You know I wouldn't forget it's Friday! Are you ready for this week's Friday Fun Fact, peeps? I know you are!

This week's topic: the Christmas tree! Why? Because my mother and I put up the parental tree today, of course. I iz tired. I'll take a pic and post it later, maybe. If I forget, here is a link to one in TwitPic.






On with the facts:


> Christmas trees have been sold commercially in the United States since about 1850.

> The best selling trees are Scotch pine, Douglas fir, Noble fir, Fraser fir, Virginia pine, balsam fir and white pine.

> The first decorated Christmas tree was in Riga, Latvia in 1510.

> Christmas trees are grown in all 50 states including Hawaii and Alaska.

> In 2002, 21% of United States households had a real tree, 48% had an artificial tree and 32% had no tree.




Tomorrow we shop! Of course, there may not be anything left.

Labels: Friday fun fact, holiday, lolcat, Twitter

To my American peeps, that is. :-D





I hope nobody runs into these guys...jeez.

Labels: holiday, lolcat, roaming, silliness

Yes, my little friends, we have an excerpt from Suz's next book - Dark of Night. It's due out at the end of January. She posted the prologue HERE!

Warning: Do not read the excerpt if you have not read Into the Fire - there be spoilers!!



In other news, I'm at my folks getting ready for the big family feast. Wo0t!

Later, peeps!

Labels: book stuff, Suz, upcoming

Today's Friday Fun Facts are all about the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade. I'll admit I don't always get up in time to see it OR I'm busy helping my mom get ready for the hungry hordes but, when I have the chance, I enjoy watching. The balloons! The bands! The lip-synching folks with CDs to sell. LOL

Here we go!

> The very first Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade in 1924 didn't have balloons. Instead, real live animals were borrowed from the Central Park Zoo.

These guys could have been in the parade!!

Or, even better, these guys!

> Felix the Cat was the first ever balloon in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade.


> The only interruption in the parade's history was from 1942-44. Macy's gave their parade balloons to the war effort since rubber was so scarce.


> The parade was first televised in New York in 1945, and that same year the Macy's parade began using the route that is still followed today.


> The custom of signaling the end of the parade by ushering in a float of Santa Claus - and thus kicking off the Christmas shopping season - was started at the first parade.

Trivia found at AssociatedContent.com

Labels: Friday fun fact, holiday

That means it's time for a Fun Fact (or three)! This week's theme is FOOTBALL! Since I know the college football fans are out there lurking and the season is almost over, this one's for you.

Football Fun Fact #1: Four college football stadiums - Penn State's Beaver Stadium, the University of Michigan's Michigan Stadium, Ohio State's Ohio Stadium and the University of Tennessee's Neyland Stadium - hold more than 100,000 fans.




























Non-Football Fun Fact #2: I saw Elton John and Billy Joel in concert at Ohio State's Ohio Stadium. :-D Sadly, he did not wear this:






Football Fun Fact #3: The birth of football in the United States goes back to Nov. 6, 1869, when teams from Princeton and Rutgers universities met in New Brunswick, New York, for the 1st intercollegiate football game.



Cheer extra loud for me, peeps!

Labels: Friday fun fact

In the US, it's Veterans Day.



Elsewhere it is Remembrance Day, Poppy Day, or Armistice Day.



They shall not grow old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.
from "For the Fallen" by L. Binyon


Wherever you are, hug a veteran today, peeps!

Labels: holiday

My review of The Englor Affair (twas excellent!) is up over at TGTBTU - check it out HERE!

Labels: 2 cents, linkage, review, TGTBTU

I got the idea for this *fanfare* new feature after Tweeting some hippo trivia. I'll do my best to have a new bit of trivia every Friday. I can do that, I'm sure! *determined face*

So here we go - you might have seen this little guy in the news:



So, that led to my brain to this (if your name is CindyS just look away):



And now for a gross fun fact about hippos:

To mark territory, hippos spin their tails while defecating to distribute their excrement over the greatest possible area. Hippos also urinate backwards (are retromingent), likely for the same reason.

Bonus fact: Hippopotamuses (or hippopotami, if you prefer) appear to communicate verbally, through grunts and bellows, and it is thought that they may practice echolocation, but the purpose of these vocalizations is currently unknown.



Want more hippo info? Clickety click!


So, should I put a Christmas countdown in my sidebar, peeps? It's just around the corner, s'all I'm saying. :-D

Labels: Friday fun fact, linkage, silliness