were no government-run fire departments in America until the Civil War era. • There are close to 30,000 fire departments in the U.S. Approximately 1,160,000 firefighters serve in these departments, with an estimated 70% of those being volunteers. About half of the total number of firefighters are between 30 and 49 years old. About 8% are over the age of 60.
**Important Tommy Count Changes** There was recently a fatal error at the host website for the Website for Tidbits that has required changes to enter the contest. They are given below in the Tommy Count box. Thank you for your patience and for all of you who reached out and continued to enter the contest by calling directly, using the mail, and other ways.
Mary Richline Please call 334-202-7285 to claim your prize!
Tommy Count ______ This week’s winner receives a
$25 Dollar Gift Certificate from
Plantation House Restaurant Register to win by sending an email to entertommycontest@gmail.com or USPS to PTK Corp., PO Box 264, Wetumpka, AL 36092 with the following information: 1) Your name (first and last), and, 2) the number of times you find Tommy in the ads in the paper. From the correct entries a winner will be selected. You must be 18 years of age to qualify. The gift certificates will range in value from $25 to $100 each week. Entries must be received by midnight each Friday evening.
Last Week’s Ads where
Tommy was hiding:
1. Mil-Spec Cleaning LLC, p.6
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TidbitsÂŽ of the River Region
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We’re Here to Stay!!
FOOD OF THE WEEK:
COCONUTS “I’ve Got a Lovely Bunch of Coconuts” goes the old song composed in 1944. This week, in honor of National Coconut Cream Pie Day on May 8th, Tidbits brings a lovely bunch of facts about the fruit of the cocos nucifera palm tree. • The coconut palm, which grows throughout the tropics and subtropics can reach a height of 98 feet (30 m), with leaf fronds nearly 20 feet (6 m) long. A tall coconut palm tree might yield up to 75 fruits a pear, provided it is grown under proper conditions. It takes six to ten years for a palm to produce its first fruit, and the tree doesn’t reach peak production for at least 15 years. The palm is grown in more than 80 countries, with the Philippines, Indonesia, and India leading the pack in production. More than 20 billion coconuts are grown each year. • In the 1500s, Portuguese sailors aboard the ship of explorer Vasco da Gama discovered the fruit and thought the three small holes on the shell looked like a human face. As a result, they named it “coco,” meaning “grinning face.” Much later, the word “nut” was tacked on to the end. • The fruit is not really a nut at all, but rather a drupe, from the same family as peaches, plums, and cherries. A full-sized coconut weighs about 3.2 lbs. (1.44 kg). The white fleshy part of the fruit is called the meat, which is rich in manganese, potassium, and copper. It’s the meat that’s used in sweet treats such as macaroons. Dried coconut meat is known as copra, which is often processed to produce oil, soaps, and cosmetics. • Coconut water is a refreshing drink, full of fiber, protein, antioxidants, sugars, vitamins, and minerals. It’s also been used as a short-term substitute for human blood plasma, and as an IV for severely dehydrated individuals. Coconut milk isn’t the same as coconut water. It’s lower in sugar and its fat content is upwards of 20%. Just like cow’s milk, coconut cream will rise to the top, separating from the milk. • In Malaysia and Thailand, a certain primate, the pig-tailed macaques, has been trained for 400 years to harvest coconuts. A single macaque can pick 800 to 1,000 coconuts per day, and is even trained to tell the difference between ripe and unripe fruits. • It’s estimated that about 150 people are killed every year from falling coconuts. • Coconuts aren’t just for eating! The fiber of the husk, known as coir, is used in the manufacture of ropes, brushes, sacks, mattresses, and can also be used to buff floors. The leaves are used in broom-making, the weaving of baskets and mats, and as thatch for roofs. The wood from the tree trunk makes for an outstanding building material for bridges, houses, and boats, due to its straightness, strength, and salt resistance. In fact, in 1978, Philippines Ferdinand Marcos commissioned the construction of the Coconut Palace, a guest house with seven bedrooms, for the visit of Pope John Paul II to the Philippines. The structure, built of 70% coconut lumber, cost $10 million to erect. Ironically, the Pope refused to stay there, believing it was too lavish. • Do you remember the 1971 hit song “Coconut,” recorded by Harry Nilsson? The song, which was on the Billboard charts for 10 weeks, advised a girl with a stomachache to “put the lime in the coconut and drink ‘em both together,” then “call him in the morning.”
BIBLE TRIVIA ANSWERS:
1) Old; 2) John; 3) Edom; 4) Judas; 5) Great-grandson; 6) Joshua
1. Gary Carter, Andre Dawson and Tim Raines. 2. Five times -- 1972, ‘76, ‘77, ‘80 and ‘82. 3. It was 1967. 4. Kobe Bryant (2003), Donyell Marshall (2005) and Curry (2016). 5. Doug Jarvis, with 964 consecutive games played. 6. Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. 7. Bayern, 2014; American Pharoah, 2015; Arrogate, 2016.
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Tips for Sticking With Music Lessons “Forte! Jump up high ... higher. That’s great!” says teacher Krista Bladel enthusiastically to her eager 5-year-old student Naomi Adams. “Now, dip down low, all the way to the floor, and quietly say, ‘piano.’” Sound like a gymnastics class? Not exactly. It was a halfhour afternoon violin lesson. Through physical activity to internalize the dynamics of a musical piece, Naomi learns essential musical concepts -- “forte” means “loud,” and “piano” means “soft.” Along with clapping to grasp rhythms, the pace is set as she gets serious, focusing on Krista’s fingers on her strings as they make music together. Sitting on the sidelines in the room, I thought, “Don’t ever quit playing the violin, Naomi.” Keep learning and practicing so that when you get my age, you won’t have regrets and say, “If only I would have continued my music lessons.” Krista believes school-age kids often quit because, quite simply, it’s hard work. It can be frustrating to keep at it as tiny muscles train through repeated practice. “Nowadays, many kids feel they would rather do sports, especially as spring approaches,” she says. “That’s fine. But my mom, also a violinist, kept on me to balance both. The breakthrough came when I discovered that playing the violin had ultimately become my own. It was gratifying, but it took a lot of discipline. “ The benefits of learning to play an instrument include developing self-discipline, improving academic performance in school, and the opportunity to make a whole new set of “music friends.” Plus, the sheer joy of creating music one’s entire life is a valued reward for sticking with it. Tips for helping kids not to quit: 1. Understand that it is hard work, and for beginners, beautiful music does not happen for a while. Encouragement and praise is important. 2. Prioritize music by making it just as important as other activities in a child’s busy life. If parents take it seriously, kids are more likely to take it seriously. 3. Make sure your child has the opportunity to play fun music and melodies that align with their interests. 4. Slowing the practice pace in the summer is fine, but not playing for three months impacts progress. Just like kids need to keep reading in the summer, they need to keep practicing. 5. Give your children opportunities to share. Performances at family gatherings, neighborhood picnics or at camp encourage progress. *** Donna Erickson’s award-winning series “Donna’s Day” is airing on public television nationwide. To find more of her creative family recipes and activities, visit www. donnasday.com and link to the NEW Donna’s Day Facebook fan page. Her latest book is “Donna Erickson’s Fabulous Funstuff for Families.” (c) 2018 Donna Erickson Distributed by King Features Synd.
Tidbits® of the River Region