Repetitive repetitiousness

Have you ever noticed that when you look at a word for a while it starts to look like it's not right?  It seems as though it can't possibly be spelled correctly. You look it up, speak it out loud . . . in your mind you know it's spelled correctly but it still looks like gobbledygook.  Weird huh?


Well, guess what?  There's a word for that.  It's called 'verbal satiation'.  Ha!  Who knew? 


Verbal satiation is caused by the rapid repetition of a word causes different parts of your brain to fire over and over again which causes 'reactive inhibition' . . . a psychological phenomenon in which repetition causes a word or phrase to temporarily lose meaning . . . meaning . . . meaning . . . meaning . . . meaning.

Wait . . . huh . . . what?  Yeah, just like that.


Rapid repetition causes both the peripheral sensorimotor activity and the central neural activation to fire repeatedly, which is known to cause reactive inhibition; which is to say that repetitive repetition (yeah, I said that) causes a simple decay of functionality within those parts of the brain. 
 

Basically, you're brain gets bored of the stimuli and says I've had enough this crap, can we please move on now?  And that is what makes that word look so freaking bizarre-o even though you know it's right-o.


See?  You're not crazy . . . or are you . . . . . . . . 

Cher’s Spicy Garlicky Refrigerator Pickles

2 Lbs. Cucumbers

2 Jalapeños

Garlic

1 1/4 cups white Distilled Vinegar 

1 3/4 cups water

1 packet (1.94 oz) Mrs. Wages Polish Dill Pickles Refrigerator Mix

(Yield 2 Quarts)

Note that I use regular garden cucumber and not the little pickling cucumbers.  Why?  Because they are cheaper and make good pickles.  A win / win! 

Pick cucumbers that are dark green, firm, and bumpy.  Cukes that  have yellow or white areas in the skin and the warts are almost all gone have more seeds and they make mushy pickles.

Figure 1 or 2 large cucumbers for a quart sized jar.  I use half gallon jars with gaskets and make two batches at a time.  Hubby is a pickle eating machine and we never can have too many. 

Wash and cut the vegetables.  I use one jalapeño for every cucumber and cut it in half.  I cut the cucumbers in half and then half again.  And then crush 2 or 4 or more garlic cloves and remove the skin, leaving them mostly whole.

Pack them into clean jars leaving ½-inch of headspace . . . cucumbers first and stuffing the jalapeños into empty spaces and the garlic on top.

Combine pickle mix, vinegar and water into a large non-reactive pot. Do not use aluminum. Bring mixture just to boil over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture dissolves.

Evenly divide hot pickling liquid among the packed jars, leaving ½-inch of headspace. If more liquid is needed for proper headspace, add a mix of 1 part vinegar and 2 parts water.

Cool to room temperature, label and store in refrigerator. Product is ready to eat after 24 hours. When properly processed and sealed, unopened refrigerator product can be stored up to 6 months.  See if they last that long!

Rabbit Rabbit Rabbit

Rabbits hot and rabbits cold,

Rabbits new and rabbits old,

Rabbits tender, rabbits tough,

Never can we have enough!

Rabbit

Rabbit

Rabbit

 Saying Rabbit three times (only heathens say it twice) upon waking . . . before you utter any other word . . . on the first day of a month is supposed to bring good luck the whole month long.  Some people believe saying it the first day of the year is good enough to bring luck all year long.

Holy bun bun . . . what if you forget?  Will you have a month filled with disasters, drama and other horrible things?  I can’t vouch for the effectiveness of this, but if you say "tibbar tibbar tibbar" . . . psssst that's rabbit x3 backwards . . . as you’re falling asleep that should reverse the curse.

The "rabbit, rabbit, rabbit" phrase originated in England.  It’s difficult to determine when people started rabbitting on the first day of the month but it can be found in print from as far back as 600 years ago. 

Like the black cat her in America, in Englandbunnies are considered to be a symbol of bad luck.  Woe to the person who has a bunny hop across their path!

According to English tradition, to ensure good luck one should say ‘Rabbits' three times just before going to sleep on the last day of the month, and then ‘Hares' three times on waking the next morning"

The custom continues here in North America . . . especially on the east coast.  Documentation of the shouting out rabbit can be found in American literature from 1800’s. 

There are many variations . . . some say ‘black rabbit’, some say ‘white rabbit’, some say ‘bunny bunny’ and so on and so forth.  Does the actual phraseology matter?  I can’t say . . . take your chances.

The ritual continues into the digital age . . . good fortune can be had to those who Tweet or Facebook ‘rabbit rabbit rabbit” on the first day of every month!  

Lotsa luck with that!

Haluski (Pan-Fried Cabbage and Noodles)

Haluski is a pan fried dish that my grandmother used to make of butter, onion, cabbage and noodles. To me its comfort food . . . mmm, mmm, good.

4 Cups Wide Egg Noodles

1/2 Cup Butter

2 Cups Sliced Sweet Onions, About 1/8 Inch Thick

6 Cups Cabbage, Sliced Thin

1 Teaspoon Caraway Seeds (Optional)

1/2 Teaspoon Salt

Pepper

2 Cups Cottage Cheese

Cook egg noodles according to package directions, then drizzle with a bit of oil to prevent the noodles from sticking together and set aside.

While noodles are cooking, melt butter in large deep skillet over medium-low heat.

Add onion and sauté, stirring occasionally for about 5 to 10 minutes, or until softened and just beginning to turn golden.

Add cabbage to skillet, stirring well to incorporate with onion, and sauté for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Stir in caraway seeds if using, then cover, reduce heat to low, and let simmer for 5 to 10 minutes.

Turn heat back to medium, add cooked noodles, salt and pepper, and stir well until noodles are heated though.

Remove from heat and stir in cottage cheese.

Adjust seasoning if necessary and serve hot.