The word “phony” when you’re referring to someone or something as being fake comes from a shortened version of the word “telephone”. Older phones had such bad audio quality that it would make people’s voices sound fake. I feel like this sounds like a “phony” explanation (haha)… but it’s true! Photo credit: Getty Images
Halloween is 20 days away and between now and the 31st you will hear and see a lot of ghosts saying “BOO”. But why? And where did that come from? The Oxford English Dictionary says that the term “boo” came from the Latin term boare and the Greek word boaein which mean “to cry aloud,…
I’ve often wondered this while walking the cereal aisle in the grocery store. Cap’n Crunch looks like he would be the most likely cereal mascot that was actually based on a real person. Turns out it’s true, he is! Cap’n Crunch’s full name is Horatio Magellan Crunch. Which is amazing. He was named after the…
The idea of saying “o’clock” sounds kind of Irish in a way. We’ve always just said it after announcing the time but when did it start? It goes back to simpler times when it was rare to find an actual clock to see the time. People would use other means to tell time like a…
If you’re like me you have had the same bear shaped bottle of honey in your pantry for as long as you can remember. Is there a time it needs to be tosses? Maybe not? There is actually no expiration date on honey, simple because it never goes bad. It’s the only food that can…
This is one of those weird things you never think about but totally makes sense. Almost every airline requires their pilot and copilot to eat different meals while in-flight. The reason? In case there’s something wrong with the food they can’t have a scenario where both pilots can’t function to fly. Smart! Photo credit: Getty…
You’ve probably experienced this more than a few times over the summer with bug bites. Anytime you scratch something itchy it only makes you itch worse, but why? The reason is that it causes your brain to release serotonin, which increases the sensations all over your body. Including the sensation of the itch. My trick…
Gold is very popular lately and today’s mystery… are the rumors true that you can eat gold? The answer… kind of. Pure gold is safe to eat, but it’s basically flavorless. So those gold flakes on your fancy dessert you won’t even taste. But… you shouldn’t eat your gold jewelry or anything else that looks…
They’ve been around for years but have become more popular than every the last year or so because of Covid-19… QR Codes. We use them for menus, links, everything now. But what does the QR actually stand for? It’s pretty simple actually… “Quick Response”. Whatever code you point your smartphone camera or reader at gives…
We are entering fall wedding season which means you’ve probably seen and heard the term “tie the knot” more than a few times lately. But where does it come from and what does it even mean? It started as a wedding tradition known as the handfasting ceremony. It was actually an ancient Celtic practice way…