Snooping

I had a little jolt today as I was watching Millionaire. For the regular readers among you,you may recall a few months ago I wrote a blog about Wrigley's gum and how it had started as a give-a-way item to help sell the baking powder that Mr. Wrigley was peddling. Today on Millionaire that was the $250,000 question! Now I am wondering if one of their writers are reading my blog for question ideas? I would be flattered to say the least if that is the case. At this point (in case they are reading) I would like to mention that being a contestant is #1 on my "Bucket List",feel free to contact me per my appearance. I have passed the test before,but never received a call to come back for a taping. With that out of the way lets move on with today's blog.
There is so much information to be gleaned on Snoopy (beagle created byCharles Schultz for the Charlie Brown comic strip) it is nearly an insurmountable task,but what I am going to address today are Snoopy's siblings. I remember seeing several strips with his brother Spike,but I didn't know his mother's name was Missy,or that the rest of the brothers were named Andy,Olaf,Marbles, and Rover. He also has two sisters named Belle and Molly. Snoopy's fictional birthday is August 10th and he made his first appearance on October 4,1950 two days after the strip premiered. He was not given his name until November 10th. I may come back to Snoopy in the future,it is quite interesting how he evolved from his initial introduction.

Hairy Situation

It is a constant source of amazement to me how much hair I lose and yet never seem to have any less hair. I read how much hair an average person loses a day and decided it might be fun to see what other interesting things might be learned about our hair.
A person has to lose almost 50% of the hair on their scalp before people notice. 35 meters of hair fibre is produced daily on the average adult. Hair is the fastest growing tissue in the body. Thyroid imbalance and iron deficiency are the reversible causes for hair loss and many drugs can cause hair loss. 90% of scalp hairs are growing and 10% are resting. The average scalp has 100,000 hairs,redheads have the least at 80,000 and blonds the most at 120,000. Female hair grows more slowly than male hair. The lifespan of a human hair is 3-7 years. Losing 40-100 strands of hair a day is normal. Hair grows faster in warm weather. Combing your hair is better than brushing ( I will stick with brushing...it feels so good!) Caucasians turn gray earlier than Asians and Africans.
Next time you are shampooing your hair,you will have something to think about!

Aches and Pains

Around 31 million Americans (9% of the male population,18% of the female population) have migraine headaches that interfere with their lives. There have been many new medications and treatments introduced over the years,but what about the people who can't use those medications due to pregnancy or the affects of the medications themselves? Enter migraine glasses. 80-90% of migraine patients have light sensitivity and the glasses block wavelengths of light that can trigger the headaches. The glasses have a form fitting frame that prevents light from coming in around the sides. They are still in trials but if all goes well they should be ready for use next year. If you are interested in participating in the clinical trials here is the link for more information and a form to fill out. axonoptics.com

Fact or Fiction?

Awhile back I mentioned that perhaps some authors should come with warnings...may cause choking hazard,because they sneak up on you with their humor and club you over the head when you least expect it,causing you to choke. Dave Barry is a definite fit in this category. One of his standard saying is "I am not making this up", which immediately leads me to believe that he is of course making it up. This thought prompted me to check the Arcola,Illinois Broom Corn Festival. First off broom corn is actually a grass which as you may have guessed is used to make brooms. The festival not only exists it also has the parade in which Dave Barry did participate as part of the Lawn Rangers in 1995. The Lawn Rangers is a precision lawn mower drill team that marches in formation with broom and push type lawn mowers. Mr. Barry said that practice for the drill team consisted of ingesting copious amounts of beer before they marched. If that isn't enough,it gets better! In 2003,President Barack Obama marched with the Lawn Rangers in Chicago's St. Patrick's Day Parade to launch his race for senate. As a result the Lawn Rangers were invited to march in the 2009 Inaugural Parade.

As American As...

Usually I try not to write back to back blogs about the same thing,but after yesterday's blog I got high centered on the phrase "An apple a day keeps the doctor away". My first thought was obviously a doctor hadn't coined it,then I wondered if apple growers were behind it as a promotional gimmick? The phrase is thought to have originated in 1866 though the phrase was: "Eat an apple on going to bed,and you'll keep the doctor from earning his bread." By the 20th century it had become the phrase we are familiar with today. I need to mention here that the word apple was used to describe any round fruit that grew on a tree,which is the same deal with the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden. Apples do have several health benefits,but so do many other fruits and vegetables. It is a fun saying and in no way constitutes a health risk if you wish to follow it. While looking into this phrase I also found out where the phrase "upper crust" came from. In early America when supplies were scarce,cooks had to save on ingredients. To save on lard and flour only a bottom crust was made. The more affluent families could afford both an upper and lower crust,so those families became known as the upper crust.

Healthy Snacks?

Earlier today as I was enjoying a Fuji apple for a snack a memory crept unbidden into my consciousness. Didn't I read somewhere that apples contain cyanide? As a rule I am not overly cautious (at least not on the paranoid level) of the foods I eat,the stress of that alone is enough to kill a person,but cyanide seemed like something I should check out. There are several foods and additives that are suspect but fruits and vegetables have always seemed healthful out of choices ranging from nuclear waste to no nutritional value. Eating healthy isn't an easy task anymore. Before I wander completely off my point I will return to the not so innocent apple (remember the Garden of Eden!). Aside from what they have been sprayed with and what chemicals were used to grow them,apples are fairly innocuous. The cyanide is found only in the seeds and even if you were to swallow the seeds you would still be okay as long as they weren't chewed. The hard durable shells on the seeds allow them to pass through your digestive system intact. The cassava root,commonly known as tapioca,is an even greater natural source of cyanide,but the drying and soaking as it is processed renders it harmless. Good luck with your food choices!

One Step Beyond

I am not exactly sure why I find the i potty so distasteful,but that isn't the point. The point is do we really need to further train young children that they have to be entertained at every moment? Lots of people read when using the bathroom which seems to me to be more trouble than it's worth,but it is a choice that they made for themselves,not something they were trained to do from their earliest years. I hear parents and grandparents talk about their babies fascination with cell phones and other electronics which is fine too,as long as it isn't force fed. I will be curious to see if this product sells...is it just me or does it seem to border on bad parenting?

ZZZ

What comes to mind when you see three Zs in a row? I think of the cartoon bubble for someone who is sleeping. How about a bra size? An average person's head will fit into a D cup bra so it is a real stretch to imagine a triple Z. The owner of the world's largest breasts in Annie Hawkins-Turner aka Norma Stitz (a word play on enormous tits). She is 53 years old and suffers from a rare condition known as gigantomastia which causes her breasts to continue growing. The breast combined weight is 85 lbs. She has problems with her shoulders and back and can't fit a seat belt over herself. She says she has never considered breast reduction. I wonder if a breast reduction would work with gigantomastia?

Coincidences

In detective novels they seem to agree that there is no such thing as coincidence,but after yesterday's blog about the shall we say exotic? fragrances,and my teeth cleaning appointment this morning the word coincidence came to mind. I'm pretty much old school about what flavor my toothpaste should be,that flavor is mint. You can imagine my surprise when the hygienist started to polish my teeth with Birthday Cake flavored tooth polish. When she paused in her ministrations I asked her,"Is that Vanilla flavored?" She replied that it was called Birthday Cake. It wasn't unpleasant so much as it was unexpected. As she finished up I started wondering what other flavors there were,the following are some of the flavors I found: Jasmine,Scotch Whiskey,(I wonder about using this before driving?) Eggplant,Bacon,Chocolate,Pickles,(I love pickles but for toothpaste?) Curry,Aloe,Licorice, (does it make your teeth black?) ,Fennel,Coffee,Pork,Pine,(this might be nice) Champagne,Honey,Bamboo Salt,Blueberry,Oreo Cookie,and Coca-Cola. Call me old fashioned but I think I will stay with mint flavored!

Common Scents

No,I didn't mean common sense! I read about the Demeter Fragrance Library who makes unusual scents, some of them seem kind of wacky,but the part I like was that they don't last long and are not strong. Nothing quite compares to choking on a persons perfume,especially in a dining situation.
The following is a partial list of some of the 400 (not sure of the exact amount) fragrances offered: Clean Skin,Daisy,(so far nothing to far out there) Dirt,(it is said that Clint Eastwood uses this) Earl Grey Tea,Holy Water, (does holy water smell?) Laundromat, (whether of dirty clothes or smelly soaps and softeners,I will pass on this one!) Moonbeam,Ocean,Quince,Rain,Salt Air,Thunderstorm,Funeral Home,Jelly Belly Collection, Crayon,Leather,(this one I would like) Paperback,Play-Doh,Sushi,Snow and the list goes on. I didn't find one for one of my favorite smells,freshly mowed lawn,and though a couple might qualify for the smell after a rainstorm, I wanted to add the word for that smell is Petrichor. That wonderful smell is created by an oil that is released by plants during dry periods.

Siren Song

I'm not a big coffee drinker,a few cups in the morning and that's it for the day. With that said I rarely buy coffee out so I don't pay a lot of attention to all the different coffee stands that seem to be on every block,if not more than one per block. However I have wondered for a long time what the Starbucks logo was about and finally managed to hold that thought in mind long enough to find out.
The original logo from 1971 was fashioned after a Norse woodcut,the image of a mythical two tailed mermaid siren. The siren's objective was to lure sailors with an enticing song to their demise amongst the rocks. The first logo was in brown and designed to resemble a cigar band. The mermaid represented the irresistible,seductive quality of the coffee. The logo since that time has undergone several changes. The first concealed the siren's breasts,the next rendition her navel had been removed. Shown below are the logos from 1971 to the present.

One Tough Cookie

The enigmatic fortune cookie,is a staple of American Chinese restaurants,but its past is contested. One would naturally assume that the cookies were invented in China,but the Chinese make no claim to them and when they were imported to China they didn't sell as they were "too American". They are mainly an American item,but are also served in Chinese restaurants in other countries. Most of the people who claim to have introduced if not invented the cookie are Japanese. It is still argued whether they were first made in Los Angeles,CA or San Francisco. An attempt to settle the dispute in the Court of Historical Review in 1983 the judge ruled in favor of San Francisco,but the dispute continues.

Torches

Have you ever heard the phrase "Torches of Freedom"? Kind of puts in mind a picture of the Statue of Liberty,but that is not where it came from. The phrase was first employed by psychoanalyst A.A. Brill when describing the desire for women to smoke and was used to encourage women to smoke by using their desire for equality and a better life. We all know how that turned out,it has made it nearly full circle almost a century later in the U.S. In other parts of the world in the 1990s tobacco companies seeking to expand their markets,trotted the "Torches" phrase out again along with the more current "You've come a long way baby" slogan. When I read about this I thought they must be targeting fairly young countries women,but that isn't really the case. In Spain the increase in young women smokers rose 10% from 1978 to 1997. The increases in women smokers showed even greater percentages in Germany and Japan due to the advertising denoting cigarettes as symbols of Western Freedom.
It is hard to believe this is happening when it is only an advertising gimmick and barely has a nodding acquaintance with the truth,but there you have it.

Warnings

I believe in the past I mentioned about how silly some of the government required warnings are,and how whatever this country needs it is not more federal involvement in our day to day activities. Now for the flip side of that coin, I have to admit that my first thought (as I was choking on a drink of coffee due to a Dave Barry book I am reading) was some of these funny authors should have warnings at the start of their books. Imagine how they would be worded...CAUTION: Do not consume neither food nor drink while perusing this volume,may be choking hazard! Do not read in public! All the comedy writers I have read have their own ways of sneaking up on you with the kind of lines that should come with warnings,so you never really see them coming until tears of laughter are forming in your eyes,which at that point you can't see them coming because everything becomes a watery blur.
Does today's blog have a point? Yes,laughter is good for your health and is being studied in relation to several diseases. It has recently been found that Alzheimer's doesn't develop in people that have a good sense of humor,the same plaque is found in their brains,but doesn't create the same results as it does in those with a less hardy sense of humor. So keep on laughing,it is good for your health!

Peculiar Pets

Presidential pets seem to reflect the personalities,or maybe philosophies of the various leaders,which is mostly true of pets and their owners. Here is where things get interesting...in the past there have been a vast range of animals residing at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. John Quincy Adams kept an alligator,Martin Van Buren kept tiger cubs,Calvin Coolidge a wallaby,Theodore Roosevelt had 35 pets,including snakes,badgers,a coyote,a wildcat and a hyena.
Many past presidents kept cows on the white house grounds and enjoyed fresh milk from them,the last of these was Taft. Woodrow Wilson grazed sheep on the White House lawn and sold their wool when they were sheared. Benjamin Harrison's goat,Old Whiskers once took off down Pennsylvania Ave. while pulling a cart with the president's grandchildren aboard.
If you have ever felt odd about your pet choices,this should level the playing field. Enjoy you animals,whatever they might be!

Get Your Kicks

As sports go this must be one of the oddest ones I have heard of and you can rest assured that I will not be signing up for a match anytime soon!
Shin-kicking has been described as an English martial art. It is also known as purring,though I fail to see why. Two contestants attempt to kick each other in the shin and force their opponent to the ground. During each round combatants face each other and hold on to their opponents collar. Traditionally they wear white coats while they attempt to strike their opponents shin with their feet. The matches are refereed by a stickler who determines the scoring,the winner is the first to get two out of three rounds. In the past some competitors wore steel-toe boots (like regular shoes wouldn't do enough damage?) and tried to build their pain tolerance by hitting their shins with hammers. In modern competitions participants are required to wear soft shoes and stuff their pants legs with straw. That makes me feel somewhat better!

Ever Wonder?

It may be a habit I developed over the years,but I tend to make up names for unknown initials. We did that a lot at work,sometimes as a memory aid,at other times just to be goofy and relieve stress. With that said,and before I digress any further,does everyone know what the J.C. in J.C. Penney stand for? It is the initials of the founder (don't say duh,until you hear his name!) James Cash Penney. Another point of interest about Penney is the original store opened in 1902 in Kemmerer,Wyoming under the name "Golden Rule Store". Mr. Penney's philosophy was to treat others the way he himself would want to be treated. As the business grew it became "A Nationwide Institution" as an early logo proclaimed. The company has remained true to its Golden Rule beginnings through more than 100 years of history. Quite an accomplishment in today's economic climate .

Heros

The word Heroin is derived from the Greek heros,the same word that brought us hero and heroine. First produced by Bayer in  1890s  Germany, Heroin was given to recovering Morphine addicts. Bayer is one of the more trusted over the counter drug names today,but like many companies,it never hurts to question their intentions. Also a good thing to keep in mind is that the FDA is pretty much bought and paid for by pharmaceutical companies.
As late as 1912 Bayer was promoting Heroin for children suffering from coughs,colds and irritation. This was after reports in 1899 that patients were developing a tolerance for Heroin and clamoring for more.
Today the FDA still approves products that are detrimental to your health,such as the artificial sweeteners found in diet drinks and foods which are maybe more subtle than Heroin,but deadly in their own right.

Mothra Lives!

Though this creature is one strange looker,it is not a phony. I have an aversion to typical moths,maybe due to the dust from their scales they leave behind. This one is so unlike the moths on this hemisphere it borders on cute. Scientists are still trying to find a place that it fits,but it may be a yet undiscovered species. They are calling it the Venezuelan Poodle moth at present,and it may be one of the thousands of new insects found in the South American rain forests every year. I don't know about everyone else but I find it exciting that there are still new things to be discovered right here on Earth.

The Bear Facts

I'll bet you are thinking I used bear when I meant bare...you would be thinking wrong! I read that Smokey Bear,aka Smokey the Bear,or Smokey,was first named Hot Foot Teddy. I wondered why I'd never heard that before and found some interesting facts about Smokey.
I had always heard the story of the living symbol of Smokey, the black bear cub who in 1950 was caught in a wildfire in New Mexico. Smokey had climbed a tree to escape the fire,but his paws and hind legs had been burned. At first he was called "Hotfoot Teddy" by those caring for him during his recovery. He was later renamed Smokey after the mascot for the U.S. Forest Service who was created in 1944. The original Smokey slogan was "Smokey Say-Care Will Prevent 9 out of 10 Forest Fires". The slogan was changed in 1947 to "Remember...Only YOU Can Prevent Forest Fires". It was updated again in 2001 to "Only You Can Prevent Wildfires".
The living Smokey went to live in Washington,D.C. at the National Zoo where he remained until his death in 1976. His remains were returned to Smokey Bear Historical Park where a plaque marks his grave.
As a kid I has a stuffed Smokey,complete with hat and pants. In looking back I am guessing he was a gift from a brother that worked for the Forest Service,he was a cherished toy.

People Actually Like Them?

I was never a fan of PEZ candies. I know as a kid I had a dispenser but found it disappointing because it didn't work the way I had anticipated it would. Apparently I am in the minority,as over 3 billion of the candy bricks are consumed per year in the U.S. alone.
PEZ was introduced in 1927 in Austria,the name comes from the first,middle and last letters of the German word for peppermint (pfefferminz) which was the first flavor. The first PEZ were sold in small tins,the first dispensers (1948) were similar in shape to a disposable lighter,and were marketed as an alternative to smoking. In 1952 PEZ was introduced in the U.S.,in 1955 the company began placing heads on the dispensers and marketed them for children. Santa and Mickey Mouse were among the first character dispensers.

Amusing Museum

Just when you think you've  possibly heard it all,something else will come along and dash that illusion. There are nearly as many weird tourist attractions as there are the towns that claim them. I think you will agree "The Hall of Fumes" has got to be at least near the top of that list if not at the top.
Every March Odor-Eaters sponsors the Rotten Sneaker contest,this March will be the 38th year the competition has been held. The sneakers are judged by how dirty and stinky they are,also the conditions of the sole,tongue,heel,toe,laces or Velcro,eyelets/grommets,overall condition and most important odor.
The panel of judges include NASA "Master Sniffer" George Aldrich and Rachel Herz a professor at Brown University (that should be P.U. instead of B.U.!) and author of "The Scent of Desire" and "That's Disgusting".
The winner receives $2,500,the Golden Sneaker Award and a supply of Odor-Eaters. The winning sneakers are then displayed in a spot of honor in the "Hall of Fumes" in Montpelier,VT.

Reminds Me of...

For reasons beyond my grasp this statue reminds me of the little Dutch boy that saved his village by plugging the hole in the dike. The various stories of how the statue came to be are mostly related to a little boy urinating and saving the day,which is pretty much the opposite,other than the saving the day part.
Manneken Pis, in a Dutch dialect spoken in Brussels, translates to Little Man Pee in Marols. There are several legends about the statue,the most famous is about a two year old Duke that the troops were carrying into battle in a basket. They hung the basket in a tree so their Duke could encourage them as they fought. The boy urinated on the enemy troops who lost the battle. Another legend states that Brussels was under siege and the attackers placed charges in the city walls. A little boy had been spying on them,and when they lit the fuse he urinated on it and put it our. All of the legends surrounding the statue involve a little boy saving the city with his timely urination.
The statue has several hundred costumes that are changed at scheduled times during the week.

A Ditty With a Twist

It would be a safe guess to venture that everyone has heard or been serenaded by "Happy Birthday to You",even off key renditions count sorry as they might be. What isn't well known about this familiar song is that the title was not the original title. "Good Morning to All" was written by two sisters,Mildred Hill a kindergarten teacher and Dr. Patty Hill the principal at the same school. Mildred then added her musical talents as an organist.
The sisters published the song in a collection of children's songs in 1893. Thirty one years later Robert H. Coleman published the song without the sisters' permission,and also added a second verse,the familiar "Happy Birthday to You". Coleman's addition of the second verse popularized the song and the sisters' original first verse disappeared.
After Mildred died in 1916 Patty and a third sister took Coleman to court and proved they owned the melody.
I have to wonder at this point why they didn't change it back to "Good Morning to All"...you don't mess with success?

An Everyday Item

Something everyone uses but never really appreciates...can you guess what it might be? How about a shopping cart! Before the shopping cart was invented shoppers used heavy metal baskets to struggle through their shopping. Can you imagine how cumbersome that would have been with a Thanksgiving turkey and trimmings filling it?
In the spring of 1937 Sylvan Goldman,owner of Standard Food Markets and Humpty Dumpty Supermarkets in Oklahoma City,got an idea of how to make shopping easier. He took a couple of folding wooden chairs,mounted wheels on them and sat the metal basket on the chairs. Oddly enough no one wanted to use them. Men thought the cart would make them appear weak,older people didn't want to look helpless and young women felt they were unstylish. Not to be thwarted Mr. Goldman hired male and female models to pretend to shop using the carts,and hired greeters to show customers how to use the device. The rest as they say is history.
Using your imagination you can almost see how the chairs were used to make this early model.

People Are Strange

Strange or stupid,you make the call. Several days ago I heard or read something about the TSA having a blog and idly thought I would have to check it out one day. What I found makes me wonder what these travelers could possibly be thinking. Mind you these are things found on the persons or in carry on baggage.
Chainsaw with gas...was this a sneaky attempt to get more than the allotted ounces of liquid on board? The chainsaw was allowed after it was drained of fuel. Cell phone stun guns,At-4 Rocket Launcher,knives are frequently found in children's strollers...apparently the kids play with knives at home and know how to avoid being injured? Guns are found on a regular basis,sometimes hidden in stuffed animals.
Then there are things you shouldn't say. I used to caution friends that I traveled with that if they ran into someone they knew named Jack DO NOT SAY HI! A woman in Orlando wanted a checked bag back and was told it wasn't possible,she then asked "What if I had a bomb in it?" Seriously? What are these people thinking?
Next time you are waiting in a security line at the airport and you wonder what the hold up is feel free to reflect back on this blog,if nothing else it may help pass the time.

About Face

I think a lot of people feel over protected or at times maybe even harassed by safety issues on the job. Some times they are a little over zealous depending on the size of the business you work for and what your occupation is. Today's blog is going to take a look into the past when safety concerns were far more lax.
The Radium Girls were female factory workers who painted watch dials for United States Radium factory around 1917. The women had been told the paint was harmless,I imagine being women of that time they never thought to question this statement,even though the owners of the plant,scientists and chemists avoided exposure using lead screens,masks and tongs. The brushes they used to paint the dials would lose shape after a few strokes and the supervisors encouraged the women to shape the brushes with their lips or tongues. Some of the Radium Girls painted their nails,teeth and faces for fun. Once the women began to get sick the company rejected their claims and even started smear campaigns to discredit the women. Out of the 70 women employed by the plant only 5 (dubbed the Radium Girls) went on to sue the company. The case was settled in 1928,they received $10,000 and $600 per year annuity and medical expenses while they lived.
Kind of makes things today look pretty cushy!

An Unusual Instrument

Some time in the past I heard about a cat piano but figured it was a bad joke and never gave it any more thought. Recently I came across another reference to it and wanted to clear my head of this idea once and for all.
Rest at ease,there is no official record of a cat organ or cat piano actually being built,but it is described in literature as a musical instrument consisting of a line of cats fixed in place with their tails stretched out underneath a keyboard so when a key is pressed they would cry out. The cats were said to be arranged according to the tone of their voices. The instrument was also described by a German physician for the purpose of focusing his patients attention.
More recently (2010) the instrument was created using squeaky toys for a garden party held by Prince Charles. The tune "Over the Rainbow was played to great amusement.
I don't know about everyone else but the chances of my cats holding still for this is somewhere between slim to none!

Sticking Your Neck Out

Yesterday I left something out of the blog that I had intended to include. I made a comment relating to the Ostrich Pillow about pulling its head out of the sand and meant to take that opportunity to blast the myth that ostriches bury their heads in the sand. When threatened they either lie low to the ground so as to appear to be a mound of dirt,or they run away (they are the fastest two legged animal). The misunderstanding about burying their heads probably originated from watching them stick their heads in the sand to swallow sand and pebbles (to aid digestion) but they do not do it to hide.
Now that I cleared that up,on with today's blog.
 Another famous mascot,Geoffrey the Giraffe, was officially born February 1960 but wasn't named until a naming contest was held in 1970. Before his "birth" in 1960 he was known as Dr. G. Raffe and represented Children's Bargain Town which later became Toys "R" Us. Here comes the part I didn't know...in 1973 he was given a family,wife Gigi and daughter Baby Gee. In 1979 a son,Geoffrey Junior was added. The wife and kids do not enjoy center stage,so their appearances are limited.
Another aside for the trivia buffs among us,Giraffes have the highest blood pressure of any animal.

Count Me Out

Around noon I usually turn my TV on and read while the news is on,waiting for Millionaire to start at 12:30. Much to my surprise once and a great while something on the news will get my attention,today was one of those rare days.
The Ostrich Pillow is pulling its head out of the sand and making its way to your head...say what? I know the feeling,I jerked my head out of my book to catch a glimpse of this cumbersome looking device. The idea behind this invention is to turn your head into a pillow allowing you to nap anytime,anywhere. It has an opening for the mouth and nose with holes on the side to rest your hands or keep them warm. I suppose if I were handed one I might test drive it in the privacy of my home,but can you picture yourself sitting in an airport or office with one of these on your head? My main problems with it is first of all I am not a napper and secondly I am claustrophobic and don't think I would find comfort in my head being encased in a pillow. I will be curious to see how this does on the market and will be looking for people wearing them in public places.

First Task of 2013

This month the calendar challenge will be a bit more labor intensive than the mere flipping of a page,I hope you are up to the task!
1/1 First Foot Day (Don't forget your coal!)
1/2 Run It Up the Flagpole Day
1/3 Festival of Sleep Day
1/4 Humiliation Day
1/5 Bird Day
1/6 Bean Day
1/7 Old Rock Day (Stone kind or music,your choice.)
1/8 Man Watcher's Day
1/9 Play God Day (Also was President Nixon's birthday...coincidence?)
1/10 Peculiar People Day (Yes we have a day.)
1/11 National Step in a Puddle and Splash Your Friend Day
1/12 Feast of Wild Men Day (Make your own rules for this one.)
1/13 Blame Someone Else Day
1/14 National Dress Up Your Pet Day
1/15 Hat Day
1/16 National Nothing Day
1/17 Blessing of the Animals Day (This one really should follow 1/14.)
1/18 Winnie the Pooh Day
1/19 National Popcorn Day
1/20 National Buttercrunch Day
1/21 National Hugging Day
1/22 National Answer Your Cat's Question Day (I am going to start preparing for this immediately!)
1/23 Measure Your Feet Day
1/24 Eskimo Pie Patent Day
1/25 Opposite Day
1/26 Australia Day
1/27 Punch the Clock Day (Since I'm retired I will physically do this.)
1/28 National Kazoo Day (I have to find one of mine,I think I lost my best one.)
1/29 National Cornchip Day
1/30 Escape Day
1/31 Child Labor Day (Put those kids to work!)