Uniquely American New Year's Celebrations

As we bid a fond adieu to 2012 and welcome the arrival 2013, I thought that this would be a great occasion to celebrate the New Year with some of the more unusual New Year's festivities from around the United States. And believe you me, there are some doozies out there. 

Through the use of my mastery of Google-Fu, I found some unique ways that Americans say goodbye to the Old Year and howdy to the New Year.

For Example...

• The Droppin' of the Carp - Prairie Du Chien, Wisconsin  
• The Muskrat Dive - Princess Anne, Maryland
• Last Night Fayetteville (Hog Drop) - Fayetteville, Arkansas
• The Deuce of Clubs Drop - Show Low, Arizona

And last, but certainly not least, in my wife's hometown of Eastport, Maine (The Easternmost City in the USA):

• The Great Sardine Drop - This year end festival is an international event featuring the Maple Leaf Drop honoring the arrival of the New Year an hour earlier in the neighboring Canadian province of New Brunswick. 

How will you be celebrating the transition from 2012 to 2013? We'd love to know, so leave us a comment and tell us about your plans!

We'll see you in 2013!

Happy New Year!

Cuttin' the Mustard for Over a Century

Still Cuttin' the Mustard

My main(e) (<---pun) goal in writing this blog is to feature something you haven't previously known about, and today I may have reached that goal. Unless you have strong connections to Maine (Eastport specifically), like living/have lived here or have family or friends here, chances are you've never heard of Raye's Mustard. You are gonna thank me by the end of this post.

Raye's is located in Eastport and has been at the same location for 105 years using the same stone grinding machinery for that entire time! Here's a four minute video that walks you through the whole process of how Raye's Mustard is made. Even watching the video gives you the feeling of traveling back to 1903, the very beginning of of this legendary business.

Today, in 2012, Raye's, recently spotlighted on The Cooking Channel, has more types of mustard than the Octomom and Kate plus Eight together have kids. My personal favorite is the sweet and spicy, but I have tried several different flavors and each is very tasty.  Raye's really is a good product and they offer a large variety of mustards to choose from so your sandwich will never be the same twice in a row.

Pride, tradition and those 105 year old seed mills have proven to be a winner in New England...and maybe your state, too.

***DISCLAIMER : I WAS NOT compensated in any way by Raye's Mustard for writing this post.I genuinely like and use their product...I have some in my 'fridge right now.***