If you’ve shopped in an actual store any time in the last 10 years or so, you’ve probably experienced that uncomfortable moment at the checkout counter when the cashier asks for your ZIP code. It feels odd & a bit intrusive, since it doesn’t really seem relevant to whatever you’re buying. Soliciting your email address…
What exactly makes a majestically tall clock a “grandfather clock”? No, it has nothing to do with the only people who seem to have them these days (though it’s understandable why someone might think that). Grandfather clocks are technically called “longcase clocks”, with their tall wooden cases, long swinging pendulums, ornate roman numerals, musically echoing…
Whenever you overhear co-workers gossiping about someone, or read some salacious story on social media, it’s always best to take that information “with a grain of salt”. But why do we say that? What does sodium have to do with retaining a prudent amount of skepticism? The saying first showed up in ancient Rome around…
There are so many different phrases we use to signify marriage, from “walking down the aisle” to “getting hitched” and beyond. The meanings behind most of the phrases are clear, but some expressions seem more obscure…like “tying the knot”. Why do we say someone who got married “tied the knot”? “Tying the knot” goes back…
If you’ve ever taken on the challenge of steaming a lobster, you know they end up a bright red color that’s very different from the original color they start out with. Why is that? That bright, fire-engine red color is merely the result of a simple chemical reaction. Lobsters’ usual greenish-blue hue works well for…
One of the great tragedies in my life is that, since having moved to Frederick, I have yet to play a single round of golf. It’s such a fun, relaxing sport…but not without its share of “Mundane Mysteries”. Such as: why do the round white golf balls have hundreds of dimples on their surface? Are…
Having to pay a traffic fine can put anyone in a bad mood. Fines are regularly $150 or more, plus you could have to make a court appearance, and you’re likely to see a bump in your car insurance. And, since they’re costly & time-consuming, we do our best to avoid getting traffic citations…or are…
Happy “Uncle Sam Day”! September 13th actually is “Uncle Sam Day”. And, while it may seem like just another one of those made-up holidays, there really was a very real Uncle Sam. But who was he? The real “Uncle Sam” was actually a guy named Sam Wilson. Born on September 13, 1766, Sam Wilson became…
We’ve all made a late-night refrigerator raid to snag a snack. It’s a black-ops mission, during which you try to not wake up the rest of the house by tip-toeing through the dark to the kitchen where, thankfully, there’s a built-in fridge light that enables you to see & survey your spread. But what if…
Among the things you should rightly check when grocery shopping (price tags, nutrition labels, ingredient listings), there’s one other packaging point to consider, namely when you’re in the bakery section: the color of the tag or twist tie on the bag of your loaf of bread. Why? Because it can actually tell you whether a…