Loofah Lore

You’re never too old to learn something new. I know this is true because I’m two weeks past ancient, and I’m still learning new things all of the time. Just this week I learned a whole bunch of things about loofahs.

The only thing I knew about loofahs was that they were some kind of Foo Foo sponge thing that ladies used in baths. But as it turns out, the loofah is not actually a sponge at all. Loofahs grow on vines and are related to pumpkins, squash, and gourds.

And its technical name is luffa, though the more common term loofah is used by most people in the Western world.

I know all of this because our son Travis and his wife Geli have grown a ton of them this year. The other day they brought a couple over to Terry.

It was interesting watching her pull them apart, taking off the outer shell and getting to the membrane inside.

She was able to get a bunch of seeds from them, which she will be planting next year to grow her own loofahs.

Once that was done, she soaked them in soapy water, and then thoroughly rinsed them and dried them, and they’re ready to use. How cool is that?

Travis and Geli plan on making goat milk soap with loofah in it and offering it for sale. Geli works at a hospital and she said nurses love things like that, so I think they will do well.

Something else I learned about loofahs is that in some parts of the world, including India, China, and Vietnam, they are a popular food staple, along with other vegetables. Since Geli is a vegan and a lot of their food comes from their gardens, I will have to ask if she knows that.

See, maybe you learned something new today, too!

It’s Thursday, so it’s time for a new Free Drawing. This week’s prize is an RV camping journal donated by Barbara House. Barbara makes several variations of these, and they all have pages where you can list the date, weather, where you traveled to and from that day, beginning and ending mileage, campground information including amenities at RV sites, a place for campground reviews, room to record activities, people met along the way, reminders of places to see and things to do the next time you’re in the area, and a page for notes for each day.

To enter, click on this Free Drawing link or the tab at the top of this page and enter your name (first and last) in the comments section at the bottom of that page (not this one). Only one entry per person per drawing please, and you must enter with your real name. To prevent spam or multiple entries, the names of cartoon or movie characters are not allowed. The winner will be drawn Sunday evening. Note: Due to the high shipping cost of printed books and Amazon restrictions on e-books and audiobooks to foreign countries, only entries with US addresses and e-mail addresses are allowed. After 90 days, unclaimed prizes revert back to the drawing pool for a future contest.

And finally, here’s a chuckle to start your day from the collection of funny signs we see in our travels and that our readers share with us.

Thought For The Day – A happy marriage is a long conversation that always seems too short.