Posted on Nov 25, 2018

2018 FUN FACTS, WITH LAUGHTER - THE BEST MEDICINE

 
Read some of the fun facts we picked up during the year, and laugh, live and love!

13 Fun Facts About Christmas!

DEC 2018
 
Fun Fact #1
The traditional three colors of Christmas are green, red, and gold. Green has long been a symbol of life and rebirth, red symbolises the blood of Christ, and gold represents light as well as wealth and royalty.

Fun Fact #2
Christmas trees usually grow for about 15 years before they are sold.

Fun Fact #3
It is estimated that the single “White Christmas” by Irving Berlin is the best-selling single of all time, with over 100 million sales worldwide.

Fun Fact #4
US scientists calculated that Santa would have to visit 822 homes a second to deliver all the world’s presents on Christmas Eve, travelling at 650 miles a second.

Fun Fact #5
The abbreviation Xmas isn’t irreligious. The letter X is a Greek abbreviation for Christ.

Fun Fact #6
The highest-grossing festive movie is 2000’s How The Grinch Stole Christmas, which has raked in $175M so far.

Fun Fact #7
The Beatles hold the record for most Xmas number 1 singles, topping the charts in 1963, 1965 and 1967.

Fun Fact #8
The word “Christmas” comes from the Old English name “Christes Maesse,” which means “Christs’ Mass”

Fun Fact #9
Santa Claus is based on a real person, St. Nikolas of Myra, the world’s most popular non-biblical saint.

Fun Fact #10
There are 364 gifts in the popular holiday carol “The Twelve Days of Christmas.”

Baseball - How Well Do You Know the Blue Jays?

SEPT 2018
 
Another season of the Toronto Blue Jays is just about to finish with some great baseball having been played!! Let’s look back over the years and find out a thing or two you may or may not have known.  Okay Blue Jays, LET’S! PLAY! BALL!

1.    FIRST GAME
Founded in 1977, the Toronto Blue Jays (or simply the Jays) have been around for 38 years. They played their first game on April 7, 1977 against the Chicago White Sox at Exhibition Stadium in Toronto before a crowd of 44,649 sports fans. The Jays won that game 9-5 even though there was a bit of a snowstorm that started right before the game did!
 
2.    BACK TO BACK CHAMPIONS
The Blue Jays were back-to-back World Series champions in the 1992 and 1993 seasons. Since then the Jays haven’t been able to qualify for the playoffs (that’s 21 consecutive seasons) until recently when they secured their spot in the 2015 playoffs!
 
3.    GO CANADA
The Blue Jays are the first and only team outside of the USA to appear in, and win, the World Series.
 
4.    BLUE JAYS MASCOTS
BJ Birdy, the first Blue Jays mascot, made his first appearance in the 1979 season. He remained the team’s mascot for 20 years but was replaced in 1999. Late in the 2000 season Jays fans were introduced to a new pair of mascots named Ace and Diamond - until 2003 when Diamond was removed by the team. Ace has remained the mascot ever since.
 
5.    A BLUE JAY IN THE HALL OF FAME
Former Blue Jay and second baseman, Roberto Alomar, was the first Major League Baseball player inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame because of his service as a Blue Jay. His retired number 12, which is also the first number to be retired by the Blue Jays, hangs above the video board in the Rogers Centre in Toronto.
 
6.    THE TORONTO BLUES?
When Toronto was awarded a baseball franchise in 1976 they needed a name for their new team. They decided to hold a “Name the Team” contest and were swamped with over 30,000 entries that produced over 4,000 individual team names. The Board of directors narrowed down the list to the best 10 and in the end, they picked the “Blue Jays” even though the most popular choice was the “Blues.” But since the University of Toronto already had a “Blues” sports team, the Blue Jays it was! We can all thank Dr. Mills of Etobicoke, Ontario for submitting the name of the team that we still scream out at games - “Let’s go Blue Jays!”

World Cup Fever - Were You Watching?

JULY 2018
 
Call it Football or call it Soccer, either way, it's one of the World's most followed sports, now played by both genders and growing in popularity in North America. The World Cup comes around every 4 years, and here are some more facts to make you knowledgeable like a true pundit!
 
  • Congratulations to France for winning the 2018 FIFA World Cup, and to Croatia for a gallant 2nd place!
  • In 1966, the World Cup was won by England. Thieves stole the Jules Rimet Trophy and tried to sell it. After much heat…..a dog found it under a tree!
  • The World Cup in 2018 will mark the first time Russia has ever hosted this event.
  • The World Cup has been played 20 times, Brazil holds the most titles with 5 wins, Italy and Germany are close behind with 4 each, and France now has 2 wins!
  • The oldest goal scorer in the World Cup was Roger Milla, who was 42, when in 1994 he scored a goal for Cameroon against Russia.
  • The first World Cup was played in 1930. Uruguay was both the host and winner that year.
  • The World Cup winning country is rumored to see a baby boom 9-months after the World Cup win ….. some celebration!
     

International Fun Facts

MAY 2018
 
  • Canada has the longest coastline of any country in the world. In fact, if you were to walk around the country (without sleeping, eating, or resting), it would take roughly four and a half years to walk around it!
  • Basketball was actually invented by a Canadian – Let’s Go Raptors!
  • The 3 most common languages in the world are Mandarin Chinese, Spanish and English. Let’s get more people speaking Gujarati shall we!
  • Switzerland eats the most chocolate equating to 10 kilos per person per year – We still like our Cadbury’s and Hershey’s!
  • Paper money was first used in China
  • The first parachute jump from plane was in 1918 over France
  • An accountant is having a hard time sleeping and goes to see his doctor. "Doctor, I just can't get to sleep at night."
  • Dr: "Have you tried counting sheep?"
  • "That's the problem - I make a mistake and then spend three hours trying to find it."
  • What's an actuary?
    • An accountant without the sense of humor
  • How many bankers does it take to change a light bulb?
    • Four. One to hold the bulb, and three to try and remember the combination
  • Marriage is a three-ring circus:
    • Engagement ring, wedding ring and suffering!

International Fun Facts

MARCH 2018
 
  • The Hawaiian alphabet has 13 letters
  • Topolino' is the name for Mickey Mouse Italy
  • Perth is Australia's windiest city
  • Switzerland eats the most chocolate equating to 10 kilos per person per year
  • The only continent with no active volcanoes is Australia
  • The longest street in the world is Yonge street in Toronto Canada measuring 1,896 km (1,178 miles)
 

Laughter the Best Medicine

MARCH 2018
 
Q - What is the difference between Love and Marriage?
A - Love is blind and marriage is an eye-opener
 
C: If a man opens the car door for his wife, you can be sure of one thing- either the car is new, or the wife is!
 
Q - Why did the golfer wear two pairs of pants?
A -  In case he got a hole in one!
 
Q - What goes up and never comes down?
A - Your age….
 
Q - What do you call someone who can’t stick with a diet?
A - A deserter!