At your service

There is a wonderful Italian saying “Only the spoon knows what is stirring in the pot”.  Now one can attach many applications to this quote, however in the 18^th century, if you knew your pot, you pretty much knew what you were stirring.  We of modernity, unfamiliar with the quotidian life of the 18^th century, see these pot-like objects and assuredly  say “gravy boat”.

Therefore, the next time you are invited to Downton Abbey to view  the family heirlooms, be prepared, because this is a gravy boat or saucière:

Saucières often sit on a matching dish and either rest on three legs or as above on a pedestal.  Circa 1750, this beauty measures 9 inches in length and has a single handle and lip for pouring.  Pouring is an important function to remember when distinguishing among pots.

Prior to eating solid foods, the 18^th century mum would turn to the pap boat to feed her baby:

Not to be confused with the gravy boat, pap boats are smaller, measuring around four inches in length, have a spout-like end and they generally have no handle.  This is an object to be lovingly cradled in the palm of the hand while you fed your child a substance with little nutritional value.

Another gadget created to pour nourishment down baby’s throat was the bubby pot:

His Lordship, the Earl of Grantham would forgive you for thinking this a teapot, yet, you are wrong. The bubby pot has a perforated spout tip which would be covered with a cloth at feeding time.  Filled with a liquefied mixture of bread, flour, milk and sugar called pap, baby sucks on the tip much like a bottle today.

Exercise caution with this last pot, as it was not used to relieve hunger or moisten food.  Its relief came about in a very different manner.  The bourdaloue:

Designed for the 18^th century woman encumbered by her clothing and lack of modern bathroom facilities, the bordaloue was used as a discreet method of relieving oneself in public. Small and often exquisitely decorated, bordaloues are oval in shape with a slightly raised lip at one end and a handle at the other. The edges softly curl in to prevent damage to delicate body parts and to keep one’s liquid from sloshing over the edge.  They often came with a lid to prevent spillage on one’s silk robe à la française.  Bordaloues could be used while squatting or standing as demonstrated in this painting by François Boucher, appropriately titled, La Bourdaloue.

Many thanks to http://www.ceramicfeeders.com for the enlightening photos of many of objects discussed in this blog and to http://pegsandtails.wordpress.com for his photos pertaining to all things bordaloue.

Shall we dance?

Perhaps Mitt Romney should have used DancePartner.com, with over 70,000 subscribers, the right partner is just a click away. Listed by age, height, dance style, proficiency, experience and location, your dance partner never has to undergo tax return scrutiny, pesky questions regarding  military service and no international experience angst. Unfortunately, Romney would never have considered this route for veep selection, because primarily, Romney was never seriously going to choose a woman, and a male dancing partner, well wouldn’t that raise eyebrows. Instead Romney relied on savetherich.com and it pooped out Ryan. 

So, while others chew over Ryan’s wardrobe choices, his flat abs, his inspiration from Ayn Rand, and boyish good looks, the rest of us must demand from this duo, transparency.  What specifically does a Romney/Ryan economic plan look like?  Which programs are their much touted spending cuts coming from, closing loopholes will provide how much and what exactly are their plans to help the millions of uninsured Americans who currently are forced to choose between food on the table and their health? 

These tough issues deserve more than the old dance number Romney continues to roll out. That being his threats to repeal all of President Obama’s regulations that “burden the economy” and eliminate health care reform.  To date, he has not brought to the prom an equitable or even a mathematically feasible approach to his economic plan. Romney has offered nothing but tap dancing around the details and gaffes.

 This is a dance card we should not add our names to unless we are prepared to be stepped all over.

 

Conspicuous Consumption

Who hasn’t succumbed to the latest fad several times in their life?  Does green leisure suit, the bread machine, Ugg boots or yes, even blogging ring a bell?  These consumer-driven cycles of what’s hot at the moment are for the most part just a bit of fun.  However, there are fads that can have long-term ramifications on your health and that is when the fun ends.

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 35.7% of Americans are obese. That is a shocking number and one that comes with an annual medical price tag of $190 billion.  The downside of carrying this weight is well-known and seemingly ignored for the most part.   However, in these times of contentious governmental debate on health care costs, diabetes now consumes one in three Medicare dollars.

The current fashion for gluten-free is a fad that is probably best avoided unless you are diagnosed with the potentially lethal celiac disease or gluten sensitivity.  According to David Katz, M.D., “going gluten free is at best a fashion statement, and at worst an unnecessary dietary restriction that results in folly. It reflects a tendency to ingest the ever proliferating pop-culture perspectives on diet and health, without first separating the wheat from the chaff.”

Mark Hyman, another M.D. who writes on this  food trend explains that eating too much gluten-free food like gluten-free cookies, cakes and processed food have a high glycemic load. Just because it is gluten-free, doesn’t mean it is healthy. Gluten-free cakes and cookies are still cakes and cookies! He correctly suggests that vegetables, fruits, beans, nuts and seeds and lean animal protein are all gluten-free.

 Put those on your shopping list instead!

 

On Their High Horse

“I don’t think the common person is getting it,” a Romney donor said from the passenger seat of a Range Rover stamped with East Hampton beach permits. “Nobody understands why Obama is hurting them.”

“We’ve got the message,” she added. “But my college kid, the baby sitters, the nails ladies — everybody who’s got the right to vote — they don’t understand what’s going on. I just think if you’re lower income — one, you’re not as educated, two, they don’t understand how it works, they don’t understand how the systems work, they don’t understand the impact.”

What systems don’t they understand?  The one that favors corporations with generous tax breaks, subsidies, and loopholes at the expense of the middle class and small business.  Or is it the system of offshore investments, tax shelters, and grantor retained annuity trusts used by wealthy Americans to avoid paying taxes.

This Romney donor is right, they don’t understand.  They don’t understand why their fellow Americans, many whom attended public schools, used the libraries, drive on interstate highways, depend on police, fire, the protection of the US military and the National Weather Service (the list goes on) won’t pony up for the greater good of this nation.

And as for not understanding the impact, well, tell us that again when your East Hampton mansion burns to the ground because the fire department suffered another round of layoffs.

 

Sabotage, Subterfuge, Exploitage

Most likely late 19th-century French slang, sabotage is derived from the wooden clogs (sabots) worn by unskilled workers from rural areas who had been brought into factories as scabs during labor strikes. Today it has come to mean to deliberately destroy, damage, or obstruct, much like certain factions in current US politics.

Subterfuge, is an elegant 16th-century French word for deception.  And reaching way back in time to 14th century France, we have exploitage, as in “How many exploited workers does it take to support your lifestyle?” Discover your level of exploitage at:

http://worldcrunch.com/slavery-footprint-how-many-exploited-workers-does-it-take-support-your-lifestyle/4041

Child Support

While some people mistakenly think it is better when all members of a family work, child labor actually makes poverty worse. The more children are forced to work, the fewer opportunities there are for adults to earn a living. By driving down adult wages and depriving children of education, child labor ensures that poverty will be passed down from generation to generation.  The International Labour Organization (ILO) states, “Born to parents who themselves were uneducated child workers, many child workers are forced to continue a tradition that leaves them chained to a life of poverty” (ILO, United States Policies to Address Child Labor Globally, 2010).

T’es occupe là?

If you find yourself with some free time this August and September, go pick grapes in France.  Sometimes the work is paid, wages are set by law and last year it was €50 per day.  Sometimes you are paid with all you can eat and drink (wine, of course).

To learn more go to: http://www.grapepicking.co.uk

“Ceci n’est pas une pipe”

Double entendre (double understanding), derived from the Greek word adianoeta meaning unintelligible, used liberally by Shakespeare and today is standard fare in movies, music and television.  Often used as a device in family-friendly movies like Shrek to keep parents entertained, the term double entendre is actually an obsolete French term.  So when in France, use double sens unless you are out to impress Madame et Monsieur with your knowledge of Moliére.

N’est-ce Pas!

According to a New York Times article published in 2010, foreign language programs in the US are on the outs, literally sliding out of public school curriculum, except Chinese.  This isn’t a rant on Chinese, my son is studying this challenging language.  Rather, this is a large “sigh” over the shortsightedness of our school districts, state governments and yes, parents who look upon foreign language education as expendable.

Research found in the Early Childhood Education Journal that “foreign language study in the early elementary years improves cognitive abilities, positively influences achievement in other disciplines, and results in higher achievement test scores in reading and math”.  Studies have also revealed that tackling a foreign language improves, get this, skills and grades in English.

Times are tough and budgets are tight, but before you vote “Yes” to cut out foreign language study, here are a few points to chew over:

• Third-graders who had received 15 minutes of conversational French lessons daily for a year had statistically higher Stanford Achievement Test scores than their peers who had not received French instruction. (Lopata 1963)

• Students who completed at least four years of foreign-language study scored more than 100 points higher on each section of the SAT than students who took a half year or less. (College Board 2004)

• Foreign language learners have better listening skills and sharper memories than their monolingual peers. (Lapkin, et al 1990, Ratte 1968)

Voilà