Friday 3/15/24
Celebrate:
Dumbstruck Day
Everything You Think is Wrong Day
Ides of March & National Brutus Day - the anniversary of the day that Julius Caesar was assassinated, in 44 BCE (Ides literally means middle as well)
International Day Against Police Brutality
International Eat an Animal for PETA Day
National Egg Cream Day
National Peanut Lovers Day
National Pears Helene Day
National Preschool Teachers Appreciation Day
National Shoe the World Day
True Confessions Day
World Consumer Rights Day
World Sleep Day
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At the Movies this weekend
Arthur The King - with Mark Wahlberg is based on a true story about man and dog!
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Pi Day was yesterday, and I learned about numbers as well.
The word “million” didn’t come into general use until the 13th century. Before then, the largest number was a myriad, equal to ten thousand.
A million seemed huge when we were kids. It became less intimidating only when we realized it was possible to count to a million in a few days.
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There's a new study out, where researchers say they've found that 5:00 A.M. is officially the worst time of the day, based on mood, circadian clock, and other factors.
And 5:00 P.M. is the BEST time of the day, which makes sense because that's when a lot of people are leaving work. But interestingly, this wasn't directly tied to waking up and clocking out.
They say people experience their lowest mood at 5:00 A.M., regardless of when they wake up . . . and they're the cheeriest at 5:00 P.M., no matter what their work hours are.
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Pies were also on our mind yesterday and Google Trends posted the top pie each state googles more than other states. They broke them down into five categories.
1. Chocolate or nut pies, four states. Oreo pie in Georgia and Ohio . . . French silk pie in Iowa . . . and derby pie in Kentucky. They'll eat a lot of it in May around the Kentucky Derby.
2. Fruit pies, six states. Apple is #1 in California, Oregon, Nevada, Colorado, and Wyoming. And raspberry pie is #1 in New York.
3. Custard pies, 17 states. Things like Boston cream, banana cream, and lemon meringue. Kool-Aid Pie is the top search in Tennessee, and Virginia wants a slice of old-fashioned vinegar pie.
4. Savory pies, 18 states. Things like chicken pot pie in Texas and Alaska, and shepherd's pie in Massachusetts. A bunch of states in the western half of the U.S. are obsessed with Frito pie. It's more of a casserole than a "pie" . . . or sometimes it's just a bag full of ingredients.
5. "Other". Five states didn't fit any of those categories: Honey pie in Wisconsin . . . sugar pie in Michigan . . . ricotta pie in Connecticut . . . peanut butter cheese pie in Alabama . . . and fried pie in Arizona.
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A new poll found the average American spends over $2,500 a year on restaurant food now. That's over $200 a month even though two-thirds said they're currently stressed about money.
77% of us think adults should be allowed to order off the KIDS' MENU. Some places don't care, but a lot of them don't allow it.
21% of us have tried to order off the kids' menu before, and a third of those people said they've been rejected at least once.
The survey also found we'll probably be ordering more food this weekend than we did last weekend. Today is the 15th. 48% said the time they're most likely to eat out is right after their paycheck lands.
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A Goodwill store in central Pennsylvania recently listed a single Lego piece for $15 online, but it ended up being worth a lot more than that. It's a rare gold mask made of ACTUAL 14-karat gold. Lego only made 30 of them.
The store sold it at auction last month for just a hair over $18,000. It's the most a single Lego piece has ever sold for.
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Has a waiter or waitress ever drawn a smiley face on your receipt?
A new study in the Journal of Hospitality Management found people DO tip more if they see a smiley face on their receipt. But the kind your server draws wasn't really what they looked at.
They printed different tip suggestions on people's receipts, like 15, 20, or 25%. And each one had a different emoji next to it. So, they basically wanted to see if the emojis would SHAME people into tipping more.
The lowest percentage had a neutral-face emoji. The rest had smiley faces, and the smile got bigger and bigger as the percentages went up.
The average tip without emojis on there was 22.9%, and rose to 25.4% with them . . . an 11% increase.
They also tried it with delivery orders, and saw a 10% bump. And takeout orders saw the biggest increase, 33% bigger tips.
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Today’s Useless Fact of the Day - A hole-in-one on a par-5 hole in golf is called a "condor." It's considered the hardest thing to do in golf, and there's never been one in a pro tournament.
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