DIANE'S CORNER: National Kazoo Day

DIANE'S CORNER ..

Celebrate Nat'l Kazoo Day

National Kazoo Day celebrates the noble history of the buzzing distinctive music that comes only from the fantastic Kazoo! This is a sound that’s well known to students of all ages, and it has a truly unique sound. If you love the sound of this buzzing little pipe of madness, National Kazoo Day is your opportunity to celebrate it!

History of National Kazoo Day

This distinctively American musical instrument was designed in 1840 and brought to the world as the “Down South Submarine” in 1852 during the Georgia State Fair by Alabama Vest and Thaddeus Von Clegg, the latter a German-American clockmaker. Nearly 60 years later the commercial production of this device started, and it began to enter the world created out of the dully shining silver of Tin.

Rather than having any particular keys or tuning devices, the music of the Kazoo is created by humming into the instrument, and actually heralds back to earlier instruments based on this kind of vibration. Believe it or not there is a strong history of instruments that function by altering the voice of the musician.

thanks for the pics, Heide

JOKE OF THE DAY

Parallel Lines Have So Much in Common

It's a shame they'll never meet.

WORD OF THE DAY

anergy

MEANING:
noun:
1. Lack of energy.
2. The lack of an immune response to a foreign substance.

ETYMOLOGY:
From an- (not) + ergon (work). Earliest documented use: 1890. The opposite of sense 1 is energy and the opposite of sense 2, allergy. Earliest documented use: 1890.

USAGE:
“The girl wondered if the man did not have the ability to react to the skin test because of anergy or inactivity of his immune system.”
William Lynes; 606 University; iUniverse; 2016.

TODAY'S ARTIST
thanks, Natalie

Gabriël Metsu (1629–1667)
was a Dutch painter of history paintings, still lifes, portraits, and genre works. He was "a highly eclectic artist, who did not adhere to a consistent style, technique, or one type of subject for long periods"

IDIOM OF THE DAY

What does the saying 'Below the belt' mean?

Meaning: If someone says something that is cruel or unfair, it is below the belt, like the illegal punches in boxing.

thanks, Patsy

(Not So) TOTALLY USELESS FACTS OF THE DAY

It takes a sloth two weeks to fully digest the food that it's eaten.

How long is a million seconds? Approximately 11.5 days. What about a billion seconds, you say? Approximately 31.5 years.

What do you get when you mix a pound of butter, a pound of eggs, a pound of sugar, and a pound of flour? You get Pound Cake.

READERS INFO
Coronavirus Style by Sylvia, CAN DO Correspondent

Salta Bag

PATTERN BOOK FRIDAY

Misc Bookazine 1828 (Sampler)

COFFEE
thanks, Ella

PICTURES OF THE DAY

Cockroaches are often found around garbage and in the kitchen. Female cockroaches, or henroaches, are sometimes seen carrying egg cases on the end of their abdomen. The eggs hatch from the combined pressure of the hatchlings gulping air and are initially bright white nymphs that continue inflating themselves with air and harden and darken within about 4 hours. Their transient white stage while hatching and later while molting has led to many individuals claiming to have seen albino cockroaches.

Ice and Water, Norway

The Bråsvellbreen glacier moves southwards from one of the ice caps covering the Svalbard archipelago, Norway. Where it meets the sea, the glacier wall is so high that only the waterfalls are visible, so a drone was used to capture this unique perspective.

knit
thanks, Martha

Valentine Mug Cozy

knit
thanks, Grace

Sheesha

knit

Scatterby Socks pattern by Amy Stringer

knit

Birch Creek Hat and Mitts

knit

Malibu Ladies Sweater

KNIT PATTERNS OF THE DAY

thanks, Valerie, Canadian Correspondent

Glacier Headband

Glacier Cowl

Glacier fingerless gloves

crochet

thanks, Tara

Valentine Sweet Heart pattern

crochet
thanks, Helen

Unicorn Hat Pattern

crochet

The Pebble Creek Pullover

crochet

Crochet Flower Square

crochet

Modern Patchwork Stars Blanket

RECIPE

thanks, Shelley, New York Food Correspondent

Vegetarian Shepherds Pie

PANTRY RECIPE

thanks, Debbie

HEALTHY BANANA BREAD

CROCKPOT RECIPE

thanks, Julie

Salsa Verde Chicken Soup

VEGAN/ VEGETARIAN RECIPE

Both vegetarian and vegan diets may provide health benefits, including reduced body weight, lower cholesterol levels, and decreased risk of cardiovascular disease. However, it is important for vegetarians and vegans to ensure that they are meeting all of their nutritional requirements.

thanks, Alice

Breakfast Sweet Potato Pudding

COPYCAT RECIPE

thanks, Jenny

Copycat El Pollo Loco Avocado Salsa

RETRO RECIPE

thanks, Ann

Cucumber Sandwiches

SWEETS RECIPE .. Valentine's Day

thanks, Mindy

HOMEMADE HEART SPRINKLES for Valentine's Day with royal icing

thanks for the memes, Stella

COOKBOOK FRIDAY

BBC Good Food ME - 2016 January

ADULT COLORING

FUN

What is this a picture of?

Answer: Piece of spaghetti—gift wrapped.

CRAFTS .. Valentine's Day

Heart Coffee Sleeve

CHILDREN'S CORNER .. Valentine's Day

thanks, Jill

How to Make Your Own Tissue Paper Flowers

PUZZLE

Orange Striped Fish Jigsaw Puzzle

WORD SEARCH

abandon
abuse
argue

bagel
bloat
bore

caress
chemical
circle
core

disagree

elbow
electrified

gill

hereby
hone

invasion

joyous

leer
lode
lone

mote

nape

parka
permute
place
pride

quickly
ripe

section
serve
shoes

sneak
statute
stork

telltale
tight
turnip

world

SUDOKU .. easy

solution:

ICE BREAKER

thanks, Kris

You can use 'ice breaker questions' to build a rapport, enabling strangers to engage in back and forth conversion. With a little practice and possibly a beer or two, you’ll be breaking more ice than the Titanic.