10E2099: Boston Jubilee Bean Dinner - 1950

At this dinner served on the Boston Common there were 8,000 lbs of beans, 5,000 lbs of ham, 250 pounds of cheese etc. 12,000 people served by 1,000 waitresses - on Sat May 20, 1950.

For an event at the Somerville library in a few weeks there will be a mini version of bean suppah afterwards... 

10E2098: A Sea Shanty from Tom Waits and Keith Richards

Listen. Yeah, sea shanty.

Shenandoah; a special collaboration between Tom Waits and Keith Richards. Recorded for a new compilation album called Son Of Rogue's Gallery. 

This can't be topped today.

10E2097: Harris Tweed by Sally Taylor

Great recent vid here about the weaving of Harris Tweed; touching on island life as well and not too sentimental. We meet some workers in the mill, a darner and a few weavers including Mike Donald of The Harris Tweed Ride fame. With some supreme planning may be visiting these guys in the late summer... 

For those just joining...

“Harris Tweed means a tweed which has been hand woven by the islanders at their homes in the Outer Hebrides [of Scotland -ed.], finished in the islands of Harris, Lewis, North Uist, Benbecula, South Uist and Barra and their several purtenances [The Outer Hebrides, Scotland] and made from pure virgin wool dyed and spun in the Outer Hebrides.” -via The Harris Tweed Authority

Harris Tweed (or Clo Mhor in Gaelic meaning the big cloth) is the Champagne of tweeds, figuratively and in a legal-ese sense, in that the name can only be used for this specific product that meets the geographical standard as above. Around 95 per cent of Harris Tweed production is from the mills and weavers of Harris Tweed Hebrides (HTH) in Shawbost (on the Isle of Lewis).

10E2096: 10e at Kaufmann Mercantile - Diner Mugs

In diners on the East Coast mugs are usually the coffee-delivery system. Diner mugs are pure Americana, but I got to thinking; what is the genesis of the classic bell shaped diner mug? I did a little digging and wrote a short bit you can read over at Kaufmann Mercantile. 

10E2095: Kindling Quarterly

Simply, Kindling Quarterly is a new magazine for/about fathers... but more than that too I think. The founders David Perez and August Heffner say; "While primarily directed at fathers, Kindling Quarterly appeals to a growing and diverse audience who are interested in creativity, community, and parenting...", and tries to make it as thoughtful as possible. Look forward to seeing these. They even throw in a Mr. Mom article in this one - Sold! Guilty pleasure!

10E2094: British Dimple Mugs

Handles make everything better... these dimpled mugs are more common in England than Scotland and serious oldman-territory, in a good way. Available in packs of 4 for cheap in the UK, they can be had in the US from ThePubShoppe.

"The dimples prevent the glass slipping out of the fingers in a washing-up bowl, and the design of the glass emphasises strength..." - via wiki. This one goes out to those crawling towards the weekend... Terrible!

Photo:  Roll Out the Barrell, BFI