Marilyn's Photos - Sep 18 2026 - American Muffins

 

I stumbled upon an article with the top picks for pastry shops in Paris.  The pictures are divine. And most of the pastry shops have yummy-looking things.  And then there's a few weird things thrown in.  This one particularly: would you crave an American-style muffin in Paris? What would Gene Kelly answer to this question? Muffins originated in Wales, and migrated to England.  They were originally food for the poor, made from leftover stale bread, biscuit dough, boiled and mashed potatoes.  A new dough was then made and fried on a large hot griddle in rings to keep the muffins shape.  This was a savoury muffin in which the English version used yeast.   Supposedly, the recipe made its way to America where baking powder became the rising agent. Cookbooks in the late 1800s had muffin recipes.  Creamed butter, milk, sugar and flour are the basics. I don't see this as a migration at all.  Others say the American muffin was invented by Samuel Bath Thomas in 1880.  By the time the Fannie Farmer Cookbook was published, there were recipes for quick bread muffins and English muffins.   Of course, what happened in the 1950s is that muffins became industrially commercialized.  And I assume that's when all the modifications came about - corn syrup, guar gum, and modified starches. So a long list of French pastry shops with flaky buttery textures filled with pastry cream and topped with chocolate interrupted with an American-style muffin bakery? I guess that would appeal to the tourists reading an article and looking for something to remind them of home.  Paris has over 1,200 traditional bakeries and patisseries.  Toronto has dozens. Paris' are ubiquitous.  Toronto's are scattered.  Toronto patisseries don't sell muffins.  Paris patisseries do - they are called 'le muffin" or as "Gamme Americaine" and treat them as a trendy, imported specialty, putting them next to cookies, brownies and donuts.   Read this interesting story by Marcy Goldman on her American Muffin Odyssey HERE.  Here's an example of Paris-style pastries below. And here's the Old Post Bakery in Beamsville - a Dutch specialty bakery. It seems to me there are no muffins in there at all. Pastries galore. Read past POTD's at my Blog: http://blog.marilyncornwell.com Purchase at: FAA - marilyncornwell.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.com

Marilyn's Photos - Sep 17 2026 - Bard Behaviour

 

Whenever we see the word "bard", it is William Shakespeare who comes to mind.  It became his "Honorary Title".  At its simplest, it means poet.  But there is nothing simple about this person having this title. The full title he was known by was "The Bard of Avon".  Another title was "The Sweet Swan of Avon."  Ben Jonson, his contemporary, gave him this title.  He is known as England's "National Poet".  And then known as "The Poet".  That is meant to denote him as the preeminent writer of his era.   And there's a derogatory title of "An Upstart Crow" which jealous playwright Robert Greene gave him.   Not related at all is the expression called "Bard Behaviour" - it was the name of the study of emotional responses by physiologist Philip Bard in1928.    The tradition of bards goes back to ancient times, and were documented in Greece and Rome. But the use as a title seems to have settled on Shakespeare.   Maybe because the designation lived on in medieval Ireland, Wales, Scotland and Brittany where the tradition of a bard giving praise to and satirizing rulers was essential to a poet's work.   Critics studied his work over time and in the post-17th century there was a cultural shift that elevated him from a popular Elizabethan playwright to a global literary icon. Then the romantic era critics and writers elevated him to "prophetic " status. The term bardolatry - excessive admiration of Shakespeare - came in fashion then.  I find that a humorous expression - it is in good company with idolatry and lordolatry. And then many words without the "d" follow along with "olatry" as an ending - zoolatry, geolatry, monolatry, autolatry.  That last one is worship of oneself.   That word makes me think that there might be a direct line into autocracy.   But enough of that - it leads into politics, doesn't it?  Today we get to celebrate William Shakespeare, considered the greatest poet of all time.  How does that rank with Homer who is referred to as the "king of all poets"?  They are considered equal and different.  Sounds like a perfect compromise.   Here's the gazebo in the Shakespeare Garden in Stratford, ON.  Read past POTD's at my Blog: http://blog.marilyncornwell.com Purchase at: FAA - marilyncornwell.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.com

Marilyh's Photos - Sep 16 2026 - Poison Ivy in Autumn

 

A few Sumac leaves are turning crimson orange.  There is a wonderful grove of them on Bartlett at the QEW where I can easily take pictures.  Well, there are lots of places in Niagara where one can capture the fiery colours that say Autumn.  I've become aware of another fiery crimson plant over the years -  Poison Ivy.  You don't notice it in the summer in the grassy banks along the roadsides.  But come Autumn and there they are - clear as anything.     The expression to remember is: Leaves of three?  Let them be!  There seem to be lots of leaves of three to me, so what else would we consider? There are more rhyming expressions to help with the identification of poison ivy:  "Longer middle stem; stay away from them." -- the middle leaflet has a long stem while the two side leaflets attach almost directly. "Ragged rope, don't be a dope!" Poison ivy vines on trees have a furry, "raggy" or ragged appearance. "Berries white, run in fright" and "Berries white, danger in sight." "Red leaflets in the spring, it's a dangerous thing." -- new leaflets sometimes are red in the spring. Later, in the summer, the leaflets are green -- while in autumn they can be reddish-orange. "Side leaflets like mittens, will itch like the dickens." This refers to the shape of some poison ivy leaves, where each of the two side leaflets has a notch that makes the leaflet look like a mitten with a "thumb." (Caution:all parts of the plant can cause itching, not just these leaves.) Here's what's coming in the next few weeks in Sumacs. Read past POTD's at my Blog: http://blog.marilyncornwell.com Purchase at: FAA - marilyncornwell.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.com

Marilyn's Photos - Sep 15 2026 - Things Dogs Don't Do

 

These are cute dog jokes for kids.  What is the difference between a pet tree and a pet bark.   The pet tree has a quieter bark. Why do dogs cross the road? To get to the barking lot. What do you call a boy dog who is getting old? Grandpaw. When is a black dog not a black dog? When he's a greyhound. Wy did the snowman name his dog Frost? Because Frost bites. What about a dog jokes for adults? My girlfriend's dog died, so to cheer her up I ent out and got her an identical one.   She was mad and asked:  "What am I going to do with two dead dogs? My daughter asked me if I had seen the dog bowl. I said, “No, I didn’t even know he could.” This morning I saw my neighbour talking to her cat. It was obvious the poor woman thought the cat understood her. When I got home I told my dog… we laughed a lot. This one's a toss-up: I asked my dog what’s two minus two. He said nothing. Our evening temperatures are dropping, and it got me thinking about Autumn moon pictures.  Read past POTD's at my Blog: http://blog.marilyncornwell.com Purchase at: FAA - marilyncornwell.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.com

Marilyn's Photos - Sep 14 2026 - Red Flags

 

Red flags.  These are headlines of things to look out for.  Never buy bananas when you see these red flags.  But there aren't any red flags anymore.   Red flags in the early 1600s signalled naval ships and military forces were ready for battle, or to indicate no mercy would be given.  By the lates 1700s they warned of environmental hazards like floods.  Later, railways and roadways used red flags as signals.  Then red flags were a symbol for left-wing politics, socialism and communism in the mid-1800s with the French Revolution.  And then?  It transitioned into an everyday expression.  A warning sign, hidden danger, or unacceptable behaviour. In a banana?  A dull, grayish, or smoky peel on green bananas is a warning sign that they have been in freezing or near-freezing temperatures during transport.  Green bananas won't ripen normally. That's bananas. As red flags entered the social realm, they really took off There are all kinds of "red flag" behaviours - you can go to bored panda or reddit to get a lengthy and emotional discussion of what some red flags are in every day life. As I checked out a few, some of them sounded like pet peeves.  But the supposed difference is that a red flag is a serious warning sign of toxic or abusive behaviour, while a pet peeve is simply a minor, annoying habit that irritates you (toilet set up or down.)  There seems to be a lot of advice happening whichever way one experiences things like toilet sets up or down. I guess the historical roots of red flags continue - serious things like wars and floods.  It is that expression "in love or war".  So when it comes to love, it is like war, with lots of red flag jokes: Forgetting the birthday is a red flag. Eating someone else's cake is a bigger red flag. Blowing out someone else's candles is a giant red flag. Saying you are "29 again" is a classic red flag. Giving yourself the biggest slice is very suspicious. Here's a corner scene at the Watering Can.  You can shovel those red flags into the red box. Read past POTD's at my Blog: http://blog.marilyncornwell.com Purchase at: FAA - marilyncornwell.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.com