Behold the Pickle

Stoney~ smelt (not schmelt) the fires down here,in the Fox River Valey at Elgin (home of the Elgin Watch Company, the one that made the trains run on time the world over)....and, when it comes to those little pickles that get cut up to make tuna salad eatable....well, you know....and the big pickle spear that rests along side a "Chicago dog"...or  a  cormbeef  samitch  ....I have the thought that the first "pickled foods" were- - UGH! rodents, that had found the apples stashed in caves by the primitives, and that the apples at the bottem had spoiled- - turning to cider vinager, and pickling the rodents, which then became comestables toward the end of a long,hungry weeenter....and, guess what?!?  the food stuff saved the day, allowed them to see Spring, and became a delicacy,eons later...(well, we call it salami,now...)

Did you know:

In the state of Connecticut, in order for a pickle to officially be considered a pickle, it must bounce. Plus, you may not sell a pickle that will fall apart if dropped 12 inches.
In Trenton, New Jersey, it is illegal to throw a bad pickle in the street.
In Rhode Island, it is illegal to throw pickle juice on a trolley.
In some parts of the south, its illegal for women to eat pickles with their feet up on the porch railings!
Pickles were mentioned at least twice in the Bible.
The 57 on the Heinz ketchup bottle represents the number of varieties of pickles the company once had.
Aristotle praised their healing effects.
Julius Caesar made his army eat them, maybe because...
Cleopatras favorite food was pickles. She said they made her beautiful.
John Lennons first girlfriend was named Thelma Pickles.
And our first president George Washington loved pickles.

One of the benefits of immigration into the UK is the proliferation of wierd and wonderful pickles on our supermarket shelves. And strange sausage products. There I was, bemused in the store contemplating a display of assorted pickled proucts, when a couple of Polish ladies came alongside and seemed to know their way around these products. So I asked them and we got talking. And they asked me to reciprocate by explaining strange English/Welsh food. We had great fun and they insisted that I came home with them for lunch to try a selection of these mysterious preserves. O yum, yum, yum. They were equally pleased to be given a Welsh Sunday lunch. We meet frequently for a coffee in town as I enjoy their company and they say I helpa with speeking de Eeenglish.

A. Kirk  - I'm going to stop a Deli on the Lower East side and ask them if their pickles can bounce.  How high should they bounce to be a good pickle? 

I wonder who thought of gerkinsS?  Those mini-pickles that fit on a toothpick?  How does someone decide on the proper size for a pickle?

Dill pickle slices inside a hot grilled cheese.........you have the crunch of the pickle, the softness of the  buttered bread & the melty cheese all together....................mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm......................good day all................

Walking home from school and trying to chose which thing to spend my nickel on in that little deli on the way home:  a pickled onion?  a pickled tomoato? or a regular pickle?  So hard to choose and then stuck for a day before I could choose again.  My favorite has always been the not well done one; my husband wants one that's been there awhile.  So we really miss that old pickle barrel where we could poke around a bit to find just the right one.                                              My father, a lifelong deli counter man (mmmmmmm, miss those sandwiches in the days before cholesterol, fat and calories) would use the juice from the barrel for a cut on his hand from slicing pastrami -- he claimed it was the best remedy; stopped the bleeding, no infection, cleaned it out good.  He seemed impervious to the pain that I felt when he was telling us.                               A.Kirk - welcome.  Interesting stuff.   If you've been following us, you know we like to talk about food and today we get that chance.

Arlo, I hate to disagree but I want a pickle and still want to ride on my motorsickle.
I love those spicy Wickles & I ponder Ambrose's remark-Life - a spiritual pickle preserving the body from decay. I like to pour sweet pickle juice in my bowl of pinto beans and like my dill chips deep fried from time to time.

Pickle right on the pastrami sandwich with the mustard. Sliced pickles in the brisket sandwich. Bebe's grilled cheese and pickle sounds wonderful. and what is this that we northerners hear about Deep Fried Pickles? Gherkins (or cornichons) on liverwurst with stoneground mustard makes it seem like pate. Pickle juice for potato salad. Easing into the fridge with the door ajar for a spear of garlic kosher dill or a handful of bread and butter slices.

Julia -- I imagine the first gherkins were made by people who got stuck with a whole bunch of tiny cucumbers.

Andy-- there really is nothing like a sandwich made by a professional deli counter man.....tasty childhood!

RY--I detect a compadre in the Tunafish is Catfood Club, I too use pickles or relish to ease the pain as it goes down.

When I was pregnant with my first child my husband went out and got me a burger that I wanted at 10PM (NYC)and when I opened the box I burst into tears because THERE WERE NO PICKLES!!! How was I expected to eat a burger without pickles on the side?

Once upon a time, many years ago, in the days before refigerators and freezers, the only way to preseve foods was to pickle things, or make yummy chutneys and sauces to glisten in glass jars on the larder shelf, eggs kept in buckets with isinglass to preserve them, onions and garlic plaited in strings hung from the ceiling, sacks of potatos, carrots, swedes, turnips, barrels of salted green beans, jars of home made jam, barrel of bread-making flour. A few things in tins from the store (Extravegance!) Bottled fruits and sturdy green stuff that would overwinter in the garden. I think our diet was much healthier back then.
Andy~ Saline is a great cure-all and a wonderful antiseptic. Stings like hell, but effective! I know stoics who brush their teeth with salt to keep gum disease at bay.

Shortly after the invention of Sliced Bread, which came, at first, in Wax Paper Bags that we kept closed with a Clothes Pin, in a Bread Box ... a bunch of us kids would stop by Alfred's Deli on the way to the Soccer Field or the Baseball Park, and purchase a Pickle for a Nickel that was the size of a small Football ... It would be rolled up for us in a couple of Beer Wrappers, and tucked into our Ditty Bags, along with our Spikes and Gloves and an extra Ball or two, a Thermos, or even a Mason Jar full of Iced Tea(wrapped in a Gym Towel)  I was the only Yid, growing up in an Italian Neighborhood, and the "Stop" at Alfred's was a serious Dog-Leg in the Route ... but everybody enjoyed the ride and the experience at the Deli and the practice became a Ritual ... Arno Cangelosi provided a marvelous moment of laughter when he ask'd the Shochet, Bernie Bronsky, if he could fix him a Kosher Ham & Cheese on Rye !!! He took the wave of ribbing that follow'd good naturedly, and was ease slightly when I told him that, at least the Laughter and mock jeers were in an Italian Accent ....... By and by, most of the bunch develop'd an appreciation for Kreplach, and many requested their Grandmothers to try and make some at home ... Mama, who said nothing, served them up a meal, with a stern look and one cock'd eyebrow, and set a large dish of Pierogis on the Table ... Mickey Brancusi was known to have remark'd in surprise, "WOW !!!  We been eatin' Kosher all this time !!! ..." I am not sure his Grandmother ever forgave him ... Word has it that she cut Mickey out of her Will ... And of course, when he contested it in Court ... he hired a Jewish Lawyer ... A Real Pickle !!!

bebe; as a grilled cheese aficionado, I will commit to trying your recipe. Of all the combinations, I have found that good ole white Colonial bread, One slice of american and one slice of muenster cheese between the two slices, melt the butter in the pan first (stove top three quarters of the way up) then gently place the sandwich in the melted butter and HOVER over it. I've found that if one turns his/her head even for a second...it burns. When side one is done, place the subject on the plate you are going to eat it on, remove the pan you are using from the heat for a minute or two (so the butter you melt for side two won't burn) and repeat...remembering to HOVER.

Then, get a crunchy Vlassic Dill Pickle and enjoy.

If this seems like a lot of trouble for just one sandwich, keep heart, it's why I always make two at the same time. I'm gonna try your pickle in the grilled cheese.

...oh, and if you are concerned about side one being to cool, I just flip it over one more time to heat it up when side two is done, then enjoy.

I was in Memphis visiting my dad a lot of years ago and he and I went to the Shelby Hotel, where Elvis himself went to eat fried catfish. I tell this because it's where I was introduced to fried dill pickles (coin style, not spears) with ranch dip.

Heaven.

"Holland is home to the world's largest pickle factory. The H.J. Heinz Company has operated the factory at the same location since 1897 and currently processes over 1 million pounds of pickles per day during the green season." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holland,_Michigan ;

Pickle ~

In baseball, a pickle is a play where the offensive player is trapped on the
base path by at least two defensive players between two open bases in an attempt
to reach either base safely.  The offensive player will reverse direction during
the course of the play in his attempt to reach a base safely while the defensive
players will toss the ball back and forth while closing in on the base runner. 
Often a third defensive player will insert himself into the fray to
either protect an open base or close in on the runner for a tag.  I could go
into more detail, but I did not like writing essays then and I do not like
writing essays now.  If I was assigned a 500 word essay in school, I would make
a point of saying everything necessary in 450 words and dare the teacher to give
me an F.  I really don't know why I spend time here.  Maybe I am just waiting
for the opportunity to call somebody Picklepuss.

Ivan ~ chuckling; good post
 
Hazel ~ once again, old remedies work best -- but the pain...........
 
Chef Deb ~ I had them waiting in line in school to trade lunches since my father always made them.  As well, on Friday nights, he would make dinner.  Since the deli he worked in also did catering; his dinners were works of art.  We would sit down to a beautifully organized, aesthetically appealing meal.  When my father was younger, before all of the old age garbage that prevent us from doing things we once took for granted, he was able to reconstruct a turkey after carving it.  It was a sight to see; all put back together again.
 
Back to pickles -- I did, just recently, try fried pickles.  I figured if it's fried, it must be good -- maybe it's an acquired taste.  It just didn't work for me.  I wanted one of Ivan's description; the kind of pickle I remember as a child as well and yes, they did cost a nickel.

A.Kirk--interesting factoids!                Ivan--I'd forgotten about the bread coming in waxed paper and now am once again happy to see that little Sunbeam girl smiling over her shoulder at me--if only in my mind.     I really go in stages with pickles.   Sometimes I just can't get enough...and other times they can sit in jars in the frig just taking up space forever.

Chef Deb and Andy ~ The professional deli
has gone the way of the neighborhood butcher shop.  I'm sure there's one or two
out there somewhere, but damm what a  loss to our culture.  Fresh rye bread your
choice of meat and cheese with a crisp dill pickle.  Did the Deli man wear food
safe rubber gloves?  Hell no.  It would have ruint the taste.
 
IVAN ~ Was Arno kin to Vito? He sold marble and such for terrazzo in Texas. 
 
 

U Hall ~ is the book out yet?

UMMGAWA~ You need  to sort out the EDDIE Preddy Boulibar story and share it with these folk. Remember Pitty Fi (55); Bru row (Brooks Road) etc.

Two crisp dill sandwich slices centered in a PBJ
adds nutritional value and it is goooooooooood...if you like it.
 
Fried pickles dipped in a dressing or sauce of your choosing
in the company of an appropriately cold beverage...what's not to
like?

ANDY Your Dad was an artist, no doubt about it. That re-assembled turkey needs a Maestro to execute properly!

UMMGAWA My exact method (except for the cheese selection)for making grilled cheese sammys especially the look away one second and they burn part!

 

Behold! I have two pickles.

 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIm1A9x85lI
 
I've got nothing else.  I am all
done.

Paoloa ~ Diet, or should I say diiiiiiet *whining* has ruined the our food.  Even when you do find a good deli; usually in New York, it's just not the same.  My father was appalled when he saw that the deli counters in supermarkets precut their meats....arghh! 
 
Dogs would follow my father everywhere -- he had all that grease, fat and meat particles all over his shoes......they went no further than his shoes, licking to their heart's delight.

oh, and what did I do your name?  I was drooling, sorry -  Paolos, Paolos, Paolos

Red's on Oregon makes the best grilled cheese in town. Served in a basket with a dill pickle spear, the pickle juice makes one half tastier than the other.
From our children, I learned to slice a spear into little triangles to be eaten on potato chips. Try it before developing an opinion.
Even the Beauty will eat a bit of pickle that way.

On the car radio this morning, I heard one of those nutrition alarmists say: "Some red sauces have as much fat as alfredo."
I cannot imagine how.

Hey- picklepuss!

Sorry folks, I thought I was finished and then I
stumbled into this video from way back when,
featuring someone y'all know and love and
TMBWITW.
It's funny how some things just fall into
place.
 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e980C7pMKFs

 HEY1?

PAOLOS:  Arno Cangelosi became a Fruit Peddler for the United Fruit Company, in New Orleans until he was Drafted and became a Range Instructor in the Army, teaching FNG's how to shoot ... Only problem he ever had was confusing thr Trainees, by wiping his Finger Prints off the Gun after every Shot ... All the Terazzo/Tile/Stone/Rock Business was handled by, Tony and Fred Pontello, out of their Shop on Heights Blvd., which was actually the House they were both born in and grew up in ... Tony Sr. , their Dad started out as a Stone Mason and Marble Cutter at the turn of the Century, having come to Houston from New York, because he had never seen Coastal Plains, or anything in New York that was Green except Bad Meat and the Patina on the Statue ... He told us he had scour'd Brooklyn, following a stray Dog around, looking for The Tree, but he never found it .......

Whichever way we have pickles ,sliced on a sandwich as a spear along side ,diced and used with the juice i potato salad or just picked out of the jar and eated I really like the little green warty devils.

Paolos, paolos, paolos....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g266Uwp6ZnI

As a rule we have had better luck with whole pickles than with the ripple slices which seem to have been brined in Clubman hair tonic.
I daresay that the Vlasic long slices are crazy good in a sandwich though.

Miss Blue ~ thank you, thank you,  thank you

ANDY ~
If it isn't already sandwiched in your bookshelf, The
Master Butchers Singing Club by Louise Erdrich is a good read.
 
IVAN ~ Vito managed General
Stone in Houston.  I believe the boys out of Jersey, Tampa and Chicago all had a
piece of the operation.  They sold marble, strips, mesh and anything else they
could monopolize.  Good people to know.  After some minor troubles with the
feds, they closed down the Tampa, Texas and Jersey operations.  Vic stayed in
the trade and opened a distribution company of his own in Missouri City.  It's
still operating but he died a while back.  I've got nothing but good things to
say about any member of the Cangelosi family.  It's got nothing to do with
fingerprints.
 
Miss BLUE ~ I have heard that song
time and time again, twice in live performances, and each time it is a new
song.  Arlo is like that.  I like the first comment too...Arlo is like a funny
little Bob Dylan.  Notice that earlier, I did not say that someone is like a
funny little Alfalfa.
 
STONEY ~ no disrespect intended.  I
don't want you to run off and never post again.  I'd have a passel of ladies
threatening to beat me over the head with Peterman
umbrellas.

I have chilling memories of an older brother enjoying a dill crock pickle the size of an Idaho potato along with… a glass of milk.

Paolos ~ yes, it is and yes, it was              Anybody hear from Peter Lake today -- how did he do at the (ugh! gag, retch) dentist's?

PAOLOS:  The Cangelosi Family that   I   knew, in Missouri City(an Italian Enclave) was in the Grocery Business .......  Great Buncha Folks !!!
 
General Stone, started out making Headstones, for Forrest Park ....... Probably a Quarter of a Century before you were born .......

Wish Grandma would have taught me how to make her Bread & Butter pickles before she left us. They were the best. My mother tried to teach us how to make dills All I can say about thaat is she is still a Saint The pressure cooker almost didn't survive.

Stoney I have feeling that a Grilled Cheese date is needed.

Paolos - so does the phrase "I'm in a pickle" (meaning I'm in a jam (seeedless raspberry. please)) come from that "I'm trapped" baseball play?
 
Oh, in one of my former matrimonial lives, my last name was Dill.  A whole 'nother Oprah show!

Oh Stoney - remember when pickles and milk were supposed to be the urge for those that were pregnant?  When my kids were in school and I was very active there, one of the teachers got pregnant.  I wrapped as a gift the biggest jar of pickles I could find with a note about how teachers go to great lengths to avoid teaching the last of the Cohen kids.

So WHY do we say we have gotten ourselves into a "real pickle" when actual pickles are SOOOOOO good? What is up with that?

WHEW!!  It's about food today - so refreshing.

Hey Andy, thank you for asking. I'm still pretty much numb above the shoulders, but i am used to that.....

Except for feeling like i was going to dislocate my jaw when they backed up the cement mixing truck to fill the hole at the excavation site in the back of my mouth,..... it was almost pleasant. I even got to talk books with his assistant for quite a bit. I introduced her to e-readers a few visits ago, about three years, and we always talk books when I see her.

Now for a nice cool weather nap.... Be very well

One of my favorite restaurants serves half- sours which are not half-bad.

For a quick lunxh, i will grab a kosher dill out of the frig and wrap a slice or two of deli meat and/or cheese and eat it just like that. Kid of an inside out sandwich without the bread. The goal is to achieve perfect ingredient balance, but it tastes great if you don't even get close.

Now for the nap....

Comfortable1 ~ I could lie to you and tell you
Yes, that is where the phrase comes from and everyone in the village
would know that the elaborate tale I would then spin as a way of explanation
would be a complete fabrication.  I'm not going to do that.  The truth is that
the phrase in a pickle predates baseball and comes
from an old Yiddish expression das gurke (wherein we
get the term gherkin) klutzen...which translated
literally means  the cucumber klutz.  This expression refers to a
middle ages pastime of pickle barrel jumping.  Those who were spry, agile and
athletic would clear the barrel or multiple barrels in one smooth leaping
motion.  Those who were klutzy would most often end up in a barrel of pickled
gherkins.  Our expression in a pickle is derived from the misfortune of
those not adept at this medieval sport.

Oh, paolus.......

Paolos- I meet with the printer next week and I am excited about it!

Chef Deb- I still like two slices of Kraft American betwunxt (it's a word) my bread also...the kind that comes sliced with no wrappers ( the type escapes me)...I think it's called DELUXE American. The slices tend to cover the bread better.

As an aside, you can also take your two slices and grill both individually, sautee some onions and a grilled chicken breast marinated with lite soy and salt/pepper. Place the onions on one side of the melted cheese and lay the grilled chicken breast on the other. Makes a sandwich Colonel Sanders might consider declaring war over.

UMMGAWA do notmisunderstand me I LOVE American actual cheese (rather than the wrapped "Cheese food")...sometimes I like to fancy up with mozzarella tomato and basil or something like havarti or muenster with mustard...or of course, American with bacon & tomato (known at all my restaurants as CBT...to get it plain they order it "CBT no B no T"). But..pickles must always be present.

A humble moment of bragging (lol). Billy Joel said the Bread&Butter pickles I made to serve at my boatyard cafe were the best pickles he'd ever had. From thereon in they have been known on recipe cards and whatever as "Billy Joel Pickles." I either got the recipe from Fannie Farmer or off the pickling spice box.

PETERLAKE---sweet dreams and get ready for the kickback from the cement mixing truck!

On one trip to Memphis, I was with a few friends and we were not familiar with the area. They insisted on seeing the gates to Graceland as I told them how disappointed I was when I drove past them three times before I realized I had. We were on a side road, and most dudes do, we didn't want to admit we were lost. I said to pull up to the bus stop and I would ask the nice African American gentleman sitting there for directions.

I looked at the dude and said "excuse me sir, could you give me directions to Graceland?"

His answer:

"Shure main, hea's whut you do. You is nauh on Bru row (Brooks Road) and you need to turn onto Pitty Fi (55); then you need to take the Biddee Gram Paakway and get of at Eddie Preddie Bouddebaard, go right then Gracelan is on de lef...can't miss it.

As I am an avid Jive speaker ( I was raised in Southwest Atlanta-a requirement) I understood everything but the EDDIE PREDDIE BUDDEBARD part. I asked him,

"Eddie Preddie Bouddebard?"

He said; "You know, Eddie Preddie (Elvis Presley), Don't be cruel..."

That's been almost 22 years ago and I still get calls from those three, putting me on speaker phone to recite it those listening and in obvious disbelief.

By the way, Biddee Gram is Billy Graham...

Your yarns are always good for a giggle, Paolos. 
 
I used to pickle a good part of the summer sstarting as early as possible.  From three daughters I would hear, "eeewww, uchhh, ugh, ich, pheeewwwe, OH MOM!"  This was followed by footfalls running up the stairs to the back bedroom and then the swish of the closets, sliding door as it closed.  Any clothes in the way were pushed aside and the games of tit-tat-toe began.  Until about three years ago when I painted in the bedroom you could see all the winning Xs or Os mark across. Since one daughter was the oldest by 6 years they would sometimes play school and I'd find math problems work out--sometimes with much erasing.  They would usually hide up there for about two hours before deciding the to retreat to the swing set or their play house in the back yard.  

Gherkin is Yiddish .......
 
Jerkin is French .......
 
Is there another Homonym out there somewhere ???

Just because I like the song and we are already
there.
 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KK5YGWS5H84

I have heard of a firkin and a merkin but to use both in the same sentence might put me in a pickle. 

I bought myself a magnifying glass and was wondering if I could get me a half billion $$$ loan for solar energy development. I used to love those pickled eggs and sausages sold from those gallon jars at neighborhood pubs.

As long as we're talking about pickles, I was pondering on the question of children, fathered with the help of the pharmaceutical viagra....are they taller?

Paolos-one of my favorites....have you, just by chance, heard Cher butcher it?

Ummgawa ~ Nope.  I have a hunch it would be like Jane Fonda working the tomahawk chop.

TOMMY:  If you insist on eating those things, do NOT drink Schlitz Beer with 'em ... or any other Green Beer ... Pappa Joe Gresiedick was a swell Fella, but there was a Glitsch in his Recipe ... Always left Schlitz tasting, ... GREEN ... like there was fuzzy Mold in the bottom of the Vat ... Stroh's bought Schlitz out, and kill'd the Label ... Stroh's isn't Green ... it has no taste at all, but it isn't Green .......
 
Anyway Tommy, eating Pickled Eggs and/or Schemmlepennick Sausages and drinking Green Beer, will cause serious, disasterous GastroIntestinal Distress and such Dangerously scary Aftermath, as to make the Combination mentioned a thing that Wise Men avoid, opting for Life, rather than agonizing alone, praying for the end .......

RoadYacht ~ No.  They are Smurfs.

Pappa Joe Gresiedick!!??!! My food just exited via my nose from laughing!

Ivan- I shall promptly switch to a crisp Chardonnay with organic veggies and a Hummus Dip. Seems like my bank of bad habits may be dangerous to me and my household.

 
 
viagra, you say...
 
 
 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNtcNpjON5Q&feature=related

I have to do it because it's what came out of my moouth when I saw you latest post, Miss Blue.  "OOOh myyyy Gowd!!!"   Tooooooo Much and I loved it! 

Peter ~ Good to hear it's over and you're doing well, but I want some of the stuff they gave you if it was almost a pleasant experience....feel good. 
 
Miss Blue ~ ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

ANDY..................how cool to have a deli man for a father................your childhood must have been one long mmmmmmmmmmmmmm.................I love the idea of having a different pickled treat after school everyday..............
 
IVAN................marvelous story! I know there are many childhood friends of yours who begin a story w/ "And IVAN and I ate ..................................."
 
CHEFD...............that is very cool about your bread & butter pickles..........what exactly are bread & butter pickles????????????// I've always heard the term, but I never wanted to know until now. It's kind of amazing, but I realized that when you, in your lowkey way share a "celebrity" tale I don't for one second think you are telling anything other than the truth.....................amazing what good character can bestow on someone & what a lack of can take away; all credibility..............................
 
PL.................glad that you are feeling well enough to be amongst us!
 
UMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! great to see you! I promise that you will not be disappointed by the pickle chips inside your sandwich. And you are so correct.........HOVER.............I didn't last Sunday & I had slightly burned grilled cheese.

Love that Pickles Pub in Baltimore. Vipered out of that establishment and onto a plane to escape Ravens Fans. My cousin Timmy Pickel and my pal Clyde Pickel are a couple of characters. Timmy and I used to perform songs by The Lettermen at parties. I loved those guys. Troy Donahue in Summer Place comes to mind.

BEBE---are you saying shades of spudlite?! I better watch what tales I tell!! My daughter says that I "Forrest Gumped" my way through life because of the people I've met....but NYC has a lot to do with it.

Bread & butter pickles are chips or slices that are predominately sweet and I have always bought them until one boring winter day in the boatyard (and winter days in the boatyard could be verrrrrry boring) I started messing around and I discovered oh yeah, homemade, just like everything else is better. I can't launch out of my Senior moment to remember the brand of bread & butters..maybe B&G?

CHEFD....................Ding, ding, ding!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You win! May I mention the movie, Catfish???????????????????????? May I say that the sound of crickets is sometimes just that, the sound of crickets & it's lovely!
 
A year or so ago a craze swept thru the Delta in Mississippi of pickles soaked in their brine & tons of red koolaid..................I believe that it made it's way up to memphis & other points. I have yet to try that delicacy............................. I also know I saved several large industrial glass jars that held pickles from my former employer,  a Catholic school & they make the best storage for flour, sugar, etc...................................

its........................duh, idjit alert!

rings90 ~
Standing invitation. Most anything that suits your schedule because you have one.

UMMGAWA:  Sea Scouts' Honor !!!  That was the REAL Guy's Name ... He was Brew Meister for Schlitz for half a Century ... I am sure the poor Bastard caught a lotta grief all his life, because of the Off-Color jokes that could be play'd off his name, and I remember hearing him speak to the Brewers' Union, in Milwaukee ... (Those Guys throw Great Pic Nics !!!) and he was quite a pleasant Fellow ... Sorta like Will Rogers, but with a Czech Accent ... His Beer was just too Green for me, and not Hoppy enough ... I don't think ... that Schlitz ever included Kreuzening in their Brewing Process ... I don't think, that is ... I am not a Brewer ... I am more of a Quality Control Watch Dog, committed to continuous Testing of Product ...
 
MISS BEBE:  Thank You for your kind words ...  Most of the Guys I grew up with were Fressers, just like I am, but I think that I am the only one left out of the entire crowd ... Korea got a few, and the Southeast Asia War Games got most of the rest ... But, I'll bet you're Right ... a lotta the Guys would remember the Food at Neighborhood Gatherings ... You know how Italians and Jews are ... Every day is somebody's Birthday, or Anniversary, or any old excuse to get together and Party, and the entire Neighborhood is invited ... One of the Biggest Celebrations, because they were all LEGAL Immigrants, was Fourth of July
 
CHEFDEB:  "Half Dones" Deb ... any way it pleases ... with a Sandwich, or all alone ... I like to slicem lengthwise, about 3/8 of an inch thick, and flash-fry 'em in Bacon Drippin's ... I know its traife, but what the hell ... they're Good that way with Brisket and Steak Fries and a healthy dollop of Plochman's Mustard drizzled all over the plate ... and Coldbeer .......
Try it !!! You'll Like it !!!  (but forget the Poach'd Oysters...)

TOMMY:  Your Friends and Family will Thank You ....... Your Dogs will Thank You .......
 
 

Julia Masi - After extensive research, I have discovered that there is no maximum hight for a pickle need bounce, only that it does actually bouce when held over a table at the hight of about 12 inch and dropped.   What an amazing thing!  Arwen Krik