Pumpkin Meringue Pie Recipe

Pumpkin pie, what can be more traditional for Thanksgiving dessert than this?  Once there were many recipes for pumpkin pie but then came Libbey's canned pumpkin and the one recipe to rule them all.  I ate my fill of pumpkin pies made with the Libbey's recipe all my life and always wanted something different, something not covered in mounds of whipped cream and not as sweet.  Then I stumbled upon this recipe, dating from 1920.  Many pies we cover with whipped cream today were actually topped with meringue back in the early 1900's.  This recipe has been a huge winner with both me and my wife and even my family liked it.  It's a little more involved than your typical pumpkin pie but the result is worth it.  I get up early in the morning and make the crust from scratch then whip up the pie and have it baked and ready to go before I put the turkey in the oven.  You can make your own pumpkin puree or use canned but here's something to think about, Libbey's pumpkin is actually a variety of butternut squash, not really pumpkin.  Real pie pumpkin has a different texture and a slightly stronger taste. This recipe took first place in The Fresh Market's holiday recipe contest in 2014.

Polar Office Chair

1917 Polar Office Supply

I really want an old office chair like this.  I've seen them come across the local Craigslist from time to time but never in good condition.  I suppose ergonomics has come a long way since 1917.  The surprising thing is that these chairs are really comfortable, besides being built like a tank.  No they don't have the pneumatic bells and whistles that modern office chairs do but who needs all that?  The best part is you have to screw the whole chair down to adjust the height.  Really deflates the wind out of the stupid jerk that likes to lower all the office chairs to the floor.

A Uniform Nurse

My my, how nurses uniforms have changed over the years.  In years past they were crisp, snappy and form fitting, not at all practicable for the chores associated with your nursing duties.  My mother would tell me stories about having to wear uniforms such as this when she was in nursing school.  I rather get the impression she hated it, but today we have a much more efficient alternative... scrubs.  Scrubs are baggy rather than form fitting, not flattering to the figure but certainly easier to move around in than the old starched uniforms.  With all things there is progress, sometimes this progress is a bad thing, eliminating what was old and useful in favor of the new fad.  In the case of nurses uniforms though, progress was a good thing.

Also it's like the changes in health insurance, you need a good agent for health coverage to find the best insurance... if that's even possible anymore.

A 1920's Breakfast

As you may know, the 1920's was a time of unprecedented wealth in the United States.  It was truly the pinnacle of success for the Middle Class, a success they would not enjoy again until the 1950's.  In my study of everything food related in the vintage era I've been particularly interested in what constituted breakfast back then.  The best information at my disposal dates from the 1920's because by the 1930's breakfast would have been cold leftovers from dinner except Sundays when a more traditional fare would have been served.