Happy Mother’s Day to my mother-in-law, Margie, who lives in Alaska, where you get free midnight sun with purchase. (Offer not valid in winter. Spoon may contain traces of moose. Please spoon responsibly.)
Day 134 – The Land of the Midnight Spoon
Day 133 – The California Manatee Bear Spoon
This spoon is a souvenir of the great state of California, featuring the state animal, the, uh…manatee bear? It appears to have a single large flipper in the back for navigating large bodies of water, and one single leg in the front for walking on land.
Do not confuse this animal with the California Grizzly, which appears on the California State flag. The Bear Flag first flew in 1846 (during the Bear Flag Revolt, naturally) as a symbol of the short-lived California republic. The star above the bear’s head is taken from the California Lone Star Flag of 1836.
Fun fact: the California State flag is one of only four state flags which doesn’t contain the color blue. (Alabama, New Mexico, and Maryland are the other three.)
Day 132 – The King George V Silver Jubilee Spoon
On this day in 1937, Prince Albert Frederick Arthur George of Windsor was crowned King George VI. His father, King George V, had passed away just 16 months prior, on January 20, 1936, and his brother, Edward, stepped up to take over. Edward’s reign ended when he decided to marry Wallace Warfield, a woman who had previously been divorced (gasp!)
But back to George and Edward’s father, (and Queen Elizabeth’s grandfather) King George V. He and his wife, Mary of Teck, were crowned King and Queen on May 6, 1910. This spoon commemorates their 25th Anniversary (or Silver Jubilee) in 1935, just a few short months before his death. Their profiles both appear at the top of the handle.
George’s profile on this spoon could also easily pass for his first cousin, Tsar Nicholas of Russia (his mother, Alexandra of Denmark, was sister to Nicholas’ mother, Dagmar).
The Russian monarchy was overthrown in 1917 and the entire family (yes, even Anastasia) was murdered in 1918 while in exile. If this spoon is haunted by anyone, it’s probably Tsar Nicholas.