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July 21:

July 21: National Junk Food Day

If you consider yourself a connoisseur of ice cream, hot dogs, greasy burgers, jelly-filled donuts, cookies, chocolates and chips and dip, today is your lucky day! Put the scale and calorie counter away – today is National Junk Food Day!

What is your favorite junk food(s)?

July 20:

July 20: First man on moon

On July 20, 1969, Commander Neil Armstrong became the first man on the moon. He said the historic words, "That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind."

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/armstrong-walks-on-moon

July 19:

July 19: Flitch Day

As far back as 1104 in Dunmow Priory, England, monks offered a side of bacon (flitch) to any married couple proving a year and a day after their wedding that they had lived in harmony and fidelity for the past year and had not wished they were single again.

Successful couples are then carried shoulder high by bearers (humble folk) in the ancient Flitch Chair to the Market Place where they take the oath (similar to pre-Reformation marriage vows) kneeling on pointed stones. Unsuccessful couples have to walk behind the empty chair to the Market Place, consoled with a prize of gammon (a cut of pork).

The ancient oath of the flitch thus expressed in rhyme:

“We do swear by custom of confession
That we ne're made nuptial transgression
Nor since we were married man and wife
By household brawl or contentious strife,
Or otherwise at bed or board,
Offended each other in deed or word;
Or since the parish clerk said amen,
Wished ourselves unmarried again;
Or in a twelvemonth and a day
Repented in thought in any way,
But continue true and in desire
As when we joined in holy quire."

When this oath was taken by each couple, it was the duty of the officer who administered it to reply:

"Since to these conditions, without any fear,
Of your own accord you do freely swear,
A whole flitch of bacon you shall receive,
And bear it hence with love and good leave;
For this is our custom at Dunmow well known
Though the pleasure be ours, the bacon's your own."

Read more about this celebration at http://www.footprints.org/5-000107.htm

July 18:

July 18: National Hot Dog Month

The world’s longest hot dog was 1,996 feet, made in honor of the 1996 Olpymics.

Although the history of sausage goes back a long way, there is no certain etiology of the term hot dog, but two theories are the most prominent.

The popularity of the term hot dog is generally attributed to sports cartoonist T. A. "Tad" Dorgan, who caricatured German figures as dachshund dogs just after the turn of the 19th century. His talking sausage cartoons generally denigrated the cheap wieners sold at Coney Island, crassly suggesting they contained dog meat. It was such bad publicity that in 1913, the Chamber of Commerce actually banned use of the term "hog dog" from signs on Coney Island. The term actually first appeared in print in the Oxford English Dictionary in 1900.

German Americans brought us wienerwurst, German for Vienna sausage, which eventually became shortened to wiener. Other German immigrants referred to smoked sausages as bundewurst, which is German for dog sausage. By the late 1920's, wienie roasts became the rage, with guests bringing their own hot dogs to roast over an open fire.

Credit for putting the hot dog into a warm bun and topping it with various condiments goes to Harry Magely, catering director of New York City's Polo Grounds, who reportedly instructed his vendors to cry out, "Red hots! Get your red hots!"

Also credited for the idea of warm buns is Charles Feltman, of Feltman's Gardens in Coney Island amusement park.

Corn dogs were introduced in 1942 at the Texas State Fair, created by Texan Neil Fletcher.

Check out some of Marion County’s unique “hot dog” restaurants at http://marioncvb.com/index.php?option=com_mtree&task=listcats&cat_id=99&Itemid=2

Read the dos and don’ts of eating hot dogs at http://www.hotdogchicagostyle.com/funfacts.php

http://homecooking.about.com/od/foodhistory/a/hotdoghistory.htm

July 17:

July 17: Disneyland Opens

Disneyland, Walt Disney's metropolis of nostalgia, fantasy, and futurism, opens on July 17, 1955. The $17 million theme park was built on 160 acres of former orange groves in Anaheim, California. Today, Disneyland hosts more than 14 million visitors a year, who spend close to $3 billion.

Reminisce during the opening day of Disneyland at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rHjoimz5XI

July 16:

July 16: First parking meters installed

By the early 1940s, there were more than 140,000 parking meters operating in the United States.

The world's first parking meter (brainchild of Carl C. Magee), known as Park-O-Meter No. 1, is installed on the southeast corner of what was then First Street and Robinson Avenue in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma on this day in 1935.

Despite opposition that paying for parking is un-American, the first meters were installed by the Dual Parking Meter Company beginning in July 1935; they cost a nickel an hour, and were placed at 20-foot intervals along the curb that corresponded to spaces painted on the pavement. Magee's invention caught on quickly: Retailers loved the meters, as they encouraged a quick turnover of cars--and potential customers--and drivers were forced to accept them as a practical necessity for regulating parking.

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/worlds-first-parking-meter-installed

July 15:

July 15: National Ice Cream Month

California is the nation's number one ice cream producer, churning out over 142 million gallons of ice-cold creamy goodness each year.

Former California governor, President Ronald Reagan, recognized America's love for ice cream and declared July National Ice Cream Month back in 1984.

Some key results of a survey done by the California Milk Board:

Over two-thirds of consumers nationwide say they find themselves eating ice cream, frozen yogurt or gelato most frequently in front of the TV or on the couch (64%). Young adults, ages 18-34 more so than others (20%)

Women are more likely than men to eat ice cream, frozen yogurt or gelato in bed.

Maybe it's the drip factor but parents are more likely than non-parents to eat ice cream, frozen yogurt or gelato outside (19% versus 11%, respectively).

The U.S. ice cream industry generated total revenues of $10 billion in 2010, with take-home ice cream sales representing the largest section of the market, generating revenues of $6.8 billion or 67.7 percent of the market's overall value.

About 9 percent of all the milk produced by U.S. dairy farmers is used to produce ice cream, contributing significantly to the economic well-being of the nation's dairy industry.

Here are some other tips to enjoying your frozen treat:

To prevent an ice cream cone from becoming soggy while you eat, drop a mini marshmallow in the bottom of the cone before scooping.

To soften ice cream, transfer it to the refrigerator for 10-20 minutes before serving. A faster option is to use a microwave but be careful of ice cream soup! Place the ice cream in its cardboard container into a microwave set to High: microwave one pint for 10-15 seconds; one quart for 15-25 seconds; and a half-gallon for 30-40 seconds. (Don't use microwave if ice cream is in a plastic container.)

After serving ice cream, return carton to the freezer immediately to help prevent the formation of ice crystals that can occur when ice cream is partially thawed and then re-frozen. This will keep the texture smooth for your next bowl (if it lasts that long).

Charles E. Minches of St. Louis, Missouri is credited with inventing the ice cream cone. On July 23, 1904 at the World's Fair in St. Louis, he filled a pastry cone with two scoops of ice cream to make the first ice cream cone. There is some controversy over this claim. Italo Marchiony of New York City filed a patent for the ice cream cone months before the fair opened. And, he was selling lemon ice in comes as early as 1896.

Read about the history of ice cream at http://www.idfa.org/news--views/media-kits/ice-cream/the-history-of-ice-cream/

July 14:

July 14: National Parks and Recreation Month

“Since 1985, America has celebrated July as the nation’s official Park and Recreation Month. This July we are encouraging you and your community to GET WILD about parks and recreation! - NPRA

Today’s blog is brought to you by Rachel Everly, Programs Assistant with the Marion County Parks and Recreation Commission.

Enjoy July outside!

As part of Park and Recreation month, we encourage you to get outside and recreate with your friends and family. Maybe take a trip to America’s first National Park, Yellowstone National Park, established in 1885, to see the Old Faithful Geyser. A little more local, you could take a drive down to Pocahontas County, WV and visit the state’s first State Park, Droop Mountain Battlefield, established in 1928, to enjoy rustic trails and vintage cabins.

Staying close to home? Like most, it is hard to find the time to travel for an extended period of time but there is a solution! Right here in Marion County, we have a multitude of parks that provide fun for families and people of all ages! When we have those scorching hot days, come to East Marion Park and take a swim in our Wave Pool. There is also mini-golf, horseshoes, basketball, tennis, a playground and pavilions available for rent at this park. After being closed for a few years, 12^th Street Pool is up and running, ready to cool you off, too! And in Mannington, Hough Park and Pool have been providing outdoor fun for almost 90 years.

If you don’t feel like swimming, take a walk on the rail-trail! Take in some nice views of the rivers, enjoy the foliage around you, or just let off some steam!

Don’t let summer stress you out, let Park and Recreation Month take you outside!