I wonder if anybody still makes banana popsicles.

In case you’re bored and want to know what I’m doing this afternoon, I just ordered another crate of sugar-free syrups so Sam and I can make our own phosphates at home. This time we’re getting watermelon, lime, raspberry, banana, black cherry and two each of peach and pineapple. The Howdygram’s phosphate recipe is a simple one: 8 pumps of syrup in a tall glass, a 12-ounce can of cold seltzer and a bunch of ice cubes.

In the past I always ordered these from DaVinciGourmet at $7.95 each until I discovered Lollicup, where they’re only $4.85. Lollicup charges more for shipping but the grand total is still a lot cheaper than DaVinci, almost like getting two bottles for free. (I highly recommend free things.) My favorite flavors are peach and banana. The peach syrup tastes exactly like fresh peaches and the banana syrup reminds me of banana popsicles when I was a kid. Oy. I wonder if anybody still makes banana popsicles.

Breaking news! Most of you probably don’t know that the Howdygram is creeping up on a huge milestone. Although I can’t really predict the exact date, this fall I’ll be celebrating ONE THOUSAND POSTS since the Howdygram first burst forth from my brain on December 1, 2009. Counting this one, so far I’ve written 913. Holy crap. And I mean this sincerely.

I think it’s time for an old Adolphe Menjou movie and a nice afternoon nap because it’s too damn hot to do anything else except maybe eat gefilte fish. Today’s film is a stupid but funny selection called Father Takes a Wife (1941) co-starring Gloria Swanson with Desi Arnaz in a bit part. I’m positive that somebody dubbed Desi’s singing voice, however, since he sounds nothing whatsoever like Ricky Ricardo in “I Love Lucy.”

Have a nice day. Drop me a line sometime.