Unacceptable: punching your little brother in the arm. Acceptable: doing it under the guise of a “game.” Did you play any of these kids’ games? Doorknob! When someone farts, he or she must immediately say “Safety!” If a non-farter detects the fart and says “Doorknob!” before the farter says “Safety,” the person who says “Doorknob” […]
As polls for the presidential election are reported daily, many pundits try to predict how those votes will translate to the Electoral College. But just like the polls, you never know what’s going to happen until the votes are in. Each state has a certain number of votes in the Electoral College, which is its […]
Their honor was besmirched, and they demanded satisfaction! Here are the stories of some famous folks who participated in duels (for better and for worse). Ben Jonson A contemporary of Shakespeare and the first playwright to preserve his works for the ages by publishing them, Jonson is most famous for the plays Volpone and Every […]
Got a little one going back to school? Or a friend who’s had a bad day? Make them udder-ly happy they know you and download this free farm printable featuring jokes from The Funniest Joke Book Ever! Seriously, who wouldn’t smile/chuckle/groan when the see a punch line like this next to their sandwich?! Why did […]
While the history of the Summer Games is littered with stories of athletes who took performance-enhancing substances and got caught, these are about people who cheated at the Olympics in bizarre ways…and still got caught. Double Trouble Track and field star Madeline de Jesus represented Puerto Rico in the 1984 Summer Olympics. She was scheduled […]
Writers will do anything to get out of writing (trust us, this is hard work). Some avoid a blank page or fend off writer’s block by going to the trouble of inventing something. Lewis Carroll’s Nyctograph Today, writers struck by late-night inspiration in bed can simply reach for their smartphone, and open up a note-taking […]
What did children do before there were TVs and computers? These old children’s games are taken from the 1920s book Games for the Playground, Home, School and Gymnasium, by Jessie H. Bancroft.
If you think the 2016 presidential election has been a weird and combative one…well, time will tell if it’s as strange as these past ones. John Adams vs. Thomas Jefferson In 1800, President John Adams ran for a second term against fellow Founding Father Thomas Jefferson…who was also the vice president serving under Adams at […]
A concert isn’t complete without a stop at the “merch table” to prove how big of a fan you are by purchasing a T-shirt or a bumper sticker…or one of these even weirder things that have actually been offered for sale. After leaving the dark punk band the Misfits, singer Glenn Danzig started a heavy […]
Why is baseball our favorite sport? Because it’s full of oddball stuff like this. Foul Play September 19, 1940: Luke Appling of the White Sox was batting against Red Ruffing of the Yankees with two men on base. Appling fouled off the first pitch. Then he fouled off the second, third, and fourth pitches before […]
It looks like the Bathroom Readers’ Institute may have a new headquarters building to consider: a facility at a Chinese university that looks just like a really big john. There’s a gigantic, shimmering new building on campus at the North China University of Water Conservancy and Electric Power in the city of Zhengzhou in Henan […]
They may be gone, but they’re not forgotten. Come to think of it, are they really even gone? Ghost lovers claim that many of the famous dead are still among us…in spirit. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN (1706–90) Franklin helped establish the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia in the 1740s. His papers are housed there along with, according […]
Hundreds of the best athletes in the world have convened in Rio for the 2016 Summer Olympics. Here are some of the most interesting ones. Etimoni Timuani is a 100-meter runner from Tuvalu (as well as a former professional soccer player) is the Olympic delegation from Tuvalu—he’s the only representative of the tiny Island nation. […]
If you’ve got a minute, that is. (Whatever that even means. These facts kind of blew our minds.) According to Einstein’s theory of relativity, time moves slower the closer an object is to the center of the earth. For example, a year at the top of Mt. Everest, one of the tallest peak’s on Earth’s […]
You probably had to learn the names of all 50 states back in elementary school. Here’s a look into an alternate universe, where you would’ve had to memorize totally different state names. Here’s a look at some rejected options. Deseret After a plan to have a much larger state comprising parts of present-day Nevada, Arizona, […]
It was traditional for ancient Greek Olympic athletes to compete naked. Women weren’t invited as competitors or spectators. An Olympic torch weighs 3 1/2 pounds, a little more than four cans of beer. It’s made of wood, aluminum, and gold-plated brass, with a tank hidden in the base that holds 40 minutes’ worth of propane. […]
Here are some stories about some truly unique wines. We hope you think they’re really grape.
It’s hard to imagine that anyone could possibly believe these old superstitions, but then some people actually doubt the existence of the Great Flooplenocker, so go figure. A newborn’s first sneeze is lucky. Before the sneeze, the baby is under the influence of bad fairies, and the newborn who does not sneeze may become a […]
