ON THIS DAY
On this date in 1620, the "Mayflower" departed from Plymouth, England, bound for the new world.
In 1630, the Massachusetts town of Shawmut changed it's name to Boston.
In 1792, the great seal of the United States was used for the very first time.
James Cash Penney was born on this date in 1875.
The famous Oklahoma Land Rush took place on this date in 1893.
Mr. Jennifer Lopez -- Marc Anthony -- turns 41, Magician David Copperfield turns 53, and Actor Ed Begley Jr. turns 60 today.
Collect Rocks Day -- A day set aside to go for a walk and gather rocks. We're sure your wife has a rock in mind she would like to collect.
National Working Parents Day -- Check out the "Working Parents Survival Guide" at http://www.heall.com/mind/parent.html
THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
- Buxom Jordan Lloyd was won the $500,000 grand prize on "Big Brother 11."
- Elizabeth Banks, Tobey Maguire, Ray Liotta and Laura Linney have been spending their days lately in Seattle, working on a new movie called, "The Details."
- Patrick Swayze lost his battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 57.
- Shakira, Leona Lewis, Rascal Flatts and Cirque du Soleil will all join Susan Boyle on tonight's season finale of "America's Got Talent."
- Drew Barrymore is running around these days with all-blonde hair with black tips.
- For the record, Pink and Shakira both arrived at the MTV Music Video Awards wearing the same dress.
- "Paranormal Activity" is getting the same hype "Cloverfield" got a couple of years ago. A documentary style scary movie, with the same Indie feel as "Blair Witch."
- A slice of wedding cake from Prince Charles and Camilla's wedding a few years back is going to be auctioned off.
- Elton John won't be able to adopt a 14-month-old HIV-positive child from Ukraine because he's too old and isn't married, the government said Monday.
- Hugh Hefner says he waited more than ten years to complete his divorce "because of the children."
- Kathryn Joosten, who plays Mrs. McClusky on "Desperate Housewives" has been diagnosed with lung cancer. She's 69 years old.
One in five employees in the U.S. regularly attends happy hours with their co-workers, according to a Harris Interactive survey for CareerBuilder.com. So once those drinks start to flow, what's the worst that can happen? Those surveyed admitted doing this:
- Bad mouthing a colleague, 16%
- Sharing a secret about a colleague, 10%
- Kissing a colleague, 8%
- Drank too much and acted unprofessionally, 8%
- Shared a secret about the company, 5%
- Singing karaoke, 4%
I don't know why we need to know this, but swinging your arms while walking saves energy and it's good for your legs. That's the result of a study to find out why humans naturally swing their arms instead of holding them still when walking. Scientists at the University of Michigan found that keeping the arms still at the side spends 12 percent more energy than swinging them while striding. The natural swing motion also gives a slight bounce to the body which softens the impact walking has on the legs.
Researchers also had test subjects walk with a swing where the same side arm moves in unison with the leg. That turned out to be more taxing than the normal arm swing where the opposite arm moves in the same direction as the opposite leg. The study concluded that man developed arm swinging while walking because it makes walking easier while actually saving energy. (National Examiner)
Opposites do attract when it comes to the spending habits of spouses. That's why cheapskates tend to wed spendthrifts and vice versa, according to a combined study from Northwestern University and Wharton School of Finance. "Those who find it painful to spend, for example, may dislike that characteristic in themselves," says Wharton's Scott Rick, "so they're attracted to people who are more liberal in their approach to money." Unfortunately, tightwads and squanderers are doomed to squabble over money, often leading to divorce. And even though most people way they'd be happiest marrying someone with similar spending habits, the reverse is actually true. Adds Northwestern's Eli Finkel: "The difference between what people say they want in an ideal mate and what really attracts them to their spouse is unfortunate." (National Examiner)
The following are all real names of towns in America:
- Muff, Pennsylvania
- Boring, Maryland
- Toad Suck, Arkansas
- Tick Bite, North Carolina
- Dick, Pennsylvania
- Dykesville, Louisiana
- Climax, Michigan
- Worstville, Ohio
- Colon, Michigan
- Fairyland, Tennessee
- Tuna, Pennsylvania
- Spread Eagle, Wisconsin
- Teats, Oregon
- In Canada: Dildo, Newfoundland
Standing by the water cooler may help you stay trim. When researchers from the University of Queensland in Australia strapped an accelerometer, a device that measures not just steps but movements, onto 168 healthy and active men and women for one week they found that those who incorporated more breaks, like standing or walking, into their workdays were about 2.3 inches slimmer around the waist than those who parked it in their swivel chairs for hours on end. They also had healthier blood fats, lower triglycerides. Breaks were as short as one minute, very doable, and defined as anything but sitting. So touch your toes at your desk, stand while on the phone, or, at the very least, stretch. (Good Housekeeping)
Need an incentive to scour your abode? The exercise you get from cleaning briskly for 20 minutes a week reduces your risk for emotional ills like depression, the British Journal of Sports Medicine notes.
