Ask a Stupid Question Day - September 30, 2020

 DIANE'S CORNER ... 

Celebrate Ask a Stupid Question Day

We’ve all done it, had that question we wanted to ask that just sounded astoundingly stupid. We’re embarrassed that it even occurred to us, and worse, that we didn’t know the answer when it seemed so simple. The truth is there is no such thing as a stupid question, except the one that you choose not to ask. We never learn anything if we’re afraid to ask the question to begin with, whether that’s by researching it or asking someone who might know. Ask a Stupid Question Day encourages you to overcome your fear of sounding uneducated, and opening yourself to learning by asking your stupidest questions.

Learn about Ask A Stupid Question Day

You have probably heard the saying “there is no such thing as a stupid question.” Ask A Stupid Question Day was created by a collection of teachers who wanted to make children feel encouraged to ask more questions in the classroom. If you can remember your school days, there were probably only a couple of people who felt comfortable asking any question, right? For many of us, we can remember feeling nervous and shy about the prospect of putting our hand in the air and asking something. We would worry that the question was stupid and that everyone would laugh at us. However, asking questions is such an important part of the learning process, and so it is important that we encourage children to feel comfortable asking any sort of query. It is also a vital part of the educational process from a teacher’s standpoint as well. Asking questions serves as effective feedback, helping them to get a better understanding of what their students need assistance with. 

Ask A Stupid Question Day presents the opportunity for children who are shy to speak up and ask a question, no matter how scary this may seem or how stupid they fear the question may be. It is not only about encouraging children to be more inquisitive, but it is about creating a friendly, positive, and encouraging classroom environment so that kids are not worried about being laughed at. When you take this into account, it is not difficult to see why a number of different countries around the world pay honor to Ask A Stupid Question Day.

Aside from getting the answer to something, there are a number of other benefits that you will make the most of if you start to ask more questions. After all, we learn about life by answering questions. This is something that has been scientifically proven! When children ask the question “why” and they start to observe and try out different things, they learn about the world. That is not the only benefit that is associated with asking many questions. The more questions you ask, the better answers you get! Questioning also makes you open. You form new patterns in the brain and you enrich your knowledge and outlook on life. Plus, asking the right questions creates a sense of happiness, and it makes you wiser in the process too. There is always something new to learn, right?

History of Ask A Stupid Question Day

During the 1980’s a bunch of teachers realized that their students weren’t asking questions for fear of sounding stupid. So they created a day dedicated to letting students ask the questions they were most ashamed of. By making a place that was safe for all questions, they were encouraging them to open up and share their curiosity with the class, without the fear of being ridiculed. Ever since then Ask a Stupid Question Day has been an annual tradition celebrated by American Schools everywhere, and has recently travelled into Britain and India.

The kind of questions that get asked cover an incredibly diverse amount of topics, from the philosophical “What if the hokey pokey really is what it’s all about?”, to the more practical “Is the nose the center of the face?” There’s even more questions that are equally odd in their nature, but are ponderances about human behavior, like “Why do we press harder on a remote control when the batteries are going dead?” and the humours “What does cheese say when it gets its picture taken?”

Ask A Stupid Question Day is dedicated to all these questions and more.

Impact of Covid 19

This outdoor space in New York City was sparsely populated as fears of the coronavirus spreading through the US increase on March 4, 2020.

 

Joke of the Day

thanks, Valerie, Canadian Correspondent

"The Catholic Hair Dryer" - Non-Political Humor

In Catholic schools, students are taught that lying is a sin. Instructors are also advised that using a bit of imagination is OK to express the truth differently, without lying.   

This is a perfect example of this teaching:  Getting a Hairdryer Through Customs..... 

An attractive young woman on a flight from Ireland asked the priest beside her, 'Father, may I ask a favor?'  

Of course child.  What can I do for you?

'I bought my mother an expensive hair dryer for her birthday. It is unopened but well over the customs limits and I'm afraid they'll confiscate it.  Is there any way you could carry it through customs for me?  Could you possibly hide it under your robes for me?’'

I would love to help you my dear but, I must warn you, I will not tell a lie.

''With your honest face, Father, I'm sure that no one will question you." When they got to customs, she let the priest go first. The official asked, 'Father, do you have anything to declare?''

From the top of my head down to my waist I have nothing to declare.'

The official thought this answer a little strange, so he asked, "And what do you have to declare from your waist to the floor?''

I have a marvelous instrument that has been designed for use on women, but which, to date, remains unused.'   

Roaring with laughter, the official said, 'Go ahead, Father. 

Next please!’  

The Kaaba, inside Mecca’s Grand Mosque, was emptied by fears of the new coronavirus

Word of the Day

Derwenter

Hobart Town on the river Derwent

MEANING:

     noun: An ex-convict.

ETYMOLOGY:

After Derwent, a river in Tasmania. There used to be a convict settlement on its banks. Earliest documented use: 1853.

USAGE:

“A visitor to the tent of a pair of newlyweds at Forest Creek found the digger’s wife ... barely sober enough to utter these memorable words, ‘I’m a Derwenter, and I don’t care who knows it.’”
Robyn Annear; Nothing But Gold; Text Publishing; 1999.

Empty chairs are lined up at the Vatican before the Pope's Sunday Angelus prayer was streamed via video on March 8, 2020, 2020. He later appeared briefly at the window to bless a small number of people gathered in St. Peter's Square.

Idiom of the Day

Ahead of time

If something happens ahead of time, it happens early or before the set time.

The Beijing Daxing International Airport on March 3, 2020. Airline bookings had decreased sharply as coronavirus expands worldwide

This Day in History

1787 - The Columbia left Boston and began the trip that would make it the first American vessel to sail around the world.

1846 - Dr. William Morton performed a painless tooth extraction after administering ether to a patient.

1861 - Chewing gum tycoon William Wrigley, Jr. was born.

1927 - George Herman "Babe" Ruth hit his 60th home run of the season. He broke his own record with the home run. The record stood until 1961 when Roger Maris broke the record.

1947 - The World Series was televised for the first time. The sponsors only paid $65,000 for the entire series between the Brooklyn Dodgers and the New York Yankees.

1967 - The BBC aired Radio 1 for the first time.

1976 - California enacted the Natural Death Act of California. The law was the first example of right-to-die legislation in the U.S.

1982 - "Cheers" began an 11-year run on NBC-TV.

1988 - John Lennon received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

1991 - Liza Minnelli received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

1993 - U.S. chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Colin Powell retired.

2014 - Amazon filed for a patent for a UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) configured to autonomously deliver items to customers. The patent was related to Amazon's plan for their Prime Air service.

DAILY SQU-EEK

If You Were Born Today, September 30:

Emotionally spontaneous and a romantic at heart, you are imaginative, generous, and good-humored. You tend to avoid the more difficult aspects of life and people. At times, you may be impractical and lazy, as you are especially fond of comfort and ease. In love, you are restless and impulsive, and perhaps a little too quick to jump into a relationship. Your emotions are strong and changeable – you’re very hard to read! Famous people born today: 

1732 Jacques Necker, French finance minister of Louis XVI whose decisions contributed to the outbreak of the French Revolution, born in Geneva, Switzerland (d. 1804)

1917 Buddy Rich, American jazz drummer and band leader (Buddy Rich Band-Away We Go), born in Brooklyn, New York (d. 1987)

1924 Truman Capote, American author (In Cold Blood), born in New Orleans, Louisiana

1928 Elie Wiesel, Jewish Auschwitz survivor and author (Night), Nobel Prize winner 1986, born in Sighet, Romania (d. 2016)

2002 Maddie Ziegler, American dancer, actress and model, born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

READERS INFO

1.

(Not So) Totally Useless Facts of The Day:

There's an insect that has actual gears.

In 2013 scientists found the interlocking gears in a plant-hopping insect called an Issus, and published the results in the journal Science. Only the nymphs, and not the adults, had them.

The last woolly mammoth died after most of the major pyramids were built.

Most woolly mammoths died out 10,000 years ago, but a small population persisted on Wrangel Island in the Arctic Ocean until about 1700 BCE. By this point, the pyramids in Giza had been around for several hundred years – they were constructed in 2550 to 2490 BCE.

There's a gas cloud in the constellation of Aquila that holds enough alcohol to make 400 trillion trillion pints of beer.

It's a thousand times the diameter of our solar system, and it contains enough ethyl alcohol to keep every single person on Earth very, very drunk for several billion years. Sadly, it's 10,000 light years away, and the alcohol is mixed in with some other chemicals that wouldn't taste so good, like hydrogen cyanide.

2.

1955 -

 

James Dean was driving his brand-new Porsche 550 Spyder to an auto rally in Salinas, California, when he was involved in a head-on collision.

3.

Coronavirus Style by Sylvia, CAN DO Correspondent

Music stands are placed in front of empty audience seats at the Konzerthaus in Dortmund, Germany, on March 12, 2020.

Pictures of the Day

Long Island City is a residential and commercial neighborhood located on the extreme western tip of Queens, New York City, on the western edge of Long Island. Incorporated as a separate city in 1870, it was originally the seat of government of the town of Newtown before becoming part of New York City in 1898. Long Island City was once home to many factories and bakeries, some of which are finding new uses, and starting in the early 21st century, it became known for its rapid and ongoing residential growth and gentrification, its waterfront parks, and its thriving arts community. The area has a high concentration of art galleries, art institutions, and studio spaces.

Pieter Brueghel the Elder, Landscape with the Flight into Egypt, 1563

Pieter Brueghel the Elder’s, Landscape with the Flight into Egypt, 1563 typifies sublime landscape painting of the Northern Renaissance, combining breath-taking scenery with religious narrative. The tiny figures of Mary and Joseph teeter along a perilous cliff face in the foreground, fleeing persecution in Bethlehem. The scenery is tied closely to their story as pale, distant scenery represents the familiar land they are leaving behind, while the dark, foreboding foreground which they head towards is shrouded in the darkness and danger of the unknown.

The Oculus transportation hub in New York was mostly devoid of commuters and tourists on March 15, 2020.

knit
thanks, Nancy

Apples

knit
thanks, Karen

Knitted Monkey Pattern

knit

Baby Cowboy Boots pattern by Katrina Zwambag

knit

Hearts Scarf Pattern

knit

Apple Dishcloth

The Louvre in Paris, the world’s most visited museum, was closed for a second day running on March 2, 2020, after staff refused to work due to coronavirus fears.

 

Knit Patterns of the Day: 

thanks, Valerie, Canadian Correspondent

Envelope Cardigan

New Paths Shawl

The Piazza Duomo in Milan was empty on March 5, 2020. Italy closed all schools and universities to help combat the spread of the novel coronavirus.

crochet
thanks, Adele

Crochet pattern Rose rug

crochet
thanks, Laura

Crochet Dream Catcher

crochet

Apple a Day Dishcloth

crochet

Starfish Paper-roll Cover

crochet

How 'Bout Them Apples? Crochet Blanket Pattern

A hall is empty inside a train station in Jerusalem on March 11.

Quarantine Cooking Recipes

thanks, Debbie

Empty Your Pantry Casserole - 9 Ingredients you can mix and match

A firefighter disinfects a traditional shopping center to help prevent the spread of the new coronavirus in Tehran on March 6, 2020.

RECIPE

Banana Peel Bacon

An empty movie theater in Kochi, India, on March 11.

CROCKPOT RECIPE

thanks, Cora

Slow-Cooker Pork and Apple Curry

London’s Chinatown district on February 13, 2020. There have been 36 cases of coronavirus reported in the UK so far.

 

VEGAN/ VEGETARIAN RECIPE

Both vegetarian and vegan diets may provide health benefits, including reduced body weight, lower cholesterol levels, and decreased risk of cardiovascular disease. However, it is important for vegetarians and vegans to ensure that they are meeting all of their nutritional requirements.

thanks, Alice

The Best Keto Croissants

Staff members walk inside the Venetian Macau after it closed its casino on February 5, 2020.

COPYCAT RECIPE 

thanks, Jenny

Copycat Recipe: Famous Southern Fried Pickles Recipe

Sun beds lie empty at La Caleta beach in the Canary island of Tenerife on February 27, 2020.

SWEETS

thanks, Shelley, New York Food Correspondent

Lemon Icebox (Or Freezer) Cake Recipe

The University of Texas campus is quiet in Austin on March 29, 2020.

FUN

thanks, Alice

Made Up Words You’ll Want to Start Using

Athlethargy

(ath-'leh-ther-jee) n.—The triumph of the La-Z-Boy over the StairMaster.

A crapella

(ah kra-'peh-luh) adj.—Sung (badly) while listening to music using headphones.

This aerial photo, taken on April 5, 2020, shows an empty Guanabara Park in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.

CRAFTS ... sewing

thanks, Mary

Easy To Sew Kids Gaiter Mask

Mountain goats roam the quiet streets of Llandudno, Wales, on March 31, 2020. "They sometimes come to the foot of the Great Orme in March, but this year they are all wandering the streets in town as there are no cars or people," said Mark Richards of the hotel Landsdowne House.

CHILDREN'S CORNER

thanks, Natalie

Food Box Bookmarks

People walk along the Las Vegas Strip on March 18 after casinos were ordered to shut down.

QUOTE

thanks, Karla

An empty subway train is seen in New York on March 17.

CLEVER 

thanks, Debbie

Thanks to Doug Hagler for sharing this revolutionary way to use a colander to get water emptied from the pot!

Have We All Been Using Colanders Wrong Our Whole Lives?

Alianza Lima and Racing Club play a professional soccer match in an empty stadium in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on March 12.

EYE OPENER 

thanks, Lori

Top five regrets of the dying

theguardian

There was no mention of more sex or bungee jumps. A palliative nurse who has counselled the dying in their last days has revealed the most common regrets we have at the end of our lives. Bronnie Ware is an Australian nurse who spent several years working in palliative care, caring for patients in the last 12 weeks of their lives. She recorded their dying epiphanies:

1. I wish I'd had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.

"This was the most common regret of all. When people realize that their life is almost over and look back clearly on it, it is easy to see how many dreams have gone unfulfilled. Most people had not honored even a half of their dreams and had to die knowing that it was due to choices they had made, or not made. Health brings a freedom very few realize, until they no longer have it."

2. I wish I hadn't worked so hard.

"This came from every male patient that I nursed. They missed their children's youth and their partner's companionship. Women also spoke of this regret, but as most were from an older generation, many of the female patients had not been breadwinners. All of the men I nursed deeply regretted spending so much of their lives on the treadmill of a work existence."

3. I wish I'd had the courage to express my feelings.

"Many people suppressed their feelings in order to keep peace with others. As a result, they settled for a mediocre existence and never became who they were truly capable of becoming. Many developed illnesses relating to the bitterness and resentment they carried as a result."

4. I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.

"Often they would not truly realize the full benefits of old friends until their dying weeks and it was not always possible to track them down. Many had become so caught up in their own lives that they had let golden friendships slip by over the years. There were many deep regrets about not giving friendships the time and effort that they deserved. Everyone misses their friends when they are dying."

5. I wish that I had let myself be happier.

"This is a surprisingly common one. Many did not realize until the end that happiness is a choice. They had stayed stuck in old patterns and habits. The so-called 'comfort' of familiarity overflowed into their emotions, as well as their physical lives. Fear of change had them pretending to others, and to their selves, that they were content, when deep within, they longed to laugh properly and have silliness in their life again."

Amazon's headquarters in Seattle was virtually empty on March 10

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A musician plays the violin on March 17 at a train station in Kiev, Ukraine.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:

No human being is illegal. -Elie Wiesel, writer, Nobel laureate (30 Sep 1928-2016)

The parking lot is nearly empty at The Village shopping mall in Corte Madera, California, on March 17.

OPTICAL ILLUSION

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