May 12
Lawrence Peter Berra's  Birthday
 


One of the most quoted celebrities was not a president, religious leader, or movie star. It was an American Major League baseball catcher, outfielder, and manager - the greatest catcher of all time -  who singlehandedly, reinvented the malapropism. which were called Yogiisms or Yogiisms  Some of his most famous Yogiisms include

" It ain't over 'til it's over "
" It's deja vu all over again"
" The future ain't what it used to be "
" If the people don't want to come out to the ballpark, nobody's going to stop them "
" I usually take a two hour nap from one to four"
"When you come to a fork in the road, take it."

On why NY lost the 1960 series to Pittsburgh " We made too many wrong mistakes"
"Nobody goes there anymore. It's too crowded."

"Never answer an anonymous letter"

"Always go to other people's funerals, otherwise they won't go to yours"

Yogi played almost his entire 19-year baseball career (1946–1965) for the New York Yankees. Yogi was one of only four players to be named the Most Valuable Player of the American League three times and  elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972.

The Hanna-Barbera cartoon character "Yogi Bear" was invented as a twist on his  name  While Hanna and Barbara denied that the bear's name was based on that of the popular catcher, every kid knew the truth. oYogi Berra reminded everyone of Yogi the Bear. There were no other Yogi's in the world, except for these two. However,  ogi did not like being called Yogi BearIn February 2005, Yogiiled a lawsuit against Turner Broadcasting System. He alleged that they unfairly used his name in a racy advertisement for the TV series Sex and the City. The advertisement asked what the definition of a "yogasm" is: (a) a type of yo-yo trick; (b) sex with Yogi Berra; or (c) what Samantha has with a guy from yoga class. (The answer given was "C".) This case was settled out of court for an undisclosed sum of money.

To celebrate Yogi's birthday, we suggested renting a copy of  A Time for Champions" (2009). a great documentary film  recounting his childhood memories of soccer in St. Louis and enjoying a cup of spicy Yogi Tea, You can purchase a variety of commercial Yogi Teas, including  including green, herbal, black and red tea,  which are a little pricey, or be adventurous and make your own.
 

Yogi Tea
( dapted from Jagan Nath Singh's Recipe)
 

Ingredients
 
16 sticks of cinnamon [the 3" long kind]
1 heaping TB of black peppercorns
2 level tsp of whole cloves
3 level TB of green cardamom pods

 
2&2/3 cups of fresh ginger, chopped small
A small palm-full of black tea like English Breakfast,
    or jasmine, or 6 tea bags


 
Instructions
 
1. Bring 2 gallons + 1 quart of water to a boil in a stainless steel pot.
2. When at boil, put in the cinnamon sticks, cloves, peppercorns, and ginger. The mixture will stop boiling.
    Keep the heat on high untilit boils again and then lower the heat to a very slow rolling boil and cover the pot.
    Boil for 1¼ to 1½ hours.
3. Remove from the flame and let the tea sit for 1½ hours at least, but not more than 3 hours.
4. Strain the spices out. Bring back to boil and throw in the tea leaves. Let steep for 2 minutes. Strain the tea
    leaves out.

 

© 2011 Gordon Nary and Tyler Stokes

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