Did a King of England once have to pawn his crown in order to pay his debts?

Spring arrives this week, bringing with it the promise of longer days, warmer days, milder nights, and — if the weather boffins are accurate — rain. Lots of rain.

Which, of course, we need, especially the folks who grow plants for a living. I hope they never run out of water!

For those keeping track, spring officially started Monday, March 20, at 5:24 a.m. Eastern Daylight Saving time. On that day, the hours of daylight and darkness were equal. Now, days get longer and nights get shorter until the first day of summer, which is June 21.

Class dismissed in time to read some extra credit trivia! Enjoy, my friends.

Did you know …

…Nicotine is not good for you? Besides being the addictive substance in tobacco, nicotine has another, less well known use — it is used in insecticides (The good part is, you won’t have any bugs in your lungs).

…You really can tickle yourself? Of course, to do so, you have to look somewhat silly. The only place you can tickle yourself is on the roof of your mouth (If you do this, send me a photo of it. I always need a good laugh on a Monday morning here).

…Only one professional athlete has hit a home run in a Major League Baseball game and scored a touchdown in an NFL game in the same week? Deion Sanders (born 1967), who played for the Atlanta Braves and Atlanta Falcons (among other teams), also is the only person to play in a World Series and a Super Bowl (That Deion, such an underachiever).

…The dark meat on a roast turkey has more calories than the white meat (That explains why I always come away from the Renaissance Festival heavier — the turkey legs!)?

…You may suffer from trichophobia? It’s the fear of hair, specifically loose hair just lying around somewhere (If you’re like me you actually suffer from peladophobia, the fear of hair falling out — which, in my case, it does quite often).

…Citizens in Czechoslovakia pulled one over on invaders? During the 1968 invasion of the country by Warsaw Pact soldiers, road signs in towns were removed or painted over. The idea was to confuse the invading troops. The only road signs not changed were the ones pointing toward Moscow (Giving the old saying, “Get lost!” a new meaning).

…At least one European country believes in witches? Romania is so accepting of witchcraft that the country tried to tax witches in 2011 in an effort to help pull the country out of a recession (Got to find out how that worked out for them).

…An English king once had to pawn his crown? Richard II (1367-1400), who ruled from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399, was something of a spendthrift. In the royal records is a parchment roll detailing just how much money the king spent during his reign… so much that, at one point, he actually had to pawn his gold-and-diamond crown to be able to pay his bills. His increasingly bizarre behavior eventually led to his overthrow in 1399 by Henry IV (1367-1413), who imprisoned Richard and basically allowed him to starve to death in prison. Additional trivia note: Richard II was only ten years old when he became king, and blamed his first indiscretions on his youth. He died at age 33 (One must wonder what he blamed his later indiscretions on, wouldn’t you agree?).

…A popular beverage is named due to a mistake? If you’ve ever enjoyed Ovaltine™, the drink made from milk, malt, egg and cocoa, you’ve had a real treat. Ovaltine was developed in 1904 in Berne, Switzerland, by the Nestlé company. But we’ve been calling it by the wrong name almost since it was invented. Initially, it was registered as Ovomaltine, but a clerical error in registering the name changed it to the name we use today (I love Ovaltine, especially when it comes with a secret decoder ring!).

…A museum dedicated to watermelons exists? Why not, right? I mean, we have museums for everything else. But the China Watermelon Museum exists in Beijing, and it explores the entire history of watermelons, growing methods, and the role watermelons play in Chinese culture (I didn’t even know watermelons played a role.00 Wow!).

…The voice of numerous cartoon characters has his most famous line engraved on his tombstone? Mel Blanc (1908-1989), the “Man of 1,000 Voices,” is buried at Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles, California. Blanc provided the voices of beloved cartoon characters such as Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and many others, but on his tombstone is the catch phrase of the character Porky Pig: “That’s all, folks.”

…One could find all sorts of heroism during World War II? For instance, during the Siege of Leningrad (1941-1944), nine Soviet scientists died of starvation while protecting the world’s largest seed bank, which was located in the city. The men refused to eat what they saw as the nation’s future food production.

…The Inuit language does not have a word for “yesterday”? (They also don’t have a word for, “This does not taste like chicken,”).

…You may be holding your wine glass the wrong way? Yes, there is a “right way” and a “wrong way” to hold a wine glass. Properly, wine glasses should always be held by the stem, not the bowl. The heat of your hand will raise the temperature of the wine (Who knew?).

…Cold showers are actually better for you than hot showers? A cold shower improves circulation, stimulates weight loss, and eases depression (Among other things).

Now… you know!

HHJ News