Tuesday 8/15/23
Celebrate:
Chant at the Moon Day
I Love Cowboys and Cowgirls Day
Mom's Equal Pay Day
National Best Friends Day
National Check the Chip Day
National Failures Day
National Leathercraft Day
National Lemon Meringue Pie Day
Naitonal Relaxation Day
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A woman in Texas named Elizabeth Francis turned 114 years old last week, and she's still going strong. She's got three grandkids, five great-grandkids, and four great-great-grandchildren. Longevity runs in their family. Her sister lived to be 106, and her daughter's still a spring chicken at just 94.
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A new study has found that a chemical in black licorice COULD help fight pancreatic cancer . . . one of the world's deadliest cancers.
Experiments on mice have shown that a "flavonoid" in licorice root can kill pancreatic cancer cells. Not the candy flavoring . . . actual licorice root, which is an herb that's widely used in traditional Chinese medicine.
Researchers also found it could make treatments like chemotherapy more effective. So, it's a very promising development.
But the research is still early, and doctors are warning people that you should NOT go out and consume large amounts of licorice.
The American Heart Association says eating a TON of black licorice can cause heart and kidney problems, that in extreme cases can be "life-threatening."
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If you're dragging today, and it's not even Monday, but if you're waking up tired a LOT, one of these things is probably to blame. Here are the eight most common reasons we wake up tired . . .
1. Fatigue. Maybe you underslept, or had a taxing weekend. Either way, you probably just need more sleep and a few days to recover. If you're constantly fatigued, get your annual physical to make sure there's not an underlying reason.
2. Sedentary lifestyle. If you just sit on the couch and never exercise, your body gets used to it. So doing anything physical is more exhausting. Try to get at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise each week.
3. Anxiety or depression. People don't realize how draining it can be, and it can mess with your sleep too. See a doctor if you think you need help. Some meds that treat anxiety and depression can cause insomnia, so keep that in mind too.
4. Inconsistent sleep. You can't really "catch up" on it, like sleeping 10 hours on Saturday to make up for five hours the night before. So try to consistently get your 7 to 9 hours.
5. Dehydration. Make sure you're drinking enough water this time of year, especially if you're out in the sun. Just being dehydrated can make you tired.
6. Poor sleep environment or routine. To get your best sleep, your bedroom should be dark and cool at night. Stop using your phone in bed . . . don't drink caffeine less than six hours before bedtime . . . and avoid alcohol at least two hours before bed.
7. Sleep partner problems. A.k.a., the person snoring in your year or kicking you in their sleep. Pets could also be ruining your sleep without you even knowing it.
8. Sleep disorders. People with sleep apnea can wake up 50 to 100 times throughout the night, and never hit a really deep sleep. There are apps now that can help track your sleep patterns, so that might be a good place to start. Or your doctor might want to send you to a sleep lab to get the most accurate results.
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A 37-year-old Illinois man named Bryan Baker got arrested for drunk driving near Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri on Friday . . . after accidentally running himself over.
He unwisely decided to drive drunk. A 34-year-old named Ashley Baker was with him and had also been drinking. We assume they're married, or related in some way.
He stepped out of his truck around 1:15 A.M., but apparently didn't put it in park first. Ashley hopped in the driver's seat, but couldn't stop the truck before it rolled over him.
He was seriously injured but survived. He was apparently in good enough shape to be arrested an hour later for driving while intoxicated.
And the kicker is Ashley ALSO got arrested for drunk driving. We don't have the details, except it was two hours after the incident. So maybe she drove drunk later that night, or maybe it was for hopping in the driver's seat.
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35% of us "like" or "love" chit-chatting with people . . . 24% "dislike" or "hate" it . . . and 37% are "neutral," so just going through the motions.
Most of us think we're pretty good at it though. 81% said they're at least "okay" at making small talk, including 18% who think they're GREAT at it.
If you never know what to talk about, the poll covered that too. It asked about six different topics. Here they are, ranked from most to least popular . . .
1. Your hobbies, or theirs. 44% of us think it's a good conversation starter.
2. Current events, 43%. Men were more likely to say that's a good topic.
3. Travel, 41%. Like, maybe ask if they've gone anywhere recently.
4. The weather. Kinda seems like a last-resort topic. But 39% of us actually enjoy talking about the weather.
5. Showbiz or entertainment, 39%.
6. Work or school. Only 23% think it's a good chit-chat topic.
6% said they wouldn't want to talk about ANY of that stuff. So they're probably in that group who just hate small talk in general.
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A four-year-old Labrador in West Virginia is raising money for charity by doing what she loves. Her name is Daisy. Her owner takes her on walks at a frisbee golf course. And her favorite thing is to run through the woods and find lost frisbees.
In three years, she's found over 150 of them. Now her owner is selling them. All the money will go to her local animal shelter.
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Today's Useless Fact of the Day - There are about 20 quintillion animals total living on Earth. That's 20 BILLION BILLION. And about half are insects.
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Check out the web version of this briefing, along with The Anniversary Song of the Day and more content, on the web at https://bribriny.wixsite.com/brianbriefing
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