Monday Musings

The Fall equinox occurred on September 23rd at 02:50 AM EDT (in the Northern Hemisphere); it is now officially Autumn. On a drive through the North Carolina mountain towns of Boone and Blowing Rock last weekend, we noticed the faint beginnings of leaf color change: the brush of red on non-indigenous maple tree plantings, a scattered tinge of yellow.  Peak leaf season is predicted to be during the second and third weeks in the Appalachian mountains, but optimal dates for leaf viewing vary across the nation. The  2023 Fall Foliage Prediction Map  lets you see the best dates for your location. The site also gives a brief scientific refresher on how leaves change colors from summer green to vibrant reds, oranges, and yellows. As a gardener, I am intimately connected with the seasons. This is the time when harvests are nearly complete: I dug up Yukon Gold potatoes yesterday, the tomato plants are producing their final fruits, and I’ve begun the fall garden cleanup in preparation for spring

I was first alerted to this event by an  X  post: “McDonald’s, $MCD, is selling 50-cent double cheeseburgers for National Cheeseburger Day today. Wendy’s, $WEN, is giving them out for a penny (per CNBC).” Another source informed me that Burger King was giving away a “free” cheeseburger with a $1.00 purchase. Immediately, my Pavlovian response was initiated, and no was bell required (just the photo of the juicy beef and cheese on a toasted bun); the saliva started to flow, and my brain began to think of reasons to head to the closest burger joint. With my mountain home, the journey is not a short one. I elected to remain at my domicile. Wow! What a deal…maybe not, because once you are at the drive-through window or in line in the fast food restaurant, you likely will be tempted to add fries, a drink, and meals for all the other occupants in your vehicle. Suddenly, your “free” cheeseburger has turned into a $20++ cost. It’s a cross-sell/possible upsell deal for the establishment, plus th

 In memoriam...

[Disclaimer: I am a Type II diabetic, so I hope my Primary Care doctor doesn’t see this blog post. LOL] The stem word for “dessert” is “desservir” [French], which means “to clear the table,” indicating that the table is cleared after the main meal and then dessert is served. Since this holiday coincides with Labor Day this year, dessert will be an excellent culmination of your BBQ meal. If you miss your opportunity to consume more dessert today, October 14 will be National Dessert Day. Some people don’t limit their dessert intake to the end of a meal but like to indulge in a sweet (or salty) treat at other times of the day. Ashure, the oldest documented dessert in history, a sweet pudding consisting of grains, fresh/dried fruits, and nuts, is of Eastern Mediterranean origin. Sugar trade spread from India (where usage was noted before 500 BC) over the next thousand years to China and Macedonia. Sugar arrived in Europe by the 12th century. Dessert took off after the development of food p