It’s the end of July, the height of the summer season. Many of us have emotional baggage — those suitcases and backpacks that finally accept they won’t be going anywhere this summer. But we can still escape into other worlds via mysteries with intriguing locales. This month’s episode of Summer Reads features mysteries in locales
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“By the Beautiful Sea”
Before people started going to the beach, there was Sea Bathing for health, of course. In 1753 Dr. Richard Russell published The Use of Sea Water, a treatise recommending sea water as a cure for various diseases. The salty water was recommended as an immersive cure and a healing tonic. Russell’s book remained in print
ICE COLD LEMONADE ON A HOT SUMMER DAY
Last month’s blog on Iced Tea got me thinking about other thirst quenching drinks for hot summer days, and Lemonade is every bit as common as Iced Tea as a summer beverage. Lemons and sugarcane, two prime ingredients for lemonade, are native to India where people mix a beverage called Nimbu Pani. The ingredients include
From Happy Faces to Emoji
Who remembers the original “smiley” or “happy” face? Before anyone thought of emojis, Harvey Ross Ball, a graphic designer, was asked to make an icon that could lift employee morale. Within 10 minutes Ball came up with a yellow circle, two black dots for eyes, and an arc for a mouth. Ball was paid $45
Summer Reads: Historical Fiction
Summertime and the reading is easy. Many people imagine a summer vacation that includes lying on a beach reading a book, while the sound of waves serenades our ears. People select all kinds of books for beach reads. A few of them are historical fiction. Historical fiction is a broad category. On one extreme, it
Don’t Forget Your Sunglasses
Summer is here —Time to SLIP-SLOP-SLAP-WRAP SLIP on a shirt before you slide into the shade; SLOP on sunscreen; SLAP on a hat; and WRAP Sunglasses around your eyes. Eye protection is important, not just to reduce glare and shade your view, but to prevent photokeratitis, or sunburn on your eyes from exposure to Ultraviolet
GARDENIAS
I’m a big fan of gardenias. The plant requires little attention, and the white flowers with their heady fragrance are pure joy. Less joyful are the tiny thrips that feast on the flowers. There are various cures for this. I put the blossoms in soapy water for a bit, and then rinse them off before
A TOAST TO ICED TEA
Iced beverages of any kind, but especially iced tea, have been a staple of hot summer days for generations. By definition, any form of cold tea is an iced tea, which implies, I can simply brew some hot tea, let it cool, and put the container into the refrigerator for a few hours, and voila,
TWO CAT TALES
Thursday, June 4 is Hug-A-Cat Day — which, according to Koa Kat, makes it the perfect time to tell two charming stories about cats. The Owl & the Pussy-Cat The Owl and the Pussy-Cat is a nonsense poem written by Edward Lear (1812-1888) and first published in 1871. The Owl and the Pussy-cat went to
Ketchup: The All-American Condiment
Ketchup is the go-to of all American condiments. In fact, the average American consumes 71 pounds of ketchup each year. [Incidentally, this 1953 advertisement by Alcoa Aluminum uses the Del Monte catsup bottle as a prop to demonstrate how easy it is to open aluminum screw tops.] It’s easy to understand why Alcoa used a
TOMATOES: FRUITS, VEGETABLES, OR LOVE APPLES?
Most vegetable gardens, whether in the back yard or in pots on the balcony, feature tomatoes, cucumbers, and squash [usually the prolific zucchini]. All are easy to grow and attractive with their lush leaves and yellow flowers. I enjoy the lacy effect of these tomato blossoms in my garden. Americans also like the taste of
VICTORY OVER SMALL POX
While spending time sheltering-in-place at home, I, like many other people, considered previous pandemics. Many media stories compare COVID-19 to the 1918 H1N1 virus pandemic. But that event is one of many throughout history, including small pox, also known as the speckled monster, a virulent viral disease once endemic in Europe, Asia, and Arabia. It
MADAGASCAR LEMURS
Nosy Be is an island off the northwest coast of Madagascar Island, the fourth largest island in the world. There are two major industries on Nosy Be: Ylang-Ylang plantations and tourism. Ylang-ylang is a flower valued for its essential oils that provide a key ingredient in production of perfumes and essential oil. Its intense fragrance
GORILLA TREKKING IN RWANDA
According to Skilled Adventurer, trekking is a “long arduous journey, typically on foot” that can test your ability and sanity. Hiking, on the other hand, is walking a long distance, usually on trails or roads. Neither involve safari vehicles that deposit visitors at the end of the road and fade from sight, seemingly forever. I
DO YOU WANT TO SEE A TIGER? COME TO RANTHAMBORE
If you want to see the elusive tiger, Ranthambore National Park and Tiger Reserve is a good place to look. Deer are the primary source of food for tigers, and at Ranthambore there are plenty of deer to choose from. The spotted Axis deer are called cheetah in Hindi because cheetah means spots. Sambar deer
PRIMATES & BEARS IN SANDAKAN, BORNEO
Borneo is the third largest island in the world, following Greenland and New Guinea, and belongs to three countries Malaysia, Brunei, and Indonesia. Sandakan, located in the state of Sabah in Malaysia, is home to a variety of wildlife, and I visited some of them on my recent travels. Just as I completed this blog,