A good way to pay off an ice cream debt

NEW YORK —

Behold — the power of Oprah now extends to ice cream.

It was business as usual at Cincinnati-based Graeter's Ice Cream — until last Thursday, when Oprah Winfrey declared Graeter's "absolutely the best ice cream I've ever tasted," on her TV show.

"I think she said it about three times," said Graeter's executive vice-president Richard Graeter. "And after that, it was like Christmas in June overnight."

Since last Thursday, the toll-free number and the Website for the 130-year-old chain of 13 Ohio ice cream parlors (and 20 franchises further south in states like Kentucky) have been deluged with orders — churning out almost 10 times as many orders as they usually do this time of year.

"I was floored. I couldn't have scripted it any better myself," said Graeter, adding that since Winfrey plugged his family's ice cream last week — she reportedly favors the butter pecan flavor — their mail-order business has swelled to about 1,000 more orders a week than usual.

Winfrey is said to have first tasted Graeter's ice cream last year, when a friend gave her some as a gift for Christmas. Earlier this year, her producers called to ask for a sample.

Two weeks ago, an Oprah producer called Graeter's to say they were planning a special show on summer foods, and wanted to serve Graeter's vanilla ice cream to the 300 studio audience members.

Early last week, Graeter's shipped 10 gallons of vanilla and one pint each of the company's 24 flavors to the show's Chicago studios.

Richard Graeter said he meant to watch the show that day, but missed it when he had to take a call. The next thing he knew, the phones were ringing off the hook.

Graeter said the company, which was founded by his great-grandfather as a malted milk stand in 1870, is having no problem keeping up with the rush of orders.

They've got two extra employees helping Graeter's father, Dick, and his uncle, Lou, pack the pints of ice cream in Styrofoam boxes with dry ice.

By Don Kaplan

"You haven't had ice cream till you've had Graeter's. The butter pecan is Stedman's favorite, and mine, too." — Oprah

June 2002

BRING IT!!!!!

gild the lily

verb (inf=to gild the lily, gilds the lily, gilding the lily, gilded the lily)

1. (intransitive) To embellish something that does not need it.
2. (intransitive) To add unnecessary bells and whistles.

Etymology: A common misquotation of a line from William Shakespeare; William Shakespeare's 1595 play The Life and Death of King John, King John, iv 2: "To gild refined gold, to paint the lily, to throw a perfume on the violet, to smooth the ice, or add another hue unto the rainbow, or with taper-light to seek the beauteous eye of heaven to garnish, is wasteful and ridiculous excess."

First morning glory!

Happy 4th of July!

Remember Bomb Pops? You'd think in our hyper-vigilant, politically correct, post-9/11 climate they'd have gone the way of hassle-free air travel, or at least been renamed Freedom Pops. But no... I'm pleased to report that Bomb Pops are still around. Although they may not be quite like the ones you remember from your childhood.

The original Bomb Pop:












And the code-orange, anti-terrorist Bomb Pop of today:

Bomb Pops are now officially part of our modern American vernacular landscape® and have inspired the creation of weird gay art, a clothing line, a cocktail and even a national holiday!

Have a great 4th! Don't forget to take a moment today to think about how our forefathers escaped the oppression of generations of tyrannical European rule to come to America, kill all the natives and create a country where white men could be free at last.

The Garden Report (2nd try)

Lots of green tomatoes

One ripe sun gold!

One sad little carrot sprout

Significant lack of strawberries

Little drunken bee


Orchid??

Full stoop view