Everything about Everything

Butterfinger-one of my all time favorite candy bars

2009-03-31T18:16:00.000-07:00

Oh, wow. This picture looks delicious.

So the history of the Butterfinger. It was invented in 1923 by the Curtiss candy company in Chicago. To get a name for the candy bar the company had a contest and they chose (obviously), Butterfinger.
I always wondered if it had anything to do with having 'butterfingers' but it really does. It has to do with the candy bar usually falling apart while your eating it, you know 'butterfingers'. ha ha

Well, there is some more information on Wiki but I find the most intresting thing having to do with the name so I suggest reading Wiki if you want to know more!

Sites:
http://www.butterfinger.com/ the offical site
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butterfinger
http://www.candyexplosion.com/Butterfinger-s/56.htm

Salem Witch Trails-She turned me into a newt, but it got better

2009-03-26T15:34:00.000-07:00

So the first Witch hunt wasn't in Salem but in Charlestown in 1648. A mid-wife was accused of being able to make people go blind and to cause nausea. So they had a 'trial' found her guilty of witchcraft and hung her. When I started to think about it, that wasn't even 500 years ago. I mean seriously, that is a short amount of time. (relatively speaking.)
I mean imagine being accused of practicing 'Witch Craft' and instead of people laughing at your accusers, you get hauled off to a prison and tourted till you confess. Then your drowned, hung (unfortunaly no burning at the stake that had been outlawed in England and the rule was brought over here) etc. It's hard to believe sometimes that some of these people are the 'founders' of America.
Superstition and fear is an extremely powerful thing. So is religious fervor, but to the story at hand, Salem.
In 1692 the Puritans lived outside of Salem (the city) and lived in Salem (the town), they were about six miles away from each other, which back then apparently was a very long way. The Puritans had moved outside of the Port city because the inhabitants were too liberal for them. To escape the trappings of 'evil' they formed their own community.
For the Puritans there was no difference between church and state. The Puritans had a enormous fear of the devil and were constantly at church and always fearful for their eternal soul.
So the witch trials...

In 1692, the minister's daughter, cousin and eventually it came to include some friends, started listening to the servant woman, Tituba. She told them stories of voodoo and black majic. Being curious girls (they ranged from ages 9 to 20) they liked hearing her stories. They knew it was wrong but hey, even back then kids did what their parents told them not to do. Eventually at church the girls started having fits, screaming, throwing stuff etc. Once it was ruled out that anything was physically wrong with them for the Puritans it was only natural to assume that something spiritual was wrong with them.
They hounded the girls until they confessed to listening to Tituba's voodoo stories. The girls didn't stop there though, they also accused Sarah Good and Sarah Osbourne. (Go figure both the Sarah's didn't go to church.)
They held hearings to find out if the woman were witchs or not. Sarah Good completely denounced having anything to do with the girls fits or any sort of witch craft. Tituba was a different story...
Tituba told stories of satan worship and most importantly of a tall man from Boston who made her sign the devil's book with her own blood. She said she saw 9 names in that book, her own, both the Sarah's and 6 others that she couldn't make out...
Welcome superstition and the witch hunt.
Thank you Tituba.
Even though only 6 names were supposedly seen in the book over 200 people were accused of being witchs. 24 people were killed. It was also mostly in part of the original 6 girls, being in the spotlight for once they told lies and spread rumors about witchs and flames the fire way out of proportion.

References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salem_witch_trials
Image Google Images
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0hX8P6QIU8&feature=channel_page watch all 5 parts it's really fascinating.

Manifest Destiny-Sorry Indians God didn't make room for you

2009-03-25T09:38:00.000-07:00

Image Google Images
America moving forward to her destiny!

So I heard the term 'Manifest Destiny' for the first time on my David Cross comedy CD. I had no idea what it meant so I looked it up.
The term was first used by John O'Sullivan in 1845. John was a newspaper editor and said it to refer about the proposed annex of Texas. He wrote it was America's "manifest destiny to overspread the continent."
People interpreted it to be that God had chosen America to expand over the continent and it was their duty to spread civilization where ever they went. So unfortunately 'civilization' didn't mean Native American culture/civilization so once again they got screwed, because God had 'chosen' us to spread and teach everyone that the American way was the only way. (At least on this continent.)
Even though the Louisiana Purchase had already taken place in 1803, the term 'Manifest Destiny' was used later on to describe it. That even though people had been displeased about it at the time that it was 'destiny' that we had purchased it.

Refrences:
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-manifest-destiny.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manifest_destiny

Roanoke-When did we take a wrong turn...

2009-03-24T11:17:00.001-07:00

Image from Google Images

Some quick things to know:

*Roanoke colony was located in modern day North Carolina.
*Sir Walter Raleigh was the financier for the colony
*First English baby born in America, Virgina Dare was born to Roanoke colony

Everybody knows they are the "lost" colony because they disappeared. I'm too tired to write about it so read about it on these sites below.

Information taken from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lost_Colony_of_Roanoke
http://www.nationalcenter.org/ColonyofRoanoke.html
http://nativeamericanfirstnationshistory.suite101.com/article.cfm/croatoan_and_the_mystery_of_roanok

This is why I wish we had phones back then.
Need to leave in a hurry because of an attacking Indian tribe? Send a text.
Being held up in England for three years because of a war with Spain and can't get back with supplies? Send a E-mail.
But all they had was a tree and a knife. I still think they could have left a better message.

Marie Antoinette-Cake anyone?

2009-03-22T07:17:00.000-07:00

Image from Google Images

So did she really say the famous line "Let them eat cake?"

Well, first of all the phrase isn't as derogatory as you think. By French law if normal, everyday bread was sold out the fancy more expensive bread had to be sold at the normal loaf price. So it wasn't like the baker could say "Oh look it's a famine and all I have left is the expensive bread. Too bad."

So when the cheaper bread ran out she said, "Let them eat cake" what she should have said was,"Let them eat cake at the discounted price of bread." but who wants to say that long of a sentence. Some argue that she might have never even said "the cake" phrase at all, it was just a form of political slander from the French Revolutionists.

I think that if Marie had not lived such an extravagant life as queen then the rumor would never been started but it is quite a fitting line for her. She always exceeded her spending budget and had to have all the most popular fashions. I mean hair that is 2 ft high? Come on...

References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie_Antionette#Historical_legacy_and_popular_culture

http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/227600.html

Here is a good article about Marie's hair, which I find hilarious:

http://www.hairboutique.com/tips/tip99010.htm

Kit Kat- break me off a piece of that!

2009-03-21T06:22:00.000-07:00

Image from Google Images

I never would have thought that a candy bar could have an interesting and thought provoking history but when I have spare time on my hands I like looking up random tidbits of information. This is what I found.
Kit Kat was originally called 'Roundtree's chocolate crisp'. It was first introduced in 1935, in the UK. Two years later it was re-named the Kit Kat.
The name 'Kit Kat' came from the 18th literary and political association, of Kit Cat club. The Kit Cat Club got its name from Christopher-"Kit" Catling-"Cat". He owned a pie shop in Shire Lane, the original location were the club met.
The US is the only country that has Hershey's as the license holder of Kit Kat. Everywhere else in the World it is Nestle.
Japan is one country that has taken the Kit Kat to a whole new level. (Which it tries to do with a lot of things) Japanese flavors include: Blueberry cheesecake, Sakura, Melon, Grape, Vanilla and many others. If you are intrested in purchasing any I recommend, JList.com. They have a wide selection of odd Kit Kat flavors.
Anything else you want to know? Let me know and I will find it for you. The sources I used were:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kit_kat
http://www.rooms-hire-locations-lectures-debates.co.uk/kit-cat-kit-kat-club.htm
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Where_did_Kit_Kat_get_its_shape_name_and_flavour_from