National BLT Day
July 22
The combination of ingredients on a sandwich dates to the early 1900s, though it didn’t achieve widespread popularity until after World War II, when the ingredients became more readily available year-round. According to food historian John Mariani, it is the second most popular sandwich in the U.S., after the ham sandwich, and a poll by OnePoll in 2008 showed that it was the “nation’s favorite” sandwich in the UK. BLT sandwiches are popular especially in the summer, following the tomato harvest.
National Hammock Day
July 22
The Mayans were probably the first to invent the suspended bed we now refer to as the “hammock”. Most often, hammocks were made from the woven bark from the Hamack Tree — hence “hamacas”, which is what the indigenous people from the Caribbean called them in the Taino Language. If you read Christopher Columbus’ journal of his first trip to the new world, you’ll come across this passage: “A great many Indians in canoes came to the ship today for the purpose of bartering their cotton, and hamacas or nets in which they sleep.” which is likely the first time the word appeared in print.
Today’s Birthdays of Note….
Alex Trebek – TV Jeopardy Host – born in Greater Sudbury, Canada
Selena Gomez – Singer – born in Grand Prairie, Texas
