A Brief History On December 26, 1919, the owner of the Boston Red Sox gave the owner of the New York Yankees probably the greatest Christmas gift in history when he sold Babe Ruth, the greatest baseball player of all time to him.  Red Sox owner Harry Frazee was said to have needed money to finance a play and so sold Ruth for only $100,000 in cash and a $350,000 loan. Digging Deeper The Red Sox had won the 1918 World Series and would not win another until 2004, often said to be because of “The Curse of the Bambino.”  With both his terrific…

A Brief History For starters, if you have never heard of the Christmas Pickle, do not feel bad!  The author herself only learned of the Christmas Pickle two years ago while she was living in Germany and was being visited by a fellow American who brought up the topic.  The friend hung a pickle-shaped ornament on her Christmas tree every year, and since she believed the tradition came from Germany, wanted to know more about it. Digging Deeper Various American Christmas traditions include: singing carols; hanging stockings over the fireplace; leaving cookies out for Santa; placing mistletoe over doorways; but some Americans apparently also hang an…

A Brief History On December 24, 1914, exactly 100 years ago today, British and German soldiers facing each other across No Man’s Land in the trenches of World War I confounded their superiors by leaving their trenches and walking out to meet and greet their enemies in the spirit of Christmas brotherhood. Digging Deeper Not only did the soldiers shake hands and converse but they even exchanged presents!  When they sang carols together, it just about gave the generals on both sides fits.  In some cases, football games (soccer) were played between opposing forces as well. French troops were a bit less eager…

A Brief History On December 23, 1972, the survivors of an airliner crash in the Andes Mountains were finally rescued after 73 days.  Rescuers soon discovered the grisly evidence that the survivors had lived only because they had eaten those who had died. Throughout history, there have been instances where humans have eaten other humans, sometimes out of sheer desperation to survive, other times just because they wanted to.  Here 10 more such incidents are listed. (No, Hannibal Lecter does not count, even if they do call him “Hannibal the Cannibal!”)  In case you feel cheated out of a couple famous cannibals, consider…

A Brief History In September of 2014, a female Columbian cyclist team created a stir when their uniforms, or kits as they are known in the cycling world, made the headlines.  Normally, such uniforms are commented on for their aerodynamic qualities, but these were literally “racy.”  And by racy we don’t mean good for racing…  With nude, or rather flesh-colored (beige, if you prefer being politically correct) material covering the torso and crotch, these uniforms were considered provocative and shocking. Digging Deeper The kit’s female designer, who also happens to be a team member, could not understand the outrage, stating the color of the material…