FIAMMA'S FUN FACTS FRIDAY

      IN MEMORY OF BLUEFISH

        SHE LOVED THE WATER

I really like water, too, Hamilton and Tom!  It's fun to take a bath with my two rubber turtles, as long as they dont' snap!  Their names are Myrtle and Hurtle.

When it's time for me to get out of the tub, I climb on my bath rug up to my basket.  Do you see the smile on my face?  That water felt good!  A slide would be nice, too!

I found an article published in 1913 on different animals' grooming routines.  I don't think it's changed much, even in almost 100 years! http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=F20B12FA385B13738DDDA00994D8415B838DF1D3

I'm going to "shower" you with some fun facts that aren't "wishy-washy":

• The zorilla (striped polecat) is a skunk-like mammal that lives in Africa and is the smelliest animal on the planet.
• Camel's hair brushes are not made of camel's hair; they were invented by a man named Mr. Camel.
• Dogs do not sweat by salivating; they sweat through the pads of their feet. 
• Spiders were once eaten as a means of treating toothaches.

AND I JUST HAVE TO THROW THIS IN -

The Venus flytrap can eat a whole cheeseburger! 

You have a comment, Tom?

Have you heard of Disney's Bonkers show that ran from 1993-1995?  It stars Bonkers the Bobcat who works in the Hollywood Police Department, but one of the characters is an iguana named Roderick Lizzard.  I found an episode entitled Springtime of the Iguana. http://youtu.be/g4p68tj4ylQ 

WHAT'S MAJOR TOM THINKING ABOUT TODAY?

I need to "brush up" on my HISStory of hygiene, obviously, but I'm with Hamilton on the bathing and brushing routines!  I even asked Charlotte if I smelled okay, and she said I did!  Even though I don't take baths, I do like to get groomed and, boy, does the fur fly!  Here are two of my favorite tools for brushing my coat.  

My coat is very fine and does not matt, but I do have to be careful about getting a sunburn.  In fact, the vet said that with my white coat and blue eyes, I could have been born deaf.  Many people think the reason Dalmatians are used in firehouses is because they are deaf and won't get startled by the loud alarms.  That's not true, so why don't you relax  in a bubble bath and I'll tell you the facts, and hopefully it won't be too spotty! 

It all started way back in the stagecoach days.  As you know, horses are very social animals and don't like to be left alone too long.  Dalmatians are highly compatible and protective of horses.  Not only did the Dalmatians keep the horses company when they weren't working, but they also ran alongside the coach, sometimes for as long as 20 to 30 miles a day!  The drivers also used Dalmatians to prevent horse theft at night. That's how they got the nickname of "coach dogs."  In the firehouses, horses were used to pull the pumper wagons, and Dalmatians would run alongside of those, as well.  During the long waits between fires, Dalmatians would keep the horses company.   

While there are no longer horses at the firehouses, the tradition of having Dalmatians is still carried on because of their intelligence, athletic ability, and companionship.  I'm sure you have seen the movie 101 Dalmatians to know how wonderful these dogs are.  Now it's time to get out of your bath and watch this video of a Dalmation riding a bike!  http://youtu.be/rk7PK-cb3LI

I've got on sunscreen!

TROTTIN' ABOUT TOWN WITH HAIRY TROTTER

This is straight from the horses's mouth - they used horse hair for toothbrushes, too, because they were softer than pig bristles!  Now, I want to show you a cool dental office in Flower Mound for children and adults (that doesn't use animals bristles!)  See the little train on the top of the building, too?

You'll have a big smile on your face when you watch this video from Chip Skylark about shiny teeth: http://youtu.be/xOceXM9Rj3E

This mama duck has all her babies together for a bath:

Do you remember my previous post on the Kentucky Derby?  Well, my cousin Larry Longshot did not win!  The next race is the Preakness Stakes on Saturday, May 21, in Baltimore, Maryland.  This race is called "The Run for the Black-Eyed Susans" because a blanket of Black-Eyed Susans (which is Maryland's state flower) will be placed around the winning horse's neck.  The U.S. Triple Crown consists of three races for three-year-old Thoroughbreds in May and early June of every year - the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes, and the Belmont Stakes.  My other cousin, Carrie Cantwin, is running in the Preakness Stakes this year!

May 21 is also Armed Forces Day, a holiday where citizens come together to thank our military for their patriotic service in support of our country.  Check out this beautiful poster.



HAMMIN' IT UP WITH BLOG HOG HAMILTON

You know what Hamilton thinks about all this bathing and brushing, don't you?

H  O  G  W  A  S  H  !

I learned these facts by "word of mouth" - the first toothbrushes used pig bristles or hair from the neck of wild boars!  The nylon toothbrush like you use today was not invented until 1938, but brushing teeth in the USA did not become routine until after World War II, when American soldiers had to clean their teeth daily!

Now, I've got some really "clean" jokes for you today, like you knew I would:

Q: Which villians steal soap from the tub?

A:  Robber ducks!

Q: Where does a vampire take a bath?

A:  In the bat-room!

Q:  What animal do you look like when you get into a bath?

A:  A little bear!

Q:  What happened to the tiger who took a bath three times a day?

A:  He was spotless!

Q:  What dog loves to take bubble baths?

A:  A shampoodle!

I got away with those jokes by "the skin of my teeth!"  You'll love this video:  Central Park: Salamander's Bubble Counting Song http://youtu.be/bVoWrvjwPhc

DEAR TABBY

DEAR TABBY: I am friends with a girl that is in a marching band like me, but we go to different schools.  I see her at local competitions and we hang out together afterwards.  My problem is that she has a bad body odor and I tried recently to talk to her about it.  She got so mad and now won’t speak to me.  How can I apologize and make it right so we can be friends again?  BIG STINKER IN COWTOWN.

DEAR BIG STINKER: Well, if that story doesn’t beat the band, I don’t know what does!  I mean, I don’t like to toot my own horn, but I think I can drum up a fresh answer for you.  Ba-dum-bum-CHING!  Dear Tabby was on a roll......it is a full moon tonight and all!

Seriously, she may have thought when you told her she had a bad B.O., that you meant she had a bad Band and Orchestra!  Now, you are in a fine kettle of fish and need to explain that it’s not her band that stinks (hopefully), but that she has a hygiene problem.  It sounds as though you really like this young lady, so why don’t you clear the air by writing her a sweet note and telling her you were only trying to help.  Now, march away and clean up your act!

Would you like to see Mr. Bean prepare a bubble bath.  Click HERE

COMING CLEAN by Blog Dog Dan

Blog Dog Dan doesn't want to raise a "stink" per se, but I would like to talk about hygiene today.  It's easy these days to turn on the faucet to take a warm bath (unless you live in the "backwater"), but a long time ago, it was quite a chore to collect water, heat it, and then fill the tub with water. 

Because of this, several people had to use the same bath water before it was thrown out, starting with the man of the house, then all the sons, then the women, and finally the children - last of all the babies.  By then the water was so dirty, you could actually lose someone in it!  This is where the expression "don't throw the baby out with the bath water" came from.  

Also in the early days, teeth brushing was usually rinsing your mouth out with water, wiping a cloth across your teeth, or simply chewing on spices or herbs.  Toothpicks and chewsticks were also used.  Barbers were also "dentists" and could pull out rotting or painful teeth.  Yes, I need a trim and could you pull out this aching molar, please?  

I don't want to go "overboard," but I love the suds, the bubbly, you know, the bath - and so does Charlotte.  She went to Blissful Bark Dog Wash today and got a bath, a perfume spritz, a nail trim, and a new collar (it's a Red Dingo Bucklebone collar)!  

To keep your dog's teeth clean, you can buy bones, brush their teeth at home, or take them to the vet to have this done.  Charlotte likes this big bone for her big teeth!  Look how she can stand on one foot and chew her bone! Why don't you sink your teeth into Tommy the Toothbrush listed on the pages to the right!

Way to go Charlotte - give Chris a high-five!

COOKING IN THE DARK WITH COCHRAN & CHRISTIE

We're still working out the "bugs" and will be posting a delicious recipe tonight!  Here's a hint: It will be a "knockout punch!"

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Christie and I, as you know, have been on this planet a long time.  Fossils show that insects were here 350 million years ago.  In fact, insects outnumber all other animals by 4 to 1.  There are 29 orders of insects; most insect order names end in ptera, which comes from the Greek word pteron, meaning wing. 

Christie is in the order Orthoptera, which includes grasshoppers, locusts, katydids, and crickets.  They are one of the largest orders (20,000 species) of herbivorous insects.  I am in the order Dictyoptera, which includes roaches and mantids.  There are about 6,000 species in this order.  That reminds me, Christie, Arnold Ziffel played cricket with a miniature bat in one episode.  I wonder if a reader could find that episode for us?

Our recipe tonight is not rocket science, folks, and takes a LOT less time than it does for Pluto to orbit the sun (248 years)!  This recipe came from Vickie and it's called Iggy Pop Punch, and yes, it does contain bananas..... 

IGGY POP PUNCH

3 cups sugar

6 cups water

5 bananas

12-oz. can frozen lemonade

46 oz. pineapple juice

46 oz. apricot nectar

2 (2-liter) bottles of ginger ale

Bring sugar and water to a boil for 10 minutes and let cool. In a blender, combine bananas and lemonade together.  In a large container, mix cooled sugar water with lemonade mixture.  Add pineapple juice and apricot nectar.  Freeze punch.  Two hours before serving, put punch in punch bowl and add ginger ale.  I use half of the frozen mixture to about 1/2-3/4 bottle of ginger ale for a regular-sized punch bowl.

ENJOY!

Here's a picture of Vickie's niece, Hayle, helping Vickie's father feed this calf on his farm in North Dakota. 

This little calf is really tugging on that bottle of milk!  I wonder if his name is Oreo?

It must have been finger-lickin' good!