What untruth did you believe for the longest time?
1. I believed until I was 13 that drug-sniffing dogs were seeing-eye dogs for blind cops.
2. My big brother told me MP meant male prostitute.
3. My dad convinced me and my brother that he spent a couple of years as a roadie for Earth Wind and Fire. We believed him for years and even convinced some of our friends. He came clean once we hit high school.
4. My brother told me that the word frankly was named after a chap called Frank Lee who was renowned for being upfront and straightforward with his opinions.
5. When I was a kid, I thought that when someone died in a movie, that they died for real. When I would watch a movie in which someone died, I would wonder to myself, "was this role worth dying for (especially if it was a terrible movie, or if they were just an extra)?" And I would feel sad for the actor that they couldn't make movies, or be alive, anymore.
The language of love
Your language style may reveal your romantic feelings. Psychologist James Pennebaker has spent years studying function words, such as "the", "this", and "I".
He's found that the way we use these words can provide clues to our gender, our age, our mental health status, and whether we're romantically interested in our conversation partner.
They listened to recordings of speed-dates between men and women and found that when couples used similar language styles - specifically, when they used similar function words - they were more likely to go on a date.
That's not because the couples were more similar to begin with - the researchers observed this phenomenon even among people who were very different. Instead, it's probably because we shift our language when we're interested in someone. (Source: IFL Science)
Don't leave your ham in the office fridge at this time of year.
Magazine's attempt at rejection dejection protection
To ease the pain of rejection this letter from the offices of Mad Magazine was sent to all unsuccessful contributors.
It read: "Dear Contributor, Sorry, but we've got bad news! You've been rejected! Don't take this personally though. All of us feel rejected at one time or another. At least, that's what our group therapist tells us here at MAD. He says we shouldn't worry about it. So that should be your attitude: 'What-Me worry?' Besides - things could have been a lot worse. Your material might have been ACCEPTED! Then where would you be? ... Al Feldstein Editor ...
P.S. Our group therapist also [said] that many people are so rejected by a rejection that they don't try again. And we wouldn't want THAT!
We really WOULD like you to keep sending us your article ideas and scripts ... so we can keep sending you these idiotic rejection slips!" (Via Letters of note)
A seasonal truth, right there.
Good read:The year in memes. Some you know and others just passsed you by.
Video: Those two Aussie sheilas from The Katering Show have a Christmas Special with some NSFW language.
