| Little Known Facts & Tips |
| Why is the passenger sitting next to the driver of a car said
to be "riding shotgun"?
In the days of the Old West, a guard would often sit next to the
stagecoach driver. Since this guard carried a shotgun, he was
said to be "riding shotgun." Americans, always eager for a
connection with the Old West, adapted the term to describe the
front passenger seat of a car.
By the way, the seat next to the driver is often called the "death seat" because it's said to be the most dangerous spot in accidents. |
| Why is blue considered a boy's color? Blue is considered a boy's color because our ancestors were deathly afraid of evil spirits! To prevent these spirits from entering the bodies of their male children, parents dressed them in blue. Blue was chosen because it's the color of the sky and was therefore associated with heavenly spirits. Girls weren't dressed in blue, apparently because people didn't think that evil spirits would bother with them. Eventually, however, girls did get their own color: pink. Pink was chosen because of an old English legend which said that girls were born inside of pink roses. |
| Why is taking the consequences for something "facing the music"?
This expression almost sounds like the name of a quiz show, but what it describes is hardly entertaining. When you face the music you've either done something wrong and now have to "pay" for it, or you've made a tough decision that will result
in some negative consequences for you. Either way, you're not
headed for an evening of dining and dancing.
The phrase originates in a military tradition. You've probably
seen a soldier in the movies "drummed out" of the service.
He's done something dishonorable so he's stripped of his rank
and has to pass through columns of other soldiers who may look away from him while drum beats mark his passage through the ranks. The drums are the music he's facing and the source of the phrase. |
| In Britain, banks are required to accept any check that's correctly made out, no matter what it's written on. It took the editor of the humor magazine Punch to put this rule to a test: he made out a check to a writer on the side of a cow. (If it clears, you've got the moolah. But if it bounces, you were given a bum steer.) |
| People have been complaining about the rising price of gasoline
recently, but I have always thought that gas was a good value
(especially if you were to take the $0.30, $0.40 per gallon tax off
at the pump)!
Obviously others need a little convincing. So an article in
"Autoweek" magazine brought it all to light.
What if you were to buy a gallon of.......
* Diet Snapple 16 oz. for $1.29 = $10.32 per gallon * Lipton Ice Tea 16 oz for $1.19 = $9.52 per gallon * Gatorade 20 oz for $1.59 = $10.17 per gallon * Ocean Spray 16 oz for $1.25 = $10.00 per gallon * Quart of Milk 16 oz for $1.59 = $6.32 per gallon * Evian (water) 9 oz for $1.49 = $21.19 per gallon * STP Brake Fluid 12 oz for $3.15 = $33.60 per gallon * Vicks Nyquil 6 oz for $8.35 = $178.13 per gallon * Pepto Bismol 4 oz for $3.85 = $123.20 per gallon * Whiteout 7 oz for $1.39 = $254.17 per gallon * Scope 1.5 oz for $0.99 = $84.84 per gallon You get the idea. So next time you're at the pump, be glad your car doesn't run on Nyquil or Whiteout! |
| During the Roman Empire, the Romans used lead as sweetening Agent (that's why so many Romans' last words were: "My, that tastes awfully sweet..."). |