Hey ho hey ho

I am a true lover of mints....especially those yummy creamy pillow mints that just melt in your mouth.  What a sensation those little yumbos bring to my palate.  But...............never do I grab those little germ laden things at a restaurant check-out counter.  Those are the kind that don't come in a sealed package....they just lie there looking cool and yummy and tantalizing the diner who has just finished a huge plate of whatever.  A nice soothing mint is just what that diner needs.  NOT!  No sir, you don't need these!

Now let me tell you why I wouldn't eat those on a bet.  Even though the thoughtful cafe owner puts a dainty spoon in the big bowl of unwrapped mints, most mint eaters don't bother......they just reach in and grab a handful with their bare hand.  That hand is attached to the body which just went to the urinal/potty and that hand either helped that person urinate or wiped thereafter.  Oh ick!  That hand became urine covered during their pee session and the "pee goer" probably didn't wash and, in fact, probably wiped the pee drenched hand on the old pants leg to get it dry.  Do you get where I'm going??

Being a germ fearer, not long ago I read a study where the mints at a restaurant were tested.....not only did the mints have urine but they also had feces matter.  Oh Sh*t!  That did it for me.  After reading that, never was I to touch those mints again at a cafe check-out.....not only the unwrapped ones, but not even the wrapped ones.  Gross!

Studies also show the places tested for germs concluded that germ counts in restrooms in fast food restaurants and airplane toilets are pretty high, but picnic tables, ATM's, escalators, elevator buttons, keyboards and phone receivers have many more.

I guess people don't want to wash their hands after going to the restroom at home so why should they wash at a restaurant or any other public place.  I remember when I worked, I'd see many people who would come from the the potty stall room while I was diligently washing my hands and all the while silently singing the birthday song all the way through.  After a while of seeing the same people do the no wash thing,  I began to run a study on those who didn't wash their hands.....I tried not to touch anything those "Urine Palms" or "Pee Hands" (as I used to call them) touched....and I always took a piece of paper towel with me to open the door to leave the restroom.

Food day at work was always an anxiety day for me.......I would ask who brought what so I wouldn't happen to eat something the "Pee Hands" made.  As my anxiety grew, so did the germs sitting on that food table.  I know that germs are good for your body..... because bacteria is needed to process your food through the intestines....but I feel I don't need to introduce a bunch of e coli into my body from fecal matter on the mints or work food day stuff. 

As I leave the cafe, the mints are left for another unsuspecting patron who loves mints....now I'm on my way to the grocery store.  I get there and grab onto the shopping cart that another old "pee hands" has just used.  Or, maybe it was the kid with the snotty nose who has had a serious respiratory infection for the past 11 days and the kid's mother hasn't taken the kid to the doctor for medicine.  So the bacteria or virus or urine and fecal matter is resting itself on the shopping cart handle....just like a good little germ.....just waiting for me to grab on!  Wait....what do I see but a big container of antibacterial germ wipes......you will see me RUNNING to that container and grabbing several wipes.  By the time I'm done, it looks like I took that cart to the car wash it's so shiny and clean.

I just know for a fact that the germs are an inch thick on that cart.... the last woman may not have had pee hands nor did she have a sick kid with her, but chances are she bought several packages of meat and one of those packages was seeping fluid through the wrapping.  The worst kind of bacteria grower in the world.....salmonella from raw meat juices.   And, it's on my cart that I just picked out from the 200 carts sitting there.  I know that some germs are structured so that humans can develop an immunity to those particular germs....but salmonella isn't one of those.....and I sure don't want a stomach so bad it would make Montezuma's Revenge look like something you'd want.  And, unfortunately, a person can die from salmonella poisoning.  These raw meat and salmonella possibilities are what prompt me to take my time washing the dang shopping cart.  If I'm going to get a case of bad diarrhea, it's going to be on my terms, and not from the grocery store.

Because there is a chance that we all can touch something that's germ laden anywhere we go, it's not possible to completely protect yourself from getting germs.  And, getting some helps us build up a resistance to germs, but I just feel I want to be selective about getting germs.    I have become more germ conscious than ever before.  I, of all people, do not need to get sick or contract some incurable disease or even get the "drizzlin

When someone offers you their hand to shake hands, hope that you have a bottle/individual package of antibacterial gel/wipe in your pocket/purse.  And, when your local bartender uses his hand to remove the cap from your bottle of beer, use a wipe on the bottle where your lips will touch....he may have just gone to the potty.   But most importantly, the next time you go out to eat, remember to think before you reach.  Picture that nice creamy unwrapped pillow mint sitting on a urine germ or even a feces germ.....I bet you leave 'em alone the next time!  (chuckling as I leave)

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From Greenview Files
This is something I found which is from the 1874 Atlas Patron List.  The following shows Greenview persons who were land owners.  There is also a list for Sweetwater and other lists which show some Greenview residents that owned land in other local precincts.  I will post the Sweetwater listing in a different post. I couldn't get the headings on the columns to post correctly so the columns are have headings which read from left to right:  name; post office' residence; business; nativity; came to co. 

                                                                                                    
               

Arnold, G. W.	Greenview	Grev'w	Lumber Dealer	Menard co.	1851
Anderson, John	Greenview	Grev'w	Blacksmith, D'r in F'm I'ps	Sweden	1859
Amerkamp, Harmon	Greenview	Sec. 9	Farmer and Stock Grower	Germany	1860
Ajans, James	Greenview	Grev'w	Livery and Butcher	Oncida co., N. Y.	1872
Bracken, N. W.	Greenview	Sec. 35	Farmer and Stock Grower	Bath co., Ky.	1828
Bracken, Geo. W.	Greenview	Sec. 35	Farmer and Stock Grower	Bath co., Ky.	1828
Blane, Joh P.	Greenview	Sec. 24	Farmer and Stock Grower	Menard co.	1845
Blane, Samuel H.	Greenview	Sec. 13	Farmer and Attorney at Law	Menard co.	1840
Brewer, John	Greenview	Sec. 11	Farmer and Stock Grower	Menard co.	1829
Bennett, J. T.	Petersburg	Sec. 7	Farmer and Stock Grower	Mechlenburg co., Va.	1835
Blane, W. f.	Greenview	Sec. 25	Farmer and Stock Grower	Menard co.	1847
Bracken, James A.	Greenview	Sec. 26	Farmer and Stock Grower	Menard co.	1842
Cogill, M. Y.	Greenview	Sec. 17	Farmer and Stock Grower	Menard co.	1846
Denton, G. W.	Greenview	Sec. 29	Farmer and Stock Grower	Lincoln co., Ky.	1830
Engle, M. M.	Greenview	Grev'w	Merchant	Menard co.	18327
Fickes & Ocock	Greenview	Grev'w	Saddlers & Harness Makers	Penn. & Wisconsin	2873
Fahey, Philip	Greenview	Grev'w	Farmer and Saloon Keeper	Ireland	1854
Godbey, R. B.	Greenview	Sec. 16	Farmer and Stock Grower	Rush co., Ind.	1830
Godbey, Russell	Greenview	Sec. 20	Farmer and Stock Grower	Montgomery co., Va.	1830
Graham, H. L.	Greenview	Grev'w	Engineer, Miller, & Farmer	Menard co.	1842
Hornback, Robert	Greenview	Sec. 34	Farmer and Stock Grower	Menard co.	1828
Jenison, L.	Greenview	Sec. 12	Farmer and Stock Grower	Sangamon co.	1834
Jenison, J. E.	Greenview	Sec. 12	Farmer and Stock Grower	Menard co.	1839
Killion, John J. H.	Petersburg	Sec. 33	Farmer	Menard co.	1846
Killion, Jacob	Greenview	Sec. 15	Farmer and Stock Grower	Scott co., Ind.	1848
Killion, S. D.	Greenview	Sec. 19	Farmer and Stock Grower	Menard co.	1828
Killion, W. B.	Greenview	Sec. 33	Farmer and Stock Grower	Menard co.	1839
Lundquiste, Anders J.	Greenview	Grev'w	House and Wagon Painter	Sweeden	1863
Lee, W. C.	Greenview	Grev'w	Dl'r Ag. Imps., Stoves, etc.	Bolivar, Tenn.	1876
Marbold, H. H.	Greenview	Sec. 25	Farmer and Stock Grower	Germany	1847
Morse, W. S.	Greenview	Grev'w	Dl'r Ag. Imps., Stoves, etc.	Chautauque co., N.Y.	1867
Mills, S. C.	Greenview	Grev'w	Furniture, Un'tkr, and J.P.	Kennebec co., Me.	1859
Montgomery, Alex.	Greenview	Sec. 15	Farmer and Stock Grower	Menard co.	1833
McAtee, James	Greenview	Sec. 17	Farmer and Stock Grower	Menard co.	1846
Petrie, D. A.	Greenview	Grev'w	builder and Lumber Dealer	Herkimer co., N. Y.	1865
Paulson, O. P.	Greenview	Grev'w	Livery and Sale Stable	Sweden	1868
Rourke, Michael	Greenview	Sec. 27	Livery and Stock Grower	Ireland	1843
Semon, Henry	Greenview	Grev'w	Manf. & D'lr in B'ts & Shoes	Germany	1873
Sampson, Geo. F.	Greenview	Grev'w	Farmer	Menard co.	1822
Swiney, E. L.	Greenview	Sec. 35	Farmer and Stock Grower	Bath co., Ky.	1828
Stone, Thos. M.	Greenview	Sec. 35	Farmer and Stock Grower	Gibson co., Ind.	1863
Spear, Geo. G.	Greenview	Sec. 20	Farmer and Stock Grower	Vermont	1838
Smoot, W. C.	Petersburg	Sec. 20	Farmer and Stock Grower	Fleming co., Ky.	1831
Swiney, E. L.	Greenview	Sec. 35	Farmer and Stock Grower	Bath co., Ky	1828
Taylor, Francis S.	Greenview	Sec. 16	Farmer and Stock Grower	Menard co.	1849
Tackelson, Uler	Greenview	Sec. 8	Farmer and Stock Grower	Norway	1852
Tice, Jerman	Greenview	Sec. 27	Farmer and Stock Grower	Menard co.	1832
Wilkinson, Theo.	Greenview	Grev'w	Manager of Wilkinson H'se	Menard co.	1854
West. M. L.	Greenview	Grev'w	Carpenter	Menard co.	1846
Warnsing. H.	Greenview

The Different Faces of Abraham Lincoln

Lockwood Todd, the cousin of Mary Todd Lincoln, with

Lincoln's children Tad, seated, and Willie, standing.  Willie

died at age 11 at the White House.

Lincoln's dog Fido

Lincoln's horse Old Bob

 This concludes the series of Abraham Lincoln information and pictures.... at  least for this time.  I have other pictures which I will use in posts down the road.  Menard County would not be so well known all over the USA if not for Abrahma Lincoln (living right next door to Greenview, IL).  As residents in the area, sometimes we take it for granted that the 16th President of The Great United States lived among our ancestors and perhaps broke bread with an ancestor or partook in a church social or that this great man perhaps knew our ancestors.  We might never know that this happened, but we can hope that it did.  I hope you enjoyed the many faces of Lincoln and those of some family and animals he loved.

A Special Recipe (because I haven't decided what the heck is for dinner tonight)

I'm sure I posted my Flan Cake recipe previously, but I think it was a long while ago.  I was hunting for the recipe to make this wonderful fancy cake for a family reunion in a few weeks.  I thought there might be some new readers who never got the chance to see this recipe so bear with me if you already have it.....here 'tis....be sure to not eat a bunch of this....it's super rich!! 

 Carla's Flan Cake

~Preheat Oven to 350 degrees
~Spray (metal) bundt pan heavily with Pam.
~Pour 1/4 cup ice cream caramel syrup in bottom of pan.
~Mix 1 yellow cake mix per directions on box
~Pour on top of Caramel in bundt pan.

Mix in blender or with a mixer:
~4 eggs
~1 can Eagle Brand condensed milk
~1 large can Evaporated Milk (14 oz)
~Pour egg/milk mixture over cake mix in Bundt pan.
~Cook in water bath for 1 hour in preheated oven.  Make sure you set the bundt pan in a shallow pan with boiling water in the shallow pan.  Invert the cake on a fancy cake plate.  This is a wonderful cake to serve at holidays.  Your guests will wonder how you made it. 

Note:  This will not turn out if not baked in a water bath.  Simply sit a 9 x 13 cake pan half filled with HOT water in the oven while you preheat the oven...then set the bundt cake pan down in the water.  Before you make the cake, practice getting the right amount of water in the oblong pan so it won't overflow in the oven.  I have also made the chocolate flan cake version....use a chocolate cake mix and hot fudge ice cream topping instead of the caramel.  Either Is To Die For!

Learn A New Word

Striving to make Greenviewanites smartest in the county.

New Word - labret = an ornament worn in a pierced hole in the lip

New Spanish Word - verde = green

Thought Of The Day

Lead your life so you wouldn't be

ashamed to sell the family parrot

to the town gossip.

--Will Rogers

Sometimes when I'm writing this blog, I feel like I'm writing a soap opera script.  I start and stop a hundred times, but when I pick it back up later, it's like I never left it.  Sometimes I find I have to tell you ridiculous things which have happened in my life or funny things about the past or build a really tall story about those things which seldomly happen in the town of Greenview because it still is a rather boring place.

I'm probably considered the closest thing to an unpaid public relations person that Greenview has ever known.  As I gain readers, life seems to scream  "Flock to the Blog" to learn about small town Greenview, IL.  To get the full effect, information is something that has to be told in writing and get it out to the public... it's not like I can put the information between two slices of bread or serve it on an onion bagel.  So I guess the blog "is a good thing"..... Martha Stewart and I say that  "is a good thing" a lot.

After thinking about it for a while, I see why my readers missed the blog when I just wasn't able to put it forth for all of those months....I'm still apologizing for that time, but you wouldn't have wanted to read the dark depressing feelings I had at that time in my life.....I hope you see that the waiting was worth it.  By reading this blog, the readers who have left can take the slow road home.....by seeing the old town through words.  Words, if written right, can be as fulfilling as a piece of America's best homemade apple pie.  I hope that's happening or I might get fired from my job as Greenview's unpaid public relations person.

The new week is beginning and there's a lot more words to come during the rest of this week.  It will most likely be a "word filled week" that will blow your socks off.  Until the next time....I remain your friend and unpaid public relations officer of Greenview, Illinois.

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If you don't want to comment directly on the blog or, if you have a picture or a document you want to send to me to include in the blog, feel free to contact me personally at: carlaslittlemoms@yahoo.com