Yankee Doodle Dandy

 Holiday Weekend Edition

I cannot think a better time to have a long holiday; The Thing, the innumerable amount of BS in our day-to-day lives, airline travel, gas prices, Detroit Tigers, Fox News – it is time for a break.

Canada Day - The British North America Act came into effect on 1 July 1867, creating the country of Canada with its initial four provinces of Ontario, Québec, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. In June 1868, Governor General Charles Stanley Monck called for a celebration of the anniversary of Confederation on 1 July 1868. While several communities did organize celebrations on this day, the legal status of Dominion Day as a public holiday was uncertain. In May 1869, a bill to make Dominion Day a public holiday was debated in the House of Commons, but it was withdrawn after several members of Parliament voiced objections. A more successful effort, sponsored by Senator Robert Carrall of British Columbia, passed through Parliament in 1879, making Dominion Day a public holiday.

In the decades following the Second World War, several private members’ and government-sponsored bills were proposed to change the name of Dominion Day, but none succeeded. In July 1982, a private member’s bill to change the name to Canada Day was proposed by Vaudreuil MP Hal Herbert. The bill quickly passed through the House of Commons and was ratified by the Senate in the fall.

Independence Day - The Fourth of July—also known as Independence Day or July 4th—has been a federal holiday in the United States since 1941, but the tradition of Independence Day celebrations goes back to the 18th century and the American Revolution. On July 2nd, 1776, the Continental Congress voted in favor of independence, and two days later delegates from the 13 colonies adopted the Declaration of Independence, a historic document drafted by Thomas Jefferson. From 1776 to the present day, July 4th has been celebrated as the birth of American independence, with festivities ranging from fireworks, parades and concerts to more casual family gatherings and barbecues.

When the initial battles in the Revolutionary War broke out in April 1775, few colonists desired complete independence from Great Britain, and those who did were considered radical.

By the middle of the following year, however, many more colonists had come to favor independence, thanks to growing hostility against Britain and the spread of revolutionary sentiments such as those expressed in the bestselling pamphlet “Common Sense,” published by Thomas Paine in early 1776.

On June 7, when the Continental Congress met at the Pennsylvania State House (later Independence Hall) in Philadelphia, the Virginia delegate Richard Henry Lee introduced a motion calling for the colonies’ independence.

Amid heated debate, Congress postponed the vote on Lee’s resolution, but appointed a five-man committee—including Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, John Adams of Massachusetts, Roger Sherman of Connecticut, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania and Robert R. Livingston of New York—to draft a formal statement justifying the break with Great Britain.

On July 2nd, the Continental Congress voted in favor of Lee’s resolution for independence in a near-unanimous vote (the New York delegation abstained, but later voted affirmatively). On that day, John Adams wrote to his wife Abigail that July 2 “will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival” and that the celebration should include “Pomp and Parade…Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other.”

On July 4th, the Continental Congress formally adopted the Declaration of Independence, which had been written largely by Jefferson. Though the vote for actual independence took place on July 2nd, from then on the 4th became the day that was celebrated as the birth of American independence.

The tradition of patriotic celebration became even more widespread after the War of 1812, in which the United States again faced Great Britain. In 1870, the U.S. Congress made July 4th a federal holiday; in 1941, the provision was expanded to grant a paid holiday to all federal employees.

Here in North America this is a “party weekend.

But where to party?

THE BEST BARS - Here a list of favorite Rink Rats watering holes from coast to coast.

-           “Durty Nelly’s Irish Pub”, Halifax, Nova Scotia

-           “Bar Ste-Angéle”, Quebec City, Quebec

-           “Real Sports”, Maple Leaf Square Toronto, Ontario

-           “Beachcomber in Wellfleet”, Wellfleet, Mass.

-           “Barking Dog Saloon”, Potsdam, New York

-           “Salt Shack”, Babylon, New York

-           “The Commissioner”, Brooklyn, New York

-           “Off the Record”, Hays-Adams Hotel Washington DC

-           “Bar Bar”, Savannah, Georgia

-           “Anchor Bar”, Detroit, Michigan

-           “Mitchell Street Pub”, Petoskey, Michigan

-           “The Beach Bar”, Clarklake, Michigan

-           “The Waterfront Café”, Chicago (Berger Park), Illinois

-           “Whiskey Bar”, Denver, Colorado

-           “Heroes & Legends Bar & Grill”, Claremont, California

-           “Frog & Beach Pub”, San Luis Obispo, California

-           ‘Sandbar Sports Grill”, San Diego Mission Beach, California

-           “The Pickle Room”, Santa Barbara, California

-           “Bourbon & Branch”, San Francisco, California

-           “Zig Zag Café”, Seattle Pike Place, Washington

There that should cover your thirst this holiday weekend. Please do not ask me how this writer knows of all these establishments. I will deny it all.

 

MARKET WEEK - It’s the final day of the second quarter, which has been a doozy.

Entering Thursday’s session, the S&P 500 was down more than 15% for the quarter — on pace for its biggest quarterly loss since 2020, when it lost 20%. The Nasdaq Composite was headed for its worst quarter since 2008, losing 21.4%. As for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, it was down more than 10% for the period — on pace for its worst one-quarter decline since 2020.

This quarter’s losses also put the S&P 500 on pace for its worst first half of a year since 1970, falling 19.9%. The benchmark tumbled into a bear market as well — dropping more than 20% from a record set in January.

There are a few, interrelated culprits for this horrible second quarter. One is inflation, which has led the Federal Reserve and other central banks to hike rates at a faster pace than previously expected. The Fed earlier this month hiked rates by 0.75 percentage point — its biggest increase since 1994.

This has led to the second factor, which is increasing fears that the economy will fall into a recession. “The Fed’s commitment to aggressive tightening is slowing economic growth faster than initially expected,” wrote Ned Davis Research’s Veneta Dimitrova and Joseph Kalish wrote in a note. “Although key economic indicators are not yet at recessionary levels, the risk of recession has been pulled forward to end of 2022/early 2023.”

Some on Wall Street are saying we’re already in a recession.  We were wrong on one thing and that was inflation being as sustained as it has been. Supply chain ... Can’t believe it’s taking more than two years and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine of course we couldn’t have seen that. Inflation has been a bigger problem, but it has set us up for deflation.

 

BIRTHDAYS THIS WEEK – Birthday wishes and thoughts this week to Dan Aykroyd (70), Jim Brooks ….he cares about students, Tom Cruise (60), Marcia Godwin ….famous for quotes, Richard Lewis (75), Richard Petty (85).

 

HOLIDAY TRIVIA – RR holiday trivia will separate the real geography nerds from everyone who just relies on Google Maps for everything. We’ll give you two US interstate highways, and you must name the city in which they intersect.

 

90 and 93

80 and 15

35 and 94

25 and 40

70 and 71

Answer at the end of the blog.

 

HOLIDAY WEEKEND RINK RATS COCKTAILS – Some of our preferred holiday beverages.

-           Mello

Over crushed ice: one shot of Ketel One Vodka.

Three-quarters glass of cranberry juice.

Splash of lemonade.

Top with cherry juice.

Stir aggressively. Good night.

 

-           The Walloon

Place a handful (about 10-12) of raspberries in the bottom of a cocktail glass.

Add a teaspoon of honey, a few mint leaves, and a squeeze of lime juice to the glass. (Add more honey if you like sweeter cocktails...up to one tablespoon per cocktail.)

Muddle raspberries until coarsely pureed.

Add 1 1/2-ounce gin (or vodka if you prefer) to each cocktail glass.

Squeeze the juice of one lime into each glass.

Add crushed or cubed ice to the glass.

Top each cocktail with 8 ounces of Vizzy Raspberry Tangerine Hard Seltzer and stir.

Top with mint leaves and lime for garnish. Cheers!

 

-           Safe and Sorry

Remove 2 tablespoons zest from lemons. In a small saucepan, stir together 2 cups sugar, 1 cup water and the lemon zest. Bring to a boil over medium heat; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. Cover and chill lemon syrup 24 hours. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve; discard zest.

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, combine blackberries and the remaining 1/2 cup sugar and 2 tablespoons water. Bring to a boil over medium heat; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, 15 minutes. Press through a food mill on the finest setting or strain through a fine-mesh sieve; discard pulp. Cover and chill syrup at least 1 hour.

Squeeze 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons juice from the zested lemons. In a pitcher, combine lemon juice, the 4 cups water and the lemon syrup. To serve, pour into ice-filled glasses and drizzle with blackberry syrup. Boring but tasty.

 

SUMMER DILEMMA – As summer arrives, the fact that hot dogs come in packs of 10 but hot dog buns only come in packs of eight once again existentially unbalances the barbecue season and life as a whole.

 

OUR FAVORITE HOLIDAY SNACK – Salsa Verde Deviled Eggs

If you know this writer, you know deviled eggs are a food group.

Ingredients

Ingredient Checklist

6 large eggs

¼ cup mayonnaise

3 anchovy fillets, rinsed, patted dry and finely chopped

1 tablespoon finely chopped shallot

1 tablespoon capers, rinsed, drained and chopped

1 ½ teaspoons lemon zest

½ teaspoon Dijon mustard

Freshly ground black pepper

4 teaspoons finely chopped fresh basil

4 teaspoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, plus extra for garnish

Directions

Bring a medium saucepan of water to a rolling boil; reduce heat to a gentle boil. Use a slotted spoon to lower eggs into boiling water. Cook, maintaining a gentle boil, 13 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare a bowl of ice water. Immediately transfer eggs to the ice water; let cool at least 15 minutes.

In a medium bowl, stir together mayonnaise, anchovies, shallot, capers, lemon zest, mustard and a good grind of pepper. Stir in basil and parsley.

Peel shells from eggs. Halve eggs lengthwise; gently remove yolks and transfer to a plate. Mash yolks with the back of a fork; add yolks and 1 teaspoon water to herb mixture and gently combine. Spoon into eggs. Garnish with whole parsley leaves.

 

TOP FIVE – July 4 Holiday Movies

1). John Adams, HBO Series (2008)

2). Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)

3). Independence Day (1996)

4). Jaws (1975)

5). Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)

 

BIG SIXTEEN? - The Big Ten may have just sparked another round of major conference realignment.

USC and UCLA are reportedly planning to leave the Pac-12 – and could do so by 2024, according to The Mercury News.

A deal could finalized by Friday, according to the Action Network, and the Big Ten could add additional schools. The report also noted that other Pac-12 schools could exit — Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado, and Utah — could end up joining the Big 12.

USC and UCLA are two iconic members of the Pac-12, a league that has struggled in recent years to sustain its historic football prowess. The news comes just a year after the Pac-12 brought in George Kliavkoff as the new commissioner.

Big Implications -

The moves could also have major implications for media rights.

The Big Ten has been negotiating a new deal that could be worth $1 billion annually.

With the additions of major brand names like USC and UCLA, the numbers would likely be even higher.

Without schools in the Los Angeles market, the Pac-12 could be at a catastrophic disadvantage at negotiations for media rights, which are up in 2024.

There could be logistical financial concerns, however, as most Big Ten schools are in the Midwest. UCLA and USC would have to contend with significant travel costs. The Big Ten’s easternmost schools are Rutgers, Maryland, and Penn State.

 

ON THIS DATE - Hold your horses — literally. Today marks 370 years since the city of New Amsterdam — about a dozen years away from becoming New York City — got what’s thought to be the first speed limit law in what became the U.S. (or perhaps in North America).

 

ON THIS DATE PART DEUX - President Eisenhower tomorrow 1956 signed act creating Interstate Highway System, at that time called largest public works project in history:

 

THE SWAMI’S HOLIDAY WEEKEND PICKS –

MLB Game of the Week – Saturday 7/2, 4:15 PM (PDT), Fox: San Diego Padres (46-32) vs. Los Angeles Dodgers (47-28). Padres are 2 ½ games back, now they take three of four from the Blue. Padres win this one 6 – 4.

Wimbledon Championship – Continues through July 10, ESPN: Men’s winner – Rafa Nadal, Women’s winner – Simona Halep.

British Grand Prix Formula 1 – Sunday July 3, 65:30 AM (PDT), ESPN: 1). Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes; 2). Max Vestappen, Red Bull; 3). Carlos Sainz, Ferrari.

Season to Date (14 - 9)

 

Next Blog: Figure It Out

Until July 11, 2022, Adios.

Claremont, California

July 1, 2022

#XIII-5-451

 

2,371 words, four-minute read

 

HOLIDAY TRIVIA ANSWER –

90 and 93 - Boston

80 and 15 – Salt Lake City

35 and 94 - Minneapolis

25 and 40 - Albuquerque

70 and 71 – Columbus, Ohio

 

THIS JUST IN – The White House has unveiled it’s official portrait for The Thing.

 

RINK RATS POLL – Ocean or lake?

____ Ocean

____ Lake

 

QUOTE OF THE WEEKEND – “Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone.”  – John Adams

Rink Rats is a blog of weekly observations, predictions and commentary. We welcome your comments and questions. Also participate in our monthly poll. Rink Rats is now viewed in Europe, Canada, South America and the United States.

Posted at Rink Rats The Blog: First Published – May 3, 2010

Our Eleventh Year.

www.rhasserinkrats.blogspot.com