Snowed in and will do ANYTHING for entertainment
This is courtesy of the Toronto Star's (online version) John Sakamoto, who collects a random sampling of strange facts once a week and fashions them into an article about nothing. Things that I learned from John this week:
"Too much snow can drive a person crazy. Pibloktoq, a little-understood hysteria seen in people living in the Arctic, can cause a wide range of symptoms, including echolalia (senseless repetition of overheard words) and running around naked in the snow." (discovermagazine.com)
The percentage of people who return at least one Christmas gift is falling, in part because of the popularity of gift cards: "64.3 per cent of consumers did not return anything last holiday season, up slightly from 62.4 per cent in 2005." (National Retail Foundation)
Nearly 50 per cent of workers feel it's acceptable to come into work with a hangover during the week before Christmas. (recruitermagazine.co.uk)
Forty-seven per cent of women who've been snubbed by a sales clerk will never go back to the offending store. Only 22 per cent of slighted men felt the same way. (marketwatch.com)
Every year, in Hawaii, "hordes of residents line up at the appointed hour to watch Christmas trees being unloaded from refrigerated containers." (aloha-hawaii.com) Number of movies with "snowman" in the title: 24. Among the entries is Crouching Ninja, Hidden Snowman, a one-minute flipbook animation short from Canada. (imdb.com)
"Approximate number of books with `snowman' in the title: 500. Approximate number of those titles that are for adults: 15. Chances that they are about cocaine trafficking: 3 in 15." (From The History of the Snowman by Bob Eckstein)
"Men look up when browsing, women look down. Retailers know that men don't comparison shop as much as women do, so they'll stock their higher priced brand name products on the upper shelves, and the less expensive store-brands at eye-level." (mentalfloss.com)
Useful holiday shopping tips: 1) Gas stations would not sell neckties if they weren't really great gifts. 2) Do not charge anything you can't pay off in the next 23 years. 3) Doing all of your shopping on Christmas Eve guarantees your loved ones will be receiving the freshest bags of grapes possible. (usedwigs.com /holiday-shopping-tips)
The snow continues. The thunder continues. I was supposed to see 'I Am Legend' with MB and friends tonight but I highly doubt that I'm leaving the Hobbit Hole today. In fact, the snoring mound in my lap under the comforter that is my dog is pretty much guaranteeing that I'm not going anywhere...
"Too much snow can drive a person crazy. Pibloktoq, a little-understood hysteria seen in people living in the Arctic, can cause a wide range of symptoms, including echolalia (senseless repetition of overheard words) and running around naked in the snow." (discovermagazine.com)
The percentage of people who return at least one Christmas gift is falling, in part because of the popularity of gift cards: "64.3 per cent of consumers did not return anything last holiday season, up slightly from 62.4 per cent in 2005." (National Retail Foundation)
Nearly 50 per cent of workers feel it's acceptable to come into work with a hangover during the week before Christmas. (recruitermagazine.co.uk)
Forty-seven per cent of women who've been snubbed by a sales clerk will never go back to the offending store. Only 22 per cent of slighted men felt the same way. (marketwatch.com)
Every year, in Hawaii, "hordes of residents line up at the appointed hour to watch Christmas trees being unloaded from refrigerated containers." (aloha-hawaii.com) Number of movies with "snowman" in the title: 24. Among the entries is Crouching Ninja, Hidden Snowman, a one-minute flipbook animation short from Canada. (imdb.com)
"Approximate number of books with `snowman' in the title: 500. Approximate number of those titles that are for adults: 15. Chances that they are about cocaine trafficking: 3 in 15." (From The History of the Snowman by Bob Eckstein)
"Men look up when browsing, women look down. Retailers know that men don't comparison shop as much as women do, so they'll stock their higher priced brand name products on the upper shelves, and the less expensive store-brands at eye-level." (mentalfloss.com)
Useful holiday shopping tips: 1) Gas stations would not sell neckties if they weren't really great gifts. 2) Do not charge anything you can't pay off in the next 23 years. 3) Doing all of your shopping on Christmas Eve guarantees your loved ones will be receiving the freshest bags of grapes possible. (usedwigs.com /holiday-shopping-tips)
The snow continues. The thunder continues. I was supposed to see 'I Am Legend' with MB and friends tonight but I highly doubt that I'm leaving the Hobbit Hole today. In fact, the snoring mound in my lap under the comforter that is my dog is pretty much guaranteeing that I'm not going anywhere...