What a great 4th, huh? Hot, sunny, humid, and great for the beaches. Brian and I went to the southern part of Cape Henlopen State Park, and we enjoyed a perfect three-day holiday. I did notice a big—and I mean big—change in what some guys and girls were wearing out at the beach. It was the return of those annoying board shorts. I thought we’d gotten rid of those in the 50s and 60s. These bathing suits look like the old pajamas my dad used to wear—long and baggy. You can thank today’s movies and TV shows for bringing them back. Surfers invented board shorts in the 50s to protect their legs from the rough sides of their surfboards. And the motto for board shorts is "the longer, the better." Makes for some strange tan lines for sure.

Personally, I don’t like them. They really hide a guy’s legs and butt, but some of the colors and prints are appealing.

Speaking of bathing suits, I wore my black one with the cut-out peek-a-boo front. A friend of mine remarked that I should have shaved. Got news for him. Muscle bears don’t shave anything except maybe to trim their beards or mustaches.

And speaking of hair, I was talking to my client Kay about that remark my friend made, and she said that when you keep cutting or shaving your body hair, particularly your legs, it grows back thicker and longer. Well, that’s not necessarily true. Shaving removes hair at the surface of the skin, but the hair follicle beneath the surface is unaffected. The regrowth may feel a lot more coarse as it grows back in, but it will return to its original appearance. So that old wife’s tale is put to rest.

Here’s another tidbit. Seems a dental school in England wanted to know if drinking herbal tea causes problems with people’s teeth. The study, which was published in the Journal of Dentistry, compared herbal tea and orange juice. OJ has been known to erode the teeth for some time now. It sticks to the enamel, breaking it down. The surprise in this study was that various types of herbal teas eroded up to three times more tooth enamel than the orange juice.

Ever get tired of drinking just plain water? Many of us do, so we resort to consuming sodas or coffee. Well, there is an alternative for you. Many manufacturers are now offering sparkling mineral waters that are flavored with an unlimited supply of flavors. Perrier and Poland Springs offer water with orange, lemon, lime, berry, and tropical fruit flavors, with zero calories. Bottled waters are now the fastest growing segment in the beverage industry.

And speaking of beverages, a recent study found that the calcium in milk can actually protect against fat gain. What’s that? Well, a recent study in Denver, Colorado showed that people who consume higher rates of calcium, whether it was milk, cheese, or yogurt, in a 24-hour period had higher rates of fat oxidation that day than those who consumed lesser amounts.

Of course, we are dealing with low-fat and no-fat dairy items for this study. So not only is calcium good for you, your bones, teeth, and muscle function, but it’s also good for burning fat. Who knew?

Speaking of dairy products, a few issues back, I did an article on ice cream, but it was about ice cream from Asia, actually Japan. Their new flavors didn’t sound very tasty, like shrimp, crab, eel, and squid ice cream. Well, you get the picture.

Now we have the Europeans who’ve come up with some rather tasty concoctions. It’s called extreme ice cream, and they feature very exotic flavors that sound a lot more appealing than their Japanese fish counterparts. So get ready for some really far-out flavors, like cinnamon basil. A Dutch company has introduced its new "Freaky Ice." They are frozen pops that come in three alcohol-fueled flavors, like tequila, vodka, and a cocktail blend with a real alcohol content of 4.8%. They’ve been a great hit with the international club crowd.

Why, an English company has even come out with a beer ice cream. It has a nutty, caramelized taste, a real different taste for sure. And the super-premium market for the U.S. is being supplied by the Belgian chocolatier, Neuhaus. Their extremely rich-tasting ice cream comes as vanilla filled chocolate shells. You can also get a super-rich coffee or chocolate ice cream stuffed shell. Sounds mighty tasty to me. How do these flavors sound to you: Tequila and cilantro, rosemary and black pepper corn, and Texas goat fromage blanc and roasted hazelnut ice cream. A Texas ice cream company is introducing these flavors and more to the market. Called Out of a Flower, the company specializes in using herbs, teas, and edible flowers to flavor their products.

Fauchon, a French company, also relies on herbs and floral teas for its new ice cream products. They include Rose Petal ice cream, Toulouse violet raspberry chili pepper, and mandarin orange-ginger ice cream. Now that last one sounds mighty tasty. But a New York ice cream company’s flavors sound more appealing than the rest. The owner of Il LaBoratrio del Gelato grew up in his grandmother’s Carvel ice cream franchise store. Jon F. Snyder makes about 75 flavors of ice creams and sorbets in his New York City company. But get a look at these tempting flavors like lavender, rice (don’t know if it’s white, brown, basmati, or any other), green grape, and black plum. It’s been said that the fruit-flavored ice creams taste much fruiter than the actual fruit.

I may give them a try. So much for extreme ice cream. See you at the beach.