Quick Stories On Pop Things

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Manners for Eating Bites It's true.  Manners for eating bites.  Except talking with your mouth full.  That's just gross.  This has been an issue bugging me for years.  I can't tell you how many blouses, dresses, pants, tops, shoes and pantyhose, I have ruined for eating with proper etiquette. Maybe I am not the most graceful person on the planet, but I am also not the least graceful.  One of the most common "out to eat" motion is to sit with straight back in the chair and bring food from the plate to your mouth.  I'm short, so you'd think with a mere distance of 13" (yes I measured), would be too small a space for anarchy.  It isn't. Even when pointing tines forward to mouth,  I have dropped teeny, tiny pieces of food down the front of me.  A slight lean forward; still a mess.  Bending over the dish, I look like I was raised by wolves. Why Can't We Eat Like We Do at Home? At home, you can reach if no one is listening when you ask someone to please pass the bread.  You can get up without excusing yourself if you are just walking five steps to get a different salad dressing from the fridge.  You can laugh and spit water without a fuss.  In fact, that one just makes you laugh more.  If a dish didn't come out well, you don't have to battle with your conscience if you should send it back as you do in a restaurant.  You simply say, "Well that isn't a good batch.  Trash that. Pizza, leftovers or grilled cheese?" Good Manners Can be Good Any routine that everyone understands is good.  However, I like most of my clothes and love all my shoes.  Anything that comes between me and them are the enemy. Dining Out at Friends and Restaurants Can be so Complicated If you are invited to have dinner with someone, it is always a good idea to RSVP even if by txt or you don't think it's needed.  First confirmation is sent as soon as you're invited to help your hosts plan. The second a couple days before.  Don’t ask if you can bring anything. Of course you have to bring something.  Unless it's family.  With family you can take it a step further.  You can say, "You making Nonni's braciola? Well make it."  What You Bring  Don’t expect your gift to be used during the meal. Dinner parties have carefully planned menus, and your gift may not go with the meal. Sorry to admit, I do go over-the-top sometimes with parties and go plan crazy.  Luckily Chip is always willing to play along.  The key for over-the-top; if you are all-in, you're guests will be all-in. For the Over-The-Top Dinner In or Out   Some dinner parties are formal and have place cards where the host or hostess wants you to sit.  Seating cards can be fun.  One Easter I made personalized eggs for everyone's place setting.  For those asking (lol) ... I was working full-time and had a child. Whether formal or not, most people ask if there are seating preferences. And, most people say sit where ever you like.  I always try to grab the seat closest to the kitchen.  Usually I forget something.  It makes it easier to subtly go get it.  I learned this by not being able to subtly go get something. Some people think you should wait until the host positions themselves.  If you eat at my house, you know my thing.  Just don't pick the seat closest to the kitchen and all is well. As a kid we used to say grace before dinner. (Bless Us Our Lord For These Thy Gifts).  With friends from many different places, if a blessing is their thing, we just go with it.  It's meaningful to them; and a compliment they will share it with us. I prefer to offer a toast. These are made on the fly.  Don't expect Shakespeare here, but it will come from the heart.  Or, it may make you spit water, which is also ok.   Some places say clinking glasses is not necessary.  Here,  clinking is required. Dropping the Napkin Off Your Lap You're not supposed to do that.  It always, always, always happens to me.  My legs don't make a right angle on the chair.  They are more a 60-degree angle. Points the napkin right to the floor.  I have been in restaurants and searched for the napkin with my foot.  Grabbed it between my shoes and brought it back up to put back on my lap.  Unless I'm in a pub then I go free-style.  Usually you don't want anything from the floor there. News to me … you aren't supposed to put the napkin on your lap as soon as you sit down when at someone's house.  You're supposed to do it after your host does it.    If you are dining out, you're supposed to place your napkin in you lap immediately.     You know the rest about what to do with it during and after.  One tactic I use when out to eat, and inside laugh about, is dabbing the corners of your mouth.  Really?  What good does it do?  Does the juice slide from the middle of your lips to the side? When to Eat   If you are eating out, you should wait until all the members of your group have been served before picking up your fork. At a private dinner, observe the host or hostess and pick up your fork when he or she does. However, if you are at a buffet, you may start when there are others seated at your table. What do you say?  Buffet. D Read the full article

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Country Music - Not Always Southern If you listen to some Country Music, whether Johnny Cash or Miranda Lambert, you hear songs about Georgia, Texas, Alabama, etc.   You also hear about huntin', fishin', pickup trucks, dirt roads, cornfields and porch swings.  Well let me tell you about what it's like to live in the Northeast.  Almost 90% (89.4) of the Northeast is non-Urban.  It is farms, mountains and undeveloped property.   As for pickup trucks, Ford 150 followed by the Chevy Silverado are some of the most purchased vehicles.   So where is the Country Music from the Northeast? Because it's not only Southern. Why It's Not Only Southern Most of you know I grew up in a small city (60K) and small town (300).  So farm land, Adirondack mountains, and cool natural nooks were everywhere.  My brother had a black standard Ford pick-up.  One of my cousins brought me to a party in a cornfield.  The local swim club in my town was actually a pond.  Another cousin had a farm where I milked a cow. My friends (not me) would race and speed their cars through the winding roads around a gorge.  There we'd meet new people from other local towns and made immediate friends.  And, no there was no Cello Lambrusco or beer (yuk) to accelerate the friendships.  :) And, something few people know, I was given a ticket once for fishing without a license.  I was really holding it for a friend.  Funny, but true.  The ticket was contested and the matter dismissed.  BTW - The magistrate took this event very seriously.  Another time, I came home, pressed the button to open our garage door; and there was a deer hanging with blood on the hole on its chest.  I screamed and closed the door.  A deep laugh could be heard through the door.  Frank, my brother, enjoyed grossing me out. Since I mentioned Frank, he used to hunt with gun and bow; and even fish with a bow. Sound Country? Uhhh, yeah.   So where is the country music from Upstate NY.  The only thing that came close was American Pie.  That's only because it mentioned a levy and a Chevy. The soundtrack of Upstate included some southern rock (Lynrd Skynrd), pop music (I won't write Madonna, but will write Phil Collins), progressive (Rush) and hair bands like Bon Jovi.  Not too different from other places. Marketing A few years ago, an article was written in the Washington Post outlining that the Northeast is embracing country music to the point it could overtake local music. Gotta thank the marketers for getting us to like Carrie Underwood, Blake Shelton and more. There has to be new talent in the Northeast, Midwest and Pacific Northwest that contribute to the country music scene.  These areas have large areas many would describe as country. Read the full article