by Debbie Walker

‘What is an apron?’ may sound like a foolish question to some but I assure you there are people who do not know what it is or its purpose. I admit that I did not realize how many styles there were and their purpose. I am again sharing with you.

The apron most of us older folks probably think of is our grandmother’s. However, I am not sure we all appreciated the many jobs it assisted grandmother with. The original purpose was to protect the dress underneath. It was cheaper to make than new dresses, easier to wash. There were times they even used it as a potholder. It helped grandmother to dry a child’s tears and maybe even wipe a nose or two (sorry if you have a weak stomach).

Those aprons were known to carry eggs from the coop possibly even a baby chick or two to warm up in the kitchen. Did you ever hide behind her apron because you were shy with strangers? An apron was used to wipe a brow or at times to warm grandmother’s arms.

Today, can you imagine the germ freaks testing to see how many were on your favorite grandmother’s apron?

There are aprons for many different uses, more than I ever imagined. Waist aprons that cover the body from the waist down and bib aprons that cover the entire front. You find aprons to cover a list of problems and then mostly today you will find the comical ones used for things like barbecuing or home bartending.

The Pinafore is an apron used by girls and women as a decorative garment or as a protective apron, protective applies to most. Have you ever heard of a Tabard? It’s an apron that covers both front and back of body used for bakeries, hospitals, and large retail stores.

I had never heard of the Tabard nor had I ever heard of the Bungalow apron. It looks to me like it was a cross between a house coat (robe) and the house dresses of that time. Today, I believe the Bungalow is called a Lounger.

There are others that are like the ones we have discussed (special occasion, job related, etc.) but they may have been made of leather. The cobblers apron comes to mind.

In the 1650s the apron became part of the law. Women and girls were to dress properly; think of the Puritans. I believe their black dresses and the long white apron was considered proper.

You can find this and more information on the History of Aprons on the internet. It has been an interesting read to me.

The Wandering Nanas are still wandering at this writing. Tonight, we will be going to see the city of Pittsburgh and the night lights around the PNC Park. This has been an amazing trip. Exciting and relaxing at the same time. We will be heading back to Florida this week. Once we are back, I’ll write Chapter 2 of The Wandering Nanas. Nana Dee has been dreaming up other possible trips for us so we may have additional chapters to come.

I really would like to hear from you and your apron memories. Contact me at dwdaffy@yahoo.com. Hope you have enjoyed the read. Don’t forget we are on line as well. Thank you for reading!

by Debbie Walker

Being from Maine we are accustomed to some hard to pronounce names of towns, rivers, etc., due to the Native American historical names as are many other states residents. Yesterday we came across some other ‘uncommon’ names. What follows are ones I found last night on the internet:

The name that started my search is the little town of Two Egg, Florida. It has about 1,100 two-person households. Two Egg had a store where folks would come and trade farm products for other foods such as “two eggs worth of sugar” could make the difference of surviving or not.

The history is on the computer as will be the others you will see here.

How about Soda Springs, Idaho? The name comes from having many carbonated springs in the area. Just imagine, you get to go to the creek to get your soda fix for the day! Wonder if Pepsi or Coke ever investigated this.

Cut and Shoot, Texas – The name refers to a confrontation that took place in 1912 and almost came to violence.

Hooker, Oklahoma, was named for the man, a ranch foreman named John “Hooker” Threlkeld. Some residents like to say, “It is a location, not a vocation.”

Screamer, Alabama. One version of the name is they could have been referring to the sounds of the wood’s animals at night.

No Name, Colorado. It was meant to be a temporary solution but became a thing of pride. It’s population of about 200 people opted to keep the name. It is located near No Name tunnels, No Name Creek and the No Name hiking trail.

Corner Ketch, Delaware. It appears to have been named for a local rough and tumble bar. The drinkers were so quarrelsome that the residents would warn strangers, “They’ll ketch ye at the corner.”

Slickpoo, Idaho. It barely qualifies as a town but was once a bustling village. It was gifted to the folks by landowner Josiah Slickpoo.

Bugtussle, Kentucky. This one surprised me. I had heard of it but thought it was just someone’s funny idea of a name. Maybe it really was but there is a story. They say years ago when someone brought in workers for the harvest they would sleep in the barn – on hay that was infested with Doodlebugs. It is said the workers stayed so long that the bugs grew big enough to “tussle” for the prime napping spots.

Maine even has a spot in the long list of funny names. Burnt Porcupine is the name of a sister island to Bald Porcupine, Long Porcupine and Sheep Porcupine. They are near Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park.

Hell, Michigan. I had a client (my real estate years) once who came from there! Some rude woman didn’t want us on ‘HER’ road, (it wasn’t hers). She hollered to tell us something about “When Hell Freezes Over.” He quietly told me that ‘Hell, does indeed freeze over but this is the wrong time of the year.’

I am just curious if you will search out some of the funny and bizarre names, there are many more. If you want to share a story with me or have comments just send them to dwdaffy@yahoo.com. Thanks for reading!

by Debbie Walker

I have so many pages of magazines that I have ripped out and saved for “someday.” So, you may think this is Thursday, but guess again, it is Someday!

“Someday” is finally here! Guess what. You know how the clothes dryer tends to steal socks? I know you must have noticed. We are always left with that one sock. You don’t have to throw that lonely sock away. It still has a purpose in life:

It will make a great skillet potholder. Just slip the sock up onto the handle, ta-da the sock has a life!

You can use the now famous sock to protect holiday decorations or…

Fill that single sock with rice, stitch it closed and put a few drops of Lavender Essential Oil in it. You heat it in microwave for one minute. What you now have is a homemade heating pad that will also aid in your falling asleep. You can also put this sock in the freezer for a cold pack.

More Rice (the rice is always uncooked). Would you believe rice can be a room deodorizer? Measure a half cup of rice and 10-20 drops of your favorite Essential Oil. Place in a pretty dish out of the way of children and pets.

Do you have a dog? Take a sock, insert an empty plastic water bottle and close it off. Your dog will have hours of fun chewing and crackling the bottle.

Did you know you can use hair conditioner for a moisturizing body cream, use it when you shave your legs, use to remove make-up? Use your imagination for more uses.

Did you know you can basically un-shrink wool sweaters? Fill a sink with warm water, dissolve one tablespoon of conditioner. Soak for 30 minutes. Allow it to dry on a rack and let me know how it worked out for you.

Have a wart? Cut a small piece of a banana peel and tape it over the wart. Replace it every night for two weeks. Then check and repeat if necessary.

Now this one I have been doing for years. Crayola Chalk – I am not sure what kind of chalk I used but… Put your silverware, silver jewelry, etc. in an enclosed container (I used baggy for my silver jewelry) and add several pieces of chalk. My jewelry has not tarnished, it’s been years!

How about some kitchen remedies for what ails you? You don’t take my word for it. (You might want to check out if these are safe for you with your doctor or pharmacist.)

Backache – Tabasco Pepper Sauce: Massage the hot sauce into your back and sore muscles. There is capsaicin in the sauce. If you feel any burning apply some Colgate (white) toothpaste over the dried tobasco sauce. Do not use this in an open wound.

Feet – Cool Whip: Put a coating of Cool Whip on your feet to soothe. Wait 15 minutes, then rinse clean. The oils moisturize and soften skin. (My mom would have used this in a much different manner! She loved any form of whipped cream!)

Okay, that is enough for now. We’ll do more kitchen remedies at another time. I’m just curious if you found anything you want to try. Contact me at dwdaffy@yahoo.com with any questions or comments. Thanks for reading.

by Debbie Walker

I remember years ago something being said about “When the jackets come off in the spring the bellies start showing,” the pregnant bellies. Since it is about that time of year, it seems appropriate to share some smiles with you.

The information came from my most recent Farmer’s Almanac Newsletter. The article is written by Judy Kneiszel. I have used some of her words and some of my own. I’ll bet you have stories of your own.

Carrying High or Low: Carrying high with a big rounded belly supposedly going to have a girl. Carrying low with a smaller belly is said to be a boy.

Wedding Ring Swing: Tie the mother’s wedding ring to a string, hold it over her belly. The ring swaying back and forth would mean a boy, steady circular motion would be a girl. You can also use a needle and thread.

Baking Soda Test: You use the first pee of the morning. Use a paper cup, add one spoonful of baking soda then add some of the urine. If it fizzes it is said to be a boy. If it stays flat, it’s probably a girl. Bright yellow urine is another sign of a boy. Dull yellow should be a girl.

Heartbeat: No, not the dad’s heartbeat! Above 140 beats a minute is a girl, below that is a boy.

Mother’s Age: Add the mother’s age at conception to the year of conception. If the total is an even number the baby is a girl. Odd number and it is a boy.

Cravings: If mother is craving sweets or citrus, that would be a girl. Salty foods and the woman is having a boy. That would mean if mother is craving pickles and ice cream, I guess that would be twins!

Morning Sickness: If the mom has morning sickness in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy, she’s having a girl (Well that explains my daughter). No morning sickness it’s a boy!

Beauty Steelers: If the mom is getting compliments on her beauty while pregnant, it’s a boy. Otherwise, it is said the girl baby is stealing the mother’s beauty. At any rate while she is pregnant tread lightly, hormonal reflexes might be a bit off!

Cold Feet: If mom has cold feet it might mean the baby is a boy. If the mom’s feet don’t feel any different it’s probably a girl.

Weight Gain: This one is for the dad. If dad gains weight the baby may be a girl. If the father gains weight at same rate as mom, the baby is said to be a boy. (Or dad is sympathetic.)

Now if you know some different tests I would love to know what they are. Please share. Don’t forget Mothers Day is May 12 and she deserves some spoiling. It is easy to make mom feel special. Spend some special time with her. Don’t forget an aunt, remember your grandmother, too. You can’t go wrong, spend some special time with them. If you are doing a gift put some thought into what they would really like.

I’m just curious if you found your tests were correct. Let me know and I will pass it on in a future column. Contact me at dwdaffy@yahoo.com. Thanks for reading!

by Debbie Walker

Last week I wrote about an area north of where I live in Florida. It was Panama City Beach and that area was devastated by hurricane Michael in October 2018. The damage from this storm has been estimated at $25.1 billion dollars. Some readers were curious why I would want to live in Florida and go through hurricanes. I am prepared to answer that question.

My area of Florida is considered to be Central West Coast. We are about 90 miles north of Tampa. I lived here for 30 years before I went back to Maine for a few years. What will follow is the information that was passed on to me in the first couple of years that I was here:

I knew nothing about Florida when I moved here in September 1984. My first hurricane experience was quite the lesson. I lived in a mobile home and came home to the evening news announcing the evacuation rules. It said that anyone in Citrus County in a mobile home needed to evacuate to somewhere high and dry.

After we heard the alert, we went out and cleaned up anything that could fly with the wind. About that time my boss arrived and said we ought to come to her house. She had a concrete block house, quite a bit stronger than a mobile.

While at her house with native Floridians, I got an education. Citrus County is bordered on the west side by the Gulf of Mexico. The hurricane was spinning and stalled in the gulf. It was out there for a couple of days. It was said we would be a direct hit. The natives said, ‘Absolutely not just watch and see.’ Just as the natives said, when the hurricane started moving again, it left us without much more than some winds and rain.

That night they explained to me there really wasn’t much of a problem unless your home was built on the water, a higher tide than usual would be the issue there. Occasionally, Citrus would get some high winds but sometimes we get that in an afternoon electrical storm.

Hurricanes prefer to travel in warm waters and low elevations. We have seven spring (cold water) fed rivers that feed cold water out into the gulf and we have some of the highest elevations in Florida. If we ever go under water, they will be using scuba divers in Mickey Land. Hurricanes usually hit south of us in Tampa (built primarily under sea level!) and bubble out around us north to Cedar Key.

We also have about a 30-mile shallow shelf of land under our section of the gulf. It gets deeper about a foot a mile. (It’s not the best place to plan on deep water fishing or diving.) This is also said to be a possible reason for the detouring storms.

Proof of our good fortune are that the tiny islands off our coast are still here. In other coastal areas the wind and flooding have eroded their islands. Okay, so I learned this stuff from the natives but in the past 30-plus years they appear to have been right. I do still believe in evacuations to be on the safe side.

I am not just curious about why I appreciate my area. I could go on all night with neat things about Citrus County, Florida, just ask me. Send your comments or questions to dwdaffy@yahoo.com or call the office and leave a message if you ‘don’t do computers’. Thanks for reading.