5 Things: This Day is for Chocolate Chip Cookie Lovers

1. FORECAST:

Wednesday: Sun gives way to clouds. A few showers/sprinkles by afternoon. Low 60s.

Thursday: Becoming mostly sunny. Milder! Mid to upper 70s.

Friday: More sunshine. Not quite as warm with inland temps near 70 & coastal temps in the low 60s.

2. ORGANIC GARDENING: Backyard gardening is an economical way to have nutritious, safe vegetables and herbs and to make positive contributions to the environ-ment. Topics will include basic organic growing principles as well as practical steps to build your soil, fight diseases, and manage pests. Learn the requirements of different types of plants as well as tips for planting, harvesting, and preserving. Class begins at 7 p.m. at Acton Memorial Library.

3. SPRING DISCOVERY: Join a Drumlin Farm teacher-naturalist at Sudbury Valley Trustees Wolbach Farm each week as you explore the forest and trails, meet native wildlife and enjoy stories and crafts that celebrate spring. For preschoolers or older children with parent.

This program will be offered on six successive Wednesdays, April 24 - May 29, 10-11:30am. Come to any one session, or all six. Free program. Pre-registration required for these programs. Visit svtweb.org or call 978-443-5588.

4. ODD HOLIDAYS HELD TODAY: Today is National Chocolate Chip Day. This day celebrates and enjoys sweet, tasty chocolate chips. Chocolate chips are a great invention, and certainly deserve a little recognition. After all, where would chocolate chip cookies, cakes and muffins be without the chocolate chip? Chocolate chips are popular in cooking and baking, for a wide variety of breads, cakes, and cookies. There is an almost endless number of recipes. They are also used in decorating. Have you ever had chocolate chip pancakes? How about chocolate chips in trail mix? If you've never had these, then you're leading a sheltered life.

5. THIS DAY IN HISTORY:

• 1862 — The U.S. Department of Agriculture was created by an act of Congress on this day.
• 1911 — The Standard Oil Company, headed by John D. Rockefeller, was ordered dissolved by the Supreme Court, under the Sherman Antitrust Act.
• 1918 — The first air mail route in the U.S. was established between New York and Washington, DC, with a stop at Philadelphia.
• 1930 — On a Boeing Air Transport flight between Oakland and Chicago, Ellen Church became the first airline stewardess.
• 1940 — Nylon stockings went on sale for the first time in the United States.
• 1972 — Alabama Gov. George Wallace was shot and crippled as he campaigned for the presidency.
• 1988 — The Soviet Union began to withdraw its estimated 115,000 troops from Afghanistan.