CCRAP

In 2000, delegates of Canada’s United Alternative convention needed a name for their newly formed political party. They came up with Canadian Conservative Reform Alliance Party, which in addition to taking roughly six minutes to pronounce was abbreviated CCRAP. Organizers quickly realized the blunder and changed the party’s name to the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance.

Spoonerisms

William Archibald Spooner has the dubious distinction of having the linguistic phenomenon known as a “spoonerism” named after him.

A spoonerism involves the accidental (or sometimes intentional) swapping of letters, words, or vowels in a sentence – for example: “Go and shake a tower” (meaning “go and take a shower”). Spooner was a professor at Oxford and he became so famous for his spoonerisms that people would attend his lectures just to hear him make a mistake. He was not pleased about the great publicity that surrounded him, but as he neared death his attitude softened and he gave interviews to the press. Spooner once wrote to a fellow professor to ask him to come immediately to help solve a problem. At the end of the letter he added a post-script that the matter had been resolved and he needn’t come.

Some spoonerisms attributed to Spooner are: “Mardon me padam, this pie is occupewed. Can I sew you to another sheet?” (Pardon me, madam, this pew is occupied. Can I show you to another seat?)
“Let us glaze our asses to the queer old Dean” (…raise our glasses to the dear old Queen)
“We’ll have the hags flung out” (…flags hung out).

Silver Spoons

Born with a silver spoon in your mouth is an old saying. The spoon is the apostle spoon, or christening spoon, which is given to babies at their baptism by their godparents (this tradition has been practiced in Europe since the early 17th century and in the US since the early 18th).

The spoons often functioned as a status symbol and sign of the family’s wealth, with rich godparents traditionally giving the infant 12 spoons, usually silver, one for each apostle. Godparents who were not as well off give four spoons, one for each of the four Gospel writers. Godparents who couldn’t afford multiple spoons or silver usually just give just one spoon made of a non-precious metal.

The tradition of the apostle spoons is still practiced in some Roman Catholic families both in Europe and the US, the figurative silver spoon has taken on the negative connotation that a person attained their wealth through inheritance, not hard work.

Solar Power and Heat

Solar power panels trap heat along with making electricity. Global warming activists are facing a conundrum trying to reconcile reducing global warming by eliminating other fuels and increasing global warming by their own solution.

Cheese and Cooking Spray

To prevent low-fat cheese from turning to rubber in the microwave, spray your nachos with a quick blast of cooking spray, like Pam, before putting them in the microwave. Also, spray the inside of a grilled-cheese sandwich before you toss it in the frying pan. This adds just enough fat to make the cheese stay gooey and creamy as it slowly melts.

Nokia

The telecom giant got its start in Finland in 1865, when Fredrik Idestam opened a pulp mill and started making paper on the banks of Tammerkoski. His second paper mill was built in the town of Nokia, a few miles away. The name of the town, Nokia, originated from the river which flowed through the town. The river itself, Nokianvirta, was named after the archaic Finnish word originally meaning a small, dark-furred animal that lived on the banks of the Nokianvirta river.

The company later bounced around a number of industries, including electricity and rubber, before getting serious about phones in the 1960s. Makes me chuckle to think of the millions of people who don't realize they are putting a small, dark-furry animal up to their ears and speaking into it.

WWF

It looks like the popular internet acronym and now may even bear some resemblance. In a recent report, the WWF (previously known as World Wildlife Fund) says, "The over-use and pollution of Earth's natural resources have become so extreme that, at current rates, a second planet will be needed by 2030 to meet the world's needs." The report also added, "four and a half planets would be needed if everyone used as many resources as the average American." I wonder what bar that study was conducted in and how it even got published by USA TODAY.

Happy Friday

Everyone hears what you say. Friends listen to what you say. Best friends listen to what you don't say.

I listen to my friends and even if they don't say it, I know it is time to have a Happy Friday!

Car Colors

Have we become automotively boring? Seems like the car color choices we make are as boring as the car design choices.

The superstar of car colors has been silver since 1990, and according to PPG's latest study, it continues. For the tenth year in a row, the silver, charcoal and gray category are number one colors for new car buyers. In 2008, it accounted for 20 percent of vehicles sold, 25 percent in 2009, and currently is 31 percent.

Behind silver are black and white, tied for second with 18 percent apiece. Red is 11 percent and blue is 10 percent. Last at 4 percent is green.