Dressing for Derby Day

The 137th Run for the Roses is only a day away and, as a new resident of the Bluegrass, I feel obligated to help you prepare properly.

There are two items you must wear as an authentic Derby audience member: a hat on your head and a mint julep in your hand.

The hat I’ll leave up to you. It can range from ridiculous to stunning. Personally, I prefer elegant. Whatever your choice, it’s supposed to bring luck.

As for the mint julep, I encourage you to rely on tradition. Sure, the Internet will give you gobs of recipes. But I’m about to share with you 19th-century statesman Henry Clay’s version—the one he introduced to D.C. society and the nation—straight from his estate in Lexington, Kentucky.

Clay was a bourbon connoisseur. He doesn’t specify a particular brand in his julep instructions, of course, but you can bet he didn’t cut corners.

“The mint leaves, fresh and tender, should be pressed against a coin-silver goblet with the back of a silver spoon. Only bruise the leaves gently and then remove them from the goblet. Half fill with cracked ice. Mellow bourbon, aged in oaken barrels, is poured from the jigger and allowed to slide slowly through the cracked ice.

In another receptacle, granulated sugar is slowly mixed into chilled limestone water to make a silvery mixture as smooth as some rare Egyptian oil, then poured on top of the ice. While beads of moisture gather on the burnished exterior of the silver goblet, garnish the brim of the goblet with the choicest sprigs of mint.”

Sip slowly.

Other recipes exist for this traditional drink and any claim to the RIGHT recipe stirred a great deal of controversy back in Clay’s day. In 1936, humorist Irvin S. Cobb wrote the following about mint juleps:

“…well, down our way we’ve always had a theory that the Civil War was not brought on by Secession or Slavery or the State’s Rights issue. These matters contributed to the quarrel, but there is a deeper reason. It was brought on by some Yankee coming down south and putting nutmeg in a julep. So our folks just up and left the Union flat.”
—From Beyond the Fence: A Culinary View of Historic Lexington

For stats regarding the mint juleps served at Churchill Downs, visit Kentucky Derby. If you’re a bourbon-drinking novice, visit the Kentucky Bourbon Trail and Kentucky Barrels Web sites for additional information on this very American Spirit.

Happy Derby viewing. And don’t forget…

Sip slowly.

[Images of hats from a previous Derby: James Brown photographed by AP’s David J. Phillip, and an unidentified pic. Goblet crafted for Gabriel Jones by Lawrence Miller, based on an Asa Blanchard design; photo from Kempt. Unidentified Derby horses (pic by Kinetic); Lookin At Lucky from 2010 Derby (pic taken by Dan Dry).]

Lull Logs 100!

t's official: Today marks a small milestone on Lull. This is the 101st post.

True, I've not posted every single day; yet some days I've provided multiple articles and tidbits.

If you're new to Lull, you may be interested in:

Why I started this blog

The reason I don't post every day

Why I use a pseudonym

You also should be informed of the topics you'll probably never find on Lull. Here are 5:

1. Scrapbooking & Stamping

While I admire the creative outlet and output of these (mostly) women, it's not something you'll ever find me doing. Truth be told, I can't cut straight. Not even using a straightedge. (You can ask the graphic designers I once tried to help during a particularly hellish period of production in the marketing firm that employed us. My inability stunned them. They could not reconcile this newly discovered side of me with the gifted and anal side that kerned 6 point type, found mathematical mistakes in annual reports, and maintained language continuity throughout each marketing campaign. I can't explain it. I've just learned to accept it.)

2. Motherhood

I don't have any kids now. I most likely won't have any in the future. I may mention kids or mothers at some point, but they're not the focus of Lull or me.

3. Jesus, The Bible, & Home-schooling

Somehow these three topics are often intertwined. I've already written about Jesus once; I may do so again. And I'll post quotes, but they probably won't be taken from a holy book. When I was a nanny, the couple who employed me considered having me home-school their children. After all, I was certified to teach. Horror of horrors! I had been trained to teach high-schoolers, not small children (and SIX of them, no less). I felt hugely unqualified to take the job, though I'm sure I could have muddled through. But many of the home-schoolers who blog about it could/SHOULD scare the wits out of people who care about language. These makeshift educators don't spell or write well or indicate any kind of expertise in academic subjects. Which is not to say that they won't be able to instruct their children, but they're coming out of the gate with a handicap.

4. Sports

Don't watch. Don't play. Not interested. Nuff said.

5. Recipes

I don't cook. Not anymore. And I'm not a foodie, nor do I need to eat fabulous food. However, I like to smell it, see it, read about it, think about it, talk about it. But I don't often indulge.

All of these topics are extensively covered on many fabulous blogs and on many lame blogs, some with hundreds of Followers. And if my only aim was to get more Followers (even angry adversaries), I might take on such topics.

Instead, here are some topics you'll certainly come across on Lull:

1. Job-Hunting, Loss, Motivation

2. Books, Libraries, Reading

3. Editing, Language, Writing

4. Animals, Conservation, Plants

5. Workplace Culture, Leadership

New or not, I hope you stick with Lull. I'd like to think that I'm not alone in this passage of life, and that soon, all of our fortunes will change for the better.