National Champagne Day/National No Interruptions Day

Well here it is folks - the final blog post for 2013, thus concluding our first year of DailyTastyNugget, and a year’s worth of silly National Holidays!! 

Conveniently, today is National Champagne Day, which will be useful, as I need to decompress from this year and get things ready for the 2014 edition of the blog! (Joking – I will not be drinking to prepare for next year!) It is also National No Interruptions Day, which is essential for the same reason as I just joked about. However, with the day I have planned, I won’t have much time to not be interrupted, but I’m quite content with that! So, here we go, one last double-holiday to end this interesting year! Champagne is both a region in France and “a sparkling wine […] following rules that demand secondary fermentation of the wine in the bottle to create carbonation.” 

(Image found at http://www.thorntonwine.com/champagne-facts)

It is believed that the Romans were the first to plant vineyards in this northeastern region of France sometime around the 5^th century (although there is conflicting evidence that suggests it may have taken place earlier than that).  The Champagne region of France was not ideal for making red wine, which created a bit of a rivalry between Burgundy (who were excellent red wine makers, apparently). As a result, Champenois began searching for their own variety of wine, which as we now know today, is none other than champagne. There is a legend that exists that famous champagne-maker Dom Pérignon was the inventor of champagne. However, this is simple untrue as the “oldest recorded sparkling wine is Blanquette de Limoux, which was apparently invented by Benedictine Monks in the Abbey of Saint-Hilaire, near Carcassonne in 1531.” Pérignon, on the other hand, didn’t begin creating his version of champagne until the 1600s. As it was traditionally consumed, today champagne is usually served as a means of indicating celebration of some sort, such as ringing in a new year! 

Now, to avoid any other unforeseen interruptions, lets tackle National No Interruptions Day. As I’m sure you can guess, this is directly related to National Tick Tock Day, in that the purpose of this Day is to remove all interruptions from one’s day in order to complete any remaining tasks required to achieve the goals of the year. And, since my new years resolution was to maintain this blog for an entire year (which this blog post indicates – despite an incredibly unforeseen family emergency). So, without further ado, I shall conclude the 2013 DailyTastyNugget Daily National Holidays theme. But YOU aren’t done yet…you still have to vote on the final Daily Poll of the year! 

Happy New Year to each of my readers! Thank you for sticking with me throughout the year. Don’t forget to check back tomorrow for the newly revised and revamped blog, and to learn the theme for 2014! Be safe! Until next year…

National Bicarbonate of Soda Day/National Bacon Day

Today marks an interesting “double-Holiday” day. It is both National Bicarbonate of Soda Day AND…wait for it…NATIONAL BACON DAY!!! Personally, I think the latter of the two is better than Christmas, but what do I know! Well, let’s do this! 

(Image found at: http://www.denveroffthewagon.com/2013/10/23/bacon-beer-festival-isnt-heaven-enough-now-dinner/)

Sodium bicarbonate, or baking soda as many know it, is “a white solid that is crystalline but often appears as a fine powder. It has a slightly salty, alkaline taste resembling that of washing soda.” 

(Image found at: http://grime-scrubbers.com/uses-for-baking-soda/)

So, there’s not a whole lot to learn about this magical compound, but I can tell you that it was the Ancient Egyptians who first discovered, and therefore used it. They found it useful as a cleaning agent. It was an American duo (no, not Batman and Robin, nor was it Simon and Garfunkel), John Dwight and Austin Church, who, in 1846 are responsible for constructing and operating the very first baking soda factory! From here on, baking soda has become a popular baking ingredient, but also still holds on to it’s cleaning roots. For one, many (including myself) use this product as shampoo. To find other ways to put baking soda to good use, just do a simple search and you’ll find hundreds of links! Now…on to more important business – bacon. Bacon is the only thing you need in life. Okay, so that might not be true, but it is “a meat product prepared from a pig and usually cured.” There are several cuts of bacon, including:

• Side bacon, which comes from the pork belly and is the most common form of bacon in the United States. Also known as streaky bacon.

• Middle bacon, which comes from the side of the pig.

• Back bacon, which comes from the loin of the pig, and has a “ham-like texture.” In the United States, this is known as Canadian Bacon. It is also the most commonly used in the United Kingdom.

• Cottage bacon, comes from the shoulder of the pig. It is also sometimes known as shoulder bacon.

• Jowl bacon - yep! You guessed it, it comes from the cheeks of the pig!

• Slab bacon boasts a high fat content and comes from the side and belly of the pig.  Although it is similar to that which is used for salt pork, they are not the same thing!

(Image found at: http://www.endlesssimmer.com/2010/11/09/three-little-pigs/)

Since the 1980s much of the United States (and pretty much the entre world) has been facing a rather unusual phenomenon known as, “bacon mania.” This is the “passionate bacon enthusiasm in the United States and Canada.” As a result many novelty items (bacon Band-Aids, lip balm, candy canes, t-shirts and so much more), and culinary delights have been created. There are now entire restaurants and cookbooks dedicated to nothing but bacon. And, if you’re ever in Nova Scotia, and in the Halifax area, I recommend the Canadian Bacon Cookhouse!  

(Image found at: https://twitter.com/ashswa/status/343834572024320001)

The views are great and the food is even better, and sometimes, if you’re lucky, you might even catch the staff in a delightful sing-a-long. So, now that you’re in the know of all things bacon and bacon baking soda, vote on the Daily Poll!

National Tick Tock Day

Today is National Tick Tock Day. 

(Image found at: http://www.staceyreid.com/news/?p=7792)

Any guess as to what this means? Well, if you’re yelling out something to the effect of because the year is almost over and there’s only a few days left to complete our 2013 New Year’s Resolutions to your cold and unresponsive computer screen like some sort of crazy old cat lady yelling at her cats, or anyone that happens to walk by, then I’d be inclined to tell you that you, indeed, are correct! 

(Image found at: http://www.conseptllc.com/all-posts/digital-dealer-keynote-w-jay-baer-pt-1/attachment/yelling-at-computer/)

National Tick Tock Day is a day to remind ourselves just how quickly the year has passed, and just how little is left of it. It’s a day to allow us a moment to reflect on where we are as individuals, and see where we are in relation to where we’ve set out to be. I can tell you, I’m nowhere near where I have set out to be, but I’m slowly getting on my way. I’m pretty sure there are very few humans that actually accomplish what they aim to, and even fewer who do it exactly as planned. So, if you are not one of those people, and I’m guessing you aren’t because you’re reading this blog, then don’t be too hard on yourself today, but seriously, you’ve only got 3 days essentially to get what you set out to this year done! One more thing – vote on the Daily Poll!

National Card Playing Day

Happy National Card Playing Day! Today is a day to gather your friends and/or family together and enjoy spending a little more time together playing cards. 

(Image found at: http://www.dva.gov.au/health_and_wellbeing/activities/day_clubs/Pages/index.aspx)

With so many different card games to choose from, this day can be celebrated for hours on end, which, I’m sure is just what everyone is craving right now – a little more family time! But seriously, cards, or any other game, are a great way to have a little fun with those people you love…so long as you have snacks…lots and lots of snacks! Grab a beer (if you’re of age), or a coffee, a bag or two of chips, and your favourite pack of cards and spend to day enjoying endless amounts of fun! But first, don’t forget to vote on the Daily Poll!

National Make Cut Out Snowflakes Day

Oh, how fun! Today is National Make Cut Out Snowflakes Day! 

(Image found at http://www.cncofficesystems.com/blog/diy-paper-snowflakes/)

I remember doing this when I was little. Pretty much a waste of paper, but they are so delightful we can put that aside! This fun craft is super easy, and requires few supplies. All you need is some paper (white or coloured, doesn’t matter), scissors (parent supervision if you’re a small child), glitter and glue if you wish to make them sparkle, and your imagination! You see, the fun thing about today is that, you don’t have to have any artistic abilities whatsoever. All you need is to cut chucks of various shapes and sizes out of the paper, and when you unfold it, like real snowflakes, you’re left with a unique paper version of the wintertime precipitation! So, get your imaginations warmed up, and cut out the most beautiful creations you can think of! If you have time (because we all know how excited you are to get started), why not vote on the Daily Poll?! Click here to do so!