Sylvia Shults's Blog, page 56

Today I Learned …

How do you make a proper cup of tea with milk? Do you brew the tea first, then add the milk, or do you put a bit of milk in the cup and then pour in the tea? The Queen of England prefers to fill the cup with tea, then add milk to the preferred amount. (For the record, so do I.) But it turns out there’s a reason she does it in this order. According the the British news site Express, “In the 18th century, English potter Josiah Spode decided china tea cups should be made using animal bone to ensure they didn’t crack under intense heat. From then on, Royals and the elite would pour the tea in first to celebrate their expensive china and demonstrate status, whilst people of lower classes would have to keep putting milk in first to stop their cheaper crockery from cracking.”

Lights Out: Bonnie Springs Ranch

Outside the bustle of Las Vegas is rustic, charming Bonnie Springs Ranch. There are ducks and peacocks roaming the grounds, a petting zoo, trail rides, a great restaurant — and there are ghosts. There are enough spirits there that Ghost Adventures came for a look. And so did I! Enjoy this visit to haunted Bonnie Springs Ranch. https://youtu.be/j38e15tP7kM

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Today I Learned …

The English-speaking world didn’t have a word for “shark” until just 500 years ago. The word shark derives from the Mayan word xoc, and first appeared in the 16th century. For one hundred years prior to that, English speakers used the Spanish word tiburon, which in turn was borrowed from the Carib Indians. The reason is thought to be because, whereas large sharks were known to the seafaring Greeks and Romans, medieval Europeans rarely, if ever, encountered the beasts. They only fished close to shore, or in rivers and streams. It was only when European explorers reached the American tropics that sharks, and the fear of them, entered the European psyche. (From Fish That Fake Orgasms and Other Zoological Curiosities, by Matt Walker.)

Lights Out: Skinwalkers

Skinwalkers are creepy monsters of the American Southwest. Join me on a trail ride at Bonnie Springs Ranch, as the trail boss shares his true skinwalker story with me. https://youtu.be/dQphuW6lf8s

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The Twelve Nightmares of Christmas, Day 12: Christmas Eve! Today I Learned …

On Christmas Eve, Norwegians hide all the brooms in the house to prevent witches and mischievous spirits from stealing them and going for a joyride.

A reindeer’s eyes change color according to the seasons. They’re gold during the summer, and blue in winter.

More than three-quarters of Americans eat their candy canes from the straight end first.

On Christmas Eve, at Wawel Cathedral in Krakow, Poland, all of the dead kings of Poland gather in the crypts underneath the cathedral, to celebrate the holy day together. Eerie music drifts from the burial vaults, and shadows dart among the tombs. At Wawel Cathedral, even the dead celebrate Christmas.

And the song Silent Night is 200 years old today. It was first performed on Christmas Eve in 1818, at St. Nicholas Church in Oberndorf in Austria.

Merry Christmas, everyone! Go on over to Weird Darkness (www.weirddarkness.com) and wish Darren Marlar a merry Christmas too!

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The Twelve Nightmares of Christmas, Day 11: Lights Out, Christmas 2018

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It’s time, it’s time! Here comes another brand-new edition of Lights Out, your virtual campfire. Enjoy stories of haunted Clet Hall in New York, the story of a poltergeist from 1867, and the eerie tale of the Veiled Ghost of Highgate in 18th century London. https://youtu.be/BvAANf27Eb4

What’s going on today over at Weird Darkness? Why don’t you pop on over to www.weirddarkness.com and find out?

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The Twelve Nightmares of Christmas, Day 10: Ghost Stories!

Here is a wonderful link to an article on Smithsonian Magazine’s website, that encourages us all to share ghost stories at Christmas, not just save them for Halloween.

And here’s a wonderful little tale I found, quite by accident, in the December 2018 issue of Reader’s Digest. “My stepfather, Marlin, bought a dancing Christmas tree in the mid-2000s as a gimmick decoration. Marlin passed away in 2014, and my sister, Stacy, took possession of the tree. Stacy got engaged to her longtime boyfriend on Thanksgiving night. The tree was unpacked, but it had no batteries. Later that evening, with all the ladies sitting around talking, the tree lit up and started to dance. The empty battery pack was in hand, and the only conclusion we could reach was that Marlin was sending his blessing and dancing a jig.” (Norman Powers, Sheffield, Alabama)

Speaking of Christmas ghost stories, tune in tomorrow for the Christmas 2018 edition of Lights Out, your virtual campfire. (And since you’re on the Interwebs anyway, why not swing over to http://www.weirddarkness.com and pay Darren Marlar a visit? He’s got loads of fun stuff going on for the holidays too.)

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The Twelve Nightmares of Christmas, Day 9: Io Saturnalia!

It’s interesting that all of these wonderful festivals of light — Christmas, Hanukah, Kwanzaa, Saturnalia — happen in the darkest time of the year. It’s as if our ancestors realized that everyone needs a good pick-me-up when the days are short and the nights are long, and cold.

As for me, I’ve started celebrating the Winter Solstice, which this year, falls on December 21, which is today. I find it a good time to reflect in the year that’s just passed, and to make plans for the coming year. Plus I have an excuse to have a bonfire in the backyard in the middle of winter, so I’ve got that going for me.

I’ve already stopped at the Christmas tree stand in town and picked up a tree end for a Yule log. And I’ve started to plan the refreshments for my celebration. (It’s just going to be me out there, I’m sure, but hey, if you’re going to celebrate, I feel you should do it up right.)

One of the things I’m planning on is this lovely festive braided bread. Note: the pictures are from the recipe I got out of the newspaper, which called for Nutella as the filling. For Solstice, I’m going to use apricot jam for the filling, as that just reminds me of sunlight and warmth.)

You’ll need: 3 or 4 cans of crescent roll dough, at room temperature; 2/3 c Nutella (or apricot jam); 1 1/2 t cinnamon; 1/2 c mini chocolate chips; 1/4 c powdered sugar; 1 T milk.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl, mix together the Nutella and cinnamon (or just plop some apricot jam in a bowl and stir it to get it to spreadiness. You could also probably sprinkle some cinnamon into the apricot jam, because why not?).

Form each can of crescent roll dough into a ball. Place on a lightly-floured board and roll into a circle. (If dough shrinks up, let rest 15 minutes.)

Place one dough circle on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Gently spread one-third (or one-half, if using three dough circles) of the chocolate mixture over the dough, going up to 1/2 inch of the edge; sprinkle with one-third (or one-half) of the chocolate chips. Place another dough round on top, and repeat the process. End with a dough circle on top.

Now comes the fun part. Put a small glass in the middle, and make cuts all around the edges of the dough. It helps to make four cuts at east, west, north, and south, then cut each of those in half, and each of THOSE in half, until you have sixteen sections.

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Remove the glass. Take two sections that are next to each other and twist away from each other two times, then pinch ends to seal. Repeat with remaining pairs of triangles.

[image error]It will look really cool when you’re done, I promise. Here’s the one I made today:

[image error]The directions say to bake for 40 minutes, but this was smelling and looking done at 30 minutes, so keep a good eye on it. When it’s done, make drizzle frosting with the powdered sugar and milk, and slather it on there so it looks pretty. And you’re done!

[image error]I made this one for a holiday get-together. I can’t wait to make one for Solstice (or Saturnalia, because I’m a Classics dork from WAY back) with apricot filling. If you’re lucky, I’ll even share!

And here’s a little something extra: a link to the Christmas show I did with Jim Harold, host of Ghost Insight. Enjoy! https://jimharold.com/category/the-paranormal-podcast/

 

The Twelve Nightmares of Christmas, Day 8: Throwback Thursday

It’s Throwback Thursday, so let’s get in the WABAC machine and travel back to 2017, for the Christmas episode of Lights Out. Enjoy! And stop by Weird Darkness for more holiday horrors! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I1o74O6A-aw&t=8s

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The Twelve Nightmares of Christmas, Day 7: Monsters of Christmas

You better watch out, you better not cry … because Ask a Mortician is here to school you on some of my favorite monsters of Christmas. Yay! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdX3BqF1s9Y&t=8s 

And speaking of monsters, go check out what’s going on over at Weird Darkness! You! Yes, you! Go on! Shoo![image error]