Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2020 - 44

The 2020 Blue Ridge Country almanac
Notes, Recipes, Garden Hints, Old Saws, Factoids, Weather, Regional Notes and Art by GINNY NEIL
Months, Skywatch, Climate Data and Events compiled by JENNA NOVOSEL

jan MONTH AT A GLANCE
Day of Day of Day of Ç
Mo Year Week Age

ˆ OLD SAWS
Can you translate these old saws?
A multitude of culinary experts bodes ill for the
reduced stock.
Expertly initiated is one of two parts brought to
completion.
Pulchritude is exclusively supra-epidural.
Answers
Too many cooks spoil the broth.
Once begun, soon done.
Beauty is only skin deep.

EVENTS

sunrise sunset

JANUARY ALMANAC

JAN

4, Mountainfilm Festival, Carrollton, GA, cprcad.
myboxoffice.us/program/mountain-film-festival-1063.
10-12, South Carolina International Auto Show,
Greenville Convention Center, Greenville, SC,
southcarolinaautoshow.com.
17-19, West Virginia International Auto Show, Charleston, WV,
10times.com/auto-show-westvirginia
18, Elk Tours at Jenny Wiley State Resort Park, Prestonburg,
KY, kentuckymonthly.com/events/elk-tours-at-jenny-wiley-stateresort-park_53/
23-26, Blowing Rock WinterFest, Blowing Rock, NC, 10times.
com/winterfest-blowingrock
23-26, East Tennesse Fishing Expo, Knoxville, TN, 10times.
com/east-tennessee-fishing-show
26, International Wine Festival, Roanoke, VA, taubmanmuseum.
org/calendar/8902/international-wine-festival

Jan. 5 - sun rises 7:55; sun sets 17:55; length of day 9h 59m
Jan. 12 - sun rises 7:55; sun sets 18:01; length of day 10h 5m
Jan. 19 - sun rises 7:53; sun sets 18:07; length of day 10h 13m
Jan. 26 - sun rises 7:50; sun sets 18:14; length of day 10h 23m

skywatch

	
	

●	New moon-24th
❍	Full moon-10th
)	First quarter-2nd
(	Third quarter-17th
Earth's closest sun approach (perihelion) is Jan. 5.

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7

Significa
New Year's Day
Modern internet invented, 1983
Georgia becomes 4th state, 1788
Alaska becomes the 49th state, 1959

Carl Sandburg born, 1878
Elvis Presley born, 1935
First Civil War shot, 1861
Alexander Hamilton born, 1755
First radio broadcast, 1910
Henry Ford's first assembly line, 1914
Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Birthday

Robert E. Lee born, 1807
Dolly Parton born, 1946
Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Stonewall Jackson born, 1824

First Emmy Awards, 1949
minus 17 degrees F at Calhoun, Ga.,
1940
minus 34 degrees F at Cynthiana,
Ky., 1963
W.C. Fields born, 1880
minus 29 degrees F at Mt. Mitchell,
1917
Roanoke,Va. chartered, 1884

January's full moon is the wolf moon.
ˆ RECIPE
CREAMY PEACH FREEZE

COURTESY VISIT VIRGINIA'S BLUE RIDGE

Ingredients:
1 1 ½ oz. package whipped topping mix
1 16 oz. can sliced peaches, drained.
Directions:
Prepare whipped topping mix according
to package directions. Combine it with the
drained peaches in a blender and blend
until smooth. Spoon into 4 serving dishes;
freeze 2-3 hours or until smooth. Remove
from freezer 5 mins. before serving.

ˆ WEATHER APHORISMS

ˆ REGIONAL NOTES

ˆ KITCHEN

ˆ GARDENING HINTS

ˆ FACTOIDS

What good is the warmth of
summer without the cold of
winter to give it sweetness?
~John Steinbeck

The second largest earth
removal project in U.S.
history is located in Pikeville,
KY. Begun in 1974 and
completed 14 years later,
the cut removed 18 million
cubic yards of earth and was
created to relieve the city
of Pikeville from flooding.
Visitors to the area can view
the cut from an overlook on
Bob Amos drive. 37.4718⁰N,
82.5410⁰W.

Cooking Hints

Recycle your Christmas tree
as garden mulch or prop it
near a bird feeder to provide
extra cover.

If the earth were flat, water
would cover everything in a
layer 2 miles deep.

If snow drifts face north,
spring will be early.
When the wind's from the
east 'tis bad for the beast.

The International Wine
Festival is at the Taubman
Museum, Roanoke,
Virginia, Jan. 26.

44

BLUERIDGECOUNTRY.COM

To keep hot oil from
splattering, sprinkle a little
salt or flour in the pan before
frying.
Instant potatoes are a good
thickener for stews.
Never boil coffee. It brings
out the acid and causes a
bitter taste.
The freshness of eggs can be
tested by placing them in a
large bowl of cold water. If
they float, don't use them.

To remove the salt deposits
that form on clay pots,
combine equal parts white
vinegar, rubbing alcohol and
water in a spray bottle. Apply
the mixture to the pot and
scrub with a plastic brush.
Let the pot dry before you
plant anything in it.

The average American drinks
about 600 sodas a year.
Cranberry is the only Jell-O
flavor that contains real fruit
flavoring.
http://www.BLUERIDGECOUNTRY.COM
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2020

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