Great facts to take into the new year
By Eye Magazine published 6 January, 2012 No CommentsSad as it sounds, one of the most interesting things about my personal Christmas this year was discovering a really informative piece that managed to answer a load of the sort of questions that have probably never actually been asked, but probably would have been had anyone thought about it!
In the 1400′s a law was set forth in England that a man was allowed to beat his wife with a stick no thicker than his thumb. Hence we have ‘the rule of thumb’
Many years ago in Scotland , a new game was invented. It was ruled ‘Gentlemen Only…Ladies Forbidden’…and thus, the word GOLF entered into the English language.
Coca-Cola was invented and marketed as a medical elixir and was originally green.
What do bulletproof vests, fire escapes, windshield wipers and laser printers have in common?
They were all invented by women
111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987, 654,321
It is impossible to lick your elbow.
The cost of raising a medium-size dog to the age of eleven:
£10,120.00
The first novel ever written on a typewriter was Mark Twain’s ‘Tom Sawyer.’
The first couple to be shown in bed together on prime time TV was Fred and Wilma Flintstone
Each king in a deck of playing cards represents a great king from history:
Spades – King David : Hearts – Charlemagne : Clubs -Alexander, the Great : Diamonds – Julius Caesar
If a statue in the park of a person on a horse has both front legs in the air, the person died in battle.
If the horse has one front leg in the air, the person died because of wounds received in battle.
If the horse has all four legs on the ground, the person died of natural causes
The only food that doesn’t spoil is honey
In Shakespeare’s time, mattresses were secured on bed frames by ropes. When you pulled on the ropes, the mattress tightened, making the bed firmer to sleep on. Hence the phrase…’Goodnight , sleep tight’
It was the accepted practice in Babylon 4,000 years ago that for a month after the wedding, the bride’s father would supply his son-in-law with all the mead he could drink. Mead is a honey beer and because their calendar was lunar based, this period was called the honey month, which we know today as the honeymoon.
In English pubs, ale was originally ordered by pints and quarts…. So in old England when customers got unruly, the bartender would yell at them ‘Mind your pints and quarts, and settle down. It’s where we get the phrase: ‘mind your P’s and Q’s’ At the same time pub frequenters had a whistle baked into the rim, or handle, of their ceramic cups. When they needed a refill, they used the whistle to get some service. ‘Wet your whistle’ is the phrase inspired by this practice.
And finally, at least 75% of people who read this will by now have tried to lick their elbow! Are you one of them?
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