October 30: Thermos
ABC's Grey's Anatomy has banned bottled water from the set and issued all cast and crew a thermos instead.
October 29: Antarctica
The Antarctic is the only place is the world governed by international treaty.
October 28: Japander
‘Japander: n., & v.t. 1. a western star who uses his or her fame to make large sums of money in a short time by advertising products in Japan that they would probably never use. ~er (see synecure, prostitute) 2. to make an ass of oneself in Japanese media.’
October 27: Eisenhower
Dwight D. Eisenhower was the first US President to have power over all 50 US states.
October 25: Baileys
Baileys Irish Cream was launched on November 26, 1974 having cost $40,000 to bring to production. The Milk from 40,000 cows is used to supply the cream used in the production of Baileys in Ireland.
October 24: Marijuana
‘The National Survey on Drug Use and Health shows that the rate of marijuana use in California has barely risen in the past few years, whereas production has hugely increased.’
October 23: Ontario
56% of Ontario's workforce has a post-secondary education, the highest rate of any industrialized nation.
October 21: Retail
India's retail industry has sales of $300 million, which will swell to $560 billion by 2012, according to HSBC.
October 17: Not Spending
‘Chinese households are hardly the most eager shoppers. Consumer spending has fallen from 47% of GDP in the early 1990s to only 36% in 2006, the lowest proportion in any large economy.’
October 15: 130
Time Inc. is one of the largest content companies in the world, with a portfolio of approximately 130 titles.
October 14: Iwo Jima
The Battle of Iwo Jima was fought between the United States and Japan in February and March 1945, during the Pacific Campaign of World War II.
October 13: Humanistic
‘Unconditional Positive Regard’ is one of the Humanistic Theories of Carl Rogers (1902-1987).
October 12: Relations
‘It is clear that employee-employer relations are at one of the lowest points in history.’ Wayne Hochwarter, FSU College of Business in a recent study
October 11: Family Day
Ontario has declared a new annual Family Day holiday the third Monday of each February.
October 9: Titanic
Despite the myth of ‘women and children first’, the survival rate for First Class men on the Titanic was higher than for Third Class children.
Before the Titanic, the SS Atlantic was the worst ocean liner disaster in history (April 1, 1873).
Before the Titanic, the SS Atlantic was the worst ocean liner disaster in history (April 1, 1873).
October 8: 1930
The Commonwealth Games are an athletic contest held every four years between 71 provinces and former colonies of the British Empire. The very first competition was held in Hamilton, Ontario in 1930.
October 7: Helmets
Halifax is home to mandatory bike helmet laws. It was apparent immediately. Cool is so overrated, anyway!
October 6: Controversial
Nova Scotia legislated Sunday shopping only one year ago (and it's still quite controversial).
October 5: Steel
Condominiums on Ontario are considered commercial buildings and must have steel bathtubs installed.
October 4: Fish'n'chips
Locals email me that the BEST fish'n'chips in Halifax is Warf Wraps in Eastern Passage (‘across the bridge and quite a way’s out of the way’).
October 3: Anxious
Studies report that normal children today are more anxious than child psychiatric patients in the 1950s.
October 2: Buffalo
Early America was so thick with buffalo that explorers said the land seemed draped with ‘one black robe.’ By 1900, fewer than a hundred buffalo remained.
October 1: Series
The Museum of Modern Art has reinstalled its permanent collection of photographs with an emphasis on series.
September 30: Depression
In 1890, Vincent van Gogh painted On the Threshold of Eternity, seen by some as symbolizing the despair and hopelessness felt in depression.
September 29: Heels
As far back as 1000 BC, women have been wearing high heels to convey social status and sex appeal.
September 28: Control
In June 2007, Exxon Mobil and ConocoPhilips refused to hand over majority control of their operations in the Orinoco Belt to the Venezuelan government.
September 26: Whitening
The practise of skin-whitening can be found everywhere but is particularly common in India, Asia, Africa and the United States.
Interesting article here.
Interesting article here.
September 25: Bag
The familiar green plastic garbage bag (made from polyethylene) was invented by Harry Wasylyk in 1950.
September 24: Fidelity
‘Women initiate 66 percent of divorces between partners over 40.’ Love is noble, love is hard and women cheat just as readily as men.
September 23: Bernays
Edward L. Bernays, Father of Modern Public Relations, was the nephew of Sigmund Freud.
September 22: Costs
‘The rising demand for corn as a source of ethanol-blended fuel is largely to blame for increasing food costs around the world.’
September 21: Sundance
‘In 1981, Robert Redford gathered a group of his friends and colleagues in the mountains of Utah to create an environment designed to foster independence, discovery, and new voices in American film.’ Sundance was born.
September 20: Tea
PR Week has called The Boston Tea Party ‘the greatest and best-known publicity stunt of all time.’
September 19: Food
‘Percentage change in the average amount of food a person will consume when eating with one other person: +35’
‘Percentage change with four or seven others, respectively: +75, +96’
‘Percentage change with four or seven others, respectively: +75, +96’
Bonus: Play
Landscape Structures creates innovative playground equipment for children. Lovely designs like this one.
September 18: 112
Today, ‘world’s oldest man turns 112 in Japan and says he’d like to live forever.’
September 17: Google
Google is often compared to Microsoft, ‘but its evolution is actually closer to that of the banking industry. Just as financial institutions grew to become repositories of people’s money, and thus guardians of private information about their finances, Google is now turning into a custodian of a far wider and more intimate range of information about individuals.’
September 16: Church
‘Built in 1871 in Toronto, Berkeley Church did religious duties for nearly a century (it was a Wesleyan Methodist stronghold) before being converted into a film production studio. It is now a charming special event spot, where lofty ceilings overlook original stained glass windows and hardwood floors.’
September 6-15: TIFF
In what turned out to be the only exception this year: 10 days of Blog on Hiatus while I attended the Toronto International Film Festival. It was an all-consuming affair... I'm disappointed it didn't work out, but it seems it wasn't meant to. Here's to trying it again next year.
September 5: Tears
Although most land mammals have a lacrimation system to keep their eyes wet, Humans are the only animal generally accepted to cry emotional tears.
September 3: V&R
Viktor & Rolf, an Amsterdam-based fashion house, produces women's shoes designed by Dutch designer Fredie Stevens.
September 2: Ratatouille
‘The word Ratatouille comes from ‘touiller,’ which means to toss food. Ratatouille originated in the area around present-day Nice.’ Originally a poor farmer's dish made of fresh summer vegetables, Ratatouille Nicoise did not contain eggplant; today's version does.
August 31: Cirque
Among Montreal business-school graduates, according to HEC Montréal, a job at Cirque du Soleil is more coveted than one at any other big-name employer in the city.
August 30: Cursing
‘Steven Pinker, whose most recent book is The Stuff of Thought, believes that cursing is a primordial part of our brains.’
August 29: Saggy Pants
‘Atlanta's city council is debating a measure that would ban saggy pants that show underwear.’
August 28: Dames
‘Brooke Astor and Leona Helmsley, grandes dames of New York, died on August 13th and 20th respectively, aged 105 and 87 ... Both gave millions of dollars away. And their similarities ended there.’
August 27: Centaurs
‘In Greek mythology, the Centaurs (Greek: Κένταυροι) are a race of creatures composed of part human and part horse.’
August 26: Redheads
‘True redheads will be extinct by 2100, since carriers of the carrot-top gene are less and less likely to pair up in an age of global intermingling (a child usually needs a copy from each parent to get the red result).’
August 25: Unitards
The very funny Unitards are performing the second Wednesday of every month at Revival for Sketch Comedy Wednesdays.
August 24: Delusional
Delusional disorder is a psychiatric diagnosis denoting a mental illness that involves holding one or more non-bizarre delusions in the absence of any other significant signs or symptoms.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
