To my Canadian/William and Mary alum/Librarian friends.

As you all know (now), April is National Poetry Month (it's also the cruelest month but we'll leave that for another day) so fair warning about my breaking out the beret and the turtleneck. But fear not, drinking and poetry do mix.

On this day in 1934 the Canadian-born poet Mark Strand was born.  Strand is the writer of one of my favorite lighthearted poems (apologies to librarians everywhere) so take a moment to read it here:

http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/237702

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Also, on this day in 1775, the last execution for witchcraft occurred in Germany.

The Historical Inebriant:  The Witch Hunt
http://cocktails.about.com/od/whiskeyrecipes/r/Witch-Hunt.htm



Ingredients:

• 1 oz  Scotch
• 1/2 oz Dry Vermouth
• 1/4 oz Strega Herbal Liqueur
• 1 oz Lemonade

Pour ingredients into an old fashioned glass over crushed ice.

Btw, the drink gets its name from the use of Strega - which means witch in Italian.

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Also, on this day in 1689, William III and Mary II are crowned as joint sovereigns of Britain.

The College of William and Mary was founded in Virginia in 1693.  It educated the Presidents 

Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, and John Tyler and is the second-oldest institution of higher education in the U.S. after Harvard University.  It's also mentioned in song.