What's the last weird or unusual thing you've learned?

[GrownupGirl]

Scientists don't know for certain why ice is slippery or how ice skating works.

I once heard that the friction of the blades on the skate causes the ice to melt, so you're really skating on water.

 

[GrownupGirl]

They have a livestream counter on YouTube right now counting the cases of coronavirus and how many have died of it. Because we all know how much happier safer people will feel, and they won't be breaking out the cyanide at all.

 

[Schism]

I really can't quite accept quantum theory because how does anything then stay together?
My emojii don't work here either.

 

[Nervous Rex]

You've heard of the Dot Com financial Bubble in the 1990's and the Housing Bubble in the 2000's? In the 1600's, there was a Tulip Bubble.

In the 1600's, a rare virus broke out among Dutch tulips, marbleizing them in swirls of vibrant color. Collectors began paying high prices for tulips and the fad spread quickly through Europe.

In 1636, a single tulip root was traded for the following:
Two lasts of wheat (1 last = 120 cubic feet)
Four lasts of rye
Four fat oxen
Eight fat swine
Twelve fat sheep
Two hogsheads of wine (1 hogshead = 63 gallons)
Four tuns of beer (1 tun = 252 gallons)
Two tuns of butter
One thousand pounds of cheese
A complete bed
A suit of clothes
A silver drinking cup.

All that adds up to a modern equivalent of $21,700 for a single tulip root.

At an auction in Haarlem on February 3, 1637, buyers refused to bid on a rare tulip bulb. Almost overnight, the bubble burst and tulip prices plummeted. Those who had sold their tulips were rich. Others were made poor overnight, left holding a few tulips that they had traded their entire fortunes for.

 

[GrownupGirl]

Snuggie, that blanket with sleeves that seemed so ridiculous, was originally marketed for people with mobility issues or in wheelchairs. But for some reason they didn't market it that way. It might not have seemed so dumb if they had imo, but I guess they wanted to market it to a broader audience so they sell more.

 

[GrownupGirl]

I was listening to Reddit stories about people from third world countries who have immigrated to the states or a European country (no mention of Canada, naturally). Many of them were surprisingly wholesome and a reminder of how we lucky we are, even if our own countries aren't perfect. But the story I found the most unusual was about this man from Nigeria, and there was an incident where he was afraid to enter a part of a building because of a cat and told the OP it was a witch that was going to turn into a snake and eat him. At first the OP thought he was kidding, but he was actually dead serious. Apparently in Nigeria people are very superstitious and think cats are evil and full of black magic.

 

[GrownupGirl]

The Sinclair family in the Jim Henson sitcom Dinosaurs got their last name from an old gasoline company that had a green brontosaurus for their mascot. (fossil fuel)

I found this out when I started browsing through, "Sinclair dinosaur" on eBay, expecting to find merchandise of the Dinosaurs sitcom.

 

[GrownupGirl]

You've heard of the Dot Com financial Bubble in the 1990's and the Housing Bubble in the 2000's? In the 1600's, there was a Tulip Bubble.

In the 1600's, a rare virus broke out among Dutch tulips, marbleizing them in swirls of vibrant color. Collectors began paying high prices for tulips and the fad spread quickly through Europe.

In 1636, a single tulip root was traded for the following:
Two lasts of wheat (1 last = 120 cubic feet)
Four lasts of rye
Four fat oxen
Eight fat swine
Twelve fat sheep
Two hogsheads of wine (1 hogshead = 63 gallons)
Four tuns of beer (1 tun = 252 gallons)
Two tuns of butter
One thousand pounds of cheese
A complete bed
A suit of clothes
A silver drinking cup.

All that adds up to a modern equivalent of $21,700 for a single tulip root.

At an auction in Haarlem on February 3, 1637, buyers refused to bid on a rare tulip bulb. Almost overnight, the bubble burst and tulip prices plummeted. Those who had sold their tulips were rich. Others were made poor overnight, left holding a few tulips that they had traded their entire fortunes for.

It's almost like the Beanie Baby fad. I heard some people still have bags of Beanie Babies stuffed in their attic because they thought they'd get rich. But it turned out the babies weren't worth beans. *Buh dump bump chh*

 

[Nervous Rex]

It's almost like the Beanie Baby fad. I heard some people still have bags of Beanie Babies stuffed in their attic because they thought they'd rich. But it turned out the babies weren't worth beans. *Buh dump bump chh*

 

[GrownupGirl]

There's a rabbit cafe in Japan where people can go and pet, feed, and play with bunny rabbits and it's adorable.
I know there's an island in Japan where domestic rabbits live and people go to visit, but I didn't know they had a rabbit cafe as well.

But you can't just waltz right in, order a coffee and start playing around with the bunnies, however. There are some rules you have to follow:
You have to wear an apron that they give you, so you can let the bunnies sit on your lap.
Your hand must be washed and sanitized before you can handle the bunnies.
Be gentle! Don't pet or handle the bunnies roughly.
Don't make loud noises. You don't want to startle the bunnies.
Don't bring in food other than what they sell in the cafe.

But it still sounds really fun. My mom wouldn't enjoy it, though. She's allergic to rabbit fur.

 

[GrownupGirl]

Apparently it's "wrong" to put milk or sugar in your coffee now. If you don't drink black coffee, or order a flavored coffee beverage, that's a "kid's drink" and you're totally immature and other people will bully you for ordering it.

Coffee is very bitter. If an adult can drink it without cringing, it's not because they're "mature", it's because adults have less sensitive taste buds than kids. I, however, seem to be more sensitive to bitter tastes than other adults. It could be due to my being aspie or female or all the ear infections I had when I was younger. Or maybe it's because it's stupid and REALLY immature to care how other people like their coffee. Or tea, because I'm a tea drinker.

 

[Fino]

Apparently it's "wrong" to put milk or sugar in your coffee now. If you don't drink black coffee, or order a flavored coffee beverage, that's a "kid's drink" and you're totally immature and other people will bully you for ordering it.

Coffee is very bitter. If an adult can drink it without cringing, it's not because they're "mature", it's because adults have less sensitive taste buds than kids. I, however, seem to be more sensitive to bitter tastes than other adults. It could be due to my being aspie or female or all the ear infections I had when I was younger. Or maybe it's because it's stupid and REALLY immature to care how other people like their coffee. Or tea, because I'm a tea drinker.

Sounds like you just need to switch out who you hand around.

 

[Nervous Rex]

Apparently it's "wrong" to put milk or sugar in your coffee now. If you don't drink black coffee, or order a flavored coffee beverage, that's a "kid's drink" and you're totally immature and other people will bully you for ordering it.

It sounds like the person who said that needs something to feel superior about, and decided to look down of people who don't drink the "right" type of coffee. That's very insecure and hipsterish. Feel free to roll your eyes and walk away.

 

[GrownupGirl]

Sounds like you just need to switch out who you hand around.

No, it wasn't me, it was something someone else posted on Reddit under "unpopular opinions". Seriously how is an opinion like that unpopular? The world must really be full of idiots.

Honestly I don't hang around with anybody. I've been been living half my life the way the rest of the world should have been years ago: social distancing.

 

[GrownupGirl]

In 1977, "Gay Bob" was the first doll invented that was claimed to be "openly gay". He came in a box that resembled his closet so he would literally "come out of the closet" when you removed him, wore an earring and was anatomically correct.

One person wrote to advice columnist Ann Landers, ranting about how eeevil the doll was, and that it would lead to making other "disgusting" dolls, such as drug dealers and prostitutes. Ann said she would believe the doll existed when she saw it for real, but didn't think that would happen in the "respectable" stores she normally went to.

I remember in the 1990's there was a doll called Earring Magic Ken. He also had a stereotypical gay appearance, such as a lavender faux leather vest, and there was some real media hype about it.

 

[tree]

"Earring Magic Ken is a model of the Ken doll introduced by Mattel in 1993 as a companion to its Earring Magic Barbie figure, one of six dolls in the Earring Magic Barbie line. This generation of the Ken doll featured an updated look, including blonde highlights in its traditionally brown hair, outfits including lavender mesh shirt, periwinkle vest, a necklace with a circular charm and, as the name indicates, an earring in its left ear."

Earring Magic Ken - Wikipedia

I have about 50 Barbies, but no Kens.
Ken wasn't any fun to me.

"Gay Bob is a doll that was created in 1977 and billed as the world's first openly gay doll. Bob was created by former advertising executive Harvey Rosenberg and marketed through his company, Gizmo Development. Gay Bob was bestowed with an Esquire magazine "Dubious Achievement Award" for 1978."

Gay Bob - Wikipedia

 

[GrownupGirl]

"Earring Magic Ken is a model of the Ken doll introduced by Mattel in 1993 as a companion to its Earring Magic Barbie figure, one of six dolls in the Earring Magic Barbie line. This generation of the Ken doll featured an updated look, including blonde highlights in its traditionally brown hair, outfits including lavender mesh shirt, periwinkle vest, a necklace with a circular charm and, as the name indicates, an earring in its left ear."

Earring Magic Ken - Wikipedia

I have about 50 Barbies, but no Kens.
Ken wasn't any fun to me.

"Gay Bob is a doll that was created in 1977 and billed as the world's first openly gay doll. Bob was created by former advertising executive Harvey Rosenberg and marketed through his company, Gizmo Development. Gay Bob was bestowed with an Esquire magazine "Dubious Achievement Award" for 1978."

Gay Bob - Wikipedia

Yeah, I actually came upon Gay Bob while browsing through the dolls section in Ebay, so I looked it up on Wiki to learn more.

 

[Stuart1975]

Wild parrots in Australia are learning to swear,escaped ones are teaching them.

https://inhabitat.com/birds-that-es...wild-birds-how-to-speak-and-swear-in-english/
Why Do Parrots Imitate Humans?

 

[GrownupGirl]

Wild parrots in Australia are learning to swear,escaped ones are teaching them.

https://inhabitat.com/birds-that-es...wild-birds-how-to-speak-and-swear-in-english/
Why Do Parrots Imitate Humans?

I had no idea how much people in Australia actually swear until I saw one of the "Steamed Hams" videos on Youtube where Principal Skinner and Superintendent Chalmers' original voices were replaced by voice actors whose Australian accents were so strong about the only thing I understood was the swearing.

 

[tree]

They put a bar of soap in the microwave. Now... Watch what happens!

Sort of like how we used to put a marshmallow Peep in the microwave
to get huge, cool down & revert to normal size. Repeat. Repeat.

As far as the get huge part, anyway.