Saturday, January 11, 2014

Twenty Trivial Tidbits

Photo credit: sweetfudge.com
Happy Saturday, Everyone!

Today’s blog post is like none other I’ve ever written. Seeing as how I am studying to be a teacher, and also it is common knowledge that no one ever stops learning, I’ve decided to dedicate today’s blog post to an email that I received from fellow aspiring teacher Nikki Douglas.

The following is some trivial tidbits—some of which I knew, and others that I only learned since reading Nikki’s email:

·         The “Dogs Playing Poker” series of sixteen paintings were done by C.M. Coolidge in 1903, commissioned as cigar ads. Two sold at an auction for close to $600,000.
·         The Code of Hammurabi, which was written around 1750 BC, included a provision for the death penalty if a tavern owner watered down the beer.
·         Tulips are actually native to the Middle East, and were first brought to Europe by the Dutch ambassador to Iran in the 16th Century.
·         Not only do fingers have unique prints, but so does the tongue (I can imagine a court case: “Officer, I can prove that he’s the one who licked the spoon!”).
·         The largest individual flower on earth is the Rafflesia Arnoldis, which grows in the jungles of Southeast Asia. It can grow to be three feet wide.
·         New York’s current Grand Central Terminal opened in 1913 and has forty-four platforms—this is more than any other train station in the world.
·         Major League Baseball began in 1869, which is the year that the first professional team, the Cincinnati Red Stockings was established.
·         In the first episodes of Sesame Street, Oscar the Grouch was orange as opposed to green. He has a pet worm named Smiley, and a pet elephant named Fluffy.
·         The tallest point in the continental United States is California’s Mount Whitney, which is just eighty miles from the lowest point in the U.S., Death Valley.
·         The longest chairlift in the world is the Magic Mile, on Oregon’s Mount Hood. It takes skiers about six minutes to ride for 5,500 feet.
·         The geographic center of the 48 contiguous United States is in Lebanon, Kansas. The geographic center of North America is in Rugby, South Dakota.
·         The trademarked Tiffany Blue color is officially known as “Pantone #1837.” Not coincidentally, 1837 is the year that Tiffany & Co. was founded.
·         The Cat in the Hat, the iconic children’s story that was published over fifty years ago, contains only 236 words… and some great pictures.
·         During the height of the Beanie Baby fad in the 1990s, the most prized animal was a dark blue Peanut the Elephant, and Bongo the Monkey.
·         The guy with the top hat in the Monopoly game is known as “Rich Uncle Moneybags.” His first name is supposedly Milburn.”
·         In order to run the length of the Great Wall of China, one would have to run 171.8 marathons—consecutively!
·         The Wal-Mart chain began with one small store in Bentonville, Arkansas; it was called Walton’s Five & Dime.
·         The tallest cactus species is the Pachycereus pringlei, which is native to Mexico and can grow to be 63 feet high.
·         A cranberry can be tested for ripeness by dropping it on the ground. A fully ripened cranberry should bounce like a basketball.
·         The Guinness Book of World Records is actually in the Guinness Book of World Records, for being the most often stolen book from public libraries.

These are but twenty trivial tidbits. There are more, but I’ll save them for a later blog post. Until then, y’all have a good rest-of-the-weekend.


Hugs & Kisses,
Natasha


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