Witness For The Prosecution

This 1957 movie is "based upon" a story and stage play by English writer Agatha Christie. It is NOT just a complete retelling of Christie's story, but rather it is an adaptation of the story with the focus on the Sir Wilfrid character, and that character's development with input from Billy Wilder, the film's director.
   
A few things about the director and some of the cast:

-The film's director, Billy Wilder, was born in a part of Austria-Hungary that is now part of Poland. At various times he lived in the two centers of German language theater and film, Vienna and Berlin. Wilder left Berlin for Paris when wacko man Hitler and his nutcase followers took power in 1933, and not long thereafter, Wilder went to the United States where he became one of the most famous directors of all time, with films like "Sunset Boulevard," "Stalag 17," "Sabrina," "Some Like It Hot" and "The Apartment." During the World War Two era, Wilder, who was Jewish, worked with his friend Marlene Dietrich to help Jews get out of Germany and Europe, but unfortunately many in Wilder's own family perished at the hands of the Nazis.
-This was Tyrone Power 's last actual film, as he died of a heart attack about a year later during the filming of a movie, "Solomon and Sheba." He was only in his mid 40s.
-In real life, Charles Laughton and Elsa Lanchester were long time husband and wife. And by the way, Elsa's stage name was NOT "Lancaster," as so many people pronounced it back then, especially Americans, as she took her mother's maiden name, "Lanchester," as her professional name as an actress, and her actual family name was Sullivan.   
-If you have watched a lot of films made from the 1930s to the 1960s, you may not know the names of several of the cast members in this movie, but you'll definitely recognize their faces, as they appeared in many films made back then.
-Marlene Dietrich was born in Schöneberg, a section of Berlin, although when she was born, Schöneberg actually lay outside the city's boundaries, and she was a grown young woman when it officially became part of the German capital. She later moved to the United States for her acting career, and in the 1930s the Nazis offered her large sums of money if she would return to Germany to star in films. The German film industry was under the control of Nazi propagandist Joseph Goebbels, and Dietrich declined the offer, choosing instead to become an American citizen. She detested Hitler and the Nazis and she worked hard during World War Two raising money for war related causes and to help Jews leave Germany, as well as traveling to provide entertainment for Allied troops; at times, she even traveled into territory near the front lines. Marlene Dietrich sort of personally declared war on fascism, including that of the Nazis in her own country of birth. As if to show her declaration of war and to demonstrate her commitment to Allied victory, she often wore a military style uniform during the war years. She later was awarded medals by the American and French governments for her services during World War II.  

The story takes place in England and the terms "barrister" and "solicitor" are used in the film, as those are the terms used in England and other parts of the United Kingdom, as well as in current British territories and former colonies, although the meanings are not always exactly the same in all locations. I don't want to make more of this than is necessary, because the actual definitions can be quite technical, but essentially both terms refer to types of lawyers, with a barrister being a lawyer who appears in court cases before a judge to advocate for a client, while a solicitor usually recommends a barrister to a client, and then also does much of the legal paperwork for that client. In the United States, generally such lawyers are called a variety of names, many of them much more "colorful" and often requiring a "BLEEP," but "attorneys" is the permissible word here. Hahaha  In the United States, the term "solicitor" is often used for legal advisers in government, like for "city solicitors."

Main Cast:

Tyrone Power ............................. Leonard Vole
Marlene Dietrich ........................ Christine Vole\Helm
Charles Laughton ....................... Sir Wilfrid Robarts
Elsa Lanchester .......................... Miss Plimsoll
Henry Daniell ............................  Mr. Mayhew
John Williams ............................ Mr. Brogan-Moore
Ian Wolfe ................................... Carter
Torin Thatcher ........................... Mr. Myers
Norma Varden ........................... Mrs. French
Una O'Connor ........................... Janet McKenzie
Francis Compton ....................... Mr. Justice (Judge) Wainwright
Ruta Lee .................................... Diana

Sir Wilfrid Robarts is a highly respected barrister in London, also known for his caustic and snide remarks. This overt cantankerous behavior has only endeared him to his staff and many fellow members of the legal profession, as most realize it is done to cover up his deeper feelings for people. Sir Wilfrid has been hospitalized for a time after suffering a heart attack and his doctor has released him with the recommendation that he only take on civil legal cases, not criminal trials, and that he follow a strict regimen of medication and rest, with no cigar smoking or brandy, two of his favorite vices. His ever vigilant nurse, or Sir Wilfrid would likely say, "over vigilant nurse," Miss Plimsoll, nursemaids him in an effort to see him fully recover. The insults hurled by Sir Wilfrid at Miss Plimsoll, and his bellowing at her and her reactions to these things are worth the time needed to watch this film. If you're having a bad day, but you have the movie available to you, watch it, no matter how many times you may have seen it before; it will make you smile and and bring a few chuckles. Even a person on their deathbed watching this film will be able to stave off death's clutches, at least until the movie ends. Elsa Lanchester was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as Miss Plimsoll.

Upon Sir Wilfrid's arrival back home, a legal solicitor and friend, Mr. Mayhew, comes by accompanied by Leonard Vole, a man Mayhew fears will be arrested for murdering a Mrs. Emily French, a woman of comfortable financial means and also quite a deal older than Mr. Vole. Sir Wilfrid turns down the case, but recommends another barrister and friend, Mr. Brogan-Moore, who is summoned to the meeting. After some verbal tussles with Miss Plimsoll and some reconsideration, Sir Wilfrid returns to the ongoing conference between the lawyers and Mr. Vole. Brogan-Moore has brought news that Mrs. French left Vole a considerable sum of money in her will, but Leonard denies knowing about the will. The police arrive and arrest Vole and Mr. Mayhew accompanies him to the police station. Sir Wilfrid and Brogan-Moore know this is a difficult situation, as now there is a potential financial motive for Vole to kill Mrs. French. Leonard had told the lawyers earlier that essentially everything between himself and Mrs. French had been pretty innocent, although he admitted to them that he wanted to get a loan "of a couple of hundred pounds" to help finance the production of an eggbeater he had devised. At this point, the only positive evidence the defense has is testimony from Leonard's wife, Christine, who has told the police that on the night of Mrs. French's murder, Leonard had arrived home at the time he had told them, which was prior to the time of Mrs. French's death. Christine Vole, an actress Leonard met and married while serving in post-World War Two Germany, comes to Sir Wilfrid's office and she is far from the whimpering and distraught woman Sir Wilfrid thought she would be, seeing that her husband had just been arrested for murder. Christine is rather cold and matter of fact. Instead of firmly corroborating Leonard's story, Christine casts doubt on its truthfulness with her comments, but she doesn't really disavow his story either. For instance, when the large sum of money left to Leonard is mentioned, along with Leonard's story that he didn't know Mrs. French had put him in her will, Christine asks, "Is that what he told you?" The lawyers explain to Christine that she is likely going to be the only thing that will keep Leonard from a death sentence for murder, but that juries discount supportive testimony from a wife. Christine calmly tells them that she and Leonard are not really married; that she had been married to a German who was in the Russian zone of eastern Germany, but that she had gone through a "ceremony" with Leonard, because she wanted to get out of Germany, which had been bombed into rubble in many places during the war. So by being "married" to Leonard Vole, she was able to get out of Germany, away from potential starvation as well as the many other hardships of living in a war devastated country. For her, it was for survival, and she admits she did not tell Leonard that she already had a husband. Leonard met her in 1945 in Hamburg, which was in the British occupation zone of Germany, where she was working as a singer in a night club with many British soldiers as customers. When he saw her wedding ring, she said she simply wore it to provide some protection from the male patrons of the club. The barristers are stunned to learn that she and Vole are not married, but Christine confidently tells them she'll give convincing testimony in support of Leonard at the trial. When asked if she loves Leonard, Christine answers, "Leonard thinks I do." Earlier, Leonard had stated that he and Christine "are in love," and, "we're devoted to each other." Both lawyers are impressed by Christine's composure and self assurance, with Sir Wilfrid calling her "a remarkable woman."

For the trial, the doctor gives Sir Wilfrid his medications to keep with him in the courtroom and Sir Wilfrid takes along a thermos of hot chocolate for taking his pills. Miss Plimsoll inspects the thermos to make sure Sir Wilfrid hasn't substituted brandy for the hot chocolate, and after she is satisfied, Sir Wilfrid has one of his staff swap the thermos with the chocolate for one of the same type filled with brandy.

During the trial the evidence is all one sided and a conviction of Leonard Vole seems almost certain, although the evidence is circumstantial, including the fact that Leonard had visited a travel agency for information about expensive cruises with a woman he claims he barely knew. This, of course, after he denied knowing about Mrs. French's will. What seems to be the finishing touch comes when the prosecution calls Christine (under her actual married name, Helm) to testify against Leonard Vole. She explains that her marriage to a German man named "Otto Helm" was never terminated and that he is still alive in Germany; therefore, she is not giving testimony against Leonard Vole, her husband, as they were not legally married. She now actually tells the truth about the night of Mrs. French's murder, a truth that contradicts Leonard's version involving himself and Christine that night.

Sir Wilfrid and the defense prepare for the conclusion of the trial and the inevitable conviction, as Miss Plimsoll prepares to travel with Sir Wilfrid on a cruise for rest and recuperation, complete with a new pair of Bermuda shorts for Sir Wilfrid. A call comes in from a woman claiming to have damaging evidence about Christine, and at first Sir Wilfrid thinks it is a likely hoax, but the situation is so serious and he believes Leonard is innocent, that he and Mayhew go to the bar at a train station where the woman says she will wait for them. They pay her for a stack of love letters written by Christine to a man named Max, including one letter about how she (Christine) will lie when she testifies against Leonard in court and send him to his conviction and likely execution. The woman tells them she hates Christine, because she stole her boyfriend, and turned him against her so much, that he slashed the right side of her face, leaving ugly scars (she pushes her hair away to show the two lawyers the scars). The woman runs off to catch her train.

The defense team appears in court the next morning and asks for permission to reopen the defense because of new evidence. Christine is recalled to the stand, with Sir Wilfrid hiding the letters under a book (he thinks he's being clever). He reads passages from some letters, including the one saying how she (Christine) will contradict Leonard's story by lying. When Christine says the letters are lies and not written by her, she adds that she writes letters on small blue paper with her initials on the paper. Sir Wilfrid is seen holding a white sheet of paper, but he then reaches underneath the book and pulls out the letters, written on blue paper with Christine's initials. So now, seemingly unintentionally, Christine has identified the letters and she admits to writing them to a man named Max. This changes the entire mood of the defense, although Sir Wilfrid feels there is something wrong, but he just cannot identify it.

The jury returns with a verdict of "not guilty," and Leonard goes to get his belongings in preparation to leave the court. There is commotion just outside the courtroom as Christine Helm enters. Sir Wilfrid tells her she will be charged with perjury, but the icy Christine doesn't seem to be terribly worried. She then tells Sir Wilfrid how he may be acclaimed for Leonard's acquittal, but that she helped him tremendously and that is was she, in disguise, who had sold Sir Wilfrid the letters from Christine to a fictitious man named Max. She then puts the clincher in when she tells Sir Wilfrid that while he believed Leonard had been innocent, she knew Leonard was guilty as stated in her first testimony. Because she feared the jury would not give much weight to her testimony if she gave it in support of Leonard, she decided to do the opposite and testify against him and then to get Sir Wilfrid to expose her as a liar; thus tilting the jury in Leonard's favor, because she truly loves Leonard and there is no one else for her.

Sir Wilfrid is furious that Christine would help to get a murderer acquitted, but she tells the aging barrister that he doesn't understand, and that she did everything because she loves Leonard. Leonard comes back into the courtroom and he tells Sir Wilfrid he knew Christine would help him somehow, and he didn't know how, but she did it. When Sir Wilfrid tells Leonard that he has made "a mockery out of English law," Leonard reminds him, "Who did? YOU got me off from this and I can't be tried again!" Sir Wilfrid tells Leonard that he will pay for this somehow; and just then into the courtroom come Miss Plimsoll and a young woman who had been watching the trial from the gallery. It turns out to be Diana, the woman who had gone into the travel agency with Leonard about cruises. Diana tells Christine that she is Leonard's girl and that they are going on a cruise together. Christine is totally stunned and she finally breaks her steadfast demeanor and begs Leonard not to leave her. To the deceptive Leonard, it's just another transaction, as he tells Christine that he got her out of Germany and now she has gotten him out of the murder charge, so they are now even. When Leonard shoves her into a chair telling her she may face more than perjury charges, she grabs the knife that had been in evidence during the trial from the table and she plunges it into Leonard's abdomen. He falls to the floor and Miss Plimsoll checks his pulse and indicates he's dead. When one of Sir Wilfrid's staff comes in and asks what's happened, Miss Plimsoll says, "She killed him," but Sir Wilfrid, in one of the great lines of any film, in my opinion, says, wagging his finger, "Killed him? She executed him." (Note: Just to clarify, knives are not normally just left lying around courtrooms, but the police had noted a wound on Leonard's wrist when they questioned him, but Leonard said he had cut himself with a knife. This knife is placed into evidence at the trial and is lying on the table when Christine later uses it to kill Leonard.)

As Christine is taken away, Sir Wilfrid again says, "A remarkable woman," bringing Miss Plimsoll to order the cancellation of the travel plans for Sir Wilfrid and herself, since she knows Sir Wilfrid wants to defend Christine against the murder charge against her. A delighted Sir Wilfrid says he, Brogan-Moore and Mayhew will prepare for the defense of Christine Helm. As Sir Wilfrid walks off, Miss Plimsoll calls to him, "Sir Wilfrid! You've forgotten your (thermos of) brandy."

This film has much to do with deception, as Sir Wilfrid tries to deceive his nurse about brandy and cigars; Christine seems to have deceived Leonard by lying to him about being married, although later Diana mentions that Leonard told her that he and Christine were never really legally married; further Christine deceives Sir Wilfred; Leonard believes for a time that Christine has deceived him in the trial; Sir Wilfrid "thinks" he has deceived Christine in the witness box (American English "witness stand") about a white sheet of paper he is holding, while keeping the letters on blue paper hidden; and Leonard has deceived Sir Wilfrid and Christine, but only Christine makes him pay. (Also some "self deception" as Christine says, "What hypocrites you are in this country," when the lawyers seem to buy Leonard's story that Mrs. French saw Leonard as a son or nephew, they seem to want to believe that.)  
   
Photo is of the 2001 MGM Home Entertainment DVD

WORD HISTORY:
Turn-This word is closely related to "tour," a word English borrowed from French, with its further history mirroring "turn," so see below. It is related to a number of other words, including "tourney," another word borrowed from French, which got it from Latin, and its further history also mirrors "turn." The word "turn" goes back to Indo European "tereh," which had the notion, "to turn, to twist, to rub or wear down during a turning process." This gave Ancient Greek transliterated "tórnos," meaning, "a lathe," which was borrowed by Latin as "tornus." This produced the Latin verb "tornare," meaning, "to fashion by turning on a lathe, to polish by rubbing while turning." This was borrowed by Old English as "turnian," meaning, "to turn on a lathe," and by extension, "to turn in circles, revolve." This then became "turnen" (before the modern form), with likely reinforcement and influence (in meanings and usage) from French "torner," which meant, "to turn around (thus, "return"), to turn on a lathe," but also simply, "to turn." As with Old English "turnian," Old French "torner" had been derived from Latin "tornare." The noun "turn," meaning "the process of turning, revolving, rotating," developed from the verb, but with influence from "tourn," the form either taken to England by the Normans, or the form that developed in England by their Norman descendants. The Old French form had been "torn" (with some dialects having "tourn"?), and had been derived from Latin "tornus," "a lathe." The meaning, "a period of time," usually of duty or work, seems to be from the first half of the 1800s, seemingly from the idea of "going from beginning to end;" that is, "going full circle," with extension to "be next (in line or order)," as in, "It's my turn (my period of time) to ride the horse."    

Spicy Mexican Corn Soup

This is a good and spicy soup with no actual meat, although I use chicken broth, and you could certainly use vegetable broth instead. Using 2 chipotle peppers will not likely bring smoke billowing from your ears, but if you like more heat, 4 chipotles will likely do the trick. Be sure to include some of the adobo sauce from the chipotle peppers; it will provide great flavor for the soup. Optionally, if you want to thicken the soup, you can add some cornmeal or corn flour. While both are ground corn, corn flour is finely ground. Queso blanco or other white cheese are great with this. I actually used "Chihuahua" cheese, and if you think this it a "dog cheese," you're barking up the wrong tree... It's a white cheese popular in Mexico which originated in the state of Chihuahua. The little dog of that name is simply named after that state. 

Ingredients (about 6 to 8 servings):

3 cups corn (fresh, but frozen corn is fine)
1 tablespoon ancho chili powder
2 to 4 chipotle peppers with adobo sauce
4 1/2 cups chicken broth
3 Roma tomatoes, chopped
1 tablespoon Mexican oregano
2/3 cup chopped onion
1 tablespoon butter + 2 tablespoons regular olive oil  
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
white cheese in small cubes (queso blanco, Chihuahua cheese, mozzarella or Monterey Jack)
3/4 teaspoon salt (if the broth has a high salt content, you can omit adding salt or just add a pinch)
(Optional) 3 to 4 tablespoons cornmeal or corn flour (or more to your own preference of thickness)

In a heavy-bottomed sauce pan over low heat, melt the butter and heat the olive oil. Add the chopped onion and saute for 4 to 5 minutes, then add the minced garlic and saute another 1 to 2 minutes. Increase the heat to medium and add the chopped tomatoes, oregano, chili powder, chipotle peppers with adobo sauce; saute further until the tomatoes soften. Empty the cooked ingredients into a blender of food processor and process until smooth. Return the smooth mixture to the sauce pan over medium heat and add the chicken broth, mix well and bring to a simmer. Add the corn, the cilantro and any salt you're using (if using corn flour or cornmeal, mix it with some water or broth and stir well to prevent lumps, then stir it into the soup). Maintain a steady simmer and cook for 6 to 8 minutes more. When serving, add 4 or 5 white cheese cubes to each bowl of soup. You can also add a dollop of sour cream to each serving (reduced fat sour cream is fine). Serve with tortilla chips and/or grilled corn cakes. 
     
With tortilla chips and a grilled corn cake on the side ... 

WORD HISTORY:
Gringo-This word is related to "Greek" (the word for the people of Greece and their language), a word of shaky origin that was passed to English from its parent language, Old Germanic, which had borrowed it from Latin. While there is no firm evidence as to why the "Hellenes," the previous name for the Greeks, began to be called the "Greeks," the Romans used the term "Graeci" as the word in Latin, seemingly as a borrowing from Greek "Grakoi." The Latin form was passed down to Latin-based Spanish as "griego," which spawned the Spanish word "gringo" (also passed on to Portuguese as such) with the meaning, "speaker of unintelligible words, speaker of gibberish, speaker of such poor Spanish, so as not to be understood;" thus also, "speaker of a foreign tongue." ^ Later in Spanish speaking Mexico, which had lots of contact with Americans, much of the contact being contentious, the word took on the meaning there of "foreigner, an Anglo-American," but often implying that in a less than flattering way. The word seemingly came into more English use during the "U.S.-Mexican War," in 1846-48.    

^ In English we say, "it's all Greek to me" to convey that we don't understand something written or said. This was either developed by Shakespeare for use in the play "Julius Caesar," or it was taken by him from some unknown source, but the saying remains with us to this day. Further, what is now the name for the country of "Wales," and for the people of Wales, the "Welsh," came from the Germanic words for "foreigners, (usually) Celts," and for, "gibberish, foreign (usually Celtic) speech." The Anglo-Saxon conquerors of Britain used their forms of the words (dialects in those times) for the Celtic speaking people of Britain, especially for those who survived the Germanic invasions in Cornwall and Wales.    

Norwegian Cod Gratin: Fiskegrateng

Fish is an important part of Norwegian cuisine. The various aspects of the fish industry, including exports, are a significant part of the Norwegian economy. This dish is usually made with dried and salted cod known as "klippfisk" in Norwegian, and literally meaning, "rock/cliff fish," "presumably" because the fish were laid out on rocks (or masses of rocks; that is, cliffs) by the sea to dry. The Norwegian word is a cousin of English "cliff" (see "Word History" below). It is often called "salt cod" in English, "bacalao" in Spanish and "bacalhau" in Portuguese.* While "salt cod" is traditionally used in making this dish, you can use fresh or frozen cod; of course, this may result in the Norwegians drying you out on a rock, but some times, you gotta take a chance. Many recipes for this cod dish are very similar to what I have here, but there are more elaborate recipes which include vegetables and/or cheese. 

Ingredients:

1 pound cod (usually salt cod, but you can use fresh or thaw some frozen cod)
3 tablespoons flour
4 to 5 tablespoons butter (divided use)
3/4 cup milk
2/3 teaspoon ground white pepper
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

If you use salt cod, you will need to soak the fish in a few changes of water for the better part of a day. This soaking will help to remove the salt from the cod. Heat the oven to 350 F. Once the salt cod has been soaked, or if you use fresh or thawed cod, cut the fish into bite sized pieces. Melt 2 tablespoons butter over low heat in a sauce pan, then stir in the flour to form a roux, allowing the roux to cook for a minute or two to remove the raw flour taste, but keep stirring to prevent the roux from browning (I turn the heat down to "very low"). Gradually stir in the milk until the mixture thickens. Add a couple of tablespoons of the thickened milk to the beaten eggs, stirring constantly (this will temper the eggs to prevent you from having scrambled eggs). Gradually add the tempered eggs to the milk, STIRRING CONSTANTLY. Season with white pepper and nutmeg. Butter a baking dish with 1 tablespoon butter, add the cod pieces to the dish, then add the thickened egg/milk and mix it in well with the cod pieces. Sprinkle the top with breadcrumbs and cut 1 or 2 tablespoons butter into little bits, then scatter them over the top. Bake for 45 to 60 minutes.

* Salt cod has a role in the cuisines of both Spain and Portugal, as well as in a number of their former colonies. 

With boiled potatoes and kale/tomato/red bell pepper salad ...

WORD HISTORY:
Cliff-The ultimate origin of this word is uncertain, but one major theory (and a good one, in my opinion) ties it to the Indo European ancestor of words "clay," "claw," "cleave" (the verb meaning "to cling or stick to"), all words from the Germanic roots of English, and to "glue," a Latin-derived word borrowed by English. The idea is that cliffs are masses of rocks "sticking together," or perhaps, "rock(s) clinging or sticking to the side of a hill or mountainside." Old Germanic had "klibijanan" meaning, "to stick, to cling." This produced the noun "kliban," meaning "a mass of joined rock, cliff." This gave Old English "clif" meaning, "a steep rocky slope." It's hard to find when the second "f" was added, but likely the process was gradual, in the sense that more and more writers spelled it "cliff," which finally made it the acceptable spelling. Relatives in the other Germanic languages^: German has "Klippe" ("rock mass protruding from the sea or above the seashore"), which developed in the 1300s from its old spelling of "kleb," from about 900 A.D. The "Klippe" spelling appears in writings in the Lower Rhine area of what is now the modern German state of North Rhine-Westphalia by the border with the Netherlands. Modern German also has "Kliff," but this is a borrowing from its English cousin, although with the more typical German "K," rather than "C" (properly, all German nouns are capitalized); Low German has "Klipp," and also "Kliff" (borrowed from English??), West Frisian has "klif," Dutch has "klif," Norwegian "klippe," Swedish "klippa," Icelandic "klif."

^ There have been a number of spellings in the Germanic languages over the centuries using "f" or "p," but exactly why that is, is unclear to me and I didn't really pursue the matter, as it goes far beyond my intentions for these word histories. Interestingly though, some languages, like Dutch, have had both spellings, but one spelling eventually prevailed, in Dutch "klif."  

Good Times Episode: The Dinner Party

It is important to remember that as was becoming common with comedy television shows in those days, "Good Times" was filmed in front of a live studio audience. This means the audience reaction you hear is real and specific to the words and actions going on in front of that audience. In many, but not all, cases in the past, comedies were filmed with no actual audience and a laugh track (recorded laughter) was substituted for when a show was broadcast on television. Parts of this particular episode were so funny, the audience screamed and laughed hysterically at times. The subject of this episode is serious and the characters are concerned for the older lady in the show, but that doesn't mean that everyone has to sit around frowning and scowling while they contemplate poverty. This episode is FUNNY!     

Cast for this episode:

Florida Evans .................... Esther Rolle
James Evans ...................... John Amos
J.J. Evans ........................... Jimmie Walker
Thelma Evans .................... BernNadette Stanis
Michael Evans ................... Ralph Carter
Willona Woods .................. Ja'net DuBois
Gertie Vinson .................... Frances Foster

James announces a new milestone for the Evans family, because the monthly bills are all paid and they have some money left over for the month. Florida suggests, and James agrees, that they should use the extra money to pay friend and neighbor Gertie Vinson to give Thelma singing lessons. Gertie is receiving Social Security, but she still gives some voice lessons to supplement her income. Gertie is feisty for her age and she comes to the Evans' apartment to return a dish to Florida. While she's there, Florida tells her that she and James want her to give singing lessons to Thelma, but Gertie turns serious and declines to give Thelma the lessons. She announces she is retiring, which stuns Florida. After Gertie leaves, Willona, the close friend and neighbor of the Evans family, comes to the apartment. When Florida tells her that Gertie is no longer going to give voice lessons, Willona, the building gossip, says that it is not worth it for Gertie to give lessons, because for every two dollars she earns by giving lessons, her Social Security is cut by one dollar. Willona explains that Gertie has trouble making ends meet.

Michael comes home and says he just made a nickel by taking Gertie's garbage out, which earns him something of a reprimand from his mother for taking any money from Gertie, because she is struggling. This brings Michael to ask why Gertie has a dog, if she is struggling to make ends meet. James tells Michael that Gertie doesn't have a dog, but Michael says that her garbage was full of empty pet food cans. The family and Willona are stunned, because now they know that Gertie is eating pet food because she is so short of money. Willona leaves and Florida and James agree to invite Gertie to dinner, as Florida has roasted a large chicken for dinner, but Florida fears Gertie will turn down the offer if she thinks they are just trying to help her; so, Florida calls Gertie and falsely tells her they are celebrating J.J.'s birthday, and they want her to join them. Gertie accepts and as the family prepares to sit down for dinner, Gertie arrives with a dish of food, telling Florida this is her contribution to the dinner, her specialty ... MEATLOAF! The looks on the faces of the family members tells us the same thought has gone through everyone's mind ... this meatloaf is made with dog food. In an effort to prevent her family from eating dog food meatloaf, Florida tells Gertie that the meatloaf is unnecessary, as they already have chicken, but feisty Gertie tells her she won't stay if they won't serve her meatloaf as the main course. Gertie tells them people who eat her meatloaf "leave the table raving," prompting J.J. to quip, "Maybe they've got hydrophobia" (a fear of water by animals or humans infected with rabies). Gertie removes the roasted chicken from the table so she can replace it with the meatloaf. The Evans family is given no choice, unless they want to seriously hurt Gertie's feelings and end up in her doghouse ... ah... maybe I should reword that?

With everyone seated, Gertie hands the tray of meatloaf to James, since he's "the man of the house." This begins a process of each family member passing the meatloaf to another family member, but without anyone actually putting any meatloaf on their plate. The meatloaf circles the table and comes back to James for the second time, but through the door comes Willona. James quickly jumps up, goes to her and takes her by the hand to lead her over to the table. Gertie asks if Willona would like dinner, and Willona says that's why she came in, because she burned her own dinner. When she asks where she can sit, the family members all jump up to offer her a seat, with Michael and James tugging on poor Willona's arms to try to get her to take their seat! Michael wins the tug-of-war, and he goes and sits off to the side of the table. When Willona comments, "I love Florida's meatloaf," Gertie quickly corrects her and tells her she made the meatloaf. Ding, ding ding! The bell sounds in Willona's head about Gertie, dog food and meatloaf, as a worried looking Florida gives Willona a little nod. This is all Willona needs and she excuses herself, saying that even though her food is burned, it's wrong to waste food. Since Gertie can't see Willona leaving, she exits by acting like a panting dog (much to the delight of the audience).

So now Gertie hands the meatloaf to James again, but he says they can't eat yet, because they haven't said grace. Florida tells J.J. to say grace, but first Gertie tells him not to be too long, because after a while, "my meatloaf loses some of its bite." J.J. messes up the beginning of the prayer by saying, "German shepherd," instead of just, "shepherd," and Gertie, who has been growing suspicious, now knows what's going on and she tells everyone that the meatloaf was made with ground round, not with pet food. She also tells them she now sees that she has to fight for her Social Security and that older people have to organize and be active politically.

Photo is of the 2004 Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Complete Second Season DVD set

WORD HISTORY:
Foal-This word is related to "few," a word from the Germanic roots of English, and it is distantly related to "poultry," a Latin-derived word borrowed by English by way of French. It is also related to "filly," a word from Germanic, but perhaps a borrowing from Old Norse as a feminine form for a young animal (I'm researching this word more). "Foal" goes back to Indo European "pawlh," which meant, "young or small animal." This gave its Old Germanic offspring "folen," meaning, "young or small animal" (of animals with hooves?). This gave Old English (Anglo-Saxon) "fola," meaning, "young hoofed animal, a colt." This then became "fole," before the modern form "foal." The verb developed from the noun (1300s?) with the meaning, "to give birth to a foal." Relatives in the other Germanic languages: German "Fohlen," Low German "Fohl," Dutch "veulen," West Frisian "fôle," Old Norse had "foli," and some sources show that to be the Icelandic form, and indeed, Icelandic has a number of words that are still in the Old Norse form, but I'm not completely satisfied as to the modern Icelandic word, Swedish has "fåle" (meaning, "male breeding horse??"), Danish "føl," Norwegian "føll."          

Stuffed Zucchini Boats Part 2/Bacon: Gefüllte Zucchiniboote

This is another recipe for "Zucchini boats" ... In "Part One" I used smoked salmon as the key ingredient for the filling. This is the link to that recipe: https://pontificating-randy.blogspot.com/2020/02/stuffed-zucchini-boats-part-1-gefullte.html

This recipe uses cheese and bacon for the main toppings, but with a little "lemony" taste. 

Ingredients:

4 zucchini, each about 5 to 6 inches long, halved lengthwise, seeds removed
3/4 cup dry cottage cheese
2/3 cup canned milk (divided use)
1 "good" tablespoon dried thyme leaves
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
2/3 teaspoon black pepper
4 to 6 slices bacon, cut into about 1 inch pieces
3 or 4 Swiss cheese (Emmentaler) slices, halved
2 eggs
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Heat oven to 375 F. Blanch the zucchini halves in boiling water for about 90 seconds and then drain them well. In a small skillet, fry the bacon pieces until some of the fat melts and they begin to brown (you don't want the bacon to be crisp, and remember it will cook more in the oven). Remove the bacon to some paper towels to drain off the grease. Mix together the dry cottage cheese, 1/3 cup milk, thyme leaves, chopped parsley and pepper; set aside for a minute or two. Whisk or beat together the eggs and the other 1/3 cup milk and the lemon juice. Butter a baking pan lightly. Fill each "zucchini boat" with the cottage cheese mixture, then top that with a half slice of cheese and then add 3 to 5 pieces of bacon on top of the cheese. Add each zucchini boat to the buttered pan. Pour or spoon some of the egg/milk/lemon mixture over each "boat." Bake the "boats" for about 45 minutes, or until they are tender (a fork easily pierces them).  


With a side salad ....

WORD HISTORY:
Pool-English has more than one word of this spelling, and this is the one with the general meaning, "a small body of water." The more distant history of this word is shaky, and a direct Old Germanic form is uncertain; however, the West Germanic branch had "pol/pola," meaning, "a small body of water." This gave Old English (Anglo-Saxon) "pol," essentially with the same meaning and this then became "pool," with the word denoting "a body of generally still water, standing water," rather than of flowing water. The West Germanic form "may" be from a similar Old Germanic form, as Old English also had "pyll/pull," meaning, "pool," but also, "bay, inlet," and Old Norse, from the North Germanic branch, had "pollr," meaning, "pond," but also, "bay." I have to believe these words are all connected, and that they likely share a common Old Germanic ancestor with a meaning having to do with "water collected off to itself from a main body of water." Further, Lithuanian, a Baltic language that has long had contact with Germanic languages has "bala," meaning, "swampy ground, quagmire." A change from a "b" to a "p," or vice versa, is not uncommon, and whether this connects the Germanic form to an Indo European form is possible, although a borrowing by Lithuanian is also very possible. Old English "pol" later became "pole," then "pool." Old English "pyll/pull" later became "pill" (nothing to do with 'pill,' a medication tablet), a word now confined to dialect in Britain for "an inlet of water from the sea." Other forms in the Germanic languages: German has "Pfuhl" ("puddle, pool, murky water"^), Low German Saxon "Pohl" ("pool, pond"), Dutch and West Frisian "poel" ("pool," also "basin??"). Danish "pøl" ("puddle"), Norwegian "pøl" ("sewage pool, cesspool"), Swedish "pöl" ("pool, puddle") are all borrowings from Low German from a few hundred years ago; however, seemingly with more modern influence from German, especially for Norwegian and Swedish. Icelandic has "pollur" ("puddle") from Old the Norse form "pollr."  

^ The idea of such water has also given German offshoot and figurative meanings like, "cesspool, sewage water, 'sin.' "      

Stuffed Zucchini Boats Part 1: Gefüllte Zucchiniboote

I'm sure many of you have wondered, as I have, why some things that seem incredibly easy turn out to be a pain in the neck. The other day when I went to buy zucchini, the produce shop only had large zucchini. So I bought the large zucchini and then I cut them in half, which made the pieces about 5 1/2 to 6 inches in length, which is perfect for this. Two things though: first, even after you cut them to smaller size in length, the thickness of the halves are bigger than zucchini that are truly 5 or 6 inches length; so that means a little longer cooking time. Second, these are supposed to be "zucchini boats," so with one end cut off, my boats are sinking! Where's Leonardo DiCaprio when you need him? Of course, if I had wanted large zucchini, the shop would have had small zucchini. I think I need a strategy ...

Blanching the zucchini pieces helps to give the zucchini a little start on the cooking process, because once the dish is put into the oven, getting the zucchini tender, but not burning the egg/milk/cheese sauce around the edges can be a bit of a balancing act, made more difficult by the thickness of these zucchini halves I used. In German stuffed zucchini boats are called "Gefüllte Zucchiniboote," literally "filled zucchini boats."

Ingredients (4 to 8 servings):

4 zucchini, about 6 inches in length, halved lengthwise, seeds scraped out (if long zucchini, you can first cut them into equal halves in length)
3/4 cup dry cottage cheese or Farmer's cheese
2/3 cup canned milk or regular milk (divided use in equal parts)
4 ounces sliced smoked salmon
2 eggs
3 tablespoons chopped dill
1 tablespoon butter
3 or 4 tablespoons grated Pecorino Romano cheese (or Parmesan) 
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt

Heat oven to 375 F. Blanch the zucchini halves in boiling water for about 90 seconds and then drain them well. Mix together the dry cottage cheese, 1/3 cup milk, dill, pepper and salt; set aside for a minute or two. Whisk or beat together the eggs and the other 1/3 cup milk, then mix in the grated cheese. Butter a baking pan lightly. Fill each "zucchini boat" with the cottage cheese mixture, top each "boat" with a slice of smoked salmon. Pour the egg/milk/cheese mixture over the tops of each zucchini boat. Bake the "boats" for about 45 minutes, or until they are tender (a fork easily pierces them). Some of the egg mixture may brown a little, and that's okay.

NOTE: I did Part Two a couple of days later, and here is the link: https://pontificating- randy.blogspot.com/2020/02/stuffed-zucchini-boats-part-2bacon.html 

 

With a salad ...

WORD HISTORY:
Lox-Before English borrowed the word salmon, the original English word for this fish was "leax," which then later became "lax" (it has absolutely nothing to do with the word of the same spelling meaning "loose, negligent"), but any continued usage of this word for the fish would be strictly limited to perhaps some dialects in the United Kingdom, if it is still used at all. The Old English word goes back to Old Germanic "lahks," which meant "salmon." This went back to Indo European "lohkso," which also meant  "salmon." This gave German, "Lachs" and the derived Yiddish form, "laks." ^ American English borrowed the term from Yiddish as "lox," but exactly when this took place is uncertain, although the term's usage spread in the late 1930s and early 1940s. Besides the German and Yiddish forms, the other Germanic languages have: Low German "Lass," Danish and Norwegian have "laks," Icelandic and Swedish have "lax." Frisian and Dutch, like their close English cousin, borrowed forms of  "salmon" from French, although also like their English cousin, they too had forms of "lox" as their original word.

^ Yiddish developed about 1000 A.D. from some High German dialects among German Jews living in the Rhineland area of Germany. It also used some Hebrew, and over time it spread throughout Europe's Jewish communities, incorporating some vocabulary from several Slavic languages/dialects in eastern Europe. It is written in the Hebrew alphabet, but it is classified as one of the Germanic languages, because of its strong German base. This makes it a close relative of English and of the other Germanic languages, with that particularly strong connection to German. Just for comparison: English "make," German "machen," Low German "maken," Yiddish (transliterated) "makhn."     

Filipino Ginger Tea: Salabat

In the Philippines a citrus fruit called a calamansi is often used in this tea. It looks much like a lime before it matures, but then it starts to look something more like a lemon or even an orange. Lemons are fine as a substitute. Brown sugar is often used as the sweetening agent, but some use honey, which I prefer in such beverages. "Salabat" is used as a remedy for colds and stomach problems, but like regular tea, it is a wonderful beverage in its own right. Remember, ginger has some "zip;" thus, it's been used for centuries as a seasoning ingredient.  

Ingredients (about 4 to 6 servings):

6 inch piece of ginger, peeled and cut into thin slices
1 medium unpeeled lemon, washed and sliced
1 quart fresh water
3 tablespoons honey (more for serving, if desired)

Put all ingredients into a saucepan (with a lid) over medium heat. Adjust heat to maintain a steady gentle simmer, cover and cook for about 8 to 10 minutes. Strain through a sieve and serve hot, with extra honey to preference. Refrigerate any remaining amount; reheat before serving (microwave or stove top).   

I put the Salabat into a clear glass for the photos ...

WORD HISTORY:
Horizon-This word is related to "aphorism" ("a statement showing principle"), a word borrowed by English from French, which had it from Latin, which had gotten it from Greek. The ultimate origin of "horizon" is unclear, but it goes back to transliterated Ancient Greek "horos," which meant, "limit, boundary," also, "the stones used to mark boundaries, and to divide land." This provided the basis of the Greek verb "horizein," meaning, "to limit, to divide, to bound." Its participle, "horizon," was used to denote something "bounded, limited;" thus, "the edge, the limit;" thus, "the horizon." Latin borrowed this as "horizon" and this passed to Latin-based Old French as "orizonte," with no "h," and perhaps initially taken into French from the Latin genitive, accusative or dative forms, all of which have "t" ("horizontis," "horizontem," "horizonti"), but this then became "orizon." This was borrowed by English around 1400 as "orizoun/orisoun" (Anglo-Norman form?). The 1600s saw the spelling changed to "horizon" in English, as the Latin spelling prevailed. By the way, "horizon" replaced the native English word "éaggemearc," literally, "eyemark"; that is, "the mark or distance seen by the eye." Our modern word "eye" was once spelled with a 'g' (or two), as its German cousin still is, "Auge."     

Papaya Smoothie

Lots of nutrients and fiber in papayas.


Ingredients (about 4 or 5 servings):

4 cups papaya chunks
1/4 cup honey
1 tablespoon ground turmeric
1 cup yogurt (you can use vanilla yogurt and then leave out the vanilla extract)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups low fat buttermilk

Put all ingredients into a blender. Blend until smooth. It can be served as is, or over ice cubes or chilled in the refrigerator until ready for use. 

WORD HISTORY:
Orient-This word is closely related to "origin," a Latin-derived word borrowed by English. It goes back to Indo European "her(i)," which had the notion, "to move upward, to rise." This gave Latin the verb "oriri," meaning, "to rise, to come into view." The participle form of the verb was "oriens," and it came to be used as a noun to mean, "the rising sun, sunrise;" thus also, "region of the sunrise;" thus, "the east," but because of this general meaning, the word meant different "specifics" to different people, like: (what is now) the Middle East (including parts of North Africa, to some), Asia, Persia, southeastern Europe. This passed to Latin-based Old French as "orient," meaning, "east, Asia." The word was taken to England by the Normans and their descendants, but it was not borrowed by English until about 1400. The verb, originally meaning, "to have something face eastward," was borrowed from the French verb "orienter" (which was derived from the noun) in the first half of the 1700s. A secondary meaning in French, "to get a fix in one's mind about location or direction," has come to be the main meaning in English.  

The Wayans Bros. Episode: The Son of Marlon

First broadcast in early 1998, this is a touching episode, but still with many of the hilarious antics of Shawn and Marlon that we came to expect from them. The little boy will capture your heart and Marlon is superb in this episode. Not that Marlon hasn't been superb before, but that is usually in his comedic role, and this episode has a little more seriousness to it.  

For those who may have never seen an episode of "The Wayans Bros," Shawn and Marlon are brothers who share an apartment in New York City. "Pops" is indeed their "pop," but his nickname is "Pops" to everybody, and he owns a diner on the ground floor of a New York City office building. Shawn owns a newsstand in the same building, Marlon works for him, and Dee is the building security guard. 

Main Cast for this episode:

Marlon.............................. Marlon Wayans
Shawn............................... Shawn Wayans
Pops.................................. John Witherspoon
Dee................................... Anna Maria Horsford
Chrissy............................. Kent Masters-King
Dexter.............................. Jeremy Suarez
Barry................................ Rockmond Dunbar

Shawn arranges for his brother Marlon to meet Chrissy, an attractive young lady, who shares an apartment with Shawn's girlfriend. At their first brief meeting, Marlon finds out Chrissy has a little boy named Dexter. Their first actual date is at Chrissy's apartment, where she tells Marlon her divorce is now final, but that it wasn't a nasty divorce and that Barry, her husband, had been too consumed by his job to devote much time to their family. So the mention of the divorce and some flirtatious remarks leads Marlon to think he's in for a sexy evening. Dexter is asleep, or so Chrissy thinks, but he sneaks out into the living room, and he is chased back to bed by his mother. When Chrissy goes into the kitchen, the persistent little boy returns and tries to get Marlon to play with him, because "I miss my daddy." Marlon comforts the boy and the two begin some horseplay, only to be joined by Chrissy. Dexter is happy.

Dexter and Marlon become quite close, with Dexter planning on Marlon taking him to a "Pow Wow" event. Then one night when Chrissy sends Dexter off to bed, the boy hugs Marlon and says, "Good night, Marlon, I love you." This all alarms Chrissy, who is fearful that Marlon will break up with her and that Dexter will be badly hurt again. Marlon surprises Chrissy when he essentially says the two of them should get married, but she doesn't answer. Marlon tells his brother Shawn that he wants to marry Chrissy and Shawn is skeptical that the marriage would work. It turns out, Marlon doesn't even know Chrissy's last name. Shawn advises Marlon to actually get to know Chrissy better by going out with her without Dexter. Shawn offers to look after the boy while they're out.

While Shawn has his hands full playing with Dexter (he often gets the boy's name wrong, as Lester and Chester), Marlon and Chrissy stop in a little place to eat. Marlon only shows how little he knows about Chrissy when he orders her a hamburger, only to learn Chrissy is a vegetarian, or maybe he doesn't learn that, because when she tells Marlon she's a vegetarian, Marlon says, "I'm a Capricorn." Hahaha!  Marlon also expresses a desire for them to have lots of kids, but Chrissy tells him she wants to pursue her career, which leads Chrissy to bluntly tell Marlon that the only thing they share in common is a love for Dexter and that she can't marry Marlon. Marlon tells her the boy needs a father, but Chrissy replies, "Dexter has a father." The two of them part.

The next day is the day of the "Pow Wow" event for Dexter and Marlon shows up at Chrissy's apartment. Shawn is there to see his girlfriend and he is shocked to see Marlon. Chrissy comes into the room and she tells Marlon she thought he would not be taking Dexter to the "Pow Wow." Marlon tells her he got a replacement and he opens the door, and in comes Barry, Dexter's father. He speaks to Chrissy and tells her that Marlon contacted him about the "Pow Wow" for Dexter, and that he doesn't want the boy going without his father. Dexter enters the room, sees his dad and runs to him. The two say how they have missed one another, and Barry tells Dexter that he's there to take him to the "Pow Wow," and that he will be around more often for other activities. As perhaps only a child can do, Dexter asks his dad if his mother can come too. This makes for an awkward moment, but Barry says, "Sure," and he carries Dexter over to his mother as she agrees and says, "I'd love that." The three hug and then head for the door to go to the "Pow Wow," with Barry thanking Marlon. Shawn tells his brother, "That was really big of you," but Marlon is feeling down. Just then the door opens and in comes Dexter and he goes right to Marlon to thank him. He asks if Marlon will come along too, but Marlon naturally declines, but he does tell Dexter he'll walk him to the car. 

Photo is of the 2019 Warner Home Video/Warner Archive Collection 4th Season DVD set

WORD HISTORY:
Cartridge-This word is closely related to "card" and to "chart," two words borrowed by English by way of French, which had them from Latin, which had them from Greek. The modern English rendering of the second part of the word is deceiving, as it is NOT related to "ridge," a word from the Germanic roots of English. The ultimate origin of the word is perhaps Arabic or Egyptian, but transliterated Ancient Greek had "khartes," which meant, "papyrus." Latin borrowed this from Greek as, "charta," meaning, "piece of paper, paper with writing, map (paper with a diagram)." This gave Italian "cartuccia," meaning, "piece of paper," which then produced, "cartoccia," "a roll of paper, a scroll." French then borrowed the word as "cartouche," meaning, "decorative or ornamental paper with rolled edges," and the idea of the "rolled paper" began the word's use for "gunpowder rolled up in paper for a firearm (pistol?)" (later expanded in meaning for metal coverings of bullets/shells). English borrowed the word in the latter part of the 1500s, but seemingly with a misunderstanding of its pronunciation right from the start, with it rendered as "cartage," but by the 1600s the spelling was altered further to the modern "cartridge" (thus you see why it is not related to "ridge"). The word also gradually took on the expanded meaning, "containers to hold liquid or dry material that can be inserted into a device or easily removed therefrom." 

Swabian German Potato Salad: Schwäbischer Kartoffelsalat

Potatoes came from South America and they originally were taken to Europe by the Spanish in the 1500s, when Spain was in the process of colonizing the potato growing areas of South America. Lots of stories I've heard over the years indicate that some Europeans of those times thought potatoes were poisonous. Obviously, many doctors still work under this assumption, since they say that a baked potato with several pats of butter and a half cup of sour cream can be bad for you. Geez, how bad can one potato be for you? So I guess potatoes can be dangerous (PLEASE don't take me seriously here). 

In the United States, potato salad is often associated with warm weather, picnics or outdoor parties, and the most common form is made with mayonnaise, which means the potato salad is usually refrigerated for some period of time before serving to keep it from spoiling. This mayonnaise-based potato salad came to the United States with immigrants from northern areas of Germany, where potato salad was and still is often made with mayonnaise. Further south in Germany, however, that is not often the case. Swabia has long been a traditional German region the boundaries of which have transcended various political boundaries at any given time. As in more modern times, it is not a governmental unit with specific boundaries, although for several hundred years in the Old German Empire it was a duchy. The dialect there and in neighboring areas of Germany, Switzerland and France is Alemannic German. In this part of southwestern Germany, potato salad is made with a marinade using beef broth as its basis. As you can see, the potato salad has no actual meat in it, but further east, in parts of Bavaria, there is a tendency to add bacon to the potato salad, and it is this bacon seasoned version that I would say most Americans think of as "German potato salad," and there are commercial brands of this "general recipe" available in cans or deli containers here in the United States.      

Ingredients:

2 1/2 pounds potatoes, red or Yukon Gold potatoes are good for this
1 cup chopped white or yellow onion
1 cup hearty beef broth, hot
1 tablespoon mild German mustard
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon ground white pepper
2 to 3 teaspoons salt (you can use less if the broth has high salt content)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon (or 1 heaping teaspoon crumbled dry tarragon)
1 or 2 tablespoons chopped chives 

Cook the potatoes in their skins until they are tender, but still firm and NOT mushy. Let the potatoes cool somewhat, so that you can handle them, then peel and slice them (they should be warm and slice them about 1/3 of an inch thick). Heat the beef broth, chopped onion, mustard, white wine vinegar and sugar until it just begins to bubble, then remove it from the heat (the onion should still have lots of "crunch"; also taste the mixture and see if it needs a little more sugar for your preference). Pour the hot beef broth mixture over the warm potato slices and let the potatoes sit for an hour in the broth, but give it a careful (so as not to break up the potato slices) stir about every 15 to 20 minutes, so that all of the potato slices get a good chance to absorb the flavors. Add the olive oil, ground white pepper, salt, chopped tarragon and chopped chives. Slowly and carefully (again, you don't want to break up the potato slices) mix everything. You can serve the potato salad right away, or refrigerate it, but remove it from the refrigerator 20 to 30 minutes before serving.   

Served with roasted smoked pork shank ...

WORD HISTORY:
Tidings-This word, closely related to "tide" and "time," both from Germanic, goes back to Indo European "di/da," which had the notion of "divide, separate into pieces." This gave its Old Germanic offspring "tidiz," meaning "period of time." This gave Old English (Anglo-Saxon) "tid" (long "i"), meaning "period of time, season, feast or festival time/hour," and later, "religious hour, time of prayer." "Christmastide" still shows the word with one of its original meanings. The word later became "tide," but the ending "e" was pronounced as "eh/ah," as this was before the final "e" was used to show that the interior vowel was long. (In the 1300s, the word came to be used for "rising and falling of the seas," a meaning which seems to have come from close relative Low German "tit/getide," later "Tide," which meant "time," but also had the "rise and fall of the the seas" meaning.) Meanwhile, the meaning "festival and religious time" took on the more general sense, "a happening, an event," and this "seems" to have spawned the verb "tidan,"^ meaning, "to happen." This produced the noun "tidung," meaning, "a happening;" thus also, "news." This seems to have been reinforced and influenced by Old Norse "tiðendi" (=tithendi), its relative, and meaning, "happenings, news," in the true plural sense, and "apparently" that is why English uses "tidings," not just "tiding," anymore. Some relatives in other Germanic languages: German "Zeitung" (newspaper, long ago as "zidunge" meaning "message, announcement"), Low German had "tidinge" (event, message), but it has been replaced in the last couple of centuries by the related "Tieden" (news, newspaper), Dutch has "tijding" (announcement, message), West Frisian "tynge" (message, communication), Icelandic has "tíðindi" (=tithindi, news), Danish/Norwegian "tidende" (newspaper, now an older form), Swedish "tidning" (newspaper).    

^ "Tidan" may well have already existed, and I suspect that it did, but I'm just not sure. 

All In The Family Episode: Archie In The Hospital

"All In The Family" first aired on the CBS television network in January of 1971. The show, developed by producer Norman Lear, dared depict our prejudices, bigotries and hatreds right to our faces, but usually with a comedic twist. The basic format of the show was of middle aged Archie Bunker, a working class white man living in the Queens section of New York City, along with his wife Edith, their daughter Gloria, and Gloria's husband Mike.

This episode from "All in the Family" shows us how preconceived notions about what a person of a particular country is NOT supposed to look like. I would dare say that many of us, myself included, would assume the man on the other side of the partition to be a white Frenchman, and this doesn't make you a racist or a bigot in itself, but the question is, how would we treat another person in a circumstance such as this upon finding out the race or ethnic background of the person? Like another human being? Or would bigotry and racism overcome us, as it did with Archie?   

Episode Cast:

Archie Bunker ............................... Carroll O'Connor
Edith Bunker ................................. Jean Stapleton
Mike Stivic .................................... Rob Reiner
Gloria Bunker Stivic ..................... Sally Struthers
Jean Duval .................................... Roscoe Lee Browne
Lionel Jefferson ............................ Mike Evans
Louise Jefferson ............................ Isabel Sanford
Doctor Spence ............................... John Heffernan
Nurse ............................................. Priscilla Morrill

The episode opens with Archie in bed screaming for Edith because of back pain. Downstairs, Edith, Gloria and Mike are watching television, and Edith yells back to Archie that she'll be there, but she remains focused on the television program, an episode of then popular "Marcus Welby, MD." Gloria offers to go to her father and we then begin to learn that Archie is worried about his job, since he's been off work for several days. A little while later one of the workers calls and tells Archie that everything is fine at work, only causing more stress for Archie, because he isn't even missed at work, and there is a new young guy who is doing a great job, which is scaring middle aged Archie that the young man will replace him as foreman. Mike tries to explain to Archie that his back pain may be psychosomatic and caused more by worry and stress about this young guy taking his job, instead of being caused by a true physical injury. Fearful of showing what may be seen as weakness, Archie rejects Mike's idea. 

Archie's chain smoking doctor comes to the house and tells Archie he wants him in the hospital for tests. The scene shifts to the next day at the hospital where Archie is in a semiprivate room with a dividing partition drawn so that the two patients can't see one another. The other patient is black and the nurse says the partition is broken and can't be opened. Archie hears the other man's French-sounding accent and the two begin talking. The man tells Archie his name is Jean Duval (pronounced like "zawn," and it means "John"). Archie asks if the man is "a Frenchie," and Jean tells him, "Qui, I'm from Martinique."* Jean had a cyst removed from his back, so the two men share a problem in the same part of their anatomies and they get along in their conversation. Louise and Lionel Jefferson come to visit Archie and after about a minute, Jean asks Archie to introduce him "to your family" (for those unaware, the Jeffersons live next door to Archie and they are black).** Archie is rattled by Jean's request and he quickly tries to assure Jean that this is not his family and he tells Lionel to tell Jean this too, which prompts the joking Lionel to say, "Whatever you say, pop!"  Hahaha!  Louise and Lionel leave and in come Edith and Mike. Edith goes around the partition to meet Jean, and she then says to Archie, "It's funny, he don't look French" (said in improper English). Archie tells Edith and Mike that he and Jean haven't seen each other yet, because of the partition, which tells Mike all he needs to know. Mike tells Archie he should try to think of something other than his job and back, which sends Archie writhing in pain. Edith and Mike go to get the doctor.

Archie and Jean begin to talk again, and Archie tells him about his job and about this young 24 year old guy who is now working there, and just the mention of this young guy brings Archie to wince in pain. Jean says, "Do you think he is maybe after your job, Archie?" Now Archie winces again, but he tells Jean that is a good and smart observation. He also tells Jean that when they get out of the hospital, that Jean should come to supper with his wife some night. Jean says that he and Archie "are two ships that pass in the night," but Archie comes back with, "You are my kind of people." Archie tells Jean his address, but Jean cannot find a pencil to write it down. Archie has one and Jean gets out of bed and goes around the partition to Archie's side. This leads to an absolutely hilarious scene, because when Archie looks up, he is startled and says, "Who are you?" Jeans says, "Jean Duval." Archie sits up on the edge of the bed and says, "You said you was a Frenchman." Jean answers, "Qui." Archie says, "You didn't tell me you was black," leading Jean to say, "You didn't tell me you was white." Archie then says, "But white people don't have to go around tellin' other people that." Edith and Mike come back and tell Archie they can't find the doctor. Archie gets up and says he doesn't care, because he's going back to work. Mike says, "See .... psychosomatic!" Jean says to Archie, "Your illness was psychosomatic, but that's not what got you back up on your feet again..... It was that 'old black magic.' "  

* Martinique is an island part of France located in the Caribbean, just as Hawaii is an American state, but located in the Pacific Ocean, some distance from the contiguous United States. The population of Martinique is overwhelmingly of African descent.

** "The Jeffersons" soon was to become a popular separate television series as a spinoff of "All in the Family."

WORD HISTORY:
Anatomy-The first part of this compound word is related, through Indo European, to "on," a word from the Germanic roots of English. This part goes back to Indo European "ano," which meant, "on, upon." This gave transliterated Ancient Greek "aná," meaning, "on, upon, up, up to, upwards." The second part of "anatomy" is related to "epitome," a word borrowed by English from French, which had it from Latin, which had it from Greek. This goes back to Indo European "tem," which had the notion, "to cut, to cleave." This gave transliterated Ancient Greek "témnein," meaning, "to cut, to cut into or through, to butcher." Together these parts gave transliterated Ancient Greek the noun "anatomē," meaning, "dissection," which produced "anatomia" (anatomy). This was borrowed by Latin as "anatomia," and it passed to Latin-based Old French as "anatomie." English borrowed the word in about 1400 from French, but with very likely reinforcement from Latin, and with the meaning, "anatomy, the course of study of the structure of living things;" thus also, "the part of science dealing with the structures of living things," but also, "the structure of living things." The overall idea lying behind the word is, "the use of dissection to study physical structures of living things." The word took on the more general "how things work" as another meaning.   

Black Bean Salad

Black beans were taken to Europe by the Spanish and Portuguese from Central and South America. They are most commonly known in Spanish as "frijoles negros" and as "feijões pretos" in Portuguese. Black beans have remained a moderate to major part of the cuisines of a number of Central and South American cultures, as well as the cuisines of a number of Caribbean islands, including Puerto Rico. 

Ingredients:

2 cans (15 to 16 ounce each) black beans, drained, then rinsed
3/4 cup chopped sweet red pepper
1/3 cup thinly sliced carrot (I use the slicing side of an old vegetable grater)
1/2 cup finely chopped red onion
2/3 cup Feta or Cotija cheese, crumbled
3 tablespoons chopped cilantro (also known as "coriander")
1/2 cup mayonnaise (low fat type is fine, or you can substitute yogurt)
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon ground white pepper (or black pepper)
1 teaspoon salt

Rinse and drain the beans (drain VERY well), then add the beans to a large bowl. Add the chopped red pepper, the thinly sliced carrot, the finely chopped red onion, the crumbled or grated cheese and the cilantro. Mix together well. In a cup or bowl, mix together the mayonnaise, the extra virgin olive oil, the lemon juice, the white pepper and the salt, then add this to the beans and vegetables. Mix well to coat the beans and vegetables. Refrigerate the salad for a minimum of 1 to 2 hours.

WORD HISTORY:

Litter-This word is distantly related to "law," a word from Germanic, but borrowed with the sense, "that which is set down and put in place," from Old Norse, a North Germanic cousin of English; and, to "lair," "lay," and "lie" (the form meaning "to lie down, to sleep or rest in a horizontal position"), all words from the Germanic roots of English. It goes back to Indo European "legh," which meant, "to lie flat, to lie down, to lay;" thus also, "to sleep or rest in a flat position." This gave Latin the noun  "lectus," meaning "bed, couch" (a place to lie down to rest and sleep), and then the derived Latin "lectaria," meaning, "an easily carried bed." This passed to Latin-based Old French as "litière," meaning, "an easily carried bed, a stretcher," but also, "a bed of straw," with this meaning likely from French "lit," meaning "bed," and itself from the above mentioned Latin "lectus." English borrowed the word circa 1300, seemingly from the form "litere," used by French-speaking descendants of the Normans in England. The "straw bed" meaning came to be applied to "animal bedding," with the birth of two or more such animals there from one pregnancy thus acquiring the name "a litter." Further, the use of the straw by animals made it "disposable;" thus, the meaning "debris, refuse" developed in about the mid 1700s, which gradually broadened into "debris strewn about," which spawned the compound "litterbug" around 1950 in American English, "perhaps" patterned after "jitterbug."          

Dominican Fried Cheese: Queso Frito

Fried cheese is not uncommon in a number of cultures, particularly those in of Latino background. In the Dominican Republic, fried cheese is often served as a part of a full, hearty breakfast, along with fried eggs, mashed plantains with sauteed onions and fried salami. Of course, if your doctor hears that you've had more than one such breakfast in the last six months, he or she may need to be admitted to the hospital for 24 hour observation. Other Latino cultures have the same or similar recipes to the one I have here, but there are certainly some variations; such as, the cheese is cut into "sticks" or "cubes" or "rounded into ball shapes," or the cheese pieces are coated in cornstarch, or the cheese pieces are dipped into egg, then into flour or breadcrumbs. Fried cheese from these cultures are served in various ways, like with fruit compotes or mayonnaise-based sauces, just plain, or as part of a larger plate of foods, as noted above in the Dominican Republic. Generally in the Dominican Republic the cheese is simply fried, just as I am presenting here. 
  
The best cheese to use for this simple recipe is "queso blanco," which may also say on the label, "for frying," Spanish="para freír." You don't want cheese that melts easily, and this cheese basically holds its form. It's available in many supermarkets, Latino markets and cheese shops. The brand I buy comes wrapped in a clear plastic cover and it is a 16 ounce rectangular block in shape. 

"I can hear the phone ringing .... Hello, I'd like to speak to my doctor.... What do mean he's in the hospital for observation? ..... He read my post about a Dominican breakfast? ... Damn, I thought I was just joking!... Ah, give him my best wishes."  

Ingredients:

slices of queso blanco, sliced about 1/3 to 1/2 inch thick
olive oil to fully cover the bottom of the skillet
good paper towels to drain the fried cheese

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Fry the cheese slices on both sides until golden brown. Remove the slices from the skillet and drain them on paper towels before serving.

WORD HISTORY:
Class-This word, most commonly used as a noun with a variety of meanings, and with a verb form (in modern usage essentially replaced by the related "to classify"), is related to a number of words, including: "claim" (including in compounds like "exclaim," "proclaim," "reclaim," "disclaim," "datclaim," oh wait, not that last one, although it does seem to follow) and "declare," all Latin-derived words, and also to "haul," a word from the Germanic roots of English, with later reinforcement from French, which had a form from Germanic Frankish. "Class" goes back to Indo European "kele/kehl," which had the notion of "to shout, to cry out." This gave Latin "classis," initially meaning, "the call up of Roman citizenry for military service," then later the more specific, "Roman army, Roman naval forces." Further, "the administrative division of the Roman citizenry into six segments according to their wealth (to determine taxation);" thus also more generally, "a division or separation into groups of the same or similar characteristics." The Latin form passed into Latin-based French as "classe," with similar meanings, but also the more specific, "the call up of men for military service from particular age groups," which "may" have provided the basis for the usage, "students divided by age for schooling." English borrowed the word "about" 1600, primarily with the "student division" meaning, and this led to the rooms used for such divisions of age/grade level or for specific subjects being termed "classes" (singular: "class"), and then later to the rooms being called "classrooms," although German also has "Klassenzimmer" ("classroom," with "Zimmer" being a relative of English "timber") and I'm not sure if the English and German terms developed independently of each other, or if one borrowed the idea from the other (German had also borrowed "Klasse" "about" 1600). Some of the meanings of "class" seem to have come about in English directly from Latin meanings, rather than from French; for instance, "division of society by income, profession," "scientific division of plants and animals into related groupings"), both of which developed in about the mid 1700s. The idea of "high class," or of a person, "with class" (also "classy"), may seem to tie in with the societal division notion, but it "might" actually have started with the student/education meaning, as some university courses were only available to students who had high scholastic achievements; thus, "high class." No question that the "societal division" meaning reinforced the idea.