Archive for category: Friday Afternoon

Yep, it’s that time of year when the little munchkin’s head off to another exciting school year – some have started already, and some do not go back until after Labor Day.  I can remember the excitement I had, seeing old friends, going to a new classroom, finding my seat, and getting to use all of those “new’ back-to-school supplies. One, of course, was a new box of crayons.  I’ll bet you can agree – especially the 64 pack with the built-in sharpener!! (never went for the 96 or 120 pack – anyone who has seen my coloring skills would understand!!) There’s something magical about opening a brand-new box of crayons – the waxy scent, the pristine tips, the rainbow of possibility – it’s a small ritual that signals the start of a new school year, full of hope and creativity.  I have to admit, using the crayon sharpener was always a bunch of fun, my friends and I would have contests to see who could have the sharpest crayon or biggest pile of shavings (unfortunately for my parents/teachers – the shavings ended up everywhere!) Here’s some fun trivia on crayons in the US, and a cool “how they’re made video. Enjoy, and thanks to Google, Wikipedia, and Smithsonian.com for the info.

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Curiosity is a great word. For me (and for the gang here at KHT), it’s our never-ending pursuit of wonder, knowledge, exploring, testing, and problem-solving. There are so many people throughout history who were driven by curiosity, from the mundane to the amazing discoverers. I love reading about remarkable adventures – those who “headed West” with a wagon and bunch of horses, or the folks grinding away in the lab. Over the past few weeks, I’ve really enjoyed some clear skies at night, causing me to “look up” and ponder the stars – it’s fun to find the satellites circling the earth. Today, August 8th, marks a historic achievement in the amazing discovery life of Galileo Galilei, known as just Galileo (think Tiger, Oprah, and Lebron, Michelangelo). When Galileo Galilei pointed his rudimentary telescope at the night sky on this day in 1609, there is no way he could have imagined that centuries later, humanity would be observing the universe from spacecraft and mountaintops with instruments so powerful they can see galaxies billions of light-years away. Here’s a little history about Galileo, along with a list of milestone astronomy achievements, as gradual technology improvements and good old “know-how” bring us to today’s far-seeing telescopes.  (Be sure to watch the YouTube video below on the newest billion-dollar telescope in Chile – it’s truly amazing!!) The “know-how” and engineering that went into it is mind-boggling. Enjoy! And, feel free to dig deeper on each one with the links – amazing!!) Read more

Doesn’t it seem like things we use all the time, we just take for granted, and don’t think much about their origin or original design? You know – things are just what they are – stoplight design hasn’t changed much since it’s inception, US cars have drivers on the left, TV’s have bulky, easy to misplace remotes, mobile phones barely fit in your pocket, two handle faucets have hot on the left, new shoes come wrapped in tissue paper, eggs are mostly sold by the dozen, butter sticks come in four packs, microwave ovens beep when they are done and almost all English language computers use the QWERTY keyboard layout. Looking down at my keyboard the other day, (not only do I peek sometimes when I type, but I’ve realized that I’m always wearing out the “E and R” keys first?) I remember early on that I struggled a bit to understand the logic behind the layout – I wasn’t the best typist in High School Typing class. Why does the top row begin with the letters Q, W, E, R, T, Y (followed by U, I, O, P.) Now, of course, the center row left to right makes sense: A, S, D, F, G, H, J, K, L – perfect logic there, right? And I’m not even gonna comment about the bottom row – Z, X, C … – YIKES! Found on nearly every computer, laptop, and smartphone worldwide (at least in countries that use a Latin-script alphabet), this seemingly random configuration of keys has an interesting history, though perhaps not the what you have been led to believe. Thanks to Wikipedia, historyfacts.com, techcrunch.com, invent.org and YouTube.com. Enjoy!

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All of us have those special childhood times and events we remember that bring great memories. So, here’s one for you… Where were you (and who were you with) when you had your first Slurpee (and associated brain freeze)? For me, it was at K-Mart back when they were called Icee’s, pretty sure, with some of my brothers and sisters (in full disclosure, there are days that by noon I don’t remember what I had for breakfast that morning, soooo keep that in mind!)  I can still remember the refreshing taste, drinking it too quickly, and waiting for the impending brain cramp (see below to learn why). Today marks a wonderful special day, celebrated at over 8,000 locations across the country (and at spots around the world) … “7-11 Day,” when 7-Eleven stores hand out millions of free cups of the frozen Slurpee goodness. When you pull the lever on a Slurpee machine inside any 7-Eleven store on the planet, the fizzy, fluffy frozen beverage likely tastes just like the first one you ever tried. Introduced to the market in 1966, the Slurpee is arguably the world’s most popular (non-alcoholic) frozen drink. Here’s some fun information about Slurpees that I’m sure will take a whole bunch of you folks back to your childhood (or most recent visit to the convenience store). Enjoy! And many thanks to Amy McCarthy, a reporter at Eater.com, for her insights on Slurpee!

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