Old World Furniture Knowledge Base
Can I mix modern with Old World style? For those interior decorators out there.... I live in an apartment and decorating is difficult. This apt has forest green carpet (I know lol) but I like this apt because it has a built in bar between the kitchen and living room. I decided to go with a wine bar theme for the place. focal point in the living room is an elec. fireplace, dark espresso finish. Modern coffee /end tables also in espresso, dark chocolate modern leather sofa and chairs, and ottomans... bright burgundy accents and pillows. Now, everything so far is modern.... I want to use all old world style accessories. Can I do this? I have antique leather bound books, treasure chests, wrought iron wall hangings and candle holders, antique pendulum clock , and tiffany style lamps. Finished color scheme would be dark brown, burgundy/wine, forest green, off white (walls), and some gold and wrought iron. Can I mix modern furniture with old world style accessories and get away with it, or is this a no no in design circles?
Turning Contemporary Oak Curio into Old World look...? I purchased a large (7' high,4' wide, 24" deep) Polaski brand Curio Cabinet before moving into my new home and changing my decor style. It was very expensive so I want to "convert " it to my current style. Details- It is solid, natural light oak. It has aged and gotten darker as oak does over time. It has large stair step like crown molding at the ttop, base and around the sides as well. I'd like to change the finnish or look to be more of a pecan, burled wood finish like the rest of my Old World style wood furniture. Any ideas on how to do this? The oak has had lemon oil put on it for conditioning, so would I need to strip it? I am an interior decorator and do a lot of faux painting buthave no clue how to get a burled wood look OR how to stain/ refinish it to a darker Pecan color? Help, ideas anyone? Thanks! The rest of curio is heavy beveled glass front, sides and shelves.
Unique, old world, charming, curious???? I'm redecorating my home, and am always on the look-out for unusual items . . . . any type - from accessories to furniture. My tastes lean toward "old world" and primitive items, I collect old wallclocks, and don't mind reproductions. I love to go to garage/estate sales and flea markets to hunt for decorative items. I live in Plano, TX and would like to find local stores as well as great websites. Please share your treasured shops - I would much appreciate!
Looking for some Dark furniture wax to restore my Sourav furniture? I have a few pieces of furniture from the Sourav Collection at Cost Plus World market. It's a dark mahogany wood imported from India i believe. I had watermarks that i wanted to remove and id' used some steel wool to remove the top layer of wax only to realize they use like a tinted wax and the furniture isn't actually stained. I was planning on buffing off old wax with steel wool and restoring it with a new coat of regular paste wax like ive done on other furniture. Recently I've been to other houses and have seen how worn they get, and it looks like bare wood in the worn areas. I'd like to find some tinted or dark waxes that will bring the right color back does anyone have any recommendations? Liberon makes different colored paste wax's for wood finishing but that would be expensive to buy several just to find the right color. Go to the link then click sourav on the left links to see them: http://www.worldmarket.com/Furniture/lev/0/sectionId/2868/N/1100002/index.cat
can you paint over a 1 day old painted room??? i just painted my room today... to realize that it is the ugliest color in the world... i expected a nice clean baige, but it came out like a light brown mustard color. so tomorow i want to repaint it since i already have everythin taped off and no furniture in the room. but my question is can i paint over the old color with a flat enimel sytle slate-blue by tomorow??? the paint already feels dry. and if i can paint over it by tomorow. is it do-able without using primer because im kinda spending more than i expected by purchasing this new paint..... thanks in advance
My 2 year old Male American Pit Bull Terrior is eating my world...? Chance will be two at the end of November. He goes through these stages where he needs to eat everything. He was actually doing very well until recently he started eating my furniture. He has gone through 5 cushions in the last few months, along with 4 pillows. He also found a new fascination with my clothes. He chewed off all of the zippers and buttons, and belt loops. He always has plenty of toys, bones, and ropes to keep him busy. But the temptation of shredding stuffing and foam all over my house still gets to him. I have a kennel for him but he absolutly hates it and crys the entire time he is in it. I work as a nanny so I stop by frequently throughout the day to let him out side. Does any one have any suggestions, or does it come down to locking him in the kennel and making him hate me, or getting rid of every single piece of furniture and clothing I own. I am at the end of my rope. I under no circumstances will get rid of my baby, but he has had me in tears too many times. Help
My eight month old little baby boy will not let go for nothing in this world...........? My baby boy is a truly happy and energetic baby......... Always playing, trying to grab things and cuddling........ That is when he is being held, not neccesarily be me, but by anone. It seems like he wants a pair of legs to get around. I've bought him playmats and I get down on the floor with him, but no sirey. He wants to be high and on the same level as us.... the older ones :) He is a little strong willed so letting him cry it out and entertain himself is not an option. If he's entertained, in the stroller, the car seat (you know - on the go.......) he's fine, but I can't even put him down on the floor to watch tv. He tries standing up using whatever he can find (the bedskirt, furniture, my pants :) ) - but he's hit himself pretty bad like that... I've caught him crawling a few times so I know he can do it. But if I'm watching he will sit pretty with his hands up waiting for me to get him, no matter how long he has to wait. Any suggestions on how 2 help him b more indep Thx!
Ugly support column in the middle of my living room...? I have an ugly '70s style', spindle-looking support column in the middle of my living room. Is there an inexpensive and creative way to make it 'blend' more with the room? The decor I have now is kind of an old world "art nouveau" look with a lot of wrought iron scrollwork pieces (lamps, wall hangings, etc...). The colors are sage green (furniture), persimmon (walls) and cream (window coverings). Also, the column is cream right now...should I paint it to match the walls?
Our family room is quite large, & is in the basement.? It has: 2 windows (lots of light),that have white, pleated fabric shades. Ceiling is brocaded white... Walls are a very, very light, taup/pinky color....2 support poles in the center of the room, that are gyprocked and square....Carpet & glue have been stripped off the cement. I would like to do a distressed, or old look, on the walls... a "Fibre Wall" product, on the square support columms, to round them & make them look rough, and rustic.... Paint the floor to look like big rock, marble, or ceramic tile...Windows leave the pleater shades,& drape, unfinished muslin fabric, onto the floor. Trim..?? What colors, different treatments, and How To'S, for the floor, support poles, windows, walls, and trim, would you suggest, to give it an old world or rustic charm? Furniture Colors and Accessories Burgundy/wine colored leather couch and loveseat. Other couch done in tapestry with large leaf patern, predominant color is taupe & dark green, with smaller amounts of a darker taupe,burgundy,aqua
The greatest quotes in the world? 1. Do not think dishonestly. 2. The Way is in training. 3. Become acquainted with every art. 4. Know the Ways of all professions. 5. Distinguish between gain and loss in worldly matters. 6. Develop intuitive judgment and understanding for everything 7. Percieve those things which cannot be seen. 8. Pay attention even to trifles. 9. Do nothing which is of no use. - Musashi Miyamoto, A Book Of Five Rings (Go Rin No Sho) "Do nothing which is of no use." Miyamoto Musashi "In battle, if you you make your opponent flinch, you have already won." Miyamoto Musashi "Do not seek to follow in the footsteps of the men of old; seek what they sought." Matsuo Basho "There are but two powers in the world, the sword and the mind. In the long run the sword is always beaten by the mind." - Napoleon Bonaparte The no-mind not-thinks no-thoughts about no-things - The Buddah “Showing off is the fool's idea of glory.” Bruce Lee “To hell with circumstances; I create opportunities.” Bruce Lee "A quick temper will make a fool of you soon enough." Bruce Lee "Knowledge will give you power, but character respect." Bruce Lee "If you always put limit on everything you do, physical or anything else. It will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." Bruce Lee "The Japanese master Nan-in gave audience to a professor of philosophy. Serving tea, Nan-in filled his visitor's cup, and kept pouring. The professor watched the overflow until he could restrain himself no longer: "Stop! The cup is over full, no more will go in." Nan-in said: "Like this cup, you are full of your own opinions and speculations. How can I show you Zen unless you first empty your cup." "...when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth." Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859 - 1930), (Sherlock Holmes) "It has long been an axiom of mine that the little things are infinitely the most important." Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859 - 1930), (Sherlock Holmes) "You see, but you do not observe." Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859 - 1930), (Sherlock Holmes) "A man should keep his little brain attic stocked with all the furniture that he is likely to use, and the rest he can put away in the lumber-room of his library, where he can get it if he wants it." Arthur Conan Doyle (Sherlock Holmes) "A trusty comrade is always of use; and a chronicler still more so." Arthur Conan Doyle (Sherlock Holmes) "Come, Watson, come!" he cried. The game is afoot." Arthur Conan Doyle (Sherlock Holmes) "Holy men? Holy cabbages! Holy bean-pods! What do they do but live and suck in sustenance and grow fat? If that be holiness, I could show you hogs in this forest who are fit to head the calendar. Think you it was for such a life that this good arm was fixed upon my shoulder, or that head placed upon your neck? There is work in the world, man, and it is not by hiding behind stone walls that we shall do it." - -- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle "Skill is fine, and genius is splendid, but the right contacts are more valuable than either." - -- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (Sherlock Holmes) "I have learned never to ridicule any man's opinion, however strange it may seem" - -- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle There comes a time when for every addition of knowledge you forget something that you knew before. It is of the highest importance, therefore, not to have useless facts elbowing out the useful ones. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859 - 1930) (Sherlock Holmes in A Study in Scarlet) "It is easy to go down into Hell; night and day, the gates of dark Death stand wide; but to climb back again, to retrace one's steps to the upper air - there's the rub, the task." Virgil "Mind moves matter." Virgil "The only safety for the conquered is to expect no safety." Virgil "The world cares very little about what a man or woman knows; it is what a man or woman is able to do that counts. " Virgil "There's a snake lurking in the grass." Virgil "Come what may, all bad fortune is to be conquered by endurance. " Virgil "I fear the Greeks, even when they bring gifts." Virgil "Flectere si nequeo Superos, Acheronta movebo." (If I cannot move heaven I'll raise hell) Virgil "I am an Epicurean. I consider the genuine (not the imputed) doctrines of Epicurus as containing everything rational in moral philosophy which Greek and Roman leave to us.” Thomas Jefferson "Veni, Vidi Vici" (I came, I saw, I conquered. ) Julius Caesar "I love the name of honor, more than I fear death." Julius Caesar "If you must break the law, do it to seize power: in all other cases observe it." Julius Caesar
So I want to have a garage/yard sale etc but? I don't have a garage or yard so technically it doesn't sound right. I plan to set everything up in front of my apartment building. I am trying to get rid of old stuff since I will be moving in Aug. Should I call it a moving sale? Im not selling my furniture though, but I'm not crazy about advertising to the whole world that Im moving. I plan to put up signs around my block but I'm not sure what to call it.
bedroom furniture? well I'm moving into a new apartment, the dimensions are 1'x1' anyone know where I could find furniture big enough for a 23 year old but small enough to fit on my apartment? it's kind of a tight squeeze, but I'll manage, I need a bed, a couple tables, a couch and a TV...I already tried Rooms R Us, but they said that they wouldn't be ready in time for Armageddon(no not the actual end of the world, the movie!)...so I need a quick fix, the apartment's in Nigeria(if that helps) I'm moving in tomorrow, so I need help as soon as possible. my apartment is one foot by one foot, yes. that's mainly why it has been hard finding furniture.
how do you train a pit bull obedience without paying a trainer? i have a 10 month old pit bull, he knows how to "sit", when he feels like it. he doesnt listen to anything my boyfriend or i say. when the door is open he darts out, eats all of my furniture, he would rather choke himself when we walk than to calmly walk at a normal pace, he jumps on people, digs holes under our neighbors fence and he gets far too excited when he meets new people. he is the friendliest dog in the world, we are expecting a baby and i cant handle his behavior with the new baby.
What do you think of this writing on Third World Countries...I found it interesting and eye-opening? Life in a Third World Country “Your present circumstances don’t determine where you can go; they merely determine where you start.” - Nido Qubein Economist Robert Heilbroner describes the luxuries a typical American family would have to surrender if they lived a month the one billion hungry people in the Third World: We begin by invading the house of our imaginary American family to strip it of its furniture. Everything goes: beds, chairs, tables, television sets, lamps. We will leave the family with a few old blankets, a kitchen table, a wooden chair. Along with the bureaus go the clothes. Each member of the family may keep in his “wardrobe”, his oldest suit or dress, a shirt or blouse. We will permit a pair of shoes for the head of the family, but none for his wife or children. We move to the kitchen. The appliances have already been taken out, so we turn to the cupboards; the box of matches may stay, a small bag of flour, some sugar and salt. A few moldy potatoes, already in the garbage can, must be rescued, for they will provide much of tonight’s meal. We will leave a handful of onions and a dish of dried beans. All the rest we take away: the meat, the fresh vegetables, the canned goods, the crackers, the candy. Now we have stripped the house: the bathroom has been dismantled, the running water shut off, the electric wires taken out. Next we take away the house. The family can move to the tool shed. Communications must go next. No more newspapers, magazines, books, not that they are missed, since we must take away our family’s literacy as well. Instead, in our shantytown we will allow one radio. Now government services must go next. No more postmen, no more firemen. There is a school, but it is three miles away and consists of two classrooms. There are, of course, no hospitals or doctors nearby. The nearest clinic is ten miles away and is tended by a midwife. It can be reached by bicycle, provided the family has a bicycle, which is unlikely. Finally, money. We will allow our family a cash hoard of five dollars. This will prevent our breadwinner from experiencing the tragedy of an Iranian peasant who went blind because he could not raise the $3.94 which he mistakenly thought he needed to receive admission to a hospital where he could have been cured.. Taken from “Revolution in World Missions”, by K.P. Yohannan
can i ever breathe again? I am a grad student and TA in a math dept, a couple of months ago the dept moved me into this 6ft by 5ft office 3 floors underground with no window(of course). at first i would have to rush out every 60mins for some air, i would find it impossible to live with the persistent electric hum down there. but today i suddenly realized: i earn less than the lowest paid staff, most people even argue that i do not work at all, dont contribute to society which makes me a parasite, i spend approx 16 hrs a day in a 6by5 room and leave with a sense of having stolen from the world at 2am every night, and i sleep on the floor (i refuse to buy old furniture). my overall worth is negative, because people think i am actually cheating society by asking for free tuition. i think i have sunk to the lowest level of existence. the question is: is it possible to ever rise again? or is this my fate.
Best Book Read Ever? America's Longest River By: Misses Hippy Artificial Clothing By: Polly Ester Breaking the Law By: Kermit A. Krime Broken Beds By: Squeak E. Springs The Color of Eggs By: Summer Brown Danger! By: Luke Out Don't Hurt Me! By: I. Bruce Easley Downpour! By: Wayne Dwops Errors and Accidents By: Miss Takes and Miss Haps The Fall of a Watermelon By: S. Platt Falling Trees By: Tim Burr French Overpopulation By: Francis Crowded History of Texas By: Al E. Moe Hours in the Bathroom By: R. U. Dunnyett House Construction By: Bill Jerome Holme How to Be Organized By: Miss Place How to Groom Your Yard By: Ray Cleaves I Didn't Do It! By: Ivan Alibi I Don't Get It By: Anita Clew I Love Crowds By: Morris Merrier I Need Insurance By: Justin Case I'll Do It Soon By: Will B. Dunn The Lion Attacked By: Claudia Armoff Mineralogy for Giants By: Chris Tall No Appreciation For Art By: Drew Lousy Old Furniture By: Anne Teak The Past to the Distant Future By: I. C. All Ripping Pants By: Ben Dover Rusty Bed Springs By: I.P. Nightly Snakes of the World By: Anna Conda Under the Bleachers By: Seymore Butts Where the Stars Are By: Horace Cope Why Don't Chickens Bark? By: U. R. Stupid and I. M. Stupid SO WHAT DO YOU THINK??? I had to add this last bit in, so this joke does not get removed. It has to have at least one question in it:o)
What color to paint the walls.....? I'm having my living room repainted and I want the colors in the room to match this picture: http://www.art.com/asp/sp-asp/_/PD--10031539/SP--A/IGID--956007/Princess_Hyacinth.htm?sOrig=SCH&ui=130C624199DE4C5EA96B7131E2EAF7EC The couch/love seat is sage green, carpeting is very light beige, window coverings cream colored, and my lamps and accent pieces are old world bronze scrollwork....what color should I paint the walls? They're currently light sage...but I'd like a more contrasting color...pulled from the picture, but still matching the furniture....help? Also...the picture hangs over my TV cabinet...which is all that's on that wall...should I paint that wall one color, with the rest of the room in a contrasting color, or should the whole room be one color?
Wanteed to share a poem with you. Tell me what you think? Different Perspective On Life As you set at your family dinner table and complain of what you have to eat. Think of the homeless persons, whose dinner is in a dumpster on a dead end street. When you complain of the clothing, that you paid good money for to wear. Think of the over seas child whose body is filthy, diseased, cold and bare. As you’re lying in bed complaining, of your designer made quilt and sheets. A runaway uses a cardboard box, as their home, without any furniture or heat. When you drive your used car to work, to grocery shop and for weekly family fun. Think of the single mother who has to get to work, by walking, or by sticking out her thumb. When your children complain of drinking just plain old water, because they would rather have a pop. Think of the crying children in 3rd World countries, who are dying from thirst, and the crying won’t stop. When your lying in your bubble bath, complaining to yourself about what you do not have in your life. Think of all those people whose only means of washing, is bathing in a Cesspool of Strife. When you gripe about having to wash your clothes, and putting them all away. Think of having only one outfit to wear, each and every, single solitary day. So tomorrow when you wake up, and before your feet hit the solid ground. Lift your hands to Jesus, and thank Him, with a loving, joyful sound! Praise Him for what you have, and look at things with a renewed Spirit and mind. And you will see things from a different perspective, love, peace and joy is what you shall find……. Written By Carla Vaught 4/10/2007 I love writing poetry! DP...This particular poem was written in about 30 mins. When I have an inspiration, it just flows like that! As far as the amount of time I have been writing poetry, I started when I was about 7 yrs old. I am now 44. God blessed me, and I love to share that blessings with others! Magot: How much more mature would you like me to be?? I am 45 and I believe that I exspress myself quite well through my poetry. To everyone else, thank you for the sweet compliments!
about my daughter, 8 months old.? ok everyone, im just curious if this sounds normal/familiar to you. on the 16th she will be 8 months, she just started crawling a week and a half ago, and is still moving slow. she stands on her crib, and the coffee table, but falls forwards instead of on her butt. she eats jar baby food, baby mum-mums, and graduate rice puffs, and now some people told me to give her fully cooked and chopped small food... everything, like even meat and poultry. she has no teeth yet, im worried she will choke. and lastly, if you could throw it in, have your babies her age been hurt from falling after standing holding onto furniture? like a concussion or stitches? i could really use some wise words before i give myself a heart attack and become the worlds biggest worry wort... i dont want to make her too sensitive... thanks. also any suggestions on food or teaching her to fall properly would be greatly appreciated.
some more bizarre facts? happy reading lol. *According to sales, 17,000 individual 'smarties' are eaten every minute in the UK *The life of an eyelash is about 5 months. *Iceland, Europe's second largest island following Great Britain, boasts of having the world's oldest 'active' parliamentary body, Althing, which first met in 930AD. *The Turkish football club, Galatasaray, has an A for every other letter. *The tongue of a mature Blue Whale has approximately the same mass as that of an entire adult elephant. *The study, which tested telephones, desks, water coolers, doorknobs, and toilet seats, compiled 7,000 samples from major centers across the country. What they found, was that while phones ranked highest in bacteria levels, the office desk was a close second. *In England during World War I, many German names and titles were changed and given more English-sounding names, including the royal family's from Saxe-Coburg-Gotha to Windsor. Kaiser Wilhelm II countered this by jokingly saying that he was off to see a performance of 'The Merry Wives of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha.' *Both turdoid and turdine mean "belonging to the family turdus," Turdus musicus is the song thrush & Turdus viscivorus is the mistletoe thrush *Nearly a quarter of all mammals can fly; with a huge 985 known species, bats make up 23.1% of all known mammals by species *January is National Soup Month in the United States, January is the seasonal equivalent to July in the Southern Hemisphere; & on Jan 14th, 90% of New Year resolutions will be broken! *You use an average of 43 muscles for a frown and you use an average of 17 muscles for a smile, and they say every two thousand frowns creates one wrinkle *Baby robins eat 14 feet of earthworms in the first 14 nestling days of their life and that is not even their main food on the menu (14 feet a day is wrong) But parent robins make around 100 food visits to the nest every day! *The first man to die during planning & construction of the Hoover Dam was the father of the last man to die during its construction. December 20, 1922 with J.G. Tierney a Bureau of Reclamation employee who was part of a geological survey and drowned when he fell from a barge. Exactly 13 years later, in 1935, his son Patrick W. Tierney, fell to his death from an intake tower. * You will have to walk 80 kilometers for your legs to equal the amount of exercise your eyes get daily *The Chinese used fingerprints as a method of identification back in 700 *Sound travels 15 times faster through steel than it does through the air *A greenfly born on a Tuesday can be a grandparent by Friday *There are more mobile phones in UK than there are people *Termites are affected by music; the termites will eat your house twice as fast if you play them loud music *Paraskavedekatriaphobia is the extreme fear of Friday the 13th *One gallon of used motor oil can ruin approximately one million gallons of fresh water! *Christopher Trace, the first presenter of Blue Peter, was the body double for Charlton Heston in the film Ben-Hur *Thomas Edison got patents for a method of making concrete furniture and a cigar which was supposed to burn forever *A cubic mile of ordinary fog contains less than a gallon of water *If you think of the Milky Way as being the size of the continent of Asia, our solar system would be the size of a penny. *The chicken is the closest living relative to the Tyrannosaurus Rex Myth or fact?? *The average driver will be locked out of their car nine times during their life time (yes, men are in the stats) *A Boeing 767 airliner contains 3,100,000 parts * Belief in the existence of vacuums used to be punishable under Church law * Your skin weighs twice as much as your brain *An owl can see a mouse moving from over 150ft away by a light no brighter than candlelight *The average person has walked 100,000 miles by the time they reach the age of 85. *Your hearing is less sharp after eating too much *In the course of a lifetime, the average person spends 2 years on the phone (I bet cell phones/mobiles were not taken into consideration when that fact was worked out!!) * Henry VIII was once served a loin of beef while visiting the house of a noble. He was so impressed with the beef that he asked for a sword and knighted it! Ever since, that particular cut of beef has been known as sirloin. ("Sir Loin").. This is a MYTH *In a lifetime, the average clean-shaven man will spend five months shaving and will remove 28ft of hair. *Beethoven was extremely particular about his coffee , he always counted 60 beans per cup. *In 1943, Navy officer Grace Hopper had to fix a computer glitch caused by a moth, hence the term 'computer bug'. *Jupiter is large enough to contain the other major 7 planets in our solar system. *The water pressure inside every onion cell would be sufficient to explode a steam engine. *Sunglasses were first worn by film stars, not to look mysterious, but to relieve there eyes from the dazzling glare of the early studio lights *If you take any number, double it, add 10, divide by 2, and subtract your original number, the answer will always be 5. *Over a 12 day period your body generates a whole new set of taste buds. (This process continues until you are in your 70's.) *Greyhounds can reach their top speed of 45 mph in just 3 strides *There is more sugar in 1kg of lemons than in 1kg of strawberries. *Paraskevidekatriaphobia, is a morbid, irrational fear of Friday the 13th. Therapist Dr. Donald Dossey, whose specialty is treating people with irrational fears, coined the term. He claims, when you can pronounce the word you are cured. Friggatriskaidekaphobia has the same meaning. *American Airlines saved $40,000 in 1987 by eliminating one olive from each salad served in first class *Titan arum is probably the world's smelliest flower. Originating in the tropical rain forests of Sumatra, this huge, extremely rare flower is a giant lily. It seldom blooms, but when it does the smell is described as something like the dead carcass of an animal *A Viking tribe once raided England because they had run out of beer *Walt Disney World generates about 120,000 pounds of garbage every day. *Turtles can breath through their bottoms. *Barbie's full name is Barbara Millicent Roberts. *The buzz generated by an electric razor in America is in the key of B flat. In the UK, it is in the key of G. *Some of the most popular lipstick shades in Renaissance England were named, Rat, Horseflesh, Turkey, Blood and Puke. *When Thomas Eddison died in 1941, Henry Ford captured his dying breath in a bottle. *Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho" was the first Hollywood film that showed a toilet flushing - thereby generating many complaints. *The first flying-trapeze circus act was performed by Frenchman Jules Leotard at the Circus Napoleon on Nov 12th 1859. He invented the garment now known as the leotard. *In 1972 when Gordon Brown (British Chancellor of the Excheque) was 21, he won a Daily Express competition for "A Vision of Britain In The Year 2000." *It is said, grapefruit scent makes middle age women seem six years younger to men (but it does not work the other way round). *The average elephant produces 50lb of dung a day. *The dinosaur noises in Jurassic Park came from slowing down the sounds of elephants, geese and horses. *The French invented the pop of the Christmas Cracker in the 19th century (Tom Smith bought the idea back to UK after holidaying in France) *The chances of hitting 2 holes-in-one during the same round of golf is one in 8 million *Victorian ladies tried to enlarge their boobs by bathing in strawberries *Until the 18th century, India produced almost all the world's diamonds *The ancient Egyptians thought it was good luck to enter a house left foot first *During their marriage, Angelina Jolie and Billy Bob Thornton bought an electric chair for their dining room * The average single man is one inch shorter than the average married man *Lightning strikes about 6,000 times per minute on this planet of which 80% are in-cloud flashes and 20% are cloud-to-ground flashes. *When screen lover Rudolph Valentino married Jean Acker (on Bonfire Day), she locked him out of their bedroom, the marriage lasted only six hours *160 cars can drive side by side on the Monumental Axis in Brazil, the world's widest road. On paper they can, as the road (actually it's an avenue) is 865 feet wide, but in reality they can't. *When a female horse and a male donkey mate, the off-spring is called a mule; but when a male horse and a female donkey mate, the off spring is called a HINNY *On average women speak 7000 words per day, where as men speak just over 2000 *Intelligent people have more zinc and copper in their hair *While in Alcatraz, Al Capone was inmate No.85 *Disney World is bigger than the world's 5 smallest countries *A house fly hums in the middle octave key of F *Adolf Hitler's mother seriously considered having an abortion but was talked out of it by her doctor *In one gram of soil, about ten million bacteria live in it *A single ounce of gold can be beaten into a thin film covering 100 square feet *Before the 1800, there were no separately designed shoes for left and right feet *Paper was invented early in the second century by Chinese eunuch *The first person to receive a singing telegram was singer Rudy Vallee, in honour of his 32nd birthday, July 28th 1933. * The longest one-syllable word in the English language is screeched *In Shakespeare's time, mattresses were secured on bed frames by ropes when you pulled on the ropes the mattress tightened, making the bed firmer to sleep on. Hence the phrase, "Goodnight, sleep tight." *There are 336 dimples on a regulation golf ball *A 75-year-old male driver received ten traffic tickets, drove on the wrong side of the road four times, committed four hit-and-run offenses and caused six accidents, all within 20 minutes, in McKinney, TX on 15 Oct 1966 [Worst driver: G. B. of Records] *The term "the whole 9 yards" came from WWII fighter pilots in the South Pacific. When arming their airplanes on the ground, the .50 caliber machine gun ammo belts measured exactly 27 feet, before being loaded into the fuselage. If the pilots fired all their ammo at a target, it got "the whole 9 yards." *Wilma Flintstone's maiden name was Shaghoopal *The word "trivia" comes from the Latin "trivium" which is the place where three roads meet. People would gather and talk about all sorts of matters. Also in medieval universities, the trivium comprised the three subjects taught first, grammar, logic, and rhetoric, AND the Roman Goddess, Trivia, is the goddess of crossroads, witchcraft and the harvest moon. *In 1935, the police in Atlantic City, New Jersey, arrested 42 men on the beach. They were cracking down on topless bathing suits worn by men. *During lunch breaks in Carlsbad, New Mexico no couple should engage in a sexual act while parked in their vehicle, unless their car has curtains. *The distance between cities are actually the distances between city halls. When you see a sign "Sheffield - 40 miles" it means it is 40 miles to the city hall of that city sign *The name of Canada is believed to come from the Iroquois Indian word "Kanata", meaning "village" or "community". The word Canada was first used in a 1534 text written by Jacques Cartier describing the Indian village of Stadacona. *The longest non-medical word in the English language is floccipausinihilipilification (29 letters), which means "the act of estimating as worthless." *Dominica, Mexico, Zambia, Kiribati, Fiji and Egypt all have birds on their flags. *Bees visit over 2,000 flowers and fly over 55,000 miles to produce just 1lb. of honey *Four out of every ten people who come to a party in your home will look in your bathroom cabinet *The taboo against whistling backstage comes from the pre-electricity era when a whistle was the signal for the curtains and the scenery to drop. An unexpected whistle could cause an unexpected scene change! *The sound you hear when macho people crack their knuckles is actually the sound of nitrogen gas bubbles bursting. *Francis Bacon died of hypothermia while trying to freeze a chicken by stuffing it with snow *Captain Jean-Luc Picard's (Star Trek) fish was named Livingston *The WD in WD40 means "water displacement." The 40 in WD40 comes from the 40 attempts at creating this product. *Beethoven dipped his head in cold water before he composed. *Mice, whales, elephants, giraffes and man all have seven neck vertebra. * The name for Oz in the "Wizard of Oz" was thought up when the creator, Frank Baum, looked at his filing cabinet and saw A-N, and O-Z, hence "Oz." *American car horns beep in the tone of F. *The only food cockroaches won't eat are cucumbers. *China has more English speakers than the U.S. *Hong Kong has the world's largest double-decker tram fleet in the world *The words silent and listen have the same letters. Santa and Satan do too *You can tell the sex of a turtle by the sound it makes, A male grunts, A female hisses. *There are no public toilets in Peru. *Samuel Clemens [aka Mark Twain] was born in 1835 when Haley's Comet came into view. When he died in 1910, Haley's Comet came into view again *The pound sign is called a 'octothorp.' *In 1963, baseball pitcher Gaylord Perry remarked, "They'll put a man on the moon before I hit a home run." On July 20, 1969, a few hours after Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon, Gaylord Perry hit his first, and only, home run *"Dreamt" is the only word in the English language to end in "mt." *The Queen termite can live up to 50 years and have 30,000 children every day *The term, "It's all fun and games until someone loses an eye" is from Ancient Rome. The only rule during wrestling matches was, "No eye gouging," eveything else was allowed. *A Dalmatian is the only dog that can get gout *The male gypsy moth can smell the virgin female up to 1.8 miles away *A male emperor moth can smell a female emperor moth up to 7 miles away *The human heart creates enough pressure to squirt blood 30 feet out of the body. *A puff of smoke, such as when someone is smoking a cigarette or a pipe is called " a lunt " *The name "Pinocchio" is from Tuscany, Italy and means "pine nut" or "kernel". *Gilligan of Gilligan's Island had a first name that was only used once, on the never-aired pilot show. His first name was Willy *It was the left shoe that Aschenputtel (Cinderella) lost at the stairway, when the prince tried to follow her. It was originally the right, but the translator messed up again. *Cinderella's slippers were originally made out of fur. The story was changed in the 1600's by a translator. *Banging your head against a wall uses 150 calories an hour & if you yelled for 8 years, 7 months and 6 days, you would have produced enough sound energy to heat one cup of coffee *For 47 days in 1961, the painting "Matisse's Le Bateau (The Boat)" was hanging upside down in the Museum of Modern Art in New York. None of the over 116,000 visitors seem to have noticed. *Walt Disney named Mickey Mouse after Mickey Rooney, whose mother he dated. *Lorne Greene had one of his nipples bitten off by an alligator while he was host of "Lorne Greene's Animal Kingdom." *The magic word 'Abracadabra' was originally intended for the specific purpose of curing hay fever. *The phrase "rule of thumb" was popularized by an old English law which stated that you couldn't beat your wife with anything wider than your thumb top to first joint. (a thumb measurement is an inch) *More redheads are born in Scotland UK than in any other part of the world *The Sanskrit word for 'war' means - "desire for more cows". *The average bed is home to over 5 billion dust mites. *Only female wasps, bees, and mosquitoes sting. *Las Vegas means "The Meadows" in Spanish. *Born on November 2, 1718, British politician, John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich, is credited with naming the 'sandwich.' He developed a habit of eating beef between slice of toast so he could continue to play cards uninterrupted. *Ice hockey was first played in 1885 by British soldiers stationed in Canada *Armored knights raised their visors to identify themselves when they rode past their king. This custom has become the modern military salute. *Your fingernails grow 4 times faster than your toe nails *Pain travels faster than 3000 feet per second *A cow produces 200 times more gas a day than a person *About 10,000,000 people have the same birthday as you *The snail mates only once in it's entire life, also a snail has 4 noses *The Coca-Cola company is the biggest consumer of sugar in the world *The dot that appears over the letter "i" is called a tittle. *All major league baseball umpires must wear black underwear while on the job (in case their pants split) *Captain Kirk never said "Beam me up, Scotty," but he did say, "Beam me up, Mr. Scott" *The word gymnasium comes from the Greek word gymnazein which means to exercise naked *Everyone thought Albert Einstein suffered from dyslexia, because he couldn't speak properly until he was 9 years old. *Mel Blanc (the voice of Bugs Bunny) was allergic to carrots *The nation of Monaco on the French Riviera, is smaller than Central Park in New York. Monaco is 370 acres and Central Park is 840 acres *Gweneth Paltrow's nickname for Steven Speilberg is "Uncle Morty." Steven Speilberg calls Gweneth Paltrow "Gwynnie the pooh." *You can't kill yourself by holding your breath. *The sorcerer's name in Disney's Fantasia is Yensid, which happens to be Disney backwards. *Armadillos are the only animal besides humans that can get leprosy *The world's longest name is: Adolph Blaine Charles David Earl Frederick Gerald Hubert Irvin John Kenneth Lloyd Martin Nero Oliver Paul Quincy Randolph Shermasn Thomas Uncas Victor William Xerxes Yancy Zeus Wolfeschlegelsteinhausenbergerdorft Sr. *Shirly Temple received 135,000 presents on her 8th birthday. * When Christopher Columbus and crew landed in the New World they observed the natives using a nose pipe to smoke a strange new herb. The pipe was called a "tabaka" by the locals, hence our word tobacco. *Americans on the average eat 18 acres of pizza every day. *The sound of E.T. walking was made by someone squishing her hands in jelly. *Hitler and Napoleon both had only one testicle. *Every time you lick a stamp, you're consuming 1/10 of a calorie. *In ancient China, people committed suicide by eating a pound of salt. *Queen Victoria [UK 1837-1901] eased the discomfort of her monthly cramps by having her doctor supply her with marijuana. *The average human eats 8 spiders in their lifetime at night. [usually in our sleep] ~ this is a MYTH *If you fart consistently for 6 years and 9 months, enough energy is produced to create an atomic bomb *Sugar was first added to chewing gum in 1869 by a dentist (William Semple). One way to assure business!! *The Ramses brand condom is named after the great phaoroh Ramses II who fathered over 160 children. *The names of the three wise monkeys are: Mizaru: See no evil, Mikazaru: Hear no evil, and Mazaru: Speak no evil. *The Spanish word esposa means "wife." The plural, esposas, means "wives," but also "handcuffs." *23% of all photocopier faults worldwide are caused by people sitting on them and photocopying their butts. * There was one U.S. state that no longer exists? In 1784 the U.S. had a state called Franklin, named after Benjamin Franklin. But four years later, it was incorporated into Tennessee. *The clinical term for a hairy buttocks is "daysypgal." *A duck's quack doesn't echo, and ... no one knows why.~ MYTH everything echoes. University students have recorded a ducks echo. It is usually so quiet we cannot hear it. *"The sixth sick sheik's sixth sheep's sick" is said to be the toughest tongue twister in the English language. ??? Maybe if said fast. *Clans many many years ago that wanted to get rid of their unwanted people without killing them, burnt their houses down - hence the expression " to get fired." !!
Living in Fear of my five pound dog.? Living in Fear of my five pound dog. My dog Cjuo who is 3 months old and five pounds seems to be mad at the world. Cujo bite people, the cats, the furniture ANYTHING he can get his mouth on. We have tried yelling at him, time out’s, we have put him in his harness and hung him from the ceiling, he fights with other dogs (no matter how big or small) we have put furan objects in a can and shook it at him when doing something wrong, but all he does is bark at the can. Please help me with any tips in training my dog. I cant live like this for much longer. Will this behavior ever go away?
Wanted to share a poem that I wrote. Tell me what you think? Different Perspective On Life As you set at your family dinner table and complain of what you have to eat. Think of the homeless persons, whose dinner is in a dumpster on a dead end street. When you complain of the clothing, that you paid good money for to wear. Think of the over seas child whose body is filthy, diseased, cold and bare. As you’re lying in bed complaining, of your designer made quilt and sheets. A runaway uses a cardboard box, as their home, without any furniture or heat. When you drive your used car to work, to grocery shop and for weekly family fun. Think of the single mother who has to get to work, by walking, or by sticking out her thumb. When your children complain of drinking just plain old water, because they would rather have a pop. Think of the crying children in 3rd World countries, who are dying from thirst, and the crying won’t stop. When your lying in your bubble bath, complaining to yourself about what you do not have in your life. Think of all those people whose only means of washing, is bathing in a Cesspool of Strife. When you gripe about having to wash your clothes, and putting them all away. Think of having only one outfit to wear, each and every, single solitary day. So tomorrow when you wake up, and before your feet hit the solid ground. Lift your hands to Jesus, and thank Him, with a loving, joyful sound! Praise Him for what you have, and look at things with a renewed Spirit and mind. And you will see things from a different perspective, love, peace and joy is what you shall find……. Written By Carla Vaught 4/10/2007 Thank you all for such awesome comments! This is why I write, to see God bless others with what He inspires me to write! ....... Kyle: Yes I am a Christian, by the Grace of God! Thank You Jesus! Mellissa: Go right ahead, all I ask is that you give credit to me and the Lord!! Lord bless you all!
Should we give money to poor ppl? ZAKAAT (Alms) Ramadan is the month of giving and benevolence, the Messenger was more benevolent than a falling rain. Muslims are encouraged to emulate the Messenger of Allah (saas), to assess and pay their Zakaat during the month of Ramadan, thus combining the two pillars of Islam at the same time. Zakaat (alms) is the name of what a believer returns out of his or her wealth to the neediest of Muslims for the sake of the Almighty Allah. It is called Zakaat because the word Zakaat is from Zakaa which means, to increase, purify and bless. Who Should Give Zakaat The obligation of Zakaat is mandatory on every Muslim who possesses the minimum Nisaab, whether the person is man, woman, young, old sane or insane. Because the proof of Zakaat in Al-Qur`an and Sunnah is general and does not exclude young or insane. Allah (SWT) stated that: "Of their goods take alms so that thou mightiest purify and sanctify them..." (Al-Qur`an, 9: 103) Imam Ibn Hazim said that every Muslim young or old sane or insane needs to cleanse his or her wealth with Zakaat because of generality of the evidence. Anas bin Malik reported that the Messenger of Allah (saas) said: "Trade with the money of the orphan, lest it is eaten up by Zakaat." (At-Tabraani) In another Hadith `Amru bin Shuaib related from his grandfather that the Messenger of Allah said: "Whoever is entrusted with money of an orphan should trade with it and should not leave it sitting to be used up by charity." (Tirmidhi) The point of reference in these reports is that the Messenger (saas) urged the trustee on the estate of people who due to age or other reasons cannot manage their own financial affairs, to invest it in a business that will yield a return and make it grow until they are in a position to do so themselves. For, if proper investment is not made with an ophan's inheritance, it will be depleted by charity, thus leaving the orphan with little or nothing. The Nisaab The Lawgiver, Allah has prescribed the minimum amount that is obligatory for Zakaat in different ranges of properties, and that minimum amount is known as nisaab. The reason for nisaab is to ensure that no one is forced to give Zakaat out of what he or she does not have, and that no wealth goes without Zakaat. Nisaab is also an insurance against the tyranny of the state to tax the poor and or the neediest as is the case in many countries. Nisaab is a reference point for the average Muslim who is not sure whether he possesses the minimum wealth on which Zakaat is obligatory. The wealthy need not worry about the Nisaab. Zakaat is obligatory on their entire wealth and must be paid out at the end of financial year that they set for their Zakaat. The Nisaab will not be valid unless it fulfills two conditions: 1) The amount that has reached Nisaab must be the excess or surplus known as "faadil" from one's essential needs such as food, clothing, housing, vehicles, tools and machinery that is used in business. The essentials for living are exempted from Zakaat. Although what constitutes nisaab may change from one country to another, the amount that is needed for the basic needs of living in different countries is very similar, because the market place determines the prices, whether it is an official market or a non-official market. In the poorest countries people do without or live below the poverty standard, and that is why many go hungry or without basic essentials. However, we must realize that Zakaat is an act of worship (ebadah) like Salaat. The element of intention (niyyah) is necessary, and we should not overly rely on state agencies to determine for us the requirements of our religious duty. The so called the "consumption basket" (that is poverty level as determined the social security administration which are updated every fiscal year) may not be the same as what Islam considers minimum Nisaab. In the industrialized countries, the consumption basket may include items that are not necessarily essential, such as entertainment, extra clothing, variety of food, eating in restaurant or eating at home, owning more than one car as opposed to having three cars in the driveway, drinking water as opposed to juices, eating regular food or special "health" food. This is why I believe it is essential that we do not lose site of the fact that Zakaat is ebadah of wealth, like salaat and fasting. Non Muslims may consider all the things mentioned above as essentials while Muslims will not. Indeed, no Muslims in good standing will attempt to hide behind the label of consumption basket so as to evade Zakaat. Nisaab eliminates the possibility of injustice or unfair treatment of the Zakaat payer. To suggest that if we do not follow the rules of International Monetary Fund or the arbitrary figures of social security administration or department of agriculture we will be doing injustice to the Zakaat payer is ludicrous. 2) Nisaab must mature, that is the money is not liable for Zakaat unless it has remained a full year in the possession of a person. This is the understanding of the majority of the scholars. Imam Abu Hanifah (raa) said: "What should be considered is the existence of nisaab at the beginning and the end of the Zakaat year set by the payer". It does not matter if the nisaab money increases or decreases during the calendar year, as we will explain later. This condition does not include farm produce, for it is due on the day it is harvested. Allah (SWT) stated: "... But render the dues that are proper on the day that the harvest is gathered..." (Al-Qur`an, 6: 141) According to Imam Al-`Abadi, (raa) Zakaat money is of two kinds: one that by its nature can not be invested and Zakaat of this category is due on the day of harvest. This includes all the farm produce that is liable for Zakaat. The other is wealth that can be invested in the hope of a good return, like cash, gold or silver, because the opportunity is there that cash in one's hand can be invested for a good return. This includes currency investment, merchandise and livestock. Their Zakaat is not due until they have matured in one full year. The proof of this condition is the Hadith related by Ibn `Umar that the Messenger of Allah (saas) said: "He who acquires property is not liable for Zakaat on it till a year passes." According to Ibn Rushd (raa) this is the understanding of the majority of scholars, including the four rightly guided Khalifahs. Zakaat Of Salaries The condition of yearly term maturity applies to the commodities on which the Lawgiver said Zakaat is due, and this includes silver, gold, modern paper currency and livestock. Paper currency is analogous to silver, therefore, it takes the case of silver. There is no Zakaat on salary, earned income from wage earners or professionals or independent contractors until such money matures in a full year. There is no such thing as paying your Zakaat on the day you receive your paycheck. What the wage earner must know is that he or she can purify that money with charity (sadaqah) anytime they cash the paycheck. Allah (SWT) states: "And in their wealth and possessions (was remembered) the right of the needy, he who asks and he who (for some reason) was prevented (from asking)." (Al-Qur`an, 51: 19). We can deduce from the concept of "yearly maturity" of wealth on which Zakaat is due as encouraging, among other things, saving on the part of the Zakaat payer, and enhances the chances for eradicating poverty, because if the poor receives his rightful share of Zakaat there will be the possibility that he can take Zakaat money and invest it and become a Zakaat payer instead of recipient. This possibility will be lost if he receives few Zakaat dollars every month. To say that the wage earner just brings his check home and spends everything on necessities and lives from check to check with nothing left over means the person is eligible for Zakaat. Using farm produce as analogous to salary for Zakaat is wrong analogy. As Imam Al-`Abadi said, these are two different categories of money. $2, 500.00 cash can be invested by the person and expect a good return whereas it will be difficult to invest a bushel of corn. It can be traded as a commodity, which is what it is. This why we must know that analogy has rules that must be followed before it is applied. Certainly the jurists are unanimous that earned income, known as almal al-mustafadah, should either be added to existing money and wait until that amount reaches maturity and then give their Zakaat; or if there is no money on hand the time one possesses this money, he or she should wait one full year before assessing it for Zakaat. Zakaat is one of the five pillars of Islam and a vital element in the religion of Islam. It is the twin sister of Salaat. In Al-Qur`an, Allah (SWT) stated: "So establish regular Prayer and give regular Alms; and obey the Messenger; that you may receive mercy." (Al-Qur`an, 24: 56) Also, "...Establish regular Prayer and give regular Alms, and loan to Allah a beautiful loan...." (Al-Qur`an, 73: 20) "And they have been commanded no more than this: to worship Allah, offering Him sincere devotion, being true (in faith); to establish regular Prayer and to practice regular charity; and that is the religion right and straight." (Al-Qur`an, 98: 5) In a famous Hadith reported by `Umar Bin Khattab (raa), the Messenger of Allah (saas) responded to Jibreel (as) and said: "... Islam is to testify that there is no deity but Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, to perform the prayer, to pay Zakaat, to observe fasting in Ramadan, and to make pilgrimage to the house of Allah if you are able to do os...." (Bukhari, Muslim) There is consensus among Muslim scholars that it is mandatory on every believer who is financially able. Whoever knowingly denies this obligation, while he possesses the minimum amount, would be considered a disbeliever and a renegade from Islam. Whoever is stingy, or tries to cheat, is considered among the wrongdoers. Zakaat is mandatory on four categories of items. 1. Farm produce of seeds and fruits, such as wheat, barley, rice, dates, raisins, cocoa, pistachios, coffee, cashews. Allah (SWT) stated: "O you who believe, give of the good things which you have (honorably) earned, and of the fruits of the earth which We have produced for you..." (Al-Qur`an, 2: 267) Also: "... But render the dues that are proper on the day that the harvest is gathered..." (Al-Qur`an, 6: 141) Thus, these two verses and many others indicate that Zakaat is due on farm products that reached the minimum amount (nisaab). No farm product is liable for Zakaat unless it is a product that is considered as food and can be stocked or saved naturally without refrigeration. If the produce is perishable fruit, such as grapes, there is no Zakaat. But if one sells them they will pay their Zakaat on the profit earned when it matures. The nisaab is 612 kilos, which equals 1,346.40 lb. There is no Zakaat on produce that is less than this amount. If the farm produce or crops grow dependant on rainwater, or without any man's labor or irrigation, Zakaat due is one-tenth of the total. If it is grown by irrigation, then the Zakaat due is half of one-tenth of the total produce. There is no Zakaat on fruits like apples or oranges or vegetables which are perishable and need refrigeration for long storage, but they should be considered as any income if the profit earned from their sale reaches the amount of Zakaat, then Zakaat should be given. 2. Cattle, including camels, cows, sheep and goats, that are freely graze and are raised for trade and production. For Zakaat to be obligatory, the number must reach the nisaab. The nisaab of camels is five, of cows 30, of sheep and goats, 40. By freely grazing is meant the animal goes out to feed without the owner buying or bringing it feed or hay. If it is not a grazing animal, there is no Zakaat in the stock by itself. The stock will, however, be considered as articles of trade, then will be assessed for Zakaat as articles of trade when the profit earned from their sale reaches the amount by itself or in combination with other articles of the trade. 3. Merchandise and goods of trade and commerce. This includes anything that is obtained for the business of buying and selling: land, animals, food provisions, fabric, cars, spare parts, etc. This inventory is evaluated annually and assessed for Zakaat, whether the value is the same as the amount spent on it, more, or less. The owners of grocery stores, like any other business, must evaluate every item and give their Zakaat. Simple bookkeeping of inventory, orders, cash on hand, and credits, that is non-delinquent loans, will give one a good picture of the zakaatable assets. But if one is unable to account for everything in the store or shop, he should assess it according to his ability until he is sure that his conscience is clear. There is no Zakaat on what is within one's dwelling or property which includes food, drinks, furniture, houses, animals, cars, clothes and shoes. The only exception is gold and silver. There is no Zakaat on assets from rentals or lease, whether they are apartment units, taxi cabs, etc. That is, there is no Zakaat on the apartment units, buses or cars for rental like yellow cabs company or trucks for rental or equipments. But there is Zakaat on the proceeds or incomes from these rental assets if these assets reach the executable amount, either by themselves or in combination with other assets. Business Activities Many scholars are of the opinion that any business activity that brings any return to the entrepreneur or investor should be assessed for Zakaat. If the activity has a prescribed nisaab, such as gold, silver or paper currency, that nisaab is applied for Zakaat. But if the business has no declared nisaab, its nisaab is the nisaab of commerce, one reason being that most business activities are considered as commerce and because, in actual fact, it is not factitious business name, such as GM, Apple or GE that is taxed for Zakaat, it is the individual investor. We do not tax cooperations such IBM, Apple, GM or Rajihy Bank but the individual investors, share holders and owners of these corporations. Indeed, there are enough rules in Zakaat books to cover all types of business activity, be it cash or risk investment. If the business activity is analogous to commerce, it should be assessed the same rate as commerce. To subject the business to a different Zakaat rate of 10%, which is the rate of farm products instead of its correct rate of 2.5%, the rate of commerce, is unfair and unjustified. Besides, there is no proof, even a weak one, to justify this unfair arbitrary taxation. The difference between 2.5% and 10% is high. The Zakaat system is not like a state revenue collection, but Allah's `ebadah. However, if a business person decides to give more than 2.5% after deducting all the expenses including depreciation, Allah (SWT) will accept it from him. 4. Gold and silver, whether used for commerce or jewelry. Allah (SWT) states: "...And there are those who bury gold and silver and spend it not in the way of Allah: announce unto them a most grievous penalty. On the day when heat will be produced out of that (wealth) in the fire of hell, and with it will be branded their foreheads, their flanks and their backs. This is the (treasure) which you buried for yourselves: taste you, then, the (treasures) you buried." (Al-Qur`an, 9: 34-35). By hoarding is meant refusal to give it in the path of Allah, which includes Zakaat. In a hadith reported by Abu Hurairah (raa), the Messenger of Allah (saas) said: "For the owner or possessor of gold and silver who does not fulfill its obligation, on the Day of Resurrection it will be cast into sheets of fire and be branded on his forehead, side and back. Whenever it cools it is to be repeated for him in a day whose length is the length of fifty thousand years, until the judgement is rendered among the people." (Muslim). By its obligation is meant assessing it for Zakaat. In another version: "No possessor of a treasure who does not give its Zakaat." Zakaat is mandatory in gold and silver, irrespective of its form: in coins, raw or nugget, or jewelry for wearing, or for rent, because of the generality of evidence of Zakaat without any detail. In a report by Abdullah bin `Amr bin `Aas (raa), he related that a woman came to the Messenger of Allah with her daughter. On the daughter's wrist were two heavy gold bracelets. The Messenger asked her, "Do you pay Zakaat on this?" She replied, "No." The Messenger said: "Would it please you that Allah will encircle you with two bracelets of fire?" The reporter commented that she took them off and threw them down in front of the Messenger, and said: "They are for Allah and his Messenger." (Ahmed, Tirmidhi). The Messenger's wife reported that: "The Messenger entered into my house and saw in my hand a huge ring made of silver, so he asked, `What is this?' I replied, `I made them to beautify myself for you, O Messenger of Allah.' He inquired, `Do you give their Zakaat?' I said, `No,' or `Allah willing.' He said: `It will suffice you in the hellfire.'" (Abu Dawuud). Zakaat is due on gold when it reaches the amount of (nisaab), which is 20 Dinaar. According to a hadith, the Messenger said: "No Zakaat on you is due until it reaches 20 dinaar." (Abu Dawud) The Islamic dinaar (currency) is one mithqal, a unit of weight which weighs four and one quarter of a gram. Thus, the nisaab is 85 grams. This is equal to $30.00 US dollars. Similarly, there is no Zakaat on silver until it reaches five oqiyah, because the Messenger said: "There is no Zakaat on less then five oqiyah." (Muslim/Bukhari) Oqiyah is equal to forty Islamic dirhams. The nisaab is 200 dirhams. One dirham is equivalent to 595 grams. The zakaatable amount in both the gold and silver is a quarter of a tenth only. Paper Currency There is Zakaat on modern paper currency because it is equivalent to silver. During the early days of Islam, silver and gold were the currency of exchange minted into dirham for silver and dinaar for gold. Silver, not gold, had a larger circulation. Thus many scholars are of opinion that silver should be the standard for the paper currencies of today because that is more advantageous to the Zakaat payer, as it raises the minimum nisaab whereas gold lowers it. Although both metals are no longer circulated, they are still considered as a security against ever fluctuating paper money. Silver should be used as a standard to assess Zakaat annually, not paper currency, even if the currency is hard currency like the US dollar, Yen and Deutch Mark or Pound Sterling. Because these currencies are backed by political decisions that may not have anything to do with the economy, the value and strength of this paper money depends largely on all haram usury system of interest rates. Thus, the Zakaat payer should look up in the local newspaper's financial or business section for the price of silver which is currently about $3.82. per ounce. The nisaab, then, is 596 x .04=28.80 ounce multiplied by$3.82= 90.91. therefore. The nisaab is about $100.00, as of December 17, 1991. The nisaab should be based on the market value of the currency. If the money is hard currency, there will be no problem, but if the money is a non-marketable currency, like most currencies in the third world countries, the nisaab should be based on the black market, which realistically reflects the value of the currency on the money market. In any case, the silver rate should be used to assess the Zakaat. If the nisaab is determined, the zakaatable amount is 2.5%, or .025 multiplied by the amount. For instance, if the zakaatable amount is $56,000.00 it will be 56,000. x .025 = $1,400.00. Zakaat is due on gold, silver, and or paper currency, whether it is cash in hand or credit in the hands of borrowers. Zakaat is due on debts or cost of merchandize or rental money. If the borrower is a wealthy person that you know will pay back the debt, the lender (that is Halaal lending free of usury) should include that money in the assessment and give its Zakaat. However, one can delay Zakaat on a loan until he receives payment, then return its Zakaat for the past years that he was unable to assess for Zakaat. If the borrower is poor or is refusing to pay the debt, there will be no Zakaat on the money until the lender receives the money. Then he will assess it for Zakaat of one past due year, but there will be no Zakaat in the years before that. There is no Zakaat on precious stones such as diamonds, or metals such uranium, regardless of their value. Gold and silver, of course are assessed for Zakaat. However, if a person possesses any of these stones or metals, he should give their Zakaat like any other articles of trade. If a person possesses diamonds or any other precious stones as an edge against inflation or for ornaments, there will no Zakaat on these. How To Give Zakaat Zakaat may be assessed and returned in two ways: a) Make a record of all money earned, either daily or monthly, which has reached the nisaab and remains in the treasury. The Zakaat of that money would be due one year later on the same day the money was earned and reached nisaab. This means every month's income must be set aside and assessed for Zakaat and so will be the case for the rest of the months. For instance, the income of January, 1991 will be assessed for Zakaat in January, 1992, and the income of February, 1991 will be assessed for Zakaat in February 1992, etc. This method of assessing Zakaat is very difficult because it entails complete bookkeeping of daily or monthly earnings. b) The best way is to set a day or a month, preferably Ramadan, for your annual Zakaat return calendar, say Ramadan 1st, 1412. One year later on the same day Ramadan, 1413, your Zakaat is due and payable. Whatever is in the savings is due for Zakaat, regardless of whether all the amount in the savings reaches a year or not. For instance: if you have $20,000.00 in the savings account on the 1st of Ramadan, 1412 and one year later by the 1st of Ramadan, 1413 there is $50, 000.00, your Zakaat will be assessed for $50,000.00, that is: $50.000.00 x .025= $1,250.00. If, on the other hand, by the 1st of Ramadan, 1413 the amount in the savings is $15,000.00, your Zakaat will be for the amount in the savings, that is $15,000.00 x .025= $375.00. This method is the best because it is easy to assess, meets one's obligation and relieve one's conscience. The Recipient Of Zakaat Knowing who qualifies as recipient of Zakaat is an important aspect of Zakaat collection in Islam. Fortunately, Allah (SWT) has been merciful to us in that He Himself spelled out the people eligible to receive Zakaat. In Surah Tawbah He stated: "Alms are for the poor and the needy; and those employed to administer (the funds); for those whose hearts have been (recently) reconciled (to truth); for those in bondage and in debt; in the cause of Allah; and for the wayfarer: (thus is it) ordained by Allah, and Allah is full of knowledge and wisdom." (Al-Qur`an, 9: 60) In this verse Allah enumerated the people who deserve this divine welfare, and they are as follows: The poor and the needy. These are individuals, and those under their care, to live on. By the poor and needy is meant the people whose income or salaries, or whatever material goods they have, fall short of the cost of living in a given environment and economy. The poor and the needy should be given what will suffice them and their families for one full year. The needy who want to get married and have no means should be given enough for this purpose, and so, too, the student who needs money for tuition, rent, food, and books. The working poor should be given supplementary Zakaat. But the wealthy, or any person with enough income to live on should not be given Zakaat, even if they asked for it. Instead, they should be warned and admonished for asking for what does not belong to them. In a hadith reported by Abdullah bin `Umar, the Messenger of Allah (saas) stated: "A man keeps on asking others for something till he comes on the day of Resurrection without any piece of flesh on his face." (Bukhari/Muslim). This hadith indicates a humiliating appearance before Allah (SWT) that awaits a person who asks illegally. Some said: this hadith implies Allah will punish a person with the very limb, the face, that he used to impress on others to give him their money unlawfully. In another hadith reported by Abu Hurairah, the Messenger of Allah said: "Whoever asks people for their money so as to get rich, he is asking for flames of fire. It is up to him to ask for more or less (he should beware)." (Muslim) This hadith indicates the severity of the punishment, the more one asks the more punishment, the less one asks the less the punishment. In another hadith, reported by Hakeem bin Hizaam said: I begged the Messenger of Allah and he gave me. I begged again, and he gave me. I begged again and he gave me. He then said: "This money is green and sweet; he who receives it from people with a cheerful heart, Allah will bless him in it; he who receives it, with an avaricious mind would not be blessed in it. He will be like the person who eats without being satisfied; and the upper hand is better than the lower hand" (Muslim) This hadith gave an analogy between money and green, ripened fruit that people love to eat. Thus, it indicates that both are greatly loved but easily finished. For money that is easy come easy go, one must be careful about the punishment that awaits the illegal eater. If a person asks for Zakaat and there are no signs of wealth, and he does not know that he should not ask, or a person who is well and able, who can work, but does not; if these people do not know that it is not permissible for them to ask, it may be given anyway. In a hadith reported by Ahmed, Abu Dawud, and Nasa'e, two men came to the Messenger of Allah (saas) and asked for Zakaat. He looked at them closely and found them strong and able, he said, "If you want I will give you. But you should know that the wealthy or an able person who can work has no share in Zakaat" (Ahmad) Those who administer the Zakaat department, assigning people for collecting, bookkeeping, making lists of people eligible for Zakaat, and a financial calendar. These people will receive Zakaat as compensation for their work, even if they are wealthy. This does not include a person who works as an agent for one or two wealthy people to take Zakaat for himself. They should donate their time for Zakaat disbursement and do it with honesty and truthfulness. If they can not, they should be paid or rewarded for their time. In a hadith related by Abu Musa Al-Ashi`ari (raa), the Messenger of Allah said: "A trustworthy Muslim executor is the one who executes completely what has been entrusted to him of Zakaat money in good faith." (Bukhari) That is, he will give the Zakaat money to any of the eligible recipients of Zakaat. He should carry on the duty voluntarily, but if he can not distribute the money without being paid, the Zakaat payer should pay him for his work. The payment for the service of distributing Zakaat should not come out of Zakaat money. The new converts to Islam whose hearts we want to harmonize into the fold of Islam, either because their faith is weak or we are afraid of their being harmed, should be given Zakaat to strengthen their Iman or until we no longer fear their harm. The bonds person who has contracted with his master to buy himself out of bondage deserve Zakaat and should be given enough to pay off their debt to the master and be freed themselves; similarly, Muslim prisoners of war if their freedom is tied to monetary payment, deserve Zakaat sufficient enough to secure their release. On the other hand, if a pearson accidently killed someone and have no means to pay off the blood money, he should be helped from Zakaat funds. The people in debt are of two kinds: (A) The guarantor, who takes the responsibility of someone else's debt so as to reconcile the two warring parties, to extinguish the fire of fitnah between them. If the person requests Zakaat money to pay off this debt he should be given it, which will encourage him to continue in this noble cause. In a hadith reported by Qubaysah Al-Hilaaly (raa), he said I was under debt (hamaalah) and I came to the Messenger (saas) and begged him to help me pay it off. The Messenger told him: "Wait until we receive charity, so we will command that it be given to you." However, the Messenger stated: "O Qubaysah, begging is not permitted except for one of three categories of people: A man who has incurred debt (as guarantor to reconcile blood wit) for him begging is permissible till he pays that off, after which he must stop it; a man whose property has been destroyed by calamity which has smitten him; for him begging is permissible till he gets what will support life or will provide him reasonable subsistence; and a man who has been smitten by poverty, the genuineness of which should be confirmed by three knowledgeable members of his people; for him begging is permissible till he gets what will support him, or will provide him subsistence. Besides these three, Qubaysah, begging is forbidden for every other persons, and one who engages in such consumes that which is forbidden." (Muslim) (B) Whoever incurs debt and has no money to pay it back will be given from Zakaat to help pay his debt, whether the amount is large or small; or his creditor should be paid directly on his behalf, so long as it is paid off. Zakaat can be given in the path of Allah. By this is meant to finance a Jihad effort in the path of Allah, not for Jihad for other reasons. The fighter (mujahid) will be given as salary what will be enough for him. If he needs to buy arms or some other supplies related to the war effort, Zakaat money should be used provided the effort is to raise the banner of Islam. The wayfarer. This is the traveller who in a strange land runs out of money. He or she deserves Zakaat, enough money to take him back to his country, even if he is wealthy and can find someone to loan him the money. On his part, he should take with him on his trip sufficient money, if he is wealthy, so that he will not need Zakaat. Zakaat money can not be used to pay off other obligations, such as giving Zakaat money to people you are obligated to take care of by law; or Zakaat money can not be used to pay for hotel and food expenses. It is, however, permissible to give Zakaat to a wife or family member, provided it is not part of their daily living expense money, but is needed to pay off a debt for one's wife if she can not pay it. So is the case for one's parents if they can not pay their debt. Zakaat money may be given to members of the family for their expenses if one is not obligated to take care of them financially. The wife can pay off a debt of her husband with Zakaat money, because he may be among the eight eligible recipients and she is not obligated to spend on him as he is on her. The eight eligible recipients of Zakaat can be denied their right to Zakaat without proof from Al-Qur`an or Sunnah. In a hadith reported by Ibn Mas`ud, his wife Zaynab heard the Messenger of Allah order women to give Zakaat, so she asked the Messenger (saas): " O Messenger of Allah, you commanded us to give Zakaat, and I have jewelry that I wanted to assess for Zakaat, but my husband Abdullah bin Mas`ud claimed that his son deserves it more than anyone." The Messenger replied: Your husband Ibn Mas`ud is right. Your son deserves your charity more than anyone." In another hadith reported by Salman bin `Aamir, he said the Messenger of Allah said: " Charity to the poor is only charity, but charity to the rest of kind is charity and maintenance of relations (sillah)." (Nisaee) No loan should be written off as Zakaat because Zakaat is taken and given. Allah (SWT) said: "Of their goods take alms...." (Al-Qur`an, 9: 103) And in a Hadith the Messenger has been reported as saying: "Allah has mandated on you Zakaat to be taken from the wealthy and to be given to the poor." Thus, writing off debt is not taken. For instance, If you loan a person money, you can not write off that loan as a Zakaat. However, it could be written off as sadaqah charity. Furthermore, loan, delinquent or not, is considered an absent money, therefore, it should not be transacted in Zakaat. for Zakaat is assessed only in cash in hand. Besides, debt money is valued less than cash in the hand, and using that money for alms is like exchanging good money for bad. The assessor of alms should try to give his Zakaat to an eligible person, but if he makes a mistake and gives it to an ineligible person it is accepted. In a hadith related by Abu Hurairah, he said the Messenger said: "A man expressed his intention to give charity, so he came with his charity and placed it in the hand of an adulteress. In the morning the people were talking and saying charity was given to an adulteress last night. The donor said: O Allah, to thee be the Praise - charity to an adulteress! He then again expressed his intention to give charity, so he went out with it and placed it in the hand of a rich person. In the morning the people were talking and saying charity was given to a rich person. The donor said, O Allah to You be the praise - charity to a rich man! He then expressed his intention to give charity, so he went out with his charity and placed it in the hand of a thief. In the morning the people were talking and saying charity to the thief. So the man said, O Allah to You be the praise (what a misfortune that charity has been given) to the adulteress, the rich and the thief! Then someone came to him and told him your charity has been accepted. As for the adulteress the charity might become the means whereby she might restrain from fornication. The rich man might perhaps learn a lesson and spend from what Allah has given him, and the thief might thereby restrain from committing theft. (Muslim/ Bukhari) http://www.islamfortoday.com/beliefs.htm
anybody intrested check this out? 1. Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain) was born on and died on days when Halley's Comet can be seen. During his life he predicted that he would die when it could be seen. 2. US Dollar bills are made out of cotton and linen. 3. The "57" on the Heinz ketchup bottle represents the number of pickle types the company once had. 4. Americans are responsible for about 1/5 of the world's garbage annually. On average, that's 3 pounds a day per person. 5. Giraffes and rats can last longer without water than camels. 6. Your stomach produces a new layer of mucus every two weeks so that it doesn't digest itself. 7. 98% of all murders and rapes are by a close family member or friend of the victim. 8. A B-25 bomber crashed into the 79th floor of the Empire State Building on July 28, 1945. 9. The Declaration of Independence was written on hemp (marijuana) paper. 10. The dot over the letter "i" is called a tittle. 11. A raisin dropped in a glass of fresh champagne will bounce up and down continuously from the bottom of the glass to the top. 12. Benjamin Franklin was the fifth in a series of the youngest son of the youngest son. 13. Triskaidekaphobia means fear of the number 13. Paraskevidekatriaphobia means fear of Friday the 13th (which occurs one to three times a year). In Italy, 17 is considered an unlucky number. In Japan, 4 is considered an unlucky number. 14. A female ferret will die if it goes into heat and cannot find a mate. 15. All the chemicals in a human body combined are worth about 6.25 euro (if sold separately). 16. In ancient Rome, when a man testified in court he would swear on his testicles. 17. The ZIP in "ZIP code" means Zoning Improvement Plan. 18. Coca-Cola contained Coca (whose active ingredient is cocaine) from 1885 to 1903. 19. A "2 by 4" is really 1 1/2 by 3 1/2. 20. It's estimated that at any one time around 0.7% of the world's population is drunk. 21. Each king in a deck of playing cards represents a great king from history: Spades = David ; Clubs = Alexander the Great ; Hearts = Charlemagne ; Diamonds = Caesar 22. 40% of McDonald's profits come from the sales of Happy Meals. 23. Every person, including identical twins, has a unique eye and tongue print along with their finger print. 24. The "spot" on the 7-Up logo comes from its inventor who had red eyes. He was an albino. 25. 315 entries in Webster's 1996 dictionary were misspelled. 26. The "save" icon in Microsoft Office programs shows a floppy disk with the shutter on backwards. 27. Albert Einstein and Charles Darwin both married their first cousins (Elsa Löwenthal and Emma Wedgewood respectively). 28. Camel's have three eyelids. 29. On average, 12 newborns will be given to the wrong parents every day. 30. John Wilkes Booth's brother once saved the life of Abraham Lincoln's son. 31. Warren Beatty and Shirley McLaine are brother and sister. 32. Chocolate can kill dogs; it directly affects their heart and nervous system. 33. Daniel Boone hated coonskin caps. 34. Playing cards were issued to British pilots in WWII. If captured, they could be soaked in water and unfolded to reveal a map for escape. 35. 55.1% of all US prisoners are in prison for drug offenses. 36. Most lipstick contains fish scales. 37. Orcas (killer whales) kill sharks by torpedoing up into the shark's stomach from underneath, causing the shark to explode. 38. Dr. Seuss pronounced his name "soyce". 39. Slugs have four noses. 40. Ketchup was sold in the 1830s as medicine. 41. The Three Wise Monkeys have names: Mizaru (See no evil), Mikazaru (Hear no evil), and Mazaru (Speak no evil). 42. India has a Bill of Rights for cows. 43. If you sneeze too hard, you can fracture a rib. If you try to suppress a sneeze, you can rupture a blood vessel in your head or neck and die. If you keep your eyes open by force, they can pop out. (DON'T TRY IT, DUMBASS) 44. During the California gold rush of 1849, miners sent their laundry to Honolulu for washing and pressing. Due to the extremely high costs in California during these boom years, it was deemed more feasible to send their shirts to Hawaii for servicing. 45. American Airlines saved $40,000 in 1987 by taking out an olive from First Class salads. 46. About 200,000,000 M&Ms are sold each day in the United States. 47. Because metal was scarce, the Oscars given out during World War II were made of wood. 48. Over a course of about eleven years, the sun's magnetic poles switch places. This cycle is called "Solarmax". 49. There are 318,979,564,000 possible combinations of the first four moves in Chess. 50. Upper and lower case letters are named "upper" and "lower" because in the time when all original print had to be set in individual letters, the upper case letters were stored in the case on top of the case that stored the lower case letters. 51. There are no clocks in Las Vegas gambling casinos. 52. The numbers "172" can be found on the back of the US 5 dollar bill, in the bushes at the base of the Lincoln Memorial. 53. Coconuts kill about 150 people each year. That's more than sharks. 54. Half of all bank robberies take place on a Friday. 55. The name Wendy was made up for the book Peter Pan. There was never a recorded Wendy before it. 56. The international telephone dialing code for Antarctica is 672. 57. The first bomb the Allies dropped on Berlin in WWII killed the only elephant in the Berlin Zoo. 58. The average raindrop falls at 7 miles per hour. 59. It took Leonardo Da Vinci 10 years to paint Mona Lisa. He never signed or dated the painting. Leonardo and Mona had identical bone structures according to the painting. X-ray images have shown that there are 3 other versions under the original. 60. If you put a drop of liquor on a scorpion, it will instantly go mad and sting itself to death. 61. Bruce Lee was so fast that they had to slow the film down so you could see his moves. 62. The largest amount of money you can have without having change for a dollar is $1.19 (3 quarters, 4 dimes, and 4 pennies cannot be divided into a dollar). 63. The first CD pressed in the US was Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the USA". 64. IBM's motto is "Think". Apple later made their motto "Think different". 65. The mask used by Michael Myers in the original "Halloween" was actually a Captain Kirk mask painted white, due to low budget. 66. The original name for butterfly was flutterby. 67. The phrase "rule of thumb" is derived from an old English law, which stated that you couldn't beat your wife with anything wider than your thumb. 68. One in fourteen women in America is a natural blonde. Only one in sixteen men is. 69. The Olympic was the sister ship of the Titanic, and she provided twenty-five years of service. 70. When the Titanic sank, 2228 people were on it. Only 706 survived. 71. In America, someone is diagnosed with AIDS every 10 minutes. In South Africa, someone dies due to HIV or AIDS every 10 minutes. 72. Every day, 7% of the US eats at McDonald's. 73. The first product Motorola started to develop was a record player for automobiles. At that time, the most known player on the market was Victrola, which Motorola got their name from. 74. In the US, about 127 million adults are overweight or obese; worldwide, 750 million are overweight and 300 million more are obese. In the US, 15% of children in elementary school are overweight; 20% are worldwide. 75. In Disney's Fantasia, the Sorcerer to whom Mickey played an apprentice was named Yensid (Disney spelled backward). 76. During his entire life, Vincent Van Gogh sold exactly one painting, "Red Vineyard at Arles". 77. By raising your legs slowly and lying on your back, you cannot sink into quicksand. 78. One in ten people live on an island. 79. It takes more calories to eat a piece of celery than the celery has in it to begin with. 80. 28% of Africa is classified as wilderness. In North America, its 38%. 81. Charlie Chaplin once won third prize in a Charlie Chaplin look-alike contest. 82. Chewing gum while peeling onions will keep you from crying. 83. Sherlock Holmes NEVER said "Elementary, my dear Watson", Humphrey Bogart NEVER said "Play it again, Sam" in Casablanca, and they NEVER said "Beam me up, Scotty" on Star Trek. 84. An old law in Bellingham, Washington, made it illegal for a woman to take more than 3 steps backwards while dancing. 85. Sharon Stone was the first Star Search spokes model. 86. The sound you here when you put a seashell next to your ear is not the ocean, but blood flowing through your head. 87. More people are afraid of open spaces (kenophobia) than of tight spaces (claustrophobia). 88. The glue on Israeli postage is certified kosher. 89. There is a 1 in 4 chance that New York will have a white Christmas. 90. The Guinness Book of Records holds the record for being the book most often stolen from Public Libraries. 91. Thirty-five percent of the people who use personal ads for dating are already married. 92. Back in the mid to late '80s, an IBM compatible computer wasn't considered 100% compatible unless it could run Microsoft's Flight Simulator. 93. $203,000,000 is spent on barbed wire each year in the U.S. 94. Every US president has worn glasses (just not always in public). 95. Bats always turn left when exiting a cave. 96. Jim Henson first coined the word "Muppet". It is a combination of "marionette" and "puppet." 97. The names of all the continents end with the same letter that they start with (not counting the words "North" and "South). 98. The Michelin man is known as Mr. Bib. His name was Bibendum in the company's first ads in 1896. 99. About 20% of bird species have become extinct in the past 200 years, almost all of them because of human activity. 100. The word "lethologica" describes the state of not being able to remember the word you want. 101. About 14% of injecting drug users are HIV positive. 102. A word or sentence that is the same front and back (racecar, kayak) is called a "palindrome". 103. A snail can sleep for 3 years. 104. People photocopying their buttocks are the cause of 23% of all photocopier faults worldwide. 105. China has more English speakers than the United States. 106. Finnish folklore says that when Santa comes to Finland to deliver gifts, he leaves his sleigh behind and rides on a goat named Ukko instead. According to French tradition, Santa Claus has a brother named Bells Nichols, who visits homes on New Year's Eve after everyone is asleep, and if a plate is set out for him, he fills it with cookies and cakes. 107. One in every 9000 people is an albino. 108. The electric chair was invented by a dentist. 109. You share your birthday with at least 9 million other people in the world. 110. Everyday, more money is printed for Monopoly sets than for the U.S. Treasury. 111. Every year 4 people in the UK die putting their trousers on. 112. Cats have over one hundred vocal sounds; dogs only have about ten. 113. Our eyes are always the same size from birth but our nose and ears never stop growing. 114. In every episode of "Seinfeld" there is a Superman picture or reference somewhere. 115. If Barbie were life-size her measurements would be 39-23-33. She would stand seven feet two inches tall and have a neck twice the length of a normal human's neck. 116. Rats multiply so quickly that in 18 months, two rats could have over million descendants. 117. Wearing headphones for just an hour will increase the bacteria in your ear by 700 times. 118. Each year in America there are about 300,000 deaths that can be attributed to obesity. 119. About 55% of all movies are rated R. 120. About 500 movies are made in the US and 800 in India annually. 121. Arabic numerals are not really Arabic; they were created in India. 122. Title 14, Section 1211 of the Code of Federal Regulations (implemented on July 16, 1969) makes it illegal for U.S. citizens to have any contact with extraterrestrials or their vehicles. 123. The February of 1865 is the only month in recorded history not to have a full moon. 124. The Pentagon in Arlington Virginia has twice as many bathrooms as is necessary. When it was built in the 1940s the state of Virginia still had segregation laws requiring separate toilet facilities for blacks and whites. 125. There is actually no danger in swimming right after you eat, though it may feel uncomfortable. 126. The cruise liner Queen Elizabeth II moves only six inches for each gallon of diesel that it burns. 127. More than 50% of the people in the world have never made or received a telephone call. 128. A shark is the only fish that can blink with both eyes. 129. There are about 2 chickens for every human in the world. 130. The word "maverick" came into use after Samuel Maverick, a Texan refused to brand his cattle. Eventually any unbranded calf became known as a Maverick. 131. Two-thirds of the world's eggplant is grown in New Jersey. 132. For every memorial statue with a person on a horse, if the horse has both front legs in the air, the person died in battle; if the horse has one front leg in the air, the person died of battle wounds; if all four of the horse's legs are on the ground, the person died of natural causes. 133. On a Canadian two-dollar bill, the American flag is flying over the Parliament Building. 134. An American urologist bought Napoleon's penis for $40,000. 135. No word in the English language rhymes with month, orange, silver, or purple. 136. Dreamt is the only English word that ends in the letters "MT". 137. $283,200 is the absolute highest amount of money you can win on Jeopardy. 138. Almonds are members of the peach family. 139. Rats and horses can't vomit. 140. The penguin is the only bird that can't fly but can swim. 141. There are approximately 100 million acts of sexual intercourse each day. 142. Winston Churchill was born in a ladies room during a dance. 143. Maine is the only state whose name is just one syllable. 144. There are only four words in the English language that end in "-dous": tremendous, horrendous, stupendous, and hazardous. 145. Americans on average eat 18 acres of pizza every day. 146. Every time you lick a stamp you consume 1/10 of a calorie. 147. "101 Dalmatians" and "Peter Pan" are the only Disney animations in which both of a character's parents are present and don't die during the movie. 148. You are more likely to be killed by a champagne cork than by a poisonous spider. 149. Hedenophobic means fear of pleasure. 150. Ancient Egyptian priests would pluck every hair from their bodies. 151. A crocodile cannot stick its tongue out. 152. Half of all crimes are committed by people under the age of 18. 80% of burglaries are committed by people aged 13-21. 153. An ant always falls over on its right side when intoxicated. 154. All polar bears are left-handed. 155. The catfish has over 27000 taste buds (more than any other animal) 156. A cockroach will live nine days without its head before it starves to death. 157. Butterflies taste with their feet. 158. Elephants are the only mammals that cannot jump. 159. An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain. 160. Starfish have no brains. 161. 11% of the world is left-handed. 162. John Hancock and Charles Thomson were the only people to sign the Declaration of independence on July 4th, 1776. The last signature came five years later. 163. Rubber bands last longer when refrigerated. 164. Peanuts are one of the ingredients of dynamite. 165. The national anthem of Greece has 158 verses. 166. There are 293 ways to make change for a dollar. 167. A healthy (non-colorblind) human eye can distinguish between 500 shades of gray. 168. A pregnant goldfish is called a twit. 169. Lizards can self-amputate their tails for protection. It grows back after a few months. 170. Los Angeles' full name is "El Pueblo de Nuestra Senora la Reina de los Angeles de Porciuncula". It can be abbreviated to 3.63% of its size: L.A. 171. A cat has 32 muscles in each ear. 172. A honeybee can fly at fifteen miles per hour. 173. Tigers have striped skin, not just striped fur. 174. A "jiffy" is the scientific name for 1/100th of a second. 175. The average child recognizes over 200 company logos by the time he enters first grade. 176. The youngest pope ever was 11 years old. 177. The first novel ever written on a typewriter is Tom Sawyer. 178. One out of every 43 prisoners escapes from jail. 94% are recaptured. 179. The cigarette lighter was invented before the match. 180. The average chocolate bar has 8 insects' legs melted into it. 181. A rhinoceros horn is made of compacted hair. 182. The shortest war in history was between Zanzibar and England in 1896. Zanzibar surrendered after 38 minutes. 183. Elwood Edwards did the voice for the AOL sound files (i.e. "You've got Mail!"). He is heard about 27 million times a day. The recordings were done before Quantum changed its name to AOL and the program was known as "Q-Link." 184. A polar bears skin is black. Its fur is actually clear, but like snow it appears white. 185. Elvis had a twin brother named Garon, who died at birth, which is why Elvis middle name was spelled Aron, in honor of his brother. 186. Dueling is legal in Paraguay as long as both parties are registered blood donors. 187. Donkeys kill more people than plane crashes. 188. Shakespeare invented the words "assassination" and "bump." 189. There are a million ants for every person on Earth. 190. If you keep a goldfish in the dark room, it will eventually turn white. 191. Women blink nearly twice as much as men. 192. The name Jeep comes from "GP", the army abbreviation for General Purpose. 193. Right handed people live, on average, nine years longer than left handed people do. 194. There are two credit cards for every person in the United States. 195. Cats' urine glows under a black light. 196. A "quidnunc" is a person who is eager to know the latest news and gossip. 197. The first US Patent was for manufacturing potassium carbonate (used in glass and gunpowder). It was issued to Samuel Hopkins on July 31, 1970. 198. Leonardo Da Vinci invented the scissors, the helicopter, and many other present day items. 199. In the last 4000 years no new animals have been domesticated. 200. 25% of a human's bones are in its feet. 201. David Sarnoff received the Titanic's distress signal and saved hundreds of passengers. He later became the head of the first radio network, the National Broadcasting Company (NBC). 202. On average, 100 people choke to death on ballpoint pens every year. 203. Michael Jordan makes more money from Nike annually than every Nike factory worker in Malaysia combined. 204. One of the reasons marijuana is illegal today is because cotton growers in the '30s lobbied against hemp farmers (they saw it as competition). 205. "Canada" is an Indian word meaning "Big Village". 206. Only one in two billion people will live to be 116 or older. 207. If you yelled for 8 years 7 months and 6 days, you would have produced enough sound energy to heat one cup of coffee. If you fart consistently for 6 years and 9 months, enough gas is produced to create the energy of an atomic bomb. 208. Rape is reported every six minutes in the U.S. 209. The human heart creates enough pressure in the bloodstream to squirt blood 30 feet. 210. A jellyfish is 95% water. 211. Truck driving is the most dangerous occupation by accidental deaths (799 in 2001). 212. Banging your head against a wall uses 150 calories an hour. 213. Elephants only sleep for two hours each day. 214. On average people fear spiders more than they do death. 215. The strongest muscle in the human body is the tongue. (the heart is not a muscle) 216. In golf, a 'Bo Derek' is a score of 10. 217. In the U.S, Frisbees outsell footballs, baseballs and basketballs combined. 218. In most watch advertisements the time displayed on a watch is 10:10. 219. If you plant an apple seed, it is almost guaranteed to grow a tree of a different type of apple. 220. Al Capone's business card said he was a used furniture dealer. 221. The only real person to be a PEZ head was Betsy Ross. 222. There are about 450 types of cheese in the world. 240 come from France. 223. When the University of Nebraska Cornhuskers plays football at home the stadium becomes Nebraska's third largest city. 224. The characters Bert and Ernie on Sesame Street were named after Bert the cop and Ernie the taxi driver in Frank Capra's "It's a Wonderful Life". 225. A dragonfly has a lifespan of 24 hours. 226. In Iceland, a Big Mac costs $5.50. 227. Broccoli and cauliflower are the only vegetables that are flowers. 228. Newborn babies have about 350 bones. They gradually merge and disappear until there are about 206 by age 5. 229. There is no solid proof of who built the Taj Mahal. 230. In a survey of 200000 ostriches over 80 years, not one tried to bury its head in the sand. 231. A dime has 118 ridges around the edge. A quarter has 119. 232. On an American one-dollar bill there is a tiny owl in the upper-left-hand corner of the upper-right-hand "1" and a spider hidden in the front upper-right-hand corner. 233. Judy Scheindlin ("Judge Judy") has a $25,000,000 salary, while Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg has a $190,100 salary. 234. The name for Oz in the Wizard of Oz was thought up when the creator Frank Baum looked at his filing cabinet and saw A-N and O-Z. 235. Andorra, a tiny country on the border between France and Spain, has the longest average lifespan: 83.49 years. 236. The microwave was invented after a researcher walked by a radar tube and a chocolate bar melted in his pocket. 237. Mr. Rogers was an ordained Presbyterian minister. 238. In America you will see an average of 500 advertisements a day. 239. John Lennon's first girlfriend was named Thelma Pickles. 240. You can lead a cow upstairs but not downstairs. 241. The average person falls asleep in seven minutes. 242. "The sixth sick sheik's sixth sheep's sick" is said to be the toughest tongue twister in English. 243. There are 336 dimples on a regulation US golf ball. In the UK its 330. 244. The Toltecs (a 7th century tribe) used wooden swords so they wouldn't kill their enemies. 245. "Duff" is the decaying organic matter found on a forest floor. 246. The US has more personal computers than the next 7 countries combined. 247. There have been over 600 lawsuits against Alexander Grahm Bell over rights to the patent of the telephone, the most valuable patent in U.S. history. 248. Kuwait is about 60% male (highest in the world). Latvia is about 54% female (highest in the world). 249. The Hawaiian alphabet has only 12 letters. 250. In 10 minutes, a hurricane releases more energy than all the world's nuclear weapons combined. 251. At the height of its power in 400 BC, the Greek city of Sparta had 25,000 citizens and 500,000 slaves. 252. Julius Caesar's autograph is worth about $2,000,000. 253. The tool doctors wrap around a patient's arm to measure blood pressure is called a sphygmomanometer. 254. People say "bless you" when you sneeze because your heart stops for a millisecond. 255. US gold coins used to say "In Gold We Trust". 256. In "Silence of the Lambs", Hannibal Lector (Anthony Hopkins) never blinks. 257. A shrimp's heart is in its head. 258. In the 17th century, the value of pi was known to 35 decimal places. Today, to 1.2411 trillion. 259. The bestselling books of all time are The Bible (6billion+), Quotations from the Works of Mao Tse-tung (900million+), and The Lord of the Rings (100million+) 260. Pearls melt in vinegar. 261. "Lassie" was played by a group of male dogs; the main one was named Pal. 262. In 1863, Paul Hubert of Bordeaux, France, was sentenced to life in jail for murder. After 21 years, it was discovered that he was convicted of murdering himself. 263. Nepal is the only country that doesn't have a rectangular flag. Switzerland is the only country with a square flag. 264. Gabriel, Michael, and Lucifer are the only angels named in the Bible. 265. Tiger Woods' real first name is Eldrick. His father gave him the nickname "Tiger" in honor of a South Vietnamese soldier his father had fought alongside with during the Vietnam War. 266. Johnny Appleseed planted apples so that people could use apple cider to make alcohol. 267. Abraham Lincoln's ghost is said to haunt the White House. 268. God is not mentioned once in the book of Esther. 269. The odds of being born male are about 51.2%, according to census. 270. Scotland has more redheads than any other part of the world. 271. There is an average of 61,000 people airborne over the US at any given moment. 272. Prince Charles and Prince William never travel on the same airplane in case there is a crash. 273. The most popular first name in the world is Muhammad. The most common name (of any type) in the world is Mohammed. 274. The surface of the Earth is about 60% water and 10% ice. 275. For every 230 cars that are made, 1 will be stolen. 276. Jimmy Carter was the first U.S. President to be born in a hospital. 277. Lightning strikes the earth about 8 million times a day. 278. Around 2,000 left-handed people die annually due to improper use of equipment designed only for right handed people. 279. The "if" and "then" parts of conditional ("if P then Q") statement are called the protasis (P) and apodosis (Q). 280. Humans use a total of 72 different muscles in speech. 281. If you feed a seagull Alka-Seltzer, its stomach will explode. 282. Only female mosquitoes bite. 283. The U.S. Post Office handles 43 percent of the world's mail. 284. Most household dust is made of dead skin cells. 285. One in about eight million people has progeria, a disease that causes people to grow faster than they age. 286. The male seahorse carries the eggs until they hatch instead of the female. 287. The "countdown" (counting down from 10 for an event such as New-Years Day) was first used in a 1929 German silent film called "Die Frau Im Monde" (The Girl in the Moon). 288. Negative emotions such as anxiety and depression can weaken your immune system. 289. There are seven suicides in the Bible: Abimelech. Samson, Saul, Saul's armor-bearer, Ahithophel, Zimri, Judas. 290. A mongoose is not a goose but more like a meercat, which is not a cat but more like a prairie dog, which is not a dog but more like a ground squirrel. 291. Stephen Hawking was born exactly 300 years after Galileo died. 292. Mercury is the only planet whose orbit is coplanar with its equator. Venus and Uranus are the only planets that rotate opposite to the direction of their orbit. 293. John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and James Monroe died on July 4th. Adams and Jefferson died in the same year. Supposedly, Adams last words were "Thomas Jefferson survives." 294. The Baby Ruth candy bar was named after Grover Cleveland's baby daughter, Ruth, not Babe Ruth the baseball player. 295. Dolphins can look in different directions with each eye. They can sleep with one eye open. 296. The Falkland Isles (pop. about 2000) has over 700000 sheep (350 per person). 297. There are 41,806 different spoken languages in the world today. 298. While many treaties have been signed at or near Paris, France (including many after WWI and WWII), nine are actually known as the "Treaty of Paris": Seven Years' War (1763), American Revolutionary War (1783), French-Swede War (1810), France vs Sixth Coalition (1814), Battle of Waterloo (1815), Crimean War (1856), Spanish-American War (1898), union of Bessarabia and Romania (1920), establishment of European Coal and Steel Community (1951). 299. Robert Todd Lincoln (Abraham Lincoln's oldest son) was in Washington DC during his father's assassination as well as during President Garfield's assassination, and he was in Buffalo NY when President McKinley was assassinated. 300. The city of Venice stands on about 120 small islands. 301. The past-tense of the English word "dare" is "durst". 302. Don Mac Lean's song "American Pie" was written about Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and J.P. Richardson (The Big Bopper), who all died in the same plane crash. 303. The drummer for ZZ Top (the only one without a beard) is named Frank Beard. 304. Hummingbirds can't walk. 305. When movie directors do not want their names to be seen in the credits, they use the pseudonym "Allen Smithee" instead. It has been used over 50 times, starting with "Death of a Gunfighter" (1969). 306. Four different people played the part of Darth Vader (body, face, voice, and breathing). 307. Pamela Lee-Anderson was the first to be born in Canada on the centennial anniversary of Canada's independence (7/1/1967). 308. There is about 200 times more gold in the oceans than has been mined throughout history. 309. William Shatner is credited for being the first person on TV to say "hell" as well as to have the first inter-racial kiss (with Nichelle Nichols), both in episodes of Star Trek. 310. While the US government's supply of gold is kept at Fort Knox, its supply of silver is kept at the Military Academy at West Point, NY. 311. Alexander Graham Bell's wife and mother were both deaf. 312. Compact discs read from the inside to the outside edge, the reverse of how a record works. 313. In the ancient Greek city-state of Sparta, if a man was not married by age 30, he would not be allowed to vote or watch athletic events involving nude young men. 314. Attila the Hun (invader of Europe; 406-453), Felix Faure (French President; 1841-1899), Pope Leo VII (936-939), Pope John VII (955-964), Pope Leo VIII (963-965), Pope John XIII (965-72), Pope Paul II (1467-1471), Lord Palmerston (British Prime Minister, 1784-1865), Nelson Rockefeller (US Vice President, 1908-1979), and John Entwistle (The Who's bassist, 1944-2002) all died while having sex. 315. Humans and dolphins are the only animals known to have sex for pleasure. 316. Pac-Man, Namco's 1979 arcade game, was originally called "Puck Man". The name was changed when they realized that vandals could easily scratch out part of the letter "P". 317. Shakespeare and Cervantes died on the same day, April 23, 1616. 318. There are about 7.7 million millionaires in the world (more than 1/1000th of the population). 319. The youngest mother on record was a Peruvian girl named Lina Medina. She gave birth to a boy by caesarean section on May 14, 1939 (which happened to be Mother's Day), at the age of five years, seven months and 21 days. 320. The "middle finger" gesture originates back to 423 BC in Aristophanes play "The Clouds".
Recycling- unfair to put the blame on the public? Well yet another question, I am fed up of listening to what we should and should not do on recycling. I am very upset at the manufacting companies, with all the un recycable packaging and to large a packaging, that they put around things, and boxes to big. The Supermarkets use to much packaging, and we are pinalised for it, we cannot help what we have to buy and cannot dictate the way it is packed, should we stop buying everything in the supermarkets? Now the Goverment are saying we may have to pay if we throw away to much rubiish. Our household recyclies a great deal, we make new furniture out of old, we burn as much as we can (but that is wrong as well) we recycle in the bins, compost. Have you say on this upside tops tervy world If you have concerns about recycling can you please sign this petition Here is the link http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/easierrecycle/ Thank you
Would you like to check out these 320 useless facts? 1. Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain) was born on and died on days when Halley's Comet can be seen. During his life he predicted that he would die when it could be seen. 2. US Dollar bills are made out of cotton and linen. 3. The "57" on the Heinz ketchup bottle represents the number of pickle types the company once had. 4. Americans are responsible for about 1/5 of the world's garbage annually. On average, that's 3 pounds a day per person. 5. Giraffes and rats can last longer without water than camels. 6. Your stomach produces a new layer of mucus every two weeks so that it doesn't digest itself. 7. 98% of all murders and rapes are by a close family member or friend of the victim. 8. A B-25 bomber crashed into the 79th floor of the Empire State Building on July 28, 1945. 9. The Declaration of Independence was written on hemp (marijuana) paper. 10. The dot over the letter "i" is called a tittle. 11. A raisin dropped in a glass of fresh champagne will bounce up and down continuously from the bottom of the glass to the top. 12. Benjamin Franklin was the fifth in a series of the youngest son of the youngest son. 13. Triskaidekaphobia means fear of the number 13. Paraskevidekatriaphobia means fear of Friday the 13th (which occurs one to three times a year). In Italy, 17 is considered an unlucky number. In Japan, 4 is considered an unlucky number. 14. A female ferret will die if it goes into heat and cannot find a mate. 15. All the chemicals in a human body combined are worth about 6.25 euro (if sold separately). 16. In ancient Rome, when a man testified in court he would swear on his testicles. 17. The ZIP in "ZIP code" means Zoning Improvement Plan. 18. Coca-Cola contained Coca (whose active ingredient is cocaine) from 1885 to 1903. 19. A "2 by 4" is really 1 1/2 by 3 1/2. 20. It's estimated that at any one time around 0.7% of the world's population is drunk. 21. Each king in a deck of playing cards represents a great king from history: Spades = David ; Clubs = Alexander the Great ; Hearts = Charlemagne ; Diamonds = Caesar 22. 40% of McDonald's profits come from the sales of Happy Meals. 23. Every person, including identical twins, has a unique eye and tongue print along with their finger print. 24. The "spot" on the 7-Up logo comes from its inventor who had red eyes. He was an albino. 25. 315 entries in Webster's 1996 dictionary were misspelled. 26. The "save" icon in Microsoft Office programs shows a floppy disk with the shutter on backwards. 27. Albert Einstein and Charles Darwin both married their first cousins (Elsa Löwenthal and Emma Wedgewood respectively). 28. Camel's have three eyelids. 29. On average, 12 newborns will be given to the wrong parents every day. 30. John Wilkes Booth's brother once saved the life of Abraham Lincoln's son. 31. Warren Beatty and Shirley McLaine are brother and sister. 32. Chocolate can kill dogs; it directly affects their heart and nervous system. 33. Daniel Boone hated coonskin caps. 34. Playing cards were issued to British pilots in WWII. If captured, they could be soaked in water and unfolded to reveal a map for escape. 35. 55.1% of all US prisoners are in prison for drug offenses. 36. Most lipstick contains fish scales. 37. Orcas (killer whales) kill sharks by torpedoing up into the shark's stomach from underneath, causing the shark to explode. 38. Dr. Seuss pronounced his name "soyce". 39. Slugs have four noses. 40. Ketchup was sold in the 1830s as medicine. 41. The Three Wise Monkeys have names: Mizaru (See no evil), Mikazaru (Hear no evil), and Mazaru (Speak no evil). 42. India has a Bill of Rights for cows. 43. If you sneeze too hard, you can fracture a rib. If you try to suppress a sneeze, you can rupture a blood vessel in your head or neck and die. If you keep your eyes open by force, they can pop out. (DON'T TRY IT, DUMBASS) 44. During the California gold rush of 1849, miners sent their laundry to Honolulu for washing and pressing. Due to the extremely high costs in California during these boom years, it was deemed more feasible to send their shirts to Hawaii for servicing. 45. American Airlines saved $40,000 in 1987 by taking out an olive from First Class salads. 46. About 200,000,000 M&Ms are sold each day in the United States. 47. Because metal was scarce, the Oscars given out during World War II were made of wood. 48. Over a course of about eleven years, the sun's magnetic poles switch places. This cycle is called "Solarmax". 49. There are 318,979,564,000 possible combinations of the first four moves in Chess. 50. Upper and lower case letters are named "upper" and "lower" because in the time when all original print had to be set in individual letters, the upper case letters were stored in the case on top of the case that stored the lower case letters. 51. There are no clocks in Las Vegas gambling casinos. 52. The numbers "172" can be found on the back of the US 5 dollar bill, in the bushes at the base of the Lincoln Memorial. 53. Coconuts kill about 150 people each year. That's more than sharks. 54. Half of all bank robberies take place on a Friday. 55. The name Wendy was made up for the book Peter Pan. There was never a recorded Wendy before it. 56. The international telephone dialing code for Antarctica is 672. 57. The first bomb the Allies dropped on Berlin in WWII killed the only elephant in the Berlin Zoo. 58. The average raindrop falls at 7 miles per hour. 59. It took Leonardo Da Vinci 10 years to paint Mona Lisa. He never signed or dated the painting. Leonardo and Mona had identical bone structures according to the painting. X-ray images have shown that there are 3 other versions under the original. 60. If you put a drop of liquor on a scorpion, it will instantly go mad and sting itself to death. 61. Bruce Lee was so fast that they had to slow the film down so you could see his moves. 62. The largest amount of money you can have without having change for a dollar is $1.19 (3 quarters, 4 dimes, and 4 pennies cannot be divided into a dollar). 63. The first CD pressed in the US was Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the USA". 64. IBM's motto is "Think". Apple later made their motto "Think different". 65. The mask used by Michael Myers in the original "Halloween" was actually a Captain Kirk mask painted white, due to l