A potter's field, paupers' grave or common grave is a place for the burial of unknown, unclaimed or indigent people.  "Potter's field" is of Biblical origin, referring to Akeldama (meaning field of blood in Aramaic).  Hart Island, New York, the Potter's Field in New York City, is featured in the film Don't Say a Word.  The independent documentary Hart Island: An American Cemetery by Melinda Hunt also concerns Hart Island.  In the HBO drama Oz, "Potter's Field" is the name for the cemetery where deceased prisoners with no next-of-kin or whose remains are unclaimed are buried.  In the 1953 film Pickup on South Street, the character Moe Williams' (Thelma Ritter) sole motivation for work is to save money in order to prevent a possible burial in Potter's Field.  In Victor Hugo's Notre-Dame de Paris, Esmeralda is buried in Potter's Field.  From Potter's Field is a novel by Patricia Cornwell.  The Potter's Field is the name of the seventeenth chronicle in the series of Brother Cadfael detective books by Ellis Peters, later turned into a television episode.  See graphics at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potter%27s_field 

Buried in New York City's potter's field, Hart Island, Dawn Powell had just one thing in common with the other people buried there--bad luck.  This talented and ambitious young country girl from Ohio made her way to Greenwich Village in 1918 and, over a span of 47 years, became the noted author of some 15 novels and more than 100 short stories, plays, poems, diaries and articles, only to be buried in a pauper's grave.  Powell was largely forgotten until 1987, when Gore Vidal wrote an article about her in the New York Review of Books that led to the rediscovery and reprinting of her books.  Tim Page, Pulitzer Prize-winning classical music critic at the Washington Post and a longtime writer on Glenn Gould, became an early and devoted literary champion.  The principal theme of Powell's novels reflects on her own experiences in Ohio and New York, about young provincials and worldly sophisticates, life in fleabag hotels and Park Avenue splendor, innocence and sophistication.    https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-8050-5068-4 

Havoc came to us, as have many thousands of other words, through the 11th century Norman invasion of Britain.  When French-Norman troops were taking an enemy’s stronghold and their commanders yelled “Havoc!” it signaled that the soldiers were free to ransack the city for any objects of value that could be carried off (the word can be traced back to the Old French havot, meaning “plunder”).  Havoc appears but rarely in print until the 15th century, at which point it is often paired with cry (as in Shakespeare’s famous line from Julius Caesar, "Cry 'Havoc!', and let slip the dogs of war”).  Cry havoc has moved into the realm of the figurative since the middle ages, and today is used in the sense “to sound an alarm.”  https://www.merriam-webster.com/grammar/do-you-wreak-havoc-or-wreck-it   

Jicama (pronounced HEE-kah-mah) is a member of the bean family but its tuberous root is what is consumed and so it often is treated much like one of many root vegetables.  Jicama is a crunchy root that's native to Mexico where the food also goes by the names yam bean, Mexican turnip, and Mexican potato.  But unlike many other root vegetables, jicama has a snap to it and a juiciness that's refreshing, not starchy.  Jicama also differs from other similar foods insofar is that jicama tastes delicious when peeled and eaten raw; that's not something you can do with a potato.  In the garden, the jicama grows on a vine up to 20 feet tall, but the only edible part of the plant is the bulbous root underground, which can be as small as a Gala apple or grow as big as two fists put together.  This plant thrives in areas where it's hot all year round, such as Mexico and South America.  Harvested for centuries in those regions, jicama is now grown in parts of Asia and in the Philippines as well.  The most traditional way to eat this food is by peeling, slicing it into strips, and munching on it raw, usually with lemon or lime juice and chili powder.  Street vendors in Mexico sell bags of this treat, which proves particularly satisfying on a hot day.  Because the flesh is so porous, jicama picks up flavors well.  Marinate it with citrus and the spices of your choice and add chunks to a salad.  Or make it the main component and use a tangy dressing to give it flair.  Jicama goes great with greens, olives, avocado, hummus, lime, grilled fish, and roasted pork.  It can be sliced thinly and added to a sandwich for some crunch; it can also be used in lieu of a corn tortilla for tacos.  Cooking jicama proves tasty, too, though it needs a gentle touch when it comes to heat.  Instead, pan fry over medium-low heat, steam lightly, or roast until just tender.  Add it to the end of the cooking process if you're making something like chili or a Mexican-style soup.  Jicama is similar in texture to an apple and, likewise, you can keep that famous crunch as long as you don't overcook it.  https://www.thespruceeats.com/what-is-jicama-4781881   Jicama skin is toxic:  See https://www.masterclass.com/articles/how-to-peel-jicama-explained  

A kill is a body of water, most commonly a creek, but also a tidal inlet, river, strait, or arm of the sea.  The term is derived from the Middle Dutch kille (kil in modern Dutch), meaning "riverbed" or "water channel".  It is found in areas of Dutch influence in the Netherlands' former North American colony of New Netherland, primarily the Hudson and Delaware Valleys.  Examples:   Anthony Kill, in Saratoga County, New York which flows from Round Lake through the city of Mechanicville into the Hudson River * Arthur Kill and Kill Van Kull, both separating Staten Island, New York from New Jersey * Batten Kill, Vermont and New York * Bronx Kill between the Bronx and Randalls Island * Catskill, New York * Fishkill, New York * Schuylkill River, Pennsylvania  The single 'l' spelling of 'kil' is the norm in modern Dutch geographical names.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kill_(body_of_water)  

http://librariansmuse.blogspot.com  Issue 2731  October 13, 2023