It was an ordinary day. Carol just opened her birthday present from me. Same present I get her most every year for her birthday. A big Hershey's chocolate bar. Actually I got her two, one regular and one with almonds. That way I don't feel bad when I help her eat them. She usually gives me something similar for my birthday, since we try to save the money that a nicer gift would cost and spend it on something when we vacation. She would rather have a piece of jewelry or a piece of artwork than have me pick out something for her birthday that would have to be returned. We both learned a long time ago that it works much better that way. I will tell you that I love to help her eat the chocolate bar. Actually anything made out of chocolate I love. I enjoy white chocolate and dark chocolate as much as milk chocolate. And, do you know that Pennsylvania has a rich heritage when it comes to chocolate. William Penn loved chocolate as a drink in the late 1600s and during the 18th century Philadelphia was home to about 25 chocolate makers. Chocolate was a drink of the elite so American Colonists, led by their governors, demanded it. There were about 75 different chocolate makers in the Colonies who each used their own processes to break down the cacao beans, develop a chocolate liquor and blend it with spices such as vanilla, cinnamon or cloves. Sugar and water were then added to the mixture to make the chocolate drink that was so loved. It wasn't until the 1800s that the Dutch began experimenting with eating chocolate. Their processing invention helped to make the chocolate smoother by adding milk to the ingredients. Historically, Pennsylvania had a thriving dairy industry, a natural for making the smoother chocolate. In 1884 H.O. Wilbur established Wilbur Chocolate in Philadelphia and later Milton Hershey purchased 1,200 acres of undeveloped land near his birthplace in Pennsylvania to build his now world-famous chocolate factory. They both knew that milk would eventually be the most important ingredient in their product. It was the Amish and Mennonites that helped him set up shop in what is now known as Hershey, PA. In Elizabethtown, PA, a stone's throw away from my house, William Klein founded a chocolate company in 1914. Eventually Wilbur Chocolate moved to Lititz, a 5 mile drive from my house. So you see I have plenty of places to get my chocolate. And, I don't mind eating it because a new study found out that men who eat chocolate on a regular basis reduced their likelihood of suffering a stroke by 17%. Now, the study was done with dark chocolate which is rich in flavenoids which is also found in fruits and vegetables. But, wouldn't you rather eat a chocolate bar instead of a bunch of broccoli? The flavenoids appear to tamp down inflammation throughout the body and also reduce the aggregation of platelets, the building blocks of blood clots found in most strokes and heart attacks, and reduce or cut off blood flow to the brain or heart. And to top that off friends, a chocolate bar or two a day has been shown to lower blood pressures and improve the efficiency of blood vessels as well as improve the cholesterol profiles. So why isn't it pushed more as a great healthy food. Cause some people, when they eat too much chocolate, get fat! Lots and lots of calories are found in chocolate. So, for people like me who love chocolate and find that they can stay skinny while still eating lots of it, Hershey bars are a great gift. I guess I'm really lucky! It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.
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