Fun Facts and Trivia

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A face full of bridal piss:

Mungo Park (1771 – 1806), pictured above, was a Scottish explorer of West Africa and the first Westerner known to have traveled to the central portion of the Niger River.  In 1796 when Park was attending an African wedding feast he had a bowl of the bride's urine thrown into his face . . .

“…Mungo Park tells of his visit to a negro wedding in the Islamic region of Africa bordering the Great Desert. After he had returned to his hut ‘an old woman entered with a wooden bowl in her hand and signified that she had brought me a present from the bride. Before I could recover from the surprise which this message created, the woman discharged the contents from the bowl full into my face. Finding that it was [urine] I began to suspect that the old lady was actuated by mischief or malice; but she gave me seriously to understand that it was a nuptial benediction from the bride’s own person; and which, on such occasions, is always received by the young unmarried Moors as a mark of distinguished favour. This being the case, I wiped my face, and sent my acknowledgments to the lady.

- Havelock Ellis, Studies in the Psychology of Sex

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Secret Service Code Names for the US Presidents and their families:

The use of codenames was originally for security purposes and dates to a time when sensitive electronic communications were not routinely encrypted; today, the names simply serve for purposes of brevity, clarity, and tradition. The Secret Service does not choose these names, however. The White House Communications Agency assigns them.

President Barack Obama opted for “Renegade” after being presented with a list of names beginning with the letter "R." As custom dictates, the rest of his family's code names are alliterative: wife Michelle is known as "Renaissance;" daughters Malia and Sasha are "Radiance" and "Rosebud," respectively.

The list:

Woodrow Wilson
Edith Wilson – Grandma

Franklin D. Roosevelt –
Eleanor Roosevelt – Rover

Harry S. Truman – General or Supervise
Bess Truman – Sunnyside

Dwight Eisenhower – Scorecard or Providence
Mamie Eisenhower – Springtime

John F. Kennedy – Lancer
Jacqueline Kennedy – Lace
Caroline Kennedy – Lyric
John F. Kennedy, Jr. – Lark
Rose Kennedy – Coppertone
Ethel Kennedy – Sundance

Lyndon Johnson – Volunteer
Lady Bird Johnson – Victoria
Lynda Bird Johnson – Velvet
Luci Baines Johnson – Venus

Richard Nixon – Searchlight
Pat Nixon – Starlight
Patricia Nixon Cox – Sugarfoot
Edward F. Cox – Seminole
Julie Nixon Eisenhower – Sunbonnet
David Eisenhower – Sahara

Gerald Ford – Passkey
Betty Ford – Pinafore
Susan Ford – Panda
Michael Ford – Professor
Jack Ford – Packman

Jimmy Carter – Lock Master or Deacon
Rosalynn Carter – Lotus Petal or Dancer
Amy Carter – Dynamo
Chip Carter – Diamond
Jack Carter – Derby
Jeff Carter – Deckhand

Ronald Reagan – Rawhide
Nancy Reagan – Rainbow
Maureen Reagan – Rhyme or Rosebud
Michael Reagan – Riddler
Patti Davis – Ribbon
Ron Reagan – Reliant
Doria Reagan – Radiant

George H. W. Bush – Timberwolf
Barbara Bush – Snowbank or Tranquility
Marvin Bush – Tuner
Neil Bush – Trapline
Jeb Bush – Tripper
Dorothy Bush – Tiller

Bill Clinton – Eagle
Hillary Clinton – Evergreen
Chelsea Clinton – Energy
Roger Clinton - Headache

George W. Bush – Tumbler, later Trailblazer
Laura Bush – Tempo
Barbara Bush – Turquoise
Jenna Bush – Twinkle
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Chef’s hat: 

 

The traditional chef’s hat is known as a “toque”, the French term that is  pronounced 'tock'.

The toque has as many as 100 pleats. The more pleats, the more qualified the chef.

The most widely circulated legend about the toque appears to be that the 100 pleats represented 100 ways minimum that a chef should be able to cook an egg.