For the next few days I want to step away from the silliness in this country and the chaos in the rest of the world.

‘Tis the day before Christmas and all through the blog

As we sit in a credit induced fog

We sip on the magical grog

The holiday’s favorite drink….Egg Nog.

Yep that time again….a little history of a coveted drink of the season….

Eggnog can trace its roots back as far as the 14th century, when medieval Englishmen enjoyed a hot cocktail known as posset. Posset didn’t contain eggs—the Oxford English Dictionary describes it as “a drink made of hot milk curdled with ale, wine, or the like, often sweetened and spiced”—but over the years eggs joined in on the festive fun.

While the egg-laden version of posset was popular with English drinkers, it became less common as time went by. Milk and eggs were both scarce and expensive, and the sherry and Madeira used to spike the mixture was pricey, too. Over time, the concoction became a drink that only aristocrats could really afford.

All of that changed in the American colonies, though. What the settlers lacked in parliamentary representation they made up for in easy access to dairy products and liquor.

Since many Americans had their own chickens and dairy cattle, tossing together a glass of eggnog was no problem, and the drink’s popularity soared among the colonists even as it sagged back home.

This disparity in the drink’s popularity on either side of the pond endures to this day; eggnog’s popularity in the UK still lags far behind its holiday ubiquity in the States. Here’s how the Guardian’s Andrew Shanahan memorably described the drink in 2006: “People rarely get it right, but even if you do it still tastes horrible. The smell is like an omelette and the consistency defies belief. It lurches around the glass like partially-sentient sludge.” Yum?

The word eggnog itself has fairly murky origins, but many etymologists think the name stems from the word noggin, which referred to small wooden mugs that were often used to serve this type of drink. Others propose a similar story but explain that nog comes from Norfolk slang and refers to the strong ales that were often served in these cups. Still others think the name is a contraction of colonial Americans’ request to bartenders for an “egg-and-grog” when they wanted a glass.

https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/26537/way-more-you-ever-wanted-know-about-eggnog

Just a little something I thought I would pass along as you enjoy that second glass of ‘nog’.

Drink with caution….Be well and Be Safe….

Chestnuts roasting over an open fire…..that tradition seems to be drying up….

It’s been a very long time since vendors sold the American chestnut on city sidewalks. It’s no longer the variety whose smell some people associate with Christmastime as it wafts from street carts. That’s because it’s virtually extinct. But researchers want to bring the American chestnut back, per the AP. “You can feel that connection to a place, and that connection to utility, and the connection to the importance that this tree played in virtually every aspect of the lives of people,” says Sara Fern Fitzsimmons, chief conservation officer with the American Chestnut Foundation, which is working to restore the tree to flourish as it once did.

Fitzsimmons said that will likely take a lot longer than many chestnut enthusiasts had hoped. Researchers have hit roadblocks with attempts to breed or genetically modify a version that can withstand the blight that has hammered the species since the early 1900s. If and when they do find the right variety, they’ll need to figure out how to help it thrive in forests that are under pressure from climate change, globalization, and development. Once a hallmark of forests from Georgia to New England, American chestnuts now exist mostly as a vast network of root systems underground, sending up shoots. They grow for a time, but the fungal blight takes hold when the trees start maturing. East Asian varieties, like those that introduced the blight in the first place, are immune to the blight and produce most of the edible chestnuts for fall and winter snacking.

I was raised in the Deep South so chestnuts were not big but pecans were and they are thriving.

I have to finalize my Christmas stuff so today will be a short day.

I hope everyone has a joyous and safe Christmas Eve.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”