VARIATIONS ON A THEME

Posted on March 11, 2025March 11, 2025 by vlaw759

*Sometimes the appeal of fan fiction includes fabulous dance numbers!*

For the last several months my preferred escapist reading has been variations on Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. What’s the appeal?

Well, for one thing, I enjoy seeing the varied ways a writer can use Pride and Prejudice as a starting point for so many related but different stories!

*In addition to dodging social pitfalls, the Bennets must dodge hordes of the roaming undead.*

One of the Bennet daughters is an heiress.
Mr. Bennet dies and the women must make their way by working, sometimes for their Uncle Gardiner, sometimes as companions.
Lydia marries someone other than George Wickham.
Jane marries someone other than Charles Bingley.
Elizabeth is a widow, often with a child.
Mary Bennet marries Collins, and Charlotte Lucas marries someone else entirely.
Elizabeth and Darcy become trapped alone together in a flood and must marry because of the “compromise.”

Elizabeth and Darcy first meet in their teens and reunite years later.
Minor characters shift personalities, behaviors, and support.
Jane Austen characters from other novels make an appearance.
Longbourn is not entailed.
Mrs. Bennet dies; Mr. Bennet remarries and has an heir.
Elizabeth is kidnapped.
Darcy saves Elizabeth’s life and vice versa.
The events of the story are mere background in the lives of the Bennets’ servants, who are dealing with their own problems.

And what makes these stories most comforting is that, whatever happens to other characters or the plot, Darcy and Elizabeth always end up together.

One of Austen’s first imitators was Sybil G. Brinton, whose novel Old Friends and New Fancies (1913) features characters from nearly all of Austen’s novels.

The Kindle Store offers literally hundreds of these stories, to buy or borrow. They come up when a user searches the store for Pride and Prejudice variations. These novels are a version of fan fiction (also known as fanfiction, fan fic, fanfic, fic, or FF).

*from the Jane Austen Parade for Literacy, 2019*

Fan Fiction

*A fan-made movie poster for a cross-over fic casting the characters from BBC’s Merlin in the roles of Pride and Prejudice* by ls311 on deviantart

Fan fiction is fiction created by fans—(duh!)—typically in an amateur capacity, that is based on an existing work of fiction, using their characters, settings or other intellectual properties but not authorized by the original creator(s).

Sometimes fan fiction is based on real life celebrities or politicians.

Fan fiction can range from poems and short stories to novel-length works and can be based on various media, including books, movies, TV shows, comics, video games, music videos, board games, and more.

Fan fiction allows fans to explore their favorite characters, settings, and storylines in new ways, often continuing canon narratives, exploring alternate universes, or creating original stories within the established framework.

Examples

*A graphic novel from Marvel Comics based on Pride and Prejudice*

Stories based on popular TV shows like “Supernatural” or “Only Murders in the Building”.
Stories based on books like “Harry Potter” or “Twilight”.
Stories based on movies like “Star Wars” or “Avengers”.
Stories inspired by other forms of media (such as the language learning app Duolingo).
Poetry and song lyrics reflecting characters or elements of a story

Fan fiction websites, such as Archive of Our Own, Fanfiction.net, and Wattpad, attract millions of daily page views, and many social media users share or discuss fan fiction on Tumblr, Discord, Instagram, and TikTok .

While fan fiction often uses copyrighted material, it is generally considered fair use because it is a transformative work, and the original creators are unlikely to take legal action. One must be more cautious when writing variations of more modern works. For works out of copyright, such as Pride and Prejudice, this is never a problem.

Jane Austen’s Fandom

*One of the earliest film adaptations, in 1940, starring Greer Garson and Laurence Olivier*

Jane Austen fan fiction, or JAFF, is a very popular and thriving genre, with numerous published and unpublished works, and has seen an increase in popularity since the 1995 BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. As I said at the beginning, I greatly enjoy Pride and Prejudice variations.

The Austen fandom boomed after the release of the 1995 BBC Pride and Prejudice miniseries and the 2005 film adaptation.

There are numerous published Austen-inspired novels, with Pride and Prejudice being the most popular source of inspiration, accounting for at least 900 published books. The number of unpublished stories on various JAFF sites at least doubles that number.

Modern adaptations of Austen’s works, including “The Lizzie Bennet Diaries,” have also drawn in new audiences, including those who may not have read the original novels.

My particular escapist reading is rooted in Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, but whatever your taste, there’s surely fan fiction out there for you!

*Pride and Prejudice: Blood Ties, a role-playing video game that blends Jane Austen’s work with vampires*

Evolution of Fan Fiction

*Elizabeth Bennet drawn in the style of an anime chibi, by twosugars16 on DeviantArt*

“Despite its ties to the Internet, fan fiction is nothing new. English-language fan fiction can be traced to the 18th century. Jonathan Swift’s satiric novel Gulliver’s Travels (1726) inspired some of the earliest fan fiction, including a series of poems by Alexander Pope. In one such piece, Pope imagined Gulliver’s wife bemoaning her adventurer husband’s long absence and his uninterest in her upon his return, accusing him of infidelity during his journeys: “Not touch me! never neighbour call’d me slut! Was Flimnap’s dame more sweet in Lilliput?” (britannica.com)

Because it is, by definition, “derivative,” fan fiction often gets less respect than other fiction. However, many successful traditionally published authors have written fan fiction, including Meg Cabot.

Orson Scott Card, though he says he hates fan fiction, has published “fanfic” at some point in his career.

*from Charles Ross: One Man Pride and Prejudice, a stage play in Vancouver, 2019*

Author Neil Gaiman inspires fan fiction, and he’s also written it. His novel Good Omens (1990), written with Sir Terry Pratchett, has nearly 50,000 entries on Archive of Our Own. Gaiman’s story “A Study in Emerald” (2003) imagines a crossover between the worlds of Conan Doyle and H.P. Lovecraft, creating a
Sherlock Holmes-style mystery with a supernatural twist. In 2004, members of the World Science Fiction Convention named it the year’s best short story.

“Early fan fiction, like its contemporary counterparts, could be bolder and more sexually explicit than its source material. Henry Fielding wrote a sensual fan fiction of Samuel Richardson’s sentimental novel Pamela (1740). Amusingly titled Shamela (1741), it reimagines Richardson’s protagonist without the burdensome virtue of chastity. Similarly, in the 19th and 20th centuries the works of Jane Austen and Arthur Conan Doyle became popular fodder for fan fiction writers, who may have wondered, What happened between the lines of the original stories?” (britannica.com)

Inspiration

*Illustration from Pride and Prejudice and Enterprise, a Star Trek crossover, by NaOH-giveup*

Fan fiction shows up in unexpected (by me) places. For example, Biblical fanfic is (could be) a thing. Some in the fan fiction community have gone so far as to call apocryphal writings or Dante’s epic poem The Divine Comedy (c. 1308–21) “biblical fanfic.” Although people generally consider religious literature to be a unique genre, in the Internet age, The Divine Comedy has inspired its own fan fiction, including more than 150 related works on Archive of Our Own. On Fanfiction.net, the Bible has inspired about 4,000 fan pieces.

The huge number of Sherlock Holmes fans inspired the Baker Street Journal (1946), a fan magazine that published a mix of scholarly writing and fan fiction. Ellery Queen’s “My First Meeting with Sherlock Holmes” was one of those. Actually, according to britannica.com, Queen was also a fiction, created by authors Frederic Dannay and Manfred B. Lee. (Dannay and Lee also launched Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine in 1941, which still publishes crime fiction.)

Harry Potter has inspired more than twice as many stories as any other fandom. In second place is the anime Naruto.

Among TV series, the BBC’s Sherlock, which has had only four seasons, generated 29,000 works of fanfiction per season. That’s almost 30% more than the runner up, Teen Wolf, which averages a little more than 20,000 stories per season over six seasons.

Big fandoms tend to be older ones (for example Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Star Trek, Doctor Who, and Supernatural).

*Illustration of Star Wars: Rogue One characters in the roles of Pride and Prejudice by Blooming Cyre*

Although books often generate fan fiction, here are 5 famous books generated by fanfiction:

The Mortal Instruments Series by Cassandra Clare
Point Pleasant by Jen Archer Wood
Paradise Lost by John Milton
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Seth Grahame-Smith
50 Shades of Grey by EL James

Why Fan Fiction?

*Fans “cos-playing” as characters from Pride and Prejudice, dressing up and acting out the story to better suit the way they thought it should have gone. photo by Ringmasah*

Many people write and read fanfic for many reasons.

Fan fiction fosters a sense of community among fans who share an interest in the same media. In addition to exchanging direct contact details, fans can join online communities, Discord servers, subReddits, Tumblr clusters, zine boards, etc. with other fans of similar media. Some fans even set up conventions and local meet-ups.

Some writers use prompts from other fans as writing practice. For example, Sherlock fans will challenge each other to write 221B “drabbles.” They try to tell a story in 221 words, ending with a word that begins with the letter B (in honor of Holmes and Watson’s shared flat at 221B Baker Street). Other prompts include chain stories, collaborations with illustrators, retelling scenes from the point of view of a background character, resetting a story in one’s hometown with local slang, experimenting with first or second person narrative, and just about anything else one might imagine.

Other reasons fans write their own stories:

*A lesbian young adult romance in which a young Pittsburgh writer is magically transported to meet the Bennet sisters*

As a chance to explore and share interests, such as setting the story in a particular historical setting or having characters exploring niche hobbies

Providing representation the fan writer feels is missing, whether self-insertion or widening the role of minorities overlooked by the original author

Correcting perceived plot holes, factual inaccuracies, or underdeveloped characters

Simply making the story turn out the way the fan writer would have preferred!

Bottom Line: If you ever wish you could change a story’s ending or hate to cut ties with particular characters, the solution could be fan fiction. Ditto if you just want to avoid too much news!

S.A.D. Writers

Posted on March 4, 2025March 4, 2025 by vlaw759

harp S.A.D. — *Today’s blog about S.A.D. is guest-written by Katheen Corcoran*

We’re seeing a return of warmer temperatures and thawing ground as winter comes to an end in the Northern Hemisphere. As the days lengthen and crocuses (and people) start to poke their heads out, many people dealing with Seasonal Affective Disorder start to see a reduction in symptoms. From this warmer and sunnier vantage point, it’s nice to look back and appreciate some bleak winter weather. Some authors seem to have truly embraced the winter spirit, and it shows in their writing.

(Note: I am not trying to diagnose these authors with S.A.D., simply appreciating their wintry writing.)

S.A.D. Poetry

Poetry, with its focus on imagery and flexible word usage, is ideal for evoking atmosphere. These poets have embraced all the cold, dark, bleakness of wintry S.A.D. and turned it into beauty for the rest of us to enjoy.

Snow falling and night falling fast, oh, fast
In a field I looked into going past,
And the ground almost covered smooth in snow,
But a few weeds and stubble showing last.

Robert Frost ― “Desert Places”

In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan,
Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone;
Snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow,
In the bleak midwinter, long ago.

Christina Rossetti ― “In the Bleak Midwinter”

Wynter wakeneth al my care,
Nou this leves waxeth bare;
Ofte I sike ant mourne sare
When hit cometh in my thoht
Of this worldes joie, hou hit goth al to noht.

Nou hit is, and nou hit nys,
Al so hit ner nere, ywys;
That moni mon seith, soth hit ys:
Al goth bote Godes wille:
Alle we shule deye, thah us like ylle.

Al that gren me graueth grene,
Nou hit faleweth albydene:
Jesu, help that hit be sene
Ant shild us from helle!
For y not whider y shal, ne hou longe her duelle.

Anonymous Winter poem (around 1310, maybe in Leominster, Herefordshire)

S.A.D. Prose

Not surprisingly, authors at higher latitudes, where winter brings the longest nights, have a tendency to reflect this in their writing. Swedish, Russian, French, and Northern American authors often include winter almost as a character in their works, including themes of cold, isolation, and deprivation.

“Six months passed. White winter had set in the cruel stillness of cloudless frosts, with its thick crunching snow, rosy hoarfrost on the trees, pale emerald sky, wreaths of smoke curling above the chimneys, steam emerging from momentarily opened doors, with those fresh faces which look bitten by cold, and the hurried trot of shivering horses. A January day was drawing to its close; the evening cold pierced keenly through the motionless air, and a brilliant sunset was rapidly dying away.”

Ivan Turgenev ― Fathers and Sons

“It was bitter cold. The streets were covered with a thick, black, glassy layer of ice, like the bottom of beer bottles. It hurt her to breathe. The air was dense with gray sleet and it tickled and pricked her face like the gray frozen bristles of her fur cape. Her heart thumping, she walked through the deserted streets past the steaming doors of cheap teashops and restaurants. Faces as red as sausages and horses’ and dogs’ heads with beards of icicles emerged from the mist.”

Boris Pasternak ― Doctor Zhivago

Although it was only six o’clock, the night was already dark. The fog, made thicker by its proximity to the Seine, blurred every detail with its ragged veils, punctured at various distances by the reddish glow of lanterns and bars of light escaping from illuminated windows. The road was soaked with rain and glittered under the street-lamps, like a lake reflecting strings of lights. A bitter wind, heavy with icy particles, whipped at my face, its howling forming the high notes of a symphony whose bass was played by swollen waves crashing into the piers of the bridges below. The evening lacked none of winter’s rough poetry.

Théophile Gautier ― Hashish, Wine, Opium

When the cold comes to New England it arrives in sheets of sleet and ice. In December, the wind wraps itself around bare trees and twists in between husbands and wives asleep in their beds. It shakes the shingles from the roofs and sifts through cracks in the plaster. The only green things left are the holly bushes and the old boxwood hedges in the village, and these are often painted white with snow. Chipmunks and weasels come to nest in basements and barns; owls find their way into attics. At night, the dark is blue and bluer still, as sapphire of night.

Alice Hoffman ― Here on Earth

GOOD VIBES

Posted on February 25, 2025February 25, 2025 by vlaw759

People typically feel relaxed and calm when they do things that stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system, allowing them to let go of tension and stress. When the bad vibes threaten to overwhelm you, consider the following suggestions to return good vibes to your life!

Sounds Can Promote Relaxation

Listening to calming music can promote good vibes. Such music typically features slow, soothing melodies, minimal percussion, and soft instrumentation such as piano, guitar, and strings. The tempo is generally slow, and the volume is often kept low to create a peaceful atmosphere.

Nature sounds, such as ocean waves or rain, rustling leaves, chirring of insects.

Gentle ambient noise, such as a fan or “noise machine.”

Sights

If you feel the craziness closing in, your eyes can help restore your good vibes!

Water is key: Looking at water, especially calm bodies like a lake or a quiet ocean, can significantly lower heart rate and blood pressure, inducing a meditative state.

Natural patterns: Fractal patterns found in nature, like the branching of trees or the ripples on water, can be particularly soothing.

Wide open spaces: Expansive landscapes with open horizons can promote a sense of peace and tranquility.

Activities

There are steps you can take to improve the vibes in your life, some easier than others.

Deep breathing: Focusing on slow, deep breaths is a highly effective way to activate the relaxation response in the body. It’s a simple and effective way to reduce anxiety and anger.

Heat: Taking a warm bath or applying heat to tense muscles can induce relaxation.

Physical activity with low intensity: Gentle stretching, yoga, or walking can help release tension in the body.

Get into nature. Nature is calming because it provides a sensory experience that engages multiple senses with sights, sounds, and smells that are often repetitive and predictable, which can help to reduce stress, lower heart rate, and promote relaxation. Being in nature essentially acts as a distraction from daily worries and allows for a sense of connection to something larger than oneself. Many of these benefits come to gardeners. There is also something called the biophilia hypothesis: research suggests humans have an innate connection to nature, which can lead to feelings of well-being when exposed to natural elements.

Keep a journal. It provides a safe place to express and process your thoughts and emotions, allowing you to gain clarity, release pent-up feelings, and reflect on experiences, often leading to a sense of reduced stress and anxiety.

Get creative. Creativity often leads to a sense of self-expression, reduced stress, and a feeling of control over your inner world, essentially providing an outlet to process and release tension. Creativity can put us in a flow state, meaning we become focused with optimal attention on a task or activity. This is sometimes called being “in the zone.” When we are in the zone, it can feel euphoric, and we become more mindful and relaxed.

Mind Games

The phrase “mind games” tends to evoke images of power-hungry bosses or abusive ex-partners. However, you can also play mind games with yourself to encourage healthy practices!

Mindfulness practices: Meditation and other mindfulness techniques help to quiet the mind and become more aware of the present moment, reducing stress.

Relaxing imagery: Can help calm down angry feelings.

Being grateful: Practicing gratitude can reduce cortisol, the key stress hormone. You can record your gratefulness in a journal.

Visual imagery: Imagining peaceful scenes or calming scenarios can help to distract from worries and promote relaxation.

Environment

The outside impacts the inside. By the same token, surrounding yourself with good vibes has a powerful impact on mental well-being.

Warm environments are more relaxing than cold ones.

Color palette: Soft, muted colors like blues, greens, and pastel shades are generally considered calming.

Limit clutter in your personal environment.

Limit your exposure to negative stimuli, such as disturbing news.

Habits

On their own, small habits may not make much difference. But when you practice them regularly, you may find an appreciable improvement.

Regularly engage in positive social interaction: Spending time with loved ones or engaging in pleasant conversations can promote feelings of well-being and reduce stress.

Sleep: Getting enough sleep is important for thinking clearly and controlling negative emotions. To sleep better, you can avoid caffeine, alcohol, and heavy meals before bed.

Nutrition: Eating well is a key part of maintaining calm. See below.

Physical activity: Exercise can help you feel calmer.

Routines: Having a consistent morning routine can reduce decision-making and stress.

Eating and drinking

What you put into your body can have a major impact on how your brain works. Nutritionists have identified many foods that support mental health and well-being.

Lots of people relax with alcohol, but this is not a good primary practice, given the empty calories, loss of control, and potential for addiction.

Instead limit caffeine and drink chamomile tea and green tea.

Complex carbohydrates are good, including whole grains like breads and pastas, brown or wild rice, and oatmeal.

Omega-3 fatty acids, found in fish like salmon, tuna, and halibut; avocados; flaxseed.

Magnesium from foods such as leafy greens like spinach and Swiss chard; legumes, nuts, and seeds; dark chocolate; bananas.

Vitamin C is good, from berries like strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries; and, of course, oranges.

Surprise! You can get probiotics from pickles, sauerkraut, and kefir.

Other good foods: yogurt, dark leafy greens, asparagus, oysters, cashews, liver, beef, and egg yolks.

You can also try eating lean proteins to help calm you.

Emotional Control

The physical environment can certainly influence good vibes, but exercising emotional control can have a powerful effect on mental health.

Treat yourself kindly: Calm people don’t beat themselves up about mistakes or weaknesses.

Seeing the middle ground: Expect that there will be glitches, even when people do their best.

Respecting boundaries: Setting boundaries can lead to long-term benefits.

Use your phone judiciously. Be mindful about media you consume.

Why Bother?

Regular practice of relaxation techniques will assist you in relieving muscle tension, reducing anxiety, and improving your overall wellbeing.

Other physiological benefits:

Decrease in heart rate
Decrease in respiration rate

Being calm and relaxed significantly improves both mental and physical health:

Reducing stress
Lowering blood pressure
Enhancing focus
Improving sleep quality
Boosting mood
Allowing for better decision-making, ultimately leading to a higher quality of life

Essentially, it allows your body and mind to recharge and function optimally.

Bottom Line: There are myriad ways to relax and promote calm, and the benefits are well worth the effort.

BAD FEELINGS

Posted on February 18, 2025February 18, 2025 by vlaw759

You know what they are, and we all have them sometimes. They vary in intensity, and everyone recognizes how bad the most intense episodes are.

For example:

Irritated-> angry-> furious-> homicidal
Down-> blue-> sad-> depressed-> suicidal
Self-conscious-> embarrassed-> humiliated
Cautious-> suspicious-> fearful-> paranoid

Bad Feelings in the Body

Even mild prolonged negative emotions can lead to various outcomes like headaches, muscle tension, fatigue, and upset stomach.

Negative feelings, like stress, anxiety, anger, and sadness, can significantly impact physical health. Among other effects, bad feelings can cause the following:

Weakening the immune system
Increasing inflammation
Disrupting sleep patterns
Raising blood pressure
Contributing to digestive issues
Potentially leading to chronic diseases like cardiovascular problems

It’s Not All in Your Head!

Stress hormones:
When experiencing negative emotions, the body releases stress hormones like cortisol, which can disrupt normal bodily functions, including immune response and blood sugar regulation.

Cardiovascular impact:
Chronic stress and anger can contribute to high blood pressure, increased heart rate, and an elevated risk of cardiovascular disease.

Digestive issues:
Negative emotions can lead to digestive problems like stomach aches, nausea, and changes in bowel movements due to the impact on gut health.

Sleep disturbances:
Difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep is often associated with stress and anxiety, further impacting overall health.

Impaired immune function:
Chronic stress can weaken the immune system, making individuals more susceptible to infections.

Muscle tension:
Negative emotions can lead to muscle tension and pain, particularly in the neck and shoulders.

Headaches and migraines:
Stress and tension can trigger headaches or migraines in some individuals.

Which Feelings Cause What

Specific negative emotions have different potential physical effects!

Anger:
High blood pressure, headaches, stomach ulcers, increased risk of heart disease

Anxiety:
Rapid heart rate, chest pain, difficulty breathing, muscle tension

Depression:
Fatigue, loss of appetite, sleep disturbances, aches and pains

Overcoming Bad Feelings

What can be done to mitigate the effects of negative emotions on physical health?

Stress management techniques:
Mindfulness meditation, deep breathing exercises, regular physical activity

Healthy coping mechanisms:
Social support, hobbies, relaxation techniques

Professional help:
Therapy or counseling to address underlying emotional issues

Lifestyle changes:
Adequate sleep, balanced diet, regular exercise

Bottom Line: Bad feelings are bad for your health, so try to have as few of them as possible. When they are unavoidable, take what steps you can to manage them in a healthy way.

PRIORITIES: WE ALL HAVE THEM

Posted on February 11, 2025February 11, 2025 by vlaw759

William Penn priorities — *“Time is what we want most, but what we use worst.” (William Penn)*

As a young mother, employed full time, I complained to my paternal grandmother that I really needed more time. Granny said, “Honey, you have all the time there is.” Or to put it another way, as Johann Wolfgang von Goethe did, ”One always has time enough, if one will apply it well.” And there you have it, the need to set priorities.

One simplistic approach is this Peter F. Drucker quote, “Do first things first and second things not at all.” But we have to deal with more than first and second.

Eisenhower Matrix

Dwight D. Eisenhower had definite advice on how to deal with this:

Well, that’s one way, and it’s worked for lots of people in both personal and professional situations.

Note: This decision matrix would need to be considered for everything on your to-do list.

Ask yourself these questions for every task:

Does this task contribute to my long-term goals or values? If yes, it’s important.
Does this task have to be done right now, or face consequences? If yes, it’s urgent.
Does this task help someone else more than it helps me? If yes, it’s possibly not important but could be urgent.
Does this task take up more time than it’s worth? If yes, it might not be urgent or important.

I didn’t find guidance on what to do when more than one task comes up both urgent and important.

Organize Priorities

*“Procrastination is the art of keeping up with yesterday.” (Don Marquis)*

Of course some people simply organize their to-do lists.
For procrastinators, these lists might be:

Do Tomorrow
Do Soon
Do Sometime
Don’t Bother

For many procrastinators, if it weren’t for the last minute, nothing would ever get done!

Even if not consciously set, everyone lives their priorities.

“Action expresses priorities.” (Mahatma Ghandi)
“Your decisions reveal your priorities” (Jeff Van Gundy)
“What you do speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you say.” (Ralph Waldo Emerson)
“It’s how we spend our time here, and now that really matters. If you are fed up with the way you have come to interact with time, change it.” (Marcia Wieder)

It could be argued that success requires the focus that comes from priorities. “When everything is a priority, nothing is a priority.” (Simon Fulleringer) “If you chase two rabbits, both will escape.” (Unknown)

Planning Priorities

Consider these quotes that encourage planning:

“The common man is not concerned about the passage of time, the man of talent is driven by it.” – Arthur Schopenhauer

*“If you love life, don’t waste time, for time is what life is made of.” – Bruce Lee*

“The most efficient way to live reasonably is every morning to make a plan of one’s day and every night to examine the results obtained.” – Alexis Carrel

“He who every morning plans the transactions of that day and follows that plan carries a thread that will guide him through the labyrinth of the most busy life.” – Victor Hugo

“Be not afraid of going slowly, be afraid only of standing still.” – Chinese Proverb

“Your future is created by what you do today, not tomorrow.” – Anonymous

“The things that matter most should never be at the mercy of the things that matter least.” – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Also paraphrased as “Don’t let the things that matter least, get in the way of the things that matter most.” ~ Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart (2018)

“The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.” – Stephen Covey
(BTW, I hate the word “prioritize” and other nouns that have been turned into verbs, but that’s just me.)

“Decide what you want. Decide what you are willing to exchange for it. Establish your priorities and go to work.” – H. L. Hunt

Prioritize Rest

And as you allocate time, remember to make rest a priority.

*“Take rest. A field that has rested gives a bountiful crop.” – Ovid*

“The time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time.” – Bertrand Russell
“Have regular hours for work and play; make each day both useful and pleasant, and prove that you understand the worth of time by employing it well.” – Louisa May Alcott
“Wisdom is knowing when to have rest, when to have activity, and how much of each to have.” – Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

So it all comes back to time. “The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.” (Michael Altshuler)

Or at least we can try to pilot our lives, for as Chaucer noted, “Time waits for no man.”

But “The best thing about the future is that it comes one day at a time.” (Abraham Lincoln)

And finally, Charles Richards said, “Don’t be fooled by the calendar. There are only as many days in the year as you make use of.”

Bottom Line: Whatever your priorities, spend your time intentionally.

History of Valentines

Posted on February 4, 2025February 3, 2025 by vlaw759

For many the mention of February immediately brings thoughts of Valentine’s Day, Valentine cards, whether to send them, and to whom.

A Hallmark History

For many Americans, Hallmark has become synonymous with Valentines. Founded by 18-year-old Joyce Clyde Hall in 1910, Hallmark Cards is the largest manufacturer of greeting cards in the U.S. They got into the Valentine act in 1913, and began producing their own designs in 1916.

Hallmark offers approximately 1,400 Valentine designs in their catalogue. Valentines are their second biggest seller, after Christmas cards. Before Valentine cards, there were Valentine love letters.

Saint Valentine

The Catholic Church has sainted at least three men named Valentine or Valentinus, two executed on February 14 of different years. I prefer the Saint Valentine who was a 3rd-century Roman priest executed for performing secret weddings in defiance of the emperor’s orders. (Claudius II believed that unmarried men made better soldiers because they had nothing to lose, so he outlawed marriage for young men.) Legend says this St. Valentine wrote a farewell note to his jailer’s daughter, signing it “Love, from your Valentine.”

Writing Valentines

Subsequently, the imprisoned Duke Charles of Orleans wrote the earliest existing Valentine love letter to his wife in 1415. Then followed, in 1477, love letters from Margery Brews to her future husband, John Paston, which contain the first known use of the term “Valentine” in written English.

People exchanged formal messages of affection in the 1500s. Sending handmade cards was popular throughout the 1700s and continued through the 1800s. Europeans exchanged love notes, often decorated with lace and ribbons.

In 1797 London, printed Valentine’s Day cards, to be hand-colored by the buyer, appeared. They featured hearts (the traditional seat of emotions), flowers, Cupids (the Roman god of love), and lace. Because popular science of the day held that the avian mating season began in mid-February, many cards also featured birds as a symbol of the day.

Mass-produced Valentine’s Day cards debuted in America in the 1840s, created by Esther Howland of Worcester, Massachusetts. In 1879, she joined Edward Taft to create the New England Valentine Company. In 1881 George C. Whitney bought their company and combined it with the Whitney Valentine Company. Around 1900, German manufacturers introduced “mechanical” Valentines that folded out to create three-dimensional scenes, which came to dominate the market.

Not Just for Lovers

Today, the holiday has expanded beyond romantic partners to expressions of affection among relatives and friends. Even schoolchildren exchange Valentines now.

The latter is a relatively new development. As best I could find, around the 1950s school children began exchanging Valentine’s Day cards in large numbers in the United States. It has since become a popular school tradition. When I was in elementary school, each student brought a cardboard shoe box, cut a slit in the top, decorated it, and hoped to find cards from classmates, the more the better.

My Funny Valentine

A current Hallmark ad reads, “Shop Valentine cards for all the people you love— spouses, boyfriends, girlfriends, and best friends. Find funny Valentines…”

Vinegar Valentines
'Tis a lemon that I hand you
And bid you now "Skidoo,"
Because I love another -
There is no chance for you! — ‘Tis a lemon that I hand you
And bid you now “Skidoo,”
Because I love another –
There is no chance for you!

Unlike Valentines for classmates, humorous Valentine’s Day cards are nothing new. “Vinegar Valentines” originated in the Victorian era (the last 65 years before 1900) as mocking or comic Valentines. These cards were often insulting and could be sent to anyone the sender disliked, including landlords, salespeople, employers, and adversaries. The tone ranged from gentle to aggressive. They typically insulted a recipient’s physical appearance, character traits, or lack of a romantic partner. They sometimes mocked specific professions. These “comic” Valentines often included grotesque drawings that caricatured common stereotypes. As with all things Valentine, they have evolved.

Valentines by the Numbers

To the annoyance of many, Valentine’s Day has become highly commercialized. According to an article in Business Insider, Hallmark is among nine companies that turned Valentine’s Day into a national economic engine. (Others include sellers of jewelry, flowers, and chocolate.) According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), Americans were expected to spend approximately $25.8 billion on Valentine’s Day in 2024. Though not all that money goes for cards, according to a 2023 National Retail Association survey, 40% of Americans planned to send cards.

*Valentine’s Day celebrations in Dhaka, Bangladesh*

Valentine’s Day is popular in at least 24 countries. Worldwide, the Greeting Card Association estimates that about one billion Valentine’s Day cards are sent each year. Guatemalans celebrate many varieties of love on Valentine’s Day, exchanging cards with friends and family. Many Germans exchange heart-shaped gingerbread cookies. The Japanese split the celebration into two days: women give Valentines to men on February 14th, and men return the favor on March 14th.

In the Philippines, February 14 is the most common wedding anniversary, and mass weddings of hundreds of couples are common on that day. Are cards for these celebrations two-fers, wedding and Valentine? Heads up, Hallmark!

Bottom Line: Giving Valentines may be a centuries-old tradition, but it’s still going strong!

CHOCOLATE: The Good, the Bad, and the History

Posted on January 28, 2025January 29, 2025 by vlaw759

I’m a confirmed chocolate lover. And I’m not alone here! Great taste, a reward after a tough day, a favorite holiday gift…

Chocolate is the preferred choice of sweets for many. Which is what makes chocolate big business. The chocolate industry is worth over £100 billion. Chocolate is the most popular U.S. candy product, favored by 90% of consumers. Nearly half (47%) spend $5-$10 a few times a month buying chocolate at the grocery store. (FYI: Switzerland is the world’s top consumer of chocolate per capita.)

Consumers buy an incredible 90 million pounds of chocolate candy during Halloween week, giving it a strong lead compared to other holidays. Retailers sell almost 65 million pounds during the week leading up to Easter. Although 57% of Valentine’s Day gift-givers give candy, only 48 million pounds of chocolate are sold during Valentine’s week. This includes more than 36 million heart-shaped boxes of chocolate every year for Valentine’s Day.

Of the $1.9 billion sold on Halloween candy each year, $1.2 billion was for chocolate candy and only $680 million for sugar candy.

And then there is the impact of the chocolate industry on other products! U.S. chocolate manufacturers currently use 40 percent of the almonds produced in the United States and 25 percent of domestic peanuts.

Chocolatey Celebrations

Chocolate is so popular that many days of the year are designated for its celebration in various ways.

1/31 National Hot Chocolate Day
- People originally consumed chocolate as a beverage. Thomas Jefferson was a big fan of a drink using stone-roasted cacao, sugar and spices.

2/25 National Chocolate Covered Nut Day

5/15 National Chocolate Chip Day

6/16 National Fudge Day
- Chocolate is only one option for fudge flavors!

7/7 International World Chocolate Day

7/25 National Hot Fudge Sundae Day

8/4 National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day
- Ruth Wakefield invented the chocolate chip cookie in the 1930s. In 1939 she sold her recipe and the Toll House name to Nestlé, reputedly in return for a lifetime supply of chocolate!

8/20 National Chocolate Pecan Pie Day

9/27 National Chocolate Milk Day
- According to the Smithsonian, an Irish botanist, Sir Hans Sloane, in Jamaica in the early 1700s, drank a cocoa drink that he found so bitter he added milk, thus creating the first chocolate milk mixture. He then left Jamaica and returned to England, where he sold the chocolatey concoction as medicine.

10/13 National M&M Day

11/7 National Bittersweet Chocolate with Almonds Day

12/13 National Cocoa Day

12/28 National Chocolate Candy Day

The popularity of chocolate is reflected in chocolate-themed Hershey Park, the largest amusement park in Pennsylvania, as well as Hersheytown. A huge new park is scheduled to open in 2027. In addition, there are more than 60 chocolate museums around the world, including in Belgium, Canada, Germany, Spain, and the United States.

Keep in mind that chocolate and cocoa are not the same thing. Essentially, chocolate is a processed version of cocoa that includes added ingredients like sugar and cocoa butter to achieve its smooth texture and appealing flavor.

A Little Chocolate History

*From the Codex Tudela, an Aztec woman pouring chocolate from one vessel to another*

Historians credit the Olmec civilization of southern Mexico as being the first to roast the fruit from the cacao tree, then grind it down and mix it with water and other ingredients (but not milk or sugar). Archaeologists have discovered Olmec pottery with trace amounts of chocolate dating back to
around 1700 BCE.

During the Revolutionary War, medics would often dole out cups of hot chocolate to wounded and dying soldiers. Military leaders gave out hot chocolate mixes monthly to soldiers, and sometimes offered them in lieu of wages.

Milton Hershey of Lancaster, PA introduced the first Hershey milk chocolate bar in 1900. Foil-wrapped Hershey’s Kisses appeared in 1906. Ever wondered about that little piece of paper hanging out of a Hershey’s Kiss? That was the company’s way of flagging their candy so consumers would know that it was an original Hershey’s Kiss. The little paper tail is known as a plume.

Soldiers’ rations in the Spanish Civil War inspired Forrest Mars, Sr to create M&Ms: plain chocolate candies in a shell of hard sugar. Chocolate melts at 93°F, which is below the average human body temperature. Remember this slogan? “M&Ms melt in your mouth, not in your hand!”

Mars joined Bruce Murrie (son of Hershey executive William Murrie) to produce M&Ms in 1941, marketing them as in response to slack chocolate sales in summer.

During World War II, M&Ms were sold exclusively to the US military because of their durability.

Hershey’s had an exclusive contract with the American military to supply chocolate for soldiers’ rations during World War II. They specifically created the D-Ration Bar to “taste a little better than a boiled potato” to discourage soldiers from eating only their chocolate ration and nothing else. The recipe for these emergency chocolate rations made a viscous liquid so thick that it clogged the regular manufacturing machines and required hand-packing into molds.

Hershey produced a Tropical D-Ration specifically designed to withstand the high temperatures in the Pacific Theater.

M&Ms were the first candies to go into space, sent with the crew of the NASA shuttle Columbia in 1981.

Chocolate Medicine

Chocolates are a popular form of self-medication.

In the 1800’s, physicians commonly advised their broken-hearted patients to eat chocolate to calm their pining.

Chocolate has been shown to improve depression and anxiety symptoms and to help enhance feelings of calmness and contentedness. Both the flavanols and methylxanthines are believed to play a role in chocolate’s mood-enhancing effects. The presence of compounds like phenylethylamine in cocoa can contribute to feelings of happiness and well-being as well.

Even the smell of chocolate can help you relax and reduce stress! A study conducted by psychologist Neil Martin at Middlesex University in Enfield, England concluded that the aroma of chocolate reduced attentiveness. Also, there are at least six varieties of flowers that naturally smell like chocolate: Carolina Allspice, Columbine-Chocolate Soldier, Chocolate Daisy, Chocolate Vine, Cosmos -Chocolate, and the Oncidium Orchid. A chocolate alternative for aromatherapy, perhaps!

Approximately 70% of people in a cross-sectional survey were less like to report depressive symptoms if they had eaten dark chocolate within the last 24 hours.

Chocolate can’t replace traditional treatment options for depressive feelings with mood disorders, but science may support its role in your diet.

Other cocoa benefits, maximized by choosing minimally processed cocoa powder or dark chocolate with high cocoa content:

*Cacao pods in varying states of ripeness*

Antioxidant power: cocoa is packed with antioxidants, particularly flavanols, which combat free radical damage in the body and may protect against chronic diseases.
Cardiovascular health: studies suggest cocoa can help lower blood pressure, improve blood vessel function, and potentially reduce the risk of heart disease due to its impact on blood flow.
Improved cholesterol and blood sugar levels.
Brain function: cocoa may enhance cognitive abilities like memory and focus due to its influence on neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin.
Potential anti-inflammatory effects: cocoa’s polyphenols may help reduce inflammation in the body.

Chocolatey “Perks”

Chocolate’s reputation as a pick-me-up is greatly aided by the fact that chocolate is sweetened, so there’s a sugar boost along with the caffeine.

A one-ounce piece of milk chocolate contains about the same amount of caffeine as a cup of decaffeinated coffee.

Although a bar of dark chocolate has about 29 milligrams of caffeine, a small cup of regular coffee has about 94.

Dark chocolate has more caffeine than any other type of chocolate. Cocoa solids contain the caffeine. Cocoa beans harvested during a dry season contain more caffeine. The method of processing and roasting the beans also affects the caffeine content.

Chocolate type matters! Dark chocolate, with higher cocoa content, generally has more health benefits compared to milk chocolate, which contains more sugar and fat. In fact, more than half of people in a recent survey from the National Confectioners Association described dark chocolate as a “better for you” candy.

Over-Indulgence

Beware too much chocolate! Addiction to chocolate is called “chocoholism.” It is not a scientifically recognized term.

Cocoa powder is naturally bitter, no sugar at all. The effects of added sugar intake from chocolate— higher blood pressure, inflammation, diabetes, and fatty liver disease — are all linked to an increased risk for heart attack and stroke.

Weight Gain
High calorie intake from chocolate can lead to weight gain if consumed excessively, especially when replacing healthier food options.

Dental Issues
The sugar in chocolate can contribute to tooth decay if not properly brushed after consumption.

Digestive Problems
Some people might experience stomach upset, bloating, or diarrhea due to the fat and sugar content in chocolate, especially milk chocolate.

Cardiovascular Concerns
Regularly consuming large amounts of chocolate, particularly with high saturated fat content, might contribute to elevated cholesterol levels and increase the risk of heart disease.

Blood Sugar Fluctuations
The sugar in chocolate can cause blood sugar spikes, potentially contributing to diabetes risk in susceptible individuals.

Caffeine Overdose
While the caffeine content in dark chocolate is lower than coffee, consuming excessive amounts can lead to sleep disturbances, anxiety, and jitters.

Skin Issues
Some people experience acne breakouts after consuming large quantities of chocolate.

Individual Sensitivities
People with specific allergies or digestive sensitivities should be cautious with chocolate consumption and consult a healthcare professional if needed.

Chocolate Dangers

And then there are heavy metals. Cadmium and lead—two heavy metals linked to a host of health problems in children and adults—are virtually unavoidable in dark chocolate. Consumer Reports scientists recently measured the amount of heavy metals in 28 dark chocolate bars, including Dove, Ghirardelli, Lindt, and Hershey’s, for lead and cadmium. All of them contained both metals. For 23 of them, just an ounce of chocolate violates California’s maximum allowable dose levels (MADL) for lead or cadmium.

Significant exposure to cadmium can cause lung cancer, birth defects, and other reproductive harm. Significant exposure to lead can slow children’s growth growth and development and damage the brain and nervous system.

The good news is that it’s possible for dark chocolate to maintain low levels of heavy metals: five of the 28 bars tested had levels of lead and cadmium within the California limitations.

Johns Hopkins Medicine toxicologist Andrew Stolbach told NPR “The [MADL] safety levels for lead and cadmium are set to be very protective, and going above them by a modest amount isn’t something to be
concerned about,” he said. “If you make sure that the rest of your diet is good and sufficient in calcium and iron, you protect yourself even more by preventing absorption of some lead and cadmium in your diet.”

Note: Chocolate can be toxic to cats and dogs because they can’t metabolize theobromine, a component in chocolate.

Bottom Line: Moderation is key. Enjoying chocolate in moderation as part of a balanced diet is key to reaping potential benefits without experiencing negative effects.

Why Am I S.A.D.?

Posted on January 21, 2025January 22, 2025 by vlaw759

*Today’s guest blog was written by Kathleen Corcoran*

The cold is pressing in, the days are short and dark, and colorful gardens are sleeping and gray. It’s easy to get a case of the Winter Blues, but you might also be dealing with something a little more insidious – Seasonal Affective Disorder. If you notice a pattern of depressed moods at the same time every year, you might have S.A.D.

What Causes Seasonal Affective Disorder?

Also known as S.A.D., this subset of mood disorders causes depressive symptoms at the same time every year. Unlike regular depression, S.A.D. comes and goes regularly with the changing seasons.

Though winter-pattern Seasonal Affective Disorder is more common, some people suffer from the mood disorder in the summer. In both varieties, the change in mood coincides with the change in temperature and length of daylight.

The causes of S.A.D. are not entirely clear, but researchers believe it may be related to serotonin, melatonin, or Vitamin D levels. Some scientists believe the change in daylight hours interferes with the brain’s ability to absorb serotonin. Others point to changes in daylight hours messing up melatonin and sleep schedules. Another common hypothesis is that lack of sunlight causes a vitamin D deficiency, leading to mood disruptions.

Other factors that may contribute to winter-pattern S.A.D. include environmental causes. Cold weather often forces people indoors, curtailing opportunities for exercise and social interaction. Fresh fruits and vegetables are less accessible, and those available in grocery stores are generally less nutritious after being force-ripened or shipped long distances. Winter holidays might also contribute to S.A.D., both in the stress leading up to them and the letdown after they’ve passed.

Symptoms of S.A.D.

The symptoms of S.A.D. are very similar to those of general depression, including empty moods, lack of energy, and loss of interest in usual pleasures and hobbies.

In addition, winter-pattern S.A.D. often includes symptoms that make the sufferer look a bit like a hibernating bear:

Oversleeping
Overeating, particularly of carbohydrates, leading to weight gain
Social withdrawal (feeling like “hibernating”)

On the other hand, summer-pattern S.A.D. can cause symptoms that are nearly the opposite:

Trouble sleeping
Poor appetite, leading to weight loss
Restlessness and agitation
Anxiety
Violent or aggressive behavior

S.A.D. History

Knowledge of Seasonal Affective Disorder goes back at least 2500 years! The Greek physician Hippocrates (c 460-377BCE) noted the correlation of seasonal changes and both mania and melancholia all the way back in the 4th Century BCE. Aulus Cornelius Celsus (c 25BCE-50CE) blamed bad weather for a spike in melancholia, madness, and epilepsy.

Some ancient physicians recognized the role of sunlight in treatment for S.A.D. The Greek physician Aretaeus of Cappadocia suggested treating lethargics by laying them in the light and exposing them to the rays of the sun.

Fast forward a few thousand years, psychiatrist Norman Rosenthal noticed that his moods fluctuated much more in the winter after moving from South Africa to New York in 1976. He conducted a study with the National Institute of Health on the relationship between melatonin, light, and mood. In 1984, the NIH research group published the results of their study, naming Seasonal Affective Disorder for the first time in print. The American Psychological Association recognized S.A.D. in 1990 as a mental disorder.

Since that time, many advances in science and medicine have created more effective S.A.D. treatments. Scientists were able to make full-spectrum lamps all the way back in the 1920s, with a combination of incandescent and fluorescent bulbs, but those bulbs are now easier to make and more effective to use. New anti-depressant medications have had promising results in trials for treating Seasonal Affective Disorder. People with S.A.D. can now download phone apps to track circadian rhythms, monitor hormone levels, or set a morning alarm that gradually increases light to mimic dawn.

S.A.D. Treatment

Treatment for Seasonal Affective Disorder overlaps in many ways with treatment for other forms of depression. However, the external factors involved in S.A.D. mean that there are some different options. For one thing, the seasonal nature may allow those affected by S.A.D. to anticipate and prepare for changes before symptoms start to occur.

Light therapy
Dawn simulators
Maintaining a regular sleep schedule
Exercising outdoors or next to a window
Seeking out socialization
Psychotherapy
Antidepressant medication
Vitamin D supplements

If you suspect your “Winter Blues” may be a sign of something more serious, please don’t hesitate to seek treatment. In the US, you can text 988, call (866)903-3787, or visit https://988lifeline.org/ to speak with someone immediately.

HOT DRINKS, THEY’RE EVERYWHERE!

Posted on January 14, 2025January 14, 2025 by vlaw759

Especially in winter, hot drinks have a special appeal after skiing or shoveling or when the heating system is on the fritz. And sometimes just for the pleasure of it.

In areas without easy access to safe drinking water, many people prefer to boil all water. Having a hot drink can be a convenient excuse to boil water before drinking it.

Here, for your consideration, are hot drinks galore, from the routine, tried and true to the truly exotic.

Water-Based Drinks

I have a friend who drinks plain hot water, but she is surely in the minority. Putting aside coffee and tea for separate consideration, here are a few ideas for variations on hot water that don’t even need recipes.

Simple additives like a squeeze of lemon, a little sugar, molasses or honey, or some other favorite flavoring such as vanilla, blackberry syrup, etc.

Consider heating un-carbonated flavored water.

Herbs, spices, and supplements can make for a very refreshing and sometimes medicinal beverage when mixed with hot water.

And then there is herbal “tea,” made with water and anything other than Camellia sinensis or Camellia taliensis leaves, such as rooibos, chamomile, or peppermint. This is very convenient, given that there are many varieties commercially available.

Broths and bouillons: water heated with cubes or paste flavored as vegetable, chicken, beef, or whatever.

Coffee-Based Drinks

Coffee isn’t singular. There are over a hundred different types of coffee plants, but only four main types of coffee beans that are commercially produced: Arabica, Robusta, Liberica, and Excelsa. Arabica and Robusta beans are the most popular, making up well over 90% of the market.

The first consideration is black or with various additives. Popular additions include milk of whatever sort, cream, creamer, whipped cream, ice cream, condensed milk, evaporated milk, butter, sugar, sugar substitutes, flavored syrups, or other sweeteners.

A thorough examination of coffee-based drinks is clearly beyond my purpose here. Suffice it to say, the Folgers website alone lists the following:

Espresso, 7 versions
Espresso with coffee, 4 more versions
Cappuccino
Mocha
Lattes, 2 versions
Breve
Macchiatos, 2 versions
Cortado
Dirty Chai
Dalgona
Dessert Coffees, 5 versions
Turkish Coffee
Cuban Coffee
Galão Coffee
Antoccino Coffee

Hot Tea

And then there is real tea, made of leaves from the Camellia plant. Aside from water, tea is the most consumed beverage in the world. There are roughly 1500 types of tea, categorized into a few main types:

Black tea, a fully oxidized tea that can be dark amber to black in color. Some types of black tea include Assam, Darjeeling, Ceylon, and Pue Yunnan.

White tea, a naturally oxidized, non-processed tea that has a floral and fruity aroma. Some types of white tea include Pai Mu Tan and Yin Zhen.

Green tea, a tea that is minimally oxidized to retain its natural green color and fresh flavor. Green tea may have health benefits such as boosting heart health and lowering cholesterol.

Oolong tea, a distinct tea varietal native to Taiwan and Fujian province in China, has properties somewhere between green and black tea. It is a semi-oxidized tea, best steeped for 2–3 minutes at a temperature of 195°F.

Pu-Erh tea gets its smoky, earthy flavor from extended fermentation. After drying in the sun, pu-erh leaves are rolled into a pile and left to ferment for several months, then steamed, compressed, and dried again.

At Oh, How Civilized!, tea and coffee sommelier Jee Choe has provided recipes for a number of hot drinks. Some of these are not tea, in the strict sense, but they don’t clearly fit anywhere else in this blog.

Ginger spice
Pumpkin spice chai latte
Hot citron tea
Decadent chai latte
Easy chamomile tea latte
London Fog (Earl Grey tea latte)
Decadent hojicha latte
Matcha hot chocolate
Decadent Earl Grey hot chocolate
Easy matcha latte (using green tea powder)
Chocolate mint tea latte
Milk tea
Rooibos tea latte (this “red tea” is a South African herb)
Quick and easy Moroccan mint tea
Jujube ginger tea (jujube is a Chinese red date)

Juice-Based Hot Drinks

At its simplest, just heat your favorite juice, such as orange, apple, prune, or whatever.

Hot lemonade (hot water with honey and a bit of lemon) has been a common treatment for sore throats and stuffy heads for centuries.

Hot apple juice is not terribly popular, but its unpasteurized and unfiltered cousin, apple cider, is a very popular hot drink in the fall and winter.

Simply mixing boiling water with a bit of fruit preserves or compote makes a type of hot juice drink, warming and mildly sweet.

Or fancy it up a bit, for example, tomato juice with a dash of Worcestershire, or prune heated with a bit of lemon peel.

Milk-Based Hot Drinks

While some drinks already mentioned might arguably be lumped in with “milk-based” hot drinks, the ones that follow are undoubtedly so.

There is the classic, pure cup of hot (dairy) milk, especially appropriate for nighttime because it contains tryptophan. The brain uses this essential amino-acid to build both serotonin and melatonin, compounds that help us relax and prepare for sleep. Although the amount of tryptophan is small, don’t discount placebo effects, plus the effects of warmth and a full stomach!

Now there are numerous non-dairy milks available: soy, oat, almond, cashew, macadamia, pea, quinoa, rice, and maybe others I don’t know about. Consider these alone or in the options listed below.

You can find the following recipes at Through the Fibro Fog:

Honey ginger warm milk
Turkish salep drink
Cardamom milk
Nutmeg milk
Spiced milk
Turmeric latte
Golden turmeric milk
Plus 2 recipes for steamers and 2 for sweet drinks

Looking farther afield, you can find recipes like hot spiced vanilla custard milk (at The Peasant’s Daughter).

Hot Cocoa and Chocolate

Last but not least, hot chocolate and hot cocoa!

Last because you probably thought of it immediately; not least because it’s such a favorite. The basic questions are, with or without marshmallows, with or without a sprinkle of chocolate or cinnamon on top. Beyond that, what are your favorite flavorings? Peppermint? Maple?

Hot cocoa and hot chocolate are technically two different drinks! Mixing hot water or milk with cocoa powder and sugar will give you hot cocoa, which is what most of us in America think of. However, melting solid chocolate and mixing it with hot milk will give you hot chocolate, a thicker and richer beverage.

If you need a recipe, consult any cocoa tin, any comprehensive cookbook, or go online. Or, for a very simple recipe, you could just heat pre-made chocolate milk.

Try Mexican hot chocolate, with cinnamon and chili powder. Or, for a French variation, melt chocolate with cream until it is barely liquid enough to drink.

For a lighter take on hot chocolate, consider steeping cacao husks. Martha Washington reportedly enjoyed an infusion of roasted cacao husks with her breakfast!

Hot Alcoholic Drinks

Here again, recipes are everywhere in cookbooks and online. And you might note overlap with some of the preceding categories!

Hot toddy is a wintertime favorite. The classic hot toddy is made with hot water, sweeteners like honey or sugar, whiskey (often bourbon), and a stick of cinnamon or star anise.

Another popular wintertime drink is mulled wine. Mulled wine is dry red or white wine heated and spiced with cloves, star anise, and cinnamon sticks, often with oranges.

Because of the lack of pasteurization, apple cider and perry (cider made from pear juice) ferment and become alcoholic very easily. Hot Buttered Spiked Cider, besides the title ingredients, uses dark brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, rum, orange peel, and cinnamon stick.

Spiked hot chocolate or a hot peppermint patty
Bailey’s hot chocolate
Amaretto coffee
Irish coffee
Spanish coffee
Hot buttered rum
Ginger bourbon
Cinnamon and tequila
Apple brandy hot toddy
Whiskey chai
Gaelic punch, using young Irish whiskey
Sake

Bottom Line: There are myriad ways to drink yourself warm from the inside out, not to mention warming your fingers as well. Go for it!

EGGS, HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW THEM?

Posted on January 7, 2025January 7, 2025 by vlaw759

More than 99% of the world’s animals lay eggs! Who knew?

According to Reader’s Digest and Parade, January is National Egg Month. Other organizations celebrate in May, but the egg’s unique combination of health benefits and comfort associations make them the perfect dish to start off New Year’s resolutions. People are urged to try new egg recipes, appreciate the role of egg farmers, and enjoy various egg dishes. Maybe even try new eggs?

Categories of Egg-Layers

Egg varieties from *Nouveau Larousse Illustré* (1897–1904)

All species of birds lay eggs, including hens, ducks, turkeys, geese, ostriches, and emus. Bird eggs have hard shells to help keep them from drying out.
Most reptiles, including snakes, turtles, lizards, and crocodiles, lay eggs. Reptile eggs have softer, leathery shells that need to stay moist.
Fish eggs are similar to those of frogs and toads.
Most insects lay eggs, including bees, ants, mosquitos, ladybugs, butterflies, and moths. Insect eggs come in many shapes, sizes, and configurations.
Monotremes, including the platypus and the short-beaked and long-beaked echidna, are the only two mammals that lay eggs. Monotreme eggs are similar to reptile eggs, with a leathery outer covering instead of a hard shell like a bird egg, but they are not edible, so you’ll hear no more about them here.

Eggs are one of the most nutritious foods in the world. They contain proteins, vitamins, and fats that we need to stay healthy.

Bird Eggs

People eat the eggs of many birds, including:

Chicken eggs are the most common edible egg. Indeed, most people haven’t eaten any others. They are fairly mild as far as taste goes and they have many vitamins and nutrients. Store bought chicken eggs are typically white, but chicken eggs have various different colored shells, such as brown or green, depending on the breed of chicken.
Duck eggs are similar to chicken eggs, but with a larger yolk and higher amounts of some nutrients, like folate, iron, and vitamin B12. The taste is richer and smoother and contains more fat and protein than a chicken egg. They have a thicker shell that allows them to stay fresh longer.
Turkey eggs are similar to duck eggs in size and taste. The egg has a thicker yolk and egg white, giving it a creamier taste and consistency. Some people prefer turkey eggs for cooking pastries because of the richer flavor. Turkey eggs are hard to find in stores because most farmers get more value from raising the bird rather than selling the egg.
Ostrich eggs weigh in at around 3 lbs., making them the largest of bird eggs. This is 20 times greater than a chicken egg! The shells have a creamy color and are extremely thick and hard to crack. If you do manage to get one open, you’ll find that each egg is packed with 2,000 calories. However, it has similar nutrients and runny yolk of a chicken egg.
Emu eggs weigh in less than an ostrich egg, at about 2 lbs. These eggs have a dark shell that is usually black in color and speckled with a deep green. Emu eggs are one of the richest tasting eggs. The yolk has the consistency of silly putty, and the egg white is thick like glue. When you cut into it, nothing will ooze out.
Goose eggs are about double in size to a chicken egg. They also have a heavier, more dense taste with greater protein content. The shells are thick and take more force to crack open. Goose eggs are much rarer than chicken or duck eggs because geese only lay about 40 eggs a year.
Quail eggs are tiny and delicate. The taste of a quail egg is lighter than most eggs and its nutritional contents are similar to those of chicken eggs. However, you would need to eat multiple quail eggs to match the same nutrition as a chicken egg. These tiny eggs are considered a delicacy in many countries and have even been used in healing remedies.
Pheasant eggs are similar in size to a duck egg, making them slightly larger than a chicken. The taste is light and less rich, like a quail egg. However, they have a more gamey taste.

*The kiwi has the largest egg-to-body ratio of any bird.*

Insect Eggs

What about insect eggs? Entomophagy is the technical term for eating insects. Humans have eaten insect eggs for thousands of years, and the practice is still common in many tropical countries.

Widespread

Around 3,000 ethnic groups practice entomophagy, and 80% of the world’s nations eat insects.

Delicious

Some insect eggs are considered delicacies.

Escamoles: Black ant eggs that are boiled or fried and often added to soups, tacos, or omelets
Khai mod daeng: Weaver ant eggs that are high in vitamin, sugar, and protein
Some say ant eggs taste like little bubbles of flavor that burst in your mouth

*Khai mot daeng vendor in Isaan, Thailand*

Sustainable

Insects require fewer resources than conventional livestock, making them a sustainable food source.

However, eating insect eggs can also pose a health risk. Fly eggs or larvae that survive in the gastrointestinal tract can cause intestinal myiasis, leading to abdominal pain, vomiting, and diarrhea.

Fish Eggs

Yes, people eat fish eggs, also known as roe, as an ingredient in many dishes and as a snack. Who hasn’t heard of caviar?

Caviar
A type of salted fish egg that comes from wild sturgeon. Caviar is often eaten with blini, crème fraîche, and champagne. It has a smooth texture and a buttery, nutty flavor.
Salmon roe
Also known as ikura in Japan, salmon roe can be eaten in many ways, including on sushi, in pasta, or spread on toast.
Other fish roe
Fish roe can come from many types of fish, including trout, cod, paddlefish, and whitefish. It can be eaten as an appetizer or in sushi rolls.

Fish eggs are a good source of nutrients like omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin D, and vitamin B12. However, fish roe is also high in cholesterol and often prepared with lots of salt, so people who are watching their cholesterol or sodium intake should be mindful of overconsuming.

When sold in the U.S., fish roe must be labeled with the species of fish from which it came.

Beware! Some fish eggs are poisonous.

Reptile Eggs

And have you ever tried reptile eggs? Some South East Asian and Australian indigenous groups eat crocodile eggs, and you might be able to actually get them for consumption in parts of SEA and northern Australia. Some people report a mildly fishy flavor.

Iguana eggs are edible as are alligator eggs, but mother alligators are very protective of their eggs and young.

Snake eggs are edible but obtaining them often requires getting past a broody mother. Burmese pythons wrap around their clutch for months until they hatch. King cobras, the only snake that actually builds a nest, are quite protective of their nests. Even venomous snake eggs are safe to eat!

Python bounty hunter Donna Kalil takes python eggs as part of her efforts to rid Florida of the invasive snakes. Python eggs are chewy, but they can be tasty if prepared correctly. She even uses them to bake sugar cookies!

Sea turtle eggs are easily dug up, collected, and eaten or sold. Because one nest can contain as many as 100 eggs, they are a popular source of protein among communities living near sea turtle nesting beaches. However, the cumulative effect of consuming the heavy metals in sea turtle eggs can be toxic, particularly in children. Many species of sea turtles are endangered, and eating their eggs can cause serious ecological damage.

From what I’ve found online, reptile eggs are generally pretty bland and might taste a bit like chicken eggs, but with less flavor.

Danger!

In general, people should not eat the eggs of wild animals unless certain they are safe and properly identified. In particular:

Poisonous fish eggs
In ichthyotoxic fish, such as catfish, gar, and scullpins, the reproductive organs and products (including roe) are poisonous to eat. However, the meat is usually still fine.
Seabird eggs
While some seabird eggs are edible, many can have a strong fishy taste and may accumulate contaminants from their diet, so caution is advised.
Unidentified wild eggs
If you cannot confidently identify the source of any wild eggs, do not eat them.

Many species of wild birds, fish, and reptiles are endangered or vulnerable. Eating their eggs could disrupt an entire breeding season and is often illegal.

Chicken Eggs

What follows is specifically about chicken eggs.

Varieties and Variations

In the United States, each person consumes 280-286 chicken eggs per year on average.

*Egg vendor in Poland with many sizes of chicken egg*

The grade of eggs in the US refers to the actual quality of an egg’s shell, whites, and yolk. From best to worst, the grades are Grade AA, Grade A, and Grade B.

Eggs have many nutrients that are essential for health. Some say that the healthiest eggs are pasture-raised eggs with a Grade AA rating, a USDA Organic label, and the Certified Humane Raised & Handled certification. Research from Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences found that compared to eggs from conventionally-raised chickens, eggs from pasture-raised hens had double the amount of vitamin E and long-chain omega-3 fats.

Others say that the best tasting eggs come from pastured chickens. Pasture-raised chickens’ eggs (also known as pastured eggs) are by far the best eggs to buy, but make sure you at least get free range.

*Commercially grown and free-range eggs*

The color of the yolk indicates nutritional value, with darker yolks indicating a diet of foraged grasses and bugs. However, the color of the eggshell (white, brown, or pastel, determined by the breed of the chicken) has no effect on the taste or quality of the egg.

Frankly, commercial egg production is pretty brutal. I won’t go into it here, but some people buy eggs from free-range, pasture raised chickens because it’s the humane choice.

The type of chicken feed can influence the egg’s flavor, especially when the feed contains strong-tasting foods like onions, garlic, or herbs, which can impart a subtle taste to the egg; however, the change in taste is usually not dramatic and depends on the specific diet of the chicken.

Storage

Surprising, to me: raw eggs can absorb strong refrigerator smells. Yet another reason to keep eggs in their cartons and refrigerated foods in containers!

As a general rule, unwashed eggs will last around two weeks unrefrigerated and about three months (or more) when refrigerated.

Washed eggs—i.e., grocery store eggs—while they can, technically, last longer, most experts recommend consuming washed eggs within a month for optimal freshness and safety.

Eggs of undetermined age? Fresh eggs sink in water, while older eggs float because they contain more air pockets.

And let’s salute hardboiled eggs in particular: portable and convenient, and beautiful when decorated for Easter!

Symbolic Eggs

*Decorated eggs called pysanka have become a national symbol of Ukraine. This Museum of the Pysanka, established in 1987, houses collections of pysanka from every region of the country.*

And just as an aside: eggs have many symbolic meanings.

Perhaps the best known is new life and rebirth, representing life emerging from within. Many cultures associate them with the cycle of life and death.
Fertility: And thus linked to love.
Hope and purity, particularly in art.
Luck, wealth, and joy: Several Chinese and Vietnamese traditions include red eggs as a symbol of joy, luck, wealth, or good fortune.
Protection: Mexican huevos limpia rituals use an egg to absorb negative energy and block curses a person may be carrying.
Spring: Many spring equinox celebrations, including Ostara and Nowruz, include eggs as a symbol of the new season, rebirth, and breaking the ice of winter.
Dichotomy: The yolk and the white became the essence of yin and yang, split by the god Pangu in Chinese mythology to become light and darkness.
Creation: In Hindu mythology, the cosmic egg Hiranyagarbha contained the essence of creation and the god Brahma.
Good and evil: The Dogon people of Mali believe the world was first created in miniature inside an egg by the supreme deity Amma, but it cracked, allowing the twins of good and evil to escape.
Resurrection: In Christianity, Easter eggs symbolize the resurrection of Jesus from the tomb.
The world: In Egypt, the egg often appears as a symbol of the world, with the yolk representing the heavens and the earth.

Pretty much everyone has tasted chicken eggs, straight up or fancied up. But as mentioned above, there are many other kinds of eggs out there with varying sizes, tastes, and looks. Mix it up from time to time with a different egg for an entirely renewed egg experience. What kinds of eggs have you tried?

Bottom Line: There’s more to the egg than a grocery store shelf.