Wednesday, May 2, 2018


Canada makes its national anthem lyrics gender-neutral in 2018  The House of Commons overwhelmingly passed a private member's bill in 2016 that would alter the national anthem by replacing "in all thy sons command" with "in all of us command" as part of a push to strike gendered language from O Canada.  The bill was first introduced by Liberal MP Mauril Bélanger, who died in 2016.  Since 1980, when O Canada officially became the country's anthem, 12 bills have been introduced in the House to strip the gendered reference to "sons," which some have argued is discriminatory.  All attempts have failed until now.  The song was written by Robert Stanley Weir in 1908 and has been changed before—including an update that dates back to before the First World War when the author added the line that later sparked so much debate.  Weir, a poet and judge, changed "thou dost in us command" to "in all thy sons command."  John Paul Tasker 

A.Word.A.Day with Anu Garg
hotsy-totsy or hotsie-totsie  (HOT-see TOT-see)  adjective  1.  Just right; perfect.  2.  Haughty; pretentious.  Coined by the cartoonist Billy DeBeck (1892-1942), famed for his comic strip Barney Google and Snuffy Smith.  Earliest documented use:  early 1920s.  Another of his coinages that has found a place in English language dictionaries is heebie-jeebies.
Feedback to A.Word.A.Day
From:  Ellen T Spear
  Subject:  hotsy-totsy  One of my favorite lines from a favored poet, Ogden Nash, goes “The girl o’ Mr. Sponsoon’s dreams said all was far from hotsy-totsy. / All was coldsy-toldsy, said the girl o’ Mr. Sponsoon’s dreams.”
               
Vegetable Slaw
Combine chopped cabbage, diced cooked carrots, finely sliced onion, diced green pepper, diced raw turnips, sliced mushrooms, 1 tsp. celery seed, 1/4 tsp. black pepper.  Stir in favorite slaw dressing.  Cover and chill.

vail1  verb (used with object)  1.  to let sink; lower.  2.  Archaic.  to take off or doff (one's hat), as in respect or submission.
vail2   Archaic. verb (used with or without object)  1.  to be of use or profit; avail.  noun  2.  a tip; gratuity.

avail  verb (used with object)  1.  to be of use or value to; profit; advantage:  verb (used without object)
2.  to be of use; have force or efficacy; serve; help:  3.  to be of value or profit.  noun  4.  advantage; use; efficacy; effective use in the achievement of a goal or objective:  5.  avails Archaic. profits or proceeds.  Idioms  6.  avail oneself of, to use to one's advantage.  http://www.dictionary.com/browse/avail?s=t

Pasta e ceci (pasta and chickpeas)  The rough guiding recipe principles are fairly consistent:  a sautéed base of garlic, sometimes onion, celery and carrot too, and seasonings to which chickpeas, water or chickpea cooking broth, and pasta are added.  Some are a more brothy like soup, some blend some chickpeas for a thicker base, some more herby with rosemary or sage, some are light and others are heavy on tomatoes.  And then came Victoria Granof’s version that took the internet by storm over the last couple years as word of it trickled out from her Chickpeas cookbook.  Granof’s version has 5 ingredients.  I bet every single one is in your pantry right now, and takes 20 minutes, which is why there’s no making it just once.  We all need more 20-minute dinner magic in our lives, so it’s not surprising that it’s already made the web rounds from Food52 to Dinner: A Love Story.  Find the recipe at https://smittenkitchen.com/2017/10/quick-pasta-and-chickpeas-pasta-e-ceci/  Thank you, Muse reader!

Rome has an informal weekly meal calendar that dates back centuries called piatti canonici (canonical dishes).  Each day has a dish as its traditional daily special, so to speak, and keeping these in mind when you order can really help you feel like you’re eating as the locals might do.  Monday:  bollito misto (boiled beef, veal or hen) or riso e indivia in brodo (rice and endive in broth)  Tuesday:  pasta e ceci (pasta with chickpeas), pasta e fagioli (pasta and beans), but sometimes fish, oxtail or polpette (meatballs) are mentioned.  Wednesday:  Anything goes!  Thursday:  gnocchi di patate (potato gnocchi)  Friday:  pasta e cecipasta e broccoli, or a fish dish—spaghette con le vongole (spaghetti with clams), and some form of baccala   Saturday:  trippa all romana (tripe with pecorino cheese)  Sunday:  fettucini alla romana (with meat and tomato sauce), then abbacchio (roast lamb)  https://smittenkitchen.com/travel/notes-and-tips-from-rome/

Apple Cider Gravy  Easy recipe uses 2 c. chicken stock and 1/2 c. apple cider.
The Perfect Honey-Apple Glaze for Ham  Easy recipe uses ½ cup apple cider or apple juice, 1/4 c. honey and 2 tbsp. cider vinegar.  https://www.martinellis.com/recipes/honey-apple-glaze-ham-recipe/

Durian indeed has a smell that could gag a maggot.  I encountered the smell several time in Asian markets and attributed it to rotting fish.  Only a few weeks ago was I treated to durian chocolate  (Can you imagine?  I immediately spat it out.) and realized that was what I had smelled.  It really does smell very much like the chemical that is put in natural gas in trace amounts for safety.  Thank you, Muse reader!   Heard in Singapore by the Muser:  Tastes like heaven, smells like hell.

Famous movie quotes are credited to the actor who said them and not the writer.  Curtis comic strip  May 2, 2018  http://comicskingdom.com/curtis/2018-05-02

http://librariansmuse.blogspot.com  Issue 1882  May 2, 2018  Word of the Day  sealocked  adjective  Of a geographical region:  accessible only through a body of seawater, and having no access by land.  Wiktionary

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