Labor Day Food Ideas

Originally begun as a holiday to honor the workers of North America (the day is celebrated in both the United States and Canada although each nation enacted its own laws for the holiday separately), Labor Day has since evolved more into more of a day for families to relax and have fun together.

Memorial Day has also evolved into a similar day for family gatherings (although with our soldiers again in harm's way, Memorial Day's original focus on honoring our war dead is more pronounced than Labor Day's focus on workers) and both holidays, coming as they do with one falling at the beginning of summer and the other at the end, have come to represent the beginning of the summer activity season (Memorial Day) and the end of the summer activity season (Labor Day).

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When families and friends gather together, the celebration most always includes food and holidays like Labor Day are no exception. Because it is a summer holiday, the food is generally prepared and eaten out of doors.

To assist you with ideas for Labor day food here is a video and links on food and food preparation suggestions for your Labor Day partying enjoyment.



Links for additional recipes:

Instructions for peeling and preparing a mango for eating

.  Mango on Plate With Seed and Sliced Mango on White Plate

(Photo Copyright © 2008 by Chuck Nugent)

An easy to make homemade pizza recipe

A recipe for a cool and tasty Strawberry Salad

Tired of plain old hot dogs? Here is a simple recipe to spice it up with curry to convert it to Currywurst - a tasty German favorite.

Links for my Other Labor Day Articles:

Labor Day and the North American Labor Movement

What is Labor Day?

Labor Day 2011

Labor Day in America

Fourth of July Fireworks

Fireworks on the Fourth of July are a long standing American tradition. There is nothing more spectacular than seeing the night sky lit up with the fiery colors of exploding fireworks. Add some lighting, which is a common site on summer evenings in the Arizona desert and the show is even more spectacular.

Click on the videos below to see and hear the sights and sounds of an Arizona Fourth of July Fireworks display. Watch closely and you will catch quick flashes of lighting streaking across the sky behind the fireworks.





For more about the 2008 Fourth of July Celebration in Marana, Arizona, including more videos click here.

Celebrating Butterflies

June 19th is the day that butterfly lovers around the world have selected to celebrate as BUTTERFLY DAY.

In honor of this day I have decided to display pictures that I took of Butterflies earlier this year while visiting the live butterfly exhibit at the Tucson Botanical Gardens in Tucson, AZ.

The Easter Bunny

Like St. Nicholas' name morphing into Santa Claus, so too has the Easter Hare evolved into the Easter Rabbit and Easter Bunny. In a previous article entitled The Origins of the Easter Rabbit I discussed how the word Easter itself and the tradition behind a hare or rabbit delivering eggs at Easter came from customs associated the old Saxon Vernal (Spring) Equinox festivals which survived and merged into our present day Easter customs when the Saxons converted to Christianity. Like many of our Christian holiday customs, the Easter Rabbit has its roots in pre-Christian customs which survived the abandoning of the old religion and embracing of the new Christian religion. At Easter this is especially true of customs involving the celebration of rebirth and renewal, which were associated in pagan times with new life of spring, as Easter is the Christian celebration of Christ's resurrection and new life for mankind.

Originally the rabbit associated with Easter was a hare which is a close cousin to the rabbit and is found in both Europe (where it is more common) and the United States (the jack rabbit of the Southwest is a hare and not a rabbit). The main difference between a rabbit and a hare is that hares tend to be larger, nest in shallow indentations above ground rather than in underground burrows and, finally, hares give birth to young which have fur and whose eyes are open at birth as opposed to rabbits who give birth to young who are initially hairless and whose eyes do not open until a few days after birth.

In The Origins of the Easter Rabbit article I discuss how the tradition of the Easter Rabbit evolved and made its way from Germany to the rest of Europe and then to North America and beyond.

While it is easy to explain how the Easter Hare became the Easter Rabbit given that the two are practically identical as far as looks are concerned and the fact that rabbits are more common in the U.S. But, the question of how did hares and rabbits come to be known as bunnies is a more difficult question. In fact, in my research, the best I could do is find a consensus, of sorts, of guesses.

The consensus of guesses that I found was that our word bunny comes from the Scots Gaelic word bun which was used to describe a swelling, a stump or a root. The term bun appears to have made its way into English where, in the sixteenth or seventeenth century, it was used to describe swellings, human rear ends, and the small tail of rabbits. The word was also applied to small, individual loaves of bread which came to be known as buns (more commonly dinner rolls in the U.S.). As near as most can determine, the term bun was applied in English first to the tail of the rabbit, then its entire rear end. Ironically, the word was also originally applied to the tail of a squirrel. Somewhere along the line the diminutive bunny appeared, first as a term of endearment to describe a child or woman and then later it began to be used to describe young rabbits and squirrel's. In time the term was dropped from squirrels but stuck with rabbits, especially young rabbits. It also tended to fall out of use as a term of endearment for women and children.

Regardless of its origin, the term bunny is now used almost interchangeably with rabbit. However, while synonymous with rabbit, the term bunny still conjures up a softer, cuter image in most people's minds and this can be seen more vividly when comparing images of the Easter Rabbit from a century ago with more recent images of today's lovable Easter Bunny.

April Fools Day

The origins of April Fools' Day or All Fools' Day appear to be lost in time. Humor is a part of life and most people enjoy a good laugh. Of course life has its serious side as well and if no one took life seriously, not much would get done. So, as with other things that are needed to keep society running smoothly, customs and unwritten codes of behavior were developed. For serious things, laws were established with punishment, however, societies tend to operate in a more informal manner with rules enforced through social stigma rather than punishment. Since, as the old saying goes all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy (and the same for Jill), societies throughout history have made exceptions by having certain days or times when the normal rules are relaxed or suspended.

April Fools' Day appears to be one of these days when...

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Palm Sunday

Palm Sunday is the sixth Sunday in Lent and the Sunday before Easter. It is celebrated in all major Christian churches - Roman Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox. In popular parlance it is called Palm Sunday because it commemorates the triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. The Gospels describe how the crowds lined the route, spread palm branches on the road and waved palm leaves in their hands enthusiastically... read more

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Sean & McGillicuddy Trick the Easter Bunnyby Chuck & Victor

One bright sunny day in Leprechaun Land, Sean, McGillicuddy and Armagh were sitting on the playground talking. "Guess what?" said Armagh "Tomorrow is Easter." "What's Easter?" asked both Sean and McGillicuddy. Since the boys didn't know anything about Easter, Armagh decided that she might pull a little joke on them. "Well," she explained, "Easter is when the Easter Bunny comes hopping around Leprechaun Land with his basket of Easter eggs. If you want to get some Easter eggs, you have to set up a trap to catch the Easter Bunny."

Sean and McGillicuddy thought for a moment. "We should start now if we want to get Easter eggs." McGillicuddy declared. He and Sean said goodbye to Armagh and left.

"Those goof balls crack me up," Armagh said laughing to herself, " everyone knows there's no such thing as the Easter Bunny."

Later that night, Sean and McGillicuddy had finished their trap. They tied a rope to a tree and tied the other end to a net on the ground that was covered by leaves. They placed a carrot in the center of the trap. Soon after they fell asleep, they woke up to hear a hopping sound outside. They both snuck out of their houses and darted behind a tree so the Easter Bunny wouldn't see them.

The Easter Bunny saw the carrot, and looked down at his growling stomach. "All this Easter business is making me hungry," he said to himself," I think I can take a break to enjoy a little snack." He hopped over to grab the carrot. Suddenly, the net gave way under his feet and he soon found himself trapped, dangling above the ground.

Sean and McGillicuddy jumped out from their hiding place and started celebrating. "We caught him! We caught him!" they sang out loud.

It just so happened that the Leprechaun King was out for his nightly stroll. He saw Sean and McGillicuddy dancing around something caught in a net above the ground. He decided to get to the bottom of this. "Sean, McGillicuddy! What are you two doing outside past your bedtimes? And what is trapped in that net?" He peered inside. "Why is the Easter Bunny caught in this net? You lads have some serious explaining to do!" Sean and McGillicuddy explained that Armagh had told them to trap the Easter Bunny in order to get eggs for Easter. "Well, this is very serious," the Leprechaun King said," I'll explain this to the Fairy Queen so she can take care of Armagh. As for you two," he pointed to Sean and McGillicuddy," You will assist the Easter Bunny and help him hide eggs tonight, and you will do it as rabbits yourselves." With his great leprechaun magic, the King turned Sean and McGillicuddy into little bunnies.

Then they went out into the night to help the Easter Bunny deliver eggs. When they were done, the spell wore off and they became leprechauns again. They went back to their houses and went to bed just as the sun was starting to rise. Several minutes later, Sean and McGillicudy's parents walked into their rooms to wake them up for church. The parents were unaware of the events that happened the night before. They couldn't figure out why Sean and McGillicuddy were so tired. The parents decided that both boys weren't getting enough sleep, so they made their bedtimes earlier.

When the Fairy Queen was informed about Armagh, she decided that Armagh's punishment would be to help the Easter Bunny make chocolate eggs and other treats for the following Easter. Armagh was dumbfounded at the fact that the Easter Bunny was real.

As for Sean and McGillicuddy, they had learned their lesson and were going to be good little leprechauns from that time on and not listen to deceptive little fairies like Armagh.

Copyright (c) 2006 by Charles Nugent
All rights reserved. No part of this material may be reproduced, in any media, without the express written consent of the copyright holder.

Palm Sundayby Chuck

Palm Sunday is the sixth Sunday in Lent and the Sunday before Easter. It is celebrated in all major Christian churches - Roman Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox. In popular parlance it is called Palm Sunday because it commemorates the triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. The Gospels describe how the crowds lined the route, spread palm branches on the road and waved palm leaves in their hands enthusiastically as Jesus rode in on his donkey. Hence, the name Palm Sunday.

However, until 1970 the official name of this day in the Roman Catholic Church was the Second Sunday of the Passion. In 1970 the the Roman Catholic Church changed the official name to Passion Sunday which has caused confusion for those who were used to referring to the fifth Sunday in Lent as Passion Sunday (that Sunday is now officially called the fifth Sunday of Lent). But, for the average Christian, Catholic and non-Catholic alike, this day is still known as Palm Sunday.

In addition to palm trees being common in the Mediterranean world and its leaves a logical material to cover a dusty road, palm leaves were also a symbol of victory and triumph in the ancient world. The cheering crowds along the road gave evidence to the effectiveness of Jesus' message and the large following he had attracted. It is no wonder that the religious and political establishment were concerned about his popularity and the potential threat to their earthly power that it represented. However, Jesus' kingdom was not of this earth and he was not seeking earthly power. While his followers hailed his entry into Jerusalem with palm leaves which symbolized triumph and victory, Jesus himself elected to be borne on the back of a humble donkey rather than a horse. The horse is a powerful animal that was used in war. The horse represented conquest and power. Throughout history horses were the preferred means of travel for the rich and powerful. The donkey, however, is puny compared to the horse and is a simple beast of burden used by the common masses. As Christ repeatedly stated, his kingdom was not of this world but rather that of heaven. He urged his followers to focus on and prepare for eternal life in heaven, not political change on earth.

The memory of Christ's triumphant entry into Jerusalem just before his crucifixion was kept alive and celebrated from the earliest days by the Church in Jerusalem. The celebration included re-enactments of the Lord's triumphant entry into Jerusalem and the the waving of palms. The custom gradually spread to other churches in the eastern Mediterranean, reaching Constantinople (modern day Istanbul, Turkey), capital of the Roman Empire in the east, by the fifth century. In time the celebration spread throughout the Church and was retained by many Protestant churches following the Reformation. In areas where palms were not available, people used branches from local trees that bloomed in the spring. Today, modern transportation enables churches throughout the world to easily obtain and distribute palms on this day.

In many Orthodox Churches Palm Sunday is referred to as Entry into Jerusalem. Due to the fact that for religious purposes many of these churches use the Julian rather than the Gregorian calendar, this date, like that of other religious holidays is usually a week or more later than their counterparts in the Western Christianity. However, just like western churches, Entry into Jerusalem or Palm Sunday is celebrated with the distribution of palms or branches from local trees and marks the beginning of Holy Week. These churches also celebrate the day before Palm Sunday as Lazarus Saturday where they commemorate the raising of Lazarus from the dead by Jesus. On Lazarus Saturday many of the faithful spend time weaving the palms into crosses for distribution the next day. This custom weaving of palms into crosses can also be found in many Protestant Churches and, if one looks around a Catholic Church they will see that many of their fellow participants in the mass have woven the palm branch they received upon entering the church into a cross.

In Roman Catholic Churches in America palm leaves are distributed to the congregation as they enter the church. There are two Gospel readings on this, Passion (Palm) Sunday with the first being read at the start of the Mass. The congregation then holds up their palm leaves and the priest blesses them. Following the Epistle, the Passion Story from the Gospel according to St. Matthew is read. This is a long reading (Matthew 26:14 – 27:66) with sections divided among three or four readers and parts for the congregation. We again hear the story of Jesus' betrayal, capture, trial, torture, crucifixion, death and burial. The congregation takes the palm leaves home where they are kept as a reminder of the Gospel message of the passion. The palms are collected by the Church just before the beginning of Lent and burned to produce the ashes used on Ash Wednesday.

In Flanders Fields

by John McCrae
(1872 - 1918)



In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

John McCrae, the author of In Flanders Fields, was a Canadian born in Guelph, Ontario in 1872. Trained as a medical doctor, he served in the Boer War in South Africa and when Canada entered World War I he volunteered for duty in the Canadian Army. McCrae served in combat on the Western Front and was then transfered to the medical corps. In Flanders Fields was first published in the British magazine Punch in 1915 and quickly became the most famous poem of World War I. John McCrae died of pneumonia in an army field hospital in Belgium in 1918.

Photo courtesy of Veterans Affairs Canada
www.vac-acc.gc.ca/general/sub.cfm?source=history/firstwar/mccrae

Page Copyright © 2005 by Chuck Nugent

Palm Sunday

Palm Sunday is the sixth Sunday in Lent and the Sunday before Easter. It is celebrated in all major Christian churches - Roman Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox. In popular parlance it is called Palm Sunday because it commemorates the triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. The Gospels describe how the crowds lined the route and spread palm branches on the road and waved palm leaves in their hands enthusiastically Jesus rode in on his donkey. Hence, the name Palm Sunday. However, until 1970 the official name in the Roman Catholic Church was the Second Sunday of the Passion. In 1970 the official name was changed to "Passion Sunday" which has caused confusion for those who were used to referring to the fifth Sunday in Lent as "Passion Sunday" (that Sunday is now officially called the fifth Sunday of Lent). But, for the average Christian, this is still called "Palm Sunday".

In addition to palm trees being common in the Mediterranean world and its leaves a logical material to cover a dusty road, palm leaves were also a symbol of victory and triumph in the ancient world. The cheering crowds along the road gave evidence to the effectiveness of Jesus' message and the large following he had attracted. It is no wonder that the religious and political establishment were concerned about his popularity and the potential threat to their earthly power that it represented. However, Jesus' kingdom was not of this earth and he was not seeking earthly power. While his followers hailed his entry into Jerusalem with palm leaves which symbolized triumph and victory, Jesus himself elected to be borne on the back of a humble donkey rather than a horse. The horse is a powerful animal that was used in war. The horse represented conquest and power. Throughout history horses were the preferred means of travel for the rich and powerful. The donkey, however, is puny compared to the horse and is a simple beast of burden used by the common masses. As Christ repeatedly stated, his kingdom was not of this world but rather that of heaven. He urged his followers to focus on and prepare for eternal life in heaven, not political change on earth.

The memory of Christ's triumphant entry into Jerusalem just before his crucifixion was kept alive and celebrated from the earliest days by the Church in Jerusalem. The celebration included reenactments of the Lord's triumphant entry into Jerusalem and the the waving of palms. The custom gradually spread to other churches in the eastern Mediterranean, reaching Constantinople (modern day Istanbul, Turkey), capital of the Roman Empire in the east by the fifth century. In time the celebration spread throughout the Church and was retained by many Protestant churches following the Reformation. In areas where palms were not available, people used branches from local trees that bloomed in the spring. Today, modern transportation enables churches throughout the world to easily obtain and distribute palms on this day.

In the Roman Catholic Church in America palm leaves are distributed to the congregation as they enter the church. There are two Gospel readings on this, Passion (Palm) Sunday with the first being read at the start of the Mass. The congregation then holds up their palm leaves and the priest blesses them. Following the Epistle, the Passion Story from the Gospel according to St. Matthew is read. This is a long reading (Matthew 26:14 – 27:66) with sections divided among three or four readers and parts for the congregation. We again hear the story of Jesus' betrayal, capture, trial, torture, crucifixion, death and burial. The congregation takes the palm leaves home where they are kept as a reminder of the Gospel message of the passion. The palms are collected by the Church just before the beginning of Lent and burned to produce the ashes used on Ash Wednesday.

Copyright © 2005 by Charles J. Nugent Jr.