The Magazine of New Orleans Mensa Information and Entertainment
September used to be back to school month, but that ship has long sailed. It is still Labor Day weekend month. And the start of the New Orleans Saints football season.
This month we’re having elections for positions in New Orleans Mensa for the next 2 years. Later this month, we’re having our annual Free Museum Visiting, courtesy of the Smithsonian Institution.
We’re also working on plans to have an RG in December 2016. Nothing definite yet.
Next month, we have our annual “It's All Fun & Games...” event on Saturday, October 17th (National Mensa Testing Day) starting at 9 a.m. Like we did last year, we have an open house in City Park trying to get people interested in joining Mensa by taking the test just down the road at the Museum just down the street.
So let’s go Saints!
I was visiting a friend in Colorado recently who had became a farmer. In addition to large expanse of vegetables and other green things, he owned a herd of cows.
I helped him one morning to help move the cows out of the barn and into the fields. When it was getting late in the afternoon, I asked him, how do you get the cows back?
He explained that his cows had a remarkable sense of smell and can smell him lighting up a marijuana joint even miles away. Every evening when he did that, the cows would amble back to the barn for the evening. And after he lit his joint out on his porch, it wasn’t long before they began returning.
I said, “So you mean to tell me that it’s the…”
“...pot that’s calling the cattle back?”
As I write this, I am just shy of six weeks into my term as RVC. This has been an extremely hectic six weeks, but I am very excited about the potential for the continued improvement and growth of American Mensa and Region 6 in particular.
I have two regional officers to announce. Randy Brack of North Texas Mensa has consented to stay on as our Regional Ombudsman. He has written a column introducing both himself and his role that you will likely be able to find in either this issue or the previous issue of your newsletter.
September is the beginning of scholarship season with the Mensa Foundation. I have asked Johnnie Vaughn of Lone Star Mensa to serve as our Regional Scholarship Chair. Johnnie and I are both very enthusiastic about the charitable arm of our organization. I hope you will all consider supporting the Foundation, either financially or with your time as a scholarship judge. Judging scholarship essays can be a lot of fun without taking up too much of your time. Contact your local scholarship chair to find out how you can participate. If your local group does not have a scholarship chair, please get in touch with your LocSec and Johnnie (scholarships@region6.us.mensa.org).
I had the opportunity to spend a day in the National Office at the end of July. I was able to have several meetings with members of our staff, but the one I am most excited about was the meeting to discuss an upcoming tool for local group officers, the local group dashboard. While this tool is still in development, it is going to be absolutely fantastic. Many of the tasks that are rather cumbersome or require officers to reach out to the National Office will be able to be updated remotely through the dashboard. Stay tuned for details in the coming months.
I am kicking off my travels to local groups in the region with my trip around Northern Louisiana Mensa. I will be meeting with members in Shreveport, Monroe, and Alexandria during the last weekend of August. The following weekend, I will be attending LoneStaRG 17 in Round Rock, TX. The lineup of programs looks fantastic. If you have not yet registered, I hope you will reconsider. This is always a great party. You can find more details and register online at http://www.lonestarmensa.org/lonestarg-2015.html.
As members of Region 6, we are playing host to the next three meetings of the AMC. The first will be held on Saturday, September 12, 2015 at the Hilton Arlington Hotel. AMC meetings are open to all current members of Mensa, and I hope some of you will consider attending.
As always, if you have any questions, comments or concerns, you can contact me via email at rvc6@us.mensa.org
Order a cheese pizza or make a homemade cheese pizza. If you decide you just have to add other toppings, it’s okay. We won’t tell. Cheese Pizza Recipe: visit http://www.food.com/recipe/basic-cheese-pizza-194593.
Celebrate and Promote Literacy in your community! Visit: http://www.literacyworldwide.org/about-us/news-events/international-literacy-day. For fun printables, goodies and information on how you can celebrate the power of literacy..
Invented in the mid 1950s, Play-Doh has entertained millions of children (and adults), and allowed them to express their creativity, both at home and in the classroom. Try making your own play-dough! Recipe:
The consistency is very soft and workable, and it keeps well if stored properly after use. To make this dough, combine 2 cups of flour, 1 cup of salt, 2 cups of hot water, 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil, and 1-1 1/2 tablespoons of cream of tartar into a pot. Cook the mixture over medium heat and stir frequently. Once the mixture is well-blended and the consistency of dough, remove the pot from heat and let the dough cool off for a few minutes. Once it’s cool enough to handle, place the dough on a layer of wax paper and knead it into a large ball. To add color, divide the ball into sections and slowly work the food coloring in by kneading it into the dough. Store the dough in sealed bags or containers with air-tight lids.
If you were born in September, you share your birthday month with:
Sincerely,
Paige D
Gifted Youth Intern, American Mensa |mensafoundation.org
get resources: pinterest.com/brightkids |explore: mensaforkids.org
Mensa Membership Month is October and a key event during Mensa Membership month is Mensa Testing Day. Mensa Testing Day happens this year on Saturday, Oct. 17. Our goal for Membership Month is to increase membership and awareness nationwide, and we need your help to spread the word about Mensa.
This year we will offer 50% off testing for the entire month of October 2015! That is just $20 to take the official Mensa Admission Test!
Saturday, August 8, 2015
Home of Bart Geraci
Members present: Bart Geraci,Claudia D'Aquin,Phil Therrien, Robert Myers, Summer McKnight, Gerry Ward.
Meeting called to order at 5:15 p.m.
Old Business:
Bart presented the minutes from the May meeting. The minutes were accepted.
New Business:
Next ExComm meeting will be November 14, 5:00 p.m., Bart's house.
All business being concluded, the meeting was adjourned at 6:30 p.m.
Submitted by Claudia D'Aquin, Secretary
This contest that will run in the September issue of YM2.
Your mission, if you choose to accept it, is to secretly perform 10 Random Acts of Kindness. You have until October 25th to perform Random Acts of Kindness, but you must do it without the recipients knowing it is you. First, pick your targets (those who will receive your kindness), then decide on a kind deed or act to perform them. Perform your kindness secretly. List the recipient and R.A.K. you performed each day below.
Once complete, you will email your R.A.K. list to GiftedYouth@americanmensa.org with "Mission Possible" as the subject. Don't forget your full name and Mensa membership number. You must report back on October 25th. DO NOT blow your cover!
Good luck on your mission!
This message will not self destruct.
I’m back from my summer vacation writing again, and we’ll start off with a bit of culture. Yogurt culture, that is.
Yogurt (also spelled yoghurt overseas) is milk that has been fermented by way of bacteria. It is said to have been in existence since 6000 BC and was likely the result of storing animal milk in containers made from animal stomachs. While cow milk is the most common milk used in producing yogurt, other animals can be used. Locally, I’ve seen sheep milk and goat milk versions. And then there’s the non-dairy versions, which we won’t discuss here.
Dairy yogurt uses 2 bacteria:
First, Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus
| Kingdom | Bacteria |
| Division | Firmicutes |
| Class | Bacilli |
| Order | Lactobacillales |
| Family | Lactobacillaceae |
| Genus | Lactobacillus |
| Species | L. delbrueckii |
| Subspecies | L. d. bulgaricus |
It was identified in 1905 by a Bulgarian doctor Stamen Grigorov, and the species name delbrueckii was named after the Berlin Institute for Fermentation Industries, which in turn was named for Max Delbruck where these bacteria have been produced since the late 1800s.
Secondly, Streptococcus thermophilus
| Phylum | Firmicutes |
| Class | Bacilli |
| Order | Lactobacillales |
| Family | Streptococcaceae |
| Genus | Streptococcus |
| Species | S. thermophilus |
The word “Streptococcus” is derived from a term meaning “Twisted berry” since its visual organization looks like long chains of beads. “Thermophilus” derives from the Greek “heat” since it can thrive at high temperatures. Not all members of the genus Streptococcus are beneficial however. Some of the members are pathogenic and are responsible for strep throat, pink eye, meningitis, pneumococcus, St. Anthony’s Fire, and flesh-eating bacterial infections. Ugh.
Together these two bacteria turn Lactose (C12 H22 O11), the sugar found in milk, into Lactic Acid (C3 H6 O3). People who have the condition Lactose Intolerance do not have sufficient levels of lactase, an enzyme that splits apart the lactose into simpler components. But many have found that they are able to digest yogurt since the lactose has been broken apart. As always, consult your physician and not a food writer.
Yeah. What he said. So not every yogurt is the same. There’s a few different styles, not all of these are disjoint from one another.
But there are a few standards in the US:
In the early 20th century, Ilya Metchnikoff had observed that people who consumed fermented milk products (like yogurt) tended to live longer. He proposed a theory that the yogurt did two things:
The basics of making yogurt:
Frozen Yogurt is often called “FroYo” by people who want to save 2 syllables and 7 letters. One typical formulation is 4 parts ice milk to 1 part yogurt. “FroYo” is also the name of the Android software Version 2.2, released in May of 2010. National Frozen Yogurt Day is February 6th. But that’s enough of this for this article.
Ummm...okay.
While it’s easy to enjoy yogurt in the container (and sometimes adding in granola for crunchiness), my all-time favorite way to consume yogurt comes from Bennachin, a Gambian restaurant located in the French Quarter. Gambia is a West African nation of about 4000 square miles, 2 million population, surrounding the Gambia river, and bordered on 3 sides by Senegal. I first came across this dish at their booth at JazzFest. It’s couscous topped with a real cold yogurt-fruit mixture. What I liked about this dish was that it was both cooling (like a snowball), but it was loaded with proteins (instead of sugars) to keep me going all afternoon.
Starch: Couscous (instant is fine).
Dairy: yogurt, but can also add in some sour cream, unsweetened evaporated milk, half & half, buttermilk
Sweeteners: chopped / crushed pineapple, sugar, shredded coconut
Spices: vanilla, nutmeg
Toppings: golden raisins
First cook the couscous by itself. When done, put it aside and let it cool down. Mix as many of the dairy, sweeteners, and spices together. Take bowl, add some couscous, add some dairy mix, and top with raisins, dig in, and head over to the next stage to dance your cares away.
"Fighting ignorance since 1942. It's taking longer than I thought"
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