The Joys of the Italian Short Story by Jhumpa Lahiri  Language is the substance of literature, but language also locks it up again, confining it to silence and obscurity.  Translation, in the end, is the key.  Read extensive article at https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2019/09/10/the-joys-of-the-italian-short-story/ 

Green eggs and ham:  add peas, chives, parsley or asparagus to your egg dish.  

Sneaker collecting is the acquisition and trading of sneakers as a hobby.  It is often manifested by the use and collection of shoes made for particular sports, particularly basketball and skateboarding.  A person involved in sneaker collecting is sometimes called a sneakerhead.  The birth of sneaker collecting, subsequently creating the sneakerhead culture in the United States came in the 1980s and can be attributed to two major sources:  basketball, specifically the emergence of Michael Jordan and his eponymous Air Jordan line of shoes released in 1985, and the growth of hip hop music.  The boom of signature basketball shoes during this era provided the sheer variety necessary for a collecting subculture, while the hip-hop movement gave the sneakers their street credibility as status symbols.  The sneakerhead culture emerged in the United Kingdom and the Czech Republic during the early 2010s.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sneaker_collecting 

After enjoying centuries of being enjoyed by the English, cucumbers suddenly picked up a reputation as being poisonous in the 18th century.  As Dr. Johnson so eloquently demonstrated in his dictionary entry for the plant, they were seen as little better than trash, and picked up the alternate name of "cowcumber" around the same time, since they were only fit for animal fodder.  Samuel Pepys, writing on August 22, 1663 reported the alarming news that a guy named Tom Newburne was "dead of eating cowcumbers," and that he'd heard of another person dying of similar causes just the other day.  Two years earlier, however, Pepys had spoken glowingly of the little pickled cousin of the loathed cowcumber, noting that he opened a glass of "Girkins"—"which are rare things"—that had been a present from a sea captain buddy.  That word came straight from the pickle-happy Dutch, who might have picked up a word that sounded something like "gherkin" from the Slavs.  Had the name been invented at the time, Pepys might have also spoken fondly of the pickle-friendly Kirby, but he was a few centuries early.  The now-familiar term for a smallish cucumber was actually developed by a guy named Norval E. Kirby in 1920, whose cukes were a little stumpier than the National Pickling Cucumber that took over the market in the '30s.  Sam Dean  https://www.bonappetit.com/test-kitchen/ingredients/article/the-etymology-of-the-cucumber 

Paper bags are useful in microwave ovens.  Place food in one bag and fold end over.  Slip into second bag.  No spattering.  Source:  Microwave, a complete guide to everyday meals 

Misir Wot, spicy red lentil stew, is a staple at the Ethiopian table.  Lentils are the heart of many African dishes and amongst the country’s key exports.  After berber spice and lentils, the flavors in this dish come from onion, garlic, ginger, and tomato paste.  That is it.  So easy to make.  Posted by Analida  Find recipe and link to others at https://ethnicspoon.com/misir-wot-ethiopian-red-lentil-stew/ 

Use strips of aluminum foil as mulch.  The foil reflects light which repels many insects. *  For houseplants that need lots of light, place on windowsill lined with aluminum foil. * Add bread crumbs to salad if you put too much mayonnaise in the mix. * Cool water you used for boiling eggs, and water your houseplants with the liquid. * If your homemade soup is too salty, add a peeled, raw potato to absorb the excess salt.  Discard the potato. * Tenderize meat by marinating or cooking it in tea. * Add a couple of tablespoons of vinegar to water when boiling eggs, to prevent cracking.  Source:  Uncommon Uses for Common Household Products  

Shrimp Cocktail cooked in Court Bouillon https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchen/shrimp-cocktail-recipe2-1942120  Thank you, Muse reader! 

Eric Carle died on May 23, 2021 at his summer studio in Northampton, Massachusetts.  He was 91 years old.  Eric Carle's picture books were often about insects.  Spiders, lady bugs, crickets and of course, that famous caterpillar, all as colorful and friendly as Carle himself.  The Very Hungry Caterpillar—probably Carle's best-known work—came out in 1969 and became one of the bestselling children's books of all time.  Neda Ulaby  https://www.npr.org/2021/05/26/970974320/eric-carle-creator-of-the-very-hungry-caterpillar-has-died 

Milton V. Peterson, one of the Washington area’s most successful real estate developers and the politically savvy creator of the sprawling National Harbor retail-hotel-casino complex in Oxon Hill, Md., died May 26, 2021 at his home in Fairfax County, Va.  He was 85.  In 2020, Mr. Peterson’s company estimated that he had built more than 26,000 residential properties and approximately 234 million square feet of commercial space.  Control of the Peterson Companies passed to his two sons in the 1990s, but into his 80s, Mr. Peterson continued to actively participate in the firm’s operation.  His 20-year effort to build National Harbor—and his eight-year fight to include a casino there—caused often acrimonious environmental and political controversy.  But through Mr. Peterson’s deep pockets and patience, and with help from Prince George’s County and Maryland politicians he had cultivated with campaign contributions, the project was fully developed by 2016.  The complex, which sits beside the Potomac River just south of the Capital Beltway, now encompasses 350 acres and more than 8 million square feet of space.  Millions of people visit, live or work there during an average year.  Bob Levey  https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/milt-peterson-dead/2021/05/26/5a18f7f4-b64e-11ea-a8da-693df3d7674a_story.html 

In 1950, a glass-walled house spent a few months in Manhattan.  Skyscrapers loomed over its flat roof while it was on exhibit in the Museum of Modern Art’s garden.  The installation, designed by the architect Gregory Ain and co-sponsored with Woman’s Home Companion magazine, was meant to inspire creativity on a budget for residential subdivisions.  According to the museum’s brochure, a system of movable walls “conveys an illusion of spaciousness” in the two-bedroom building.  But once the attraction was shuttered and dismantled, its fate fell into obscurity.  It seemed to have disappeared.  It’s now nestled in Croton-on-Hudson, N.Y.  The property’s 2.7 acres are lush with unusual trees, such as Japanese snowbell and weeping huckleberry.  “If it doesn’t give me a flower, it can’t come here,” owner Mary Kelly said.  Neoclassical stone statues, vintage subway signs and metal filigree benches are scattered around the grounds.  Eve M. Kahn  Read extensive article and see many pictures at https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/27/arts/design/gregory-ain-moma-house.html?action=click&module=Well&pgtype=Homepage&section=Art%20and%20Design 

http://librariansmuse.blogspot.com  Issue 2370  May 28, 2021