Namby-Pamby  Long ago, when something was yours and it started with a consonant (let’s say a boat), you called it ‘my boat’.  When something started with a vowel and was yours (let’s say an elephant), you’d say . . . not ’my elephant’, but ’mine elephant’.  This is fairly archaic language that only really exists in a few places anymore, but it’s very similar to the difference between 'a’ and 'an’.  The my/mine rule does have evidence scattered around history, though, particularly in naming patterns:  You know the name 'Nancy’?  It comes from 'Ann(e)’.  Because parents would call their baby Anns 'mine Ann’, which became 'my Nan’, and then 'Nan’ and 'Nanny’ (the sense of 'nanny’ meaning aunt or caretaker comes from the Greek word for 'aunt’, 'nanna’, but the sense of 'nanny-goat'  comes from the nickname for 'Ann’) and eventually 'Nancy’.  Another name that got a similar treatment, though with much less permanence, was 'Ambrose’.  Ambrose became 'Amb’, became 'mine Amb’, became 'mine Amby’, became 'my Namby’.  Thus, the 'Namby’ in 'Namby-Pamby’ is referring specifically to someone named Ambrose.  http://etymologic.tumblr.com/post/33269566714/namby-pamby 

Namby Pamby is a term for affected, weak, and maudlin speech/verse.  It originates from Namby Pamby (1725) by Henry Carey.  Carey wrote his poem as a satire of Ambrose Philips and published it in his Poems on Several Occasions.  Its first publication was Namby Pamby: or, a panegyrick on the new versification address'd to A----- P----, where the A-- P-- implicated Ambrose Philips.  Philips had written a series of odes in a new prosody of seven-syllable lines and dedicated it to "all ages and characters, from Walpole sterrer of the realm, to miss Pulteney in the nursery."   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Namby-pamby  See Namby Pamby by Henry Carey at http://poetry.literaturelearning.org/?q=node/666

Wasabi japonica is a slow growing, small (+/- 40 cm high) perennial from the Brassicaceae (cabbage) family, with heart-shaped, bright green leaves, long white stems, and a thick 10 –15 cm long rhizome, which is the part most sought after.  Wasabi is a very delicate plant, which traditionally grows wild in the mountains of Japan.  It is used since very ancient times for its medicinal properties, especially its anti-bacterial action.  It is also used as one of the main spices in the Japanese cuisine.  We came across wasabi japonica just by chance.  Wasabi is this green “mustard” which is generally served in Japanese restaurants with sashimi and sushi.  But then I heard that the “wasabi” we thought we ate was in reality a mix of horseradish, mustard and colouring!  Noucetta Kehdi  Read more and see pictures at http://www.eurohydro.com/pdf/articles/gb_hydroponics-and-wasabi-japonica.pdf

Joseph Otto Kesselring (1902–1967) was an American playwright known best for Arsenic and Old Lace, a hit on Broadway from 1939 to 1944 and other countries as well.  He was born in New York City to Henry and Frances Kesselring.  His father's parents were immigrants from Germany.  His mother was an English Canadian.   Kesselring spent much of his life in and around the theater.  In 1922 he began teaching vocal music and directed stage productions at Bethel College in North Newton, Kansas a Mennonite school.  After two years, Kesselring left teaching and returned to the stage, working for two years with an amateur theatrical group in Niagara, New York.  He began working as a freelance playwright in 1933, completing 12 original plays, of which four were produced on Broadway:  There's Wisdom in Women (1935), Arsenic and Old Lace (1939), Four Twelves are 48 (1951), and Mother of that Wisdom (1963).   Arsenic and Old Lace ran for 1444 performances on Broadway and 1337 performances in London, and became a staple on the high school and dinner theater circuits.  The movie version released in 1944 was also a comedy hit.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Kesselring

It is a novel lauded in the Netherlands as a modern classic, while its author is a literary titan.  But British readers are unlikely to have heard of The Evenings or Gerard Reve.  Nearly 70 years after the novel’s publication and 10 years after Reve’s death, it has finally been translated into English.  Set in Holland just after the second world war, it is a powerful story of an alienated young office worker who is cynical about his loving, middle-class parents and friends.  The novel went on to find such appreciation that it has never been out of print and was ranked by the Society of Dutch Literature as the country’s best novel of all time.  Daniel Seton, a commissioning editor at Pushkin Press, which is publishing it in the UK on 3 November 2017, said:  “It’s taught in schools over there.  It’s a kind of cultural touchstone . . . It’s highly acclaimed critically and very popular--quite a rare combination.”  The Pushkin edition’s jacket bears a comment from Herman Koch, the Dutch bestselling author of The Dinner, who draws parallels between The Evenings and classics by the Americans Jack Kerouac and JD Salinger:  “If The Evenings had appeared in English in the 1950s, it would have become every bit as much a classic as On the Road and The Catcher in the Rye.”  Dalya Alberge  https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/oct/22/gerard-reve-evenings-first-english-translation

Babies born in New Jersey this year will go home with a sturdy, safe box to sleep in and additional newborn essentials--all for free.  On January 26, 2017, the Garden State became the first in the US to launch a universal baby box program in an attempt to reduce infant mortality rates.  The baby box program follows the example of Finland, which has had a similar program in place since the 1930s.  Any expecting parent or parents of infants younger than 3 months old in New Jersey can take a short online educational program and receive a box filled with newborn essentials that can also serve as a safe sleeping space.  US Department of Health and Human Services guidelines for a safe sleeping environment for babies say parents should use a sleep surface such as a firm mattress or safety-approved crib covered by a fitted sheet, and nothing should be covering a baby's head.  Additionally, blankets, crib bumpers and pillows should be kept out of the sleep area.  Loose bedding and soft toys should also be left out, and smoking should be forbidden near the baby.   Babies should always be put on their back to go to sleep and be dressed in a one-piece sleeper, without a blanket, according to the guidelines.  Lastly, the baby's sleep area should be placed next to its parents, but parents should refrain from letting the baby sleep in an adult bed, chair or couch with parents or anyone else.  In 2016, an estimated 93% of infant fatalities associated with SUID in New Jersey were related to sleep and sleep environments, according to a report (PDF) from the New Jersey Child Fatality and Near Fatality Review Board.  http://www.cnn.com/2017/01/26/health/new-jersey-baby-boxes-safe-sleep/

It’s time to bid farewell to the Year of the Monkey and usher in the Year of the Rooster.  Chinese New Year, the most important traditional holiday in Chinese culture, begins Saturday, January 28, 2017.  What was for centuries a purely local celebration in China has now become a global holiday, with families across the world coming together to ring in the New Year on the lunar calendar.  In China, the official celebration lasts seven days, although traditional Chinese New Year is observed in some areas for upwards of two weeks or longer.  Common foods found at a typical Chinese New Year celebration might include dumplings, scallops, lettuce or clams for prosperity, shrimp for happiness, noodles for longevity, and chicken to represent a proper beginning and end to the year.  Fish is another important, and symbolic, part of any New Year meal.  “Fish is a very universal symbol all over China,” says Kian Lam Kho.  “The pronunciation is similar to how you say ‘leftover’ and symbolizes plentifulness.”  As families come together to celebrate Chinese New Year, many will give gifts of money in small red envelopes as well as tangerines or oranges to symbolize good luck.  They will also pay close attention to how many dishes are served for the meal.  “For the big feast, many families eat eight or nine dishes because eight represents prosperity and nine symbolizes infinity,” says Grace Young.  “Never eat four or seven dishes.  Four sounds like the word for death and seven is the celestial number for the deceased.”  Matt Lardie   Find recipe for stir-fried garlic lettuce at http://www.newsobserver.com/living/food-drink/mouthful-blog/article128214359.html

LONGEVITY NOODLES FOR CHINESE NEW YEAR  These noodles are traditionally served at Chinese New Year’s feasts.  An ancient Chinese belief says that long noodles are the key to a long life so don’t cut the noodles as you eat them.  Find recipe and pictures at http://hipfoodiemom.com/2014/01/31/longevity-noodles-for-chinese-new-year/

http://librariansmuse.blogspot.com  Issue 1683  January 25, 2017  On this date in 1606, the trial of Guy Fawkes and other conspirators (called Gunpowder Plot) began, ending with their execution on January 31.  On this date in 1756, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Austrian pianist and composer, was born.