The New Nightcap is.. A Fortune Cookie

Recently I had a, shall we say awkward situation.  You see, I had met someone that I liked who was fun and funny but when it came to passion... it was as if I could hear that sound on Wheel of Fortune when the player lands on the bankrupt button

As a female it can be very difficult to broach the subject of what we need to be satisfied physically.  That was when I remembered an idea I had long ago.  I had been involved in a similar situation where to be honest, I felt the guy would rather sleep with his new bread maker than me.  (how can I compete with sour dough right? )

The idea was simple, invite the guy over for dinner and for dessert serve up a tray of fortune cookies.  Inside the fortune cookie would be simply the definition of.. well, what needed to be done to solve our bedroom woes.  Hey, this is a PG rated blog.  This would then initiate a difficult conversation in a playful sort of way.

So, here it is several years later and I find myself in a similar situation only this time I have a secret weapon.  I have created the Nookie Cookie for Women.  I plan on presenting this cookie as the new nightcap and to my new potential beau.

It is my hope that all women will have the opportunity to deliver a nookie cookie to their man to initiate conversations that they need to have but don't know how to approach.   Want to learn more?  Shoot me a comment below.

Happy valentine's day to all.  

It's not really the Yankees- Football versus Soccer


Soccer= Socks?

Okay, now I apologize as some of you may be wondering how I could not know this but-- I don't.  If you don't either then this blog post is for you.  In honor of the beginning of the world cup today's I wonder blog answers the question why the heck is it soccer in the US and football everywhere else?

Ready, pull your socks up, get your cleats on and let's begin..

According to a post by Soccerlens the fact that Americans had anything to do with the creation of the word soccer is a myth.  Apparently the word has its' origins back in the 1860's in England when the game was referred to as Association Football.  The name was abbreviated to "Assocer" shortened again to Soccer.  Soccer was the term  used by the upper class for the game.   Those in the classes below used the term football.and thus this term was passed down.


According to Slate, when voting upon the universal rules for soccer/football one participant withdrew his vote when the sport disallowed shin-hacking.  In fact, there is a quote saying that if shin-hacking was disallowed from the sport, England may as well submit to the French.  Wow, now that guy has conviction, I will give him that.


Slate states, association football, football and soccer football were all terms utilized for the game.  These terms clarified which game since rugby and gridiron came out of the Victorian meetings mentioned above. 
After a while those adhering to the Football Association referred to the sport as football and soccer was the term used in the US, Canada and Australia where the game was played in a slightly different manner.
The US will continue to call the game soccer to avoid confusion with the gridiron style football and Australia uses the term to clarify between soccer and Australian rules football.


Quite a complicated history for such a beautiful game. 
Questions, Comments? Corrections?  Feel free to post them.  Until then GOOOOAAAALLLL!

Good afternoon/evening/morning... from jet lag central.  After returning from an amazing trip to Sri Lanka I have become a bit under the weather in addition to being horribly jet-lagged.  In my foggy state my mind began to wander..  Why are we under the weather and not over the weather or perhaps even equal to and beside the weather?

Thus, after returning from one of the most beautiful countries I have ever seen I am going to take today to recover and to explore the expression under the weather and its' origins.  Ready... here goes.

According to Yahoo answers (because if it is on the internet it must be true).. there are a few schools of thought on where this term originated but mostly it appears to have something to do with being seasick and thus under the deck or underneath the weather.  This inclement weather causing the rough seas to make the sailor sick.

A second school of thought according to Dear Tom is that the weather simply effects health.  As an example, many headaches and joint pains are caused or exacerbated by weather conditions.  Moreover, mood is affected by weather as gloomy days can create feelings of fatigue and sadness.

Enjoy the beautiful summer day everyone and stay curious.

Traffic Traffic Traffic Traffic... you get the picture.  As I sat in some of DC's infamous frustrations I popped in some bubble gum I had purchased just for this purpose.  Yes, a friend actually told me to try chewing gum when I was stuck in traffic as it has some sort of relaxing effect.  True?  I have no idea but I like it.

So, I got to thinking... how and when did people start chewing gum?  Perhaps this is one of those basic things where when I ask my friends they laugh and say "omg everyone knows that..." but hey, if I don't then maybe some of you do not either?  So let's begin our research.

According to About.com Thomas Chicle into automobile tires before creating chewing gum with an appealing flavor.  I wonder how that process went?  Hmm these tires are awful- but I am so hungry..???

According to Wrigley.com  the history of gum can be traced back to the numerous items that people have chewed throughout history.  For example, in ancient Greece and Turkey the resin of a certain type of tree was chewed.  It appears that the reason this was chewed was to clean teeth.

In New England, Indians taught early settlers to chew the resin type substance from spruce trees.  In the 1800s this gum was sold to the general public, thus creating the first chewing gum.

Much later, demand for chewing gum increased so significantly that using tree products to produce became difficult due to the amount of chicle, a milky substance, that could be delivered.  (for more on this see www.wrigley.com)

With production constraints, synthetic bases were developed to satisfy demand.  In the 1800s a dentist developed a chewing gum with a rubber base to provide exercise for the jaw and stimulation of the gums.

In the 1900s flavors were added and experimented with.  This later led to the cola flavored bubble gum I saw at the counter of 7-11 this morning.. I wonder if those Indians would be okay with where we have gone?

(Caveat- this information is based on internet research- aka if it is on the internet it must be true)

So, initially when I started this blog and sat in the leaving something to be desired boutique hotel room in not so sunny Miami- my first question was, where are the nicest prisons?  This question raises another question though.  How does one rate prisons and who rates such prisons.  In other words, what is the criteria to say such and such city, country etc. has the "nicest prisons".  Additionally, by nice prison are we talking caviar and a nice pillow or are we talking your own cell.

So, today in the I Wonder Blog, I set out to determine the answer to these questions.  Please remember, this blog follows the logic that many of use "if it is on the internet then it must be true".  That said, I will try to find some answers that seem reasonable so read on. Oh- and if the prisons are nice, don't go robbing any nice older ladies okay?  I would feel very badly about that.

According to Andrew Freeman of Takepart Norway has the nicest prison in the world.  His photo shows a friendly enough bloke laying out on a chair outside with what appears to be a decent tan.  Per Takepart, the philosophy at this prison is very different from those in the USA.  The Bastoy prison in Norway allegedly has separate cottages for the inmates who work on a farm.  Inmates enjoy such activities as horseback riding, tennis, and basking in the sun.  Hmm, sounds a lot like the camp at the Camp Winnrock I went to as a child.  Did they model Camp Winrock after... a prison?  Probably not.
Do remember- this is a minimum security prison however, aside from not having your freedom (kind of huge) this place looks quite lovely.

Prison attire is far from the stereotypical orange jumpsuit and it appears that inmates are able to wear sweaters and jeans.  This sounds more like a Land's End photo shoot to me! Inmates do all have to work from 8:30-3:30 on the farm and are paid a small stipend for their work.

So petty crime might pay but what about more serious crimes?  According to Listverse, those Scandinavians are at it again when it comes to cushy prisons. Norway's Halden prison is home to those who have committed more heinous crimes yet this prison is described using words like "pleasant and relaxing".  In fact, hot coffee and good food come with your lockup time.  It sounds kind of like a maximum security Starbucks to me.  According to Listverse, this prison also contains private bathrooms, mini fridges and scenic forest views.  Can I book in for a weekend?

Well, because I find this particular topic fascinated I shall end here but we will pick up tomorrow for part 2 on the most bizarre and luxurious prisons.

Until then, make good decisions!

Yes, it's true.  I did in fact pull a muscle in my back trying to "twerk".  Ugh.  Why does no one warn you these things will happen.

So, Friday I was in Kazaxe.  This class is amazing and as it was described to me "like Zumba on crack".  I have never done Zumba nor crack thus unfortunately I can not tell you if this description is at all accurate.  What I can tell you is that it is super addictive.

So, as I look around the room I notice that I am covered in sweat while some of my fellow exercise fiends still have their shiny ponytails and mascara intact.  It is then that I began to wonder.. and I am sorry because it is a little bit gross.. Do some people sweat more than other people?  Ewww I am sorry.  Okay, skip this post if you must but don't you kind of want to know too?

I first hopped over to Popsugar which informed me that if you drink a lot of coffee that you will be prone to sweat more.  According to Popsugar, gender, number of sweat glands, the intensity of your exercise, heat and level of anxiety all factor into whether you are the pretty ponytail, or like me, look like you have just gotten out of a long shower.  Wow.  But wait there's more...

This amount also is determined by how many sweat glands are activated and how much sweat each produces.  The body has somewhere between 2 and 5 million sweat glands.  Women are born with more sweat glands than men but men have more active glands.   In general, men and women whose bodies are accustomed to exercise will start to sweat at lower temperatures than people who are out of shape, most likely because fit bodies run more efficiently.

This is based on research done on the internet, so you know it must be true.  Want to know more? Have questions?  Feel free to comment.  Until then, I'll be doing laundry and getting those gym clothes smelling lovely.

Today for some reason, after a networking lunch, I found myself craving blue M & Ms.  Seeing that I am not famous enough to ask someone to pull out only the blue m&ms, I knew that solely blue would be a bit difficult.


This reminded me of a time when I worked for the hospitality division at the University of Arizona and I DID have to be the person who sorted out the M&Ms by color.  Okay, I digress (are you seeing a theme here?)  I guess that was one of those, character building experiences.


Today I would like to understand what the deal is with the candy coating and how do they decide about the colors and their percentages?  A rather long and detailed question of which no one will lose sleep over but hey here goes..


The candy coating of the M&M, per Wikipedia was developed for soldiers to carry chocolate without having it melt.  This led to their still famous slogan "melts in your mouth not in your hands". (although I have had some melting in my hands- have you?)  At one time, the candies were ONLY available to soldiers. 


Mars received a patent for their new way of adding candy coating to chocolate after seeing soldiers in the Spanish civil war struggle with the melting issue.


In the 90s the public was given the opportunity to vote on what color would replace the previously tan M&Ms.  Blue was the winning color, beating out pink and purple.


In 2008 and 2009 bags with solely green M&Ms were available for purchase around Valentine's day to follow the folklore that green M&Ms.. well.. made for a romantic evening.  (what happened to that folklore?  Did too many people find themselves disappointed?) 


And that my friend.. is all you need to know about m&ms on a Friday. 
Questions? Feedback feel free to share.