Thank you!

The suggestions all of you posted pretty much covers what we do here. Check to see if the tendril nearest the stem is dead, AND the two tendrils directly left and right of the stem. Check the bottom of the melon for yellowness. Push on the melon a bit to hear it crack inside. This is hard to do but when you actually do hear it crack it is a sure sign. Thumping on the melon I found it to be mainly a sign of how crisp the melon is - how fresh. Not much of an indicator of when ripe, but if it is overripe. Another good thing to check ripeness AFTER the melon is picked is to check for syrup coming out of the stem. If you see this dark sticky substance oozing out, you have a real yummy one there! We have also found that certain varieties do not work well with the tendril technique. If you are having problems I'd just wait a week or so after the tendril dies and then pick the finicky watermelon. However, we have never gotten those hard to tell melons again just because of that. We stick to the best all around: Crimson Sweet! Wow, what a winner! As for musk melons we always look for the overall tan/ yellow color of the outer rind, the more corky it looks the better, and how easy it is for the stem to be pulled off.

Re: RHBC I am from the home town of Jenny Lind in Sweden originally. She is a National Treasure for us there. Many things have been named after her. But we heard nothing of this Jenny Lind or Golden Jenny Mellon. Then I found that there are these melons in Austria and Germany even today. But then, they are further south of our Nordic country climate. The singer of this recording that you suppose is of our Jenny Lind (actually is by Elizabeth Soderstrom) and can not be Jenny's voice. Only Elizabeth singing songs Jenny either wrote or sang herself. Elizabeth was also a Swedish singer and did record an album of Jenny Lind songs. Even in Jenny's home town there is no evidence that she ever recorded anything at any time in her life. These are just sagas or fairy tales. After her last child was born she did not appear in public. Even in Switzerland where she had bought her parent's a home to retire in after her tour of America. They were the only ones she would sing for (and of course her children after that around 1865 or so). Even this Victor Talking Machine Ad you speak of here, demonstrates that Edison never contested Jenny Lind having never been recorded singing or talking. Otherwise he would have informed his competitor Victor of this error. The Ad pictured Jenny Lind singing with two violins in the World Renown Castle Gardens. This was to emphasize that if she had been born later, her great voice would not have been lost for all time. This NYC location is where 30-40,000 people gathered for the event of the century. Where they were even selling row boat seats outside for $25 each in 1850 for what would be called Jenny Lind Mania and wasn't even accorded the Beatles American arrival over a 100yrs later. Even so, after her parents died, she wouldn't even sing for her own children or her grandchildren. She was a very proud lady, that also suffered greatly from stage fright and dare not attempt to sing after she reached a certain age. Just stage fright alone might bring upon her and embarrass her. None of the great Coloratura Prima Donna's ever sang past 40 to 50yrs of age anyway. That's when they begin to lose their high notes past 40yrs old. Amazingly only the late great Norwegian Coloratura Soprano, Eide Norena ever recorded the Norwegian Echo Song (Kom Kjyra), that Jenny so loved to sing along with other Traditional Nordic songs. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLoWmUagivs Like Lullabies, Ballads and Kulnings (the word we use for maiden cow calling in spring), with some of the high pitched tones you'll heard in this song. For the echo part of the song the singer tightens their throat forcing the voice into a chamber adjacent to the back of the larynx of some females. It's a form of throat singing actually or ventriloquism. In this recording Eide also demonstrates voice "Shake" (one of the many vocal techniques Jenny also used and taught as a teaching Master). Although Eide was an amazing singer, she was not capable of the quality of voice, Kulning and Shake (nor the vocal agility of high notes) that Jenny was. Though both Eide and Elizabeth did master the masked (hidden) breathing techniques that those listening to Jenny Lind took for granted. The Shake was a technique of rapidly Kulning (singing at the front of mouth-head tones loudly for cows to hear far far away) and Echo sounding (throat singing) the lower note alternately like a Nightingale (that could also be heard as if far away). Extremely difficult to do properly and not recorded in any way since Eide. There is a recording of an American Opera singer performing Norwegian Echo song at one of the many Jenny Lind Gala events over the last over 150 years. But I'm afraid "Shake" and many other vocal techniques Jenny had mastered are now lost, never to be heard again. Her name is Elizabeth Parcells singing it here in the 1970's Live (in Jenny's English Translation version of this Kulning); http://beemp3.com/download.php?file=2365390&song=Norwegian+Echo+Song+tradiational+folk+song Swedish folklore or sagas speak often of some magical powers in the high notes of the female voice to communicate with wildlife. That in every girl or maiden hides a Nightingale waiting for May Day to sing of her yearnings for warm summer days. There are tales of Jenny at a very young age mastering the call of the Nightingale. This is what she patterned her voice "Shake" technique after. Ultimately this is why she became known as the Swedish Nightingale even as a young child. Even her great great grandchildren know nothing of any recording ever being produced. Sorry! Here is a link that might be useful: Elizabeth Parcells singing Norwegian Echo Song

This is a very common question and often discussed here. Check out some of these previous discussions for more details. They should answer all your questions. When to pick watermelon discussions Dave