May 6th, 2012 The 2nd 24 Hours

Posted by facelikeafryingpan in May 2012 and tagged with , , , ,

When you are consciously making an effort to learn new things, it becomes much trickier.  Every new bit of info that you encounter suddenly requires analysing, evaluating, and a great deal of poking and prodding.  What once would have gone in one ear and out the other has now become fodder for my intellectual study.  And my brain hurts.  I really have to learn to adhere to one important rule:  If it’s knowledge that I really don’t care about, odds are I won’t retain it at all.  It only counts as learning something new, if it piques my interest.

So, these are the Top 3 new tid-bits of knowledge that I have gleaned in the past 24 hours.

1)  In Naples, Italy–a haven for Mafia-led organized crime–they have constructed their own mini Alcatraz.  Mini in that it doesn’t take up an entire island, but also “mini” due to the fact that it houses criminal youth.  The island’s name is Nisida and it is chalked with other juicy, historical facts.  Many historians believe that this may be the location where the assassination of Julius Caesar was masterminded.  Brutus’ wife, Porcia, killed herself here.  And ironically, many believe that the island once housed an early monastery.

In an attempt to rescue the youth housed at this facility from a life of crime, they are taught the fine art of pizza-making.  And, according to Rotary International, the youth are encouraged to create artistic endeavours such as mosaic building.  They even re-create nativity scenes.

Today, the island is divided between the Juvenile Detention Centre and a NATO naval headquarters.

I learned this morsel while watching a CBC News documentary on the Italian Mafia, while channel surfing.

2)  A woman in Utah got a huge surprise when she opened a new box of Tampons that she had just purchased.  Rolled up inside was a sizeable amount of a mysterious white powder.  Immediately, she feared a terrorist attack and contacted local authorities.  After conducting tests to identify the substance, they declared that she had, in fact, found a pouch of cocaine.  The British Boots tampons were pulled from the shelves.

I admit that this knowledge isn’t really of any use to me unless, of course, I encounter any strange anomalies in my next feminine hygiene purchase, but it will be a great story to tell at parties.

I came across this interesting nugget from the Huffington Post, while I was retrieving my e-mail.

3) I was watching Corner Gas–the episode where Karen engages in the sport of holding her breath for extended periods of time–and I wondered if this really is a sport.  Sure enough, “static apnoea” really does exist and it is a recognized discipline engaged in by freedivers.  The idea is to submerge all of your “respiratory-related body parts” under water and see how long you can last before you return to the surface, gasping for air.

I wonder what their lungs think of this?   As an asthmatic, I am  puzzled by the fact that people actually make not being able to breathe a sport.

May 5, 2012 The First 24 Hours

Posted by facelikeafryingpan in May 2012 and tagged with , , ,

“You know more than you think you know, just as you know less than you want to know.” Oscar Wilde.

Something occurred to me the other day as I was engaging in what many call a time-wasting pursuit–watching TV.  Every day is an opportunity to learn–and the “teacher” is often found in the least expected places.

Over the past 24 hours, I have learned three noteworthy (at least noteworthy to me) things:

1)  There is actually a name for the condition of temporarily being unable to remember or put one’s finger on a particular word or name.  We’ve all experienced this, but who would have thunk that someone has actually given it a moniker.  Hopefully, I’ll be able to remember this vocabulary gem when I need it.

Where did I learn this valuable tidbit?  In the pages of the novel, The Girl Who Chased The Moon, by Sarah Addison Allen.  Reading is good for the brain.

2)  Now here is a gem that I learned late last night during my first ever foray into the fascinating world of Storage Wars.  Someone actually thought of creating a ceiling fan that has retractable blades!  Let’s face it.  A regular ceiling fan with its clunky, oar-like propellers is an unsightly blemish  that most decors could do with out.  Now, you only need to endure its ugliness when the fan is actually in use.  And on cool days, your really tall friends can come over without fear of leaving concussed–just don’t turn it on without telling them.

3)  Usually, I loathe Reality TV Wedding Shows.  I know, this isn’t very “girlie” of me, but it’s true.  Today, however, I got lured in to watching My Fair Wedding With David Tutera and I learned something new.  I got introduced to the “Escort Card,” a cousin of the better-known “Place Card.”  We all know (well, at least most of us know) that a Place Card is a little name card that sits at place settings to tell guests who sits where.  Until recently, this card has been deemed “sufficient” for the task.  Apparently, this is no longer the case.  The wedding, much like an episode of The Amazing Race, must contain a series of clues–the first of which is the Escort Card.  This little gem tells guests which table they are seated at and is usually attractively displayed in an envelope with the guests’ names on it (if you are a visual learner like me, see picture for visual aid).  They follow this clue in order to find their next one–the Place Card.  And the prize?  A hand-made wedding favour, of course.