That got your attention didn’t it? Evil cutlery?

Our friends at SmithsonianMag.com have published an amazing article that provides some amazing facts about regular household objects. Including a great bit on forks. And I quote:

In fact, the word “fork” is derived from the Latin furca, which means pitchfork. The first dining forks were used by the ruling class in the Middle East and the Byzantine Empire. In 1004, Maria Argyropoulina, niece of the Byzantine emperors Basil II and Constantine VIII, was married to the son of the Doge of Venice. She brought with her a little case of two-pronged golden forks, which she used at her wedding feast. The Venetians were shocked, and when Maria died three years later of the plague, Saint Peter Damian proclaimed it was God’s punishment. And with that, Saint Peter Damian closed the book on the fork in Europe for the next four hundred years.

Head over and check out the article at SmithsonianMag.com

A minor bit of a departure from the usual cutlery posts today. Things are a little scary out there right now. And due to bulk buying and hoarding the price of human thermometers has gone sky high. And the availability isn’t great either. So here’s a viable alternative: Using a meat thermometer to check if you have a fever.

The Habor 022 Meat Thermometer has a 4-6 second ultra fast response time with accuracy of ±1℃. The temperature range is -58℉ to 572℉. Be warned that it’s not waterproof so don’t immerse the whole thing in water, just the probe is safe.

To measure underarm temperature:

1. Check that the thermometer is on.
2. Lightly press the tip of the thermometer into the center of the armpit.
3. Hold your arm, or your child’s arm, close against the body so the thermometer stays in place.
4. Wait for the thermometer to take its reading. This will take about a minute.
5. Read the temperature.
6. Clean the thermometer and store for its next use.

Age range (years)	Normal temperature range for underarm temperature	Temperature considered fever
0–2	94.5–99°F (34.7–37.2°C)	99.1°F+ (37.3°C+)
3–10	96.6–98.0°F (35.9–36.7°C)	98.1°F+ (36.7°C+)
11–65	95.3–98.4°F (35.2–36.9°C)	98.5°F+ (36.9°C+)
65+	96.0–97.4°F (35.6–36.3°C)	97.5°F+ (36.4°C+)

The above instructions and temp ranges are taken from Healthline.com

We’ll get through this, just stay calm and love each other.

Habor 022 Instant Read Thermometer from Amazon

Everyone around here knows we worship David Mellor who is the Eric Clapton of cutlery. And we have to mention Corin Mellor his son who has kept his father’s work alive.

ArchitecturalDigest.com has a great story on David and Corin’s work and the shops in London that I forgot to visit last time I was there. Dammit!

For those unaware I quote the article:

David Mellor, the man and the company, created handmade silver and stainless-steel flatware that an obituary described as embodiments of “voluptuous simplicity.” 

Check out the article at ArchitecturalDigest.com