Newsy Tuesday

Time to clean out my news feeds again.

Today we will look at titles, health news, families, game news, education, and a few other random things.

The BBC is reporting that the European Parliament has asked that the titles Miss and Mrs. not be used because they can lead to confusion. Instead, all women are to use the title Ms. because it can mean whatever you want it to mean. Gah! That would get confusing I think. Me, I’m a Miss. I could technically use Ms. if I wanted. But I’ve found that too often gets pronounced Mizz, and I like the softer S over the harder Z.

And now, scientific proof that the infrequently played game at my house “Where did I hide the salt?” (Yes, Brett, you get to go first next time) is a good game to be playing. Americans eat too much salt. There is already salt in food you buy from the store, why do you need to add more to it? I don’t add salt to any of my food, either during cooking or after. And that includes my bread. As long as I don’t get impatient with bread and turn the heat up it turns out just fine.42D

And even more proof that I’m doing things right! Americans wash their hair too much. Hair doesn’t need to be washed daily. I wash mine two or three times a week (more if I’m exercising with a hat on, but that doesn’t happen daily), and my hair is not oily or greasy. Nor is it full of split ends. It does take a bit of time for your hair to realize it doesn’t need to be in overdrive on oil production, but it’s better for it.

I love both of my siblings, but this BBC story about the affects of brothers and sisters on a family was kind of funny.

I also learned this week that all the real cool board games are made in Germany. Settlers of Catan was invented by a German dentist in his basement. After reading this article and hearing their points, I’d have to agree that Settlers is definitely better than Monopoly.

I’m not a man, but I do carry a handkerchief. I started on my mission. As my dad calls them, it was a snot rag in the winter and a sweat mop in the summer. It’s just easier to keep a hanky in my bag than tissues. They’re cheap. And they wash and dry real quickly. I have decided to start dressing mine up a little bit with some embroidery type stuff on them. Make them look a little more feminine.

A sad educational piece in the BBC about how teachers are often the victims not only of students, but of their parents also. I had a few parents yell at me when I was teaching elementary school, and there was that bruise on my arm a couple of years ago. But I’m very glad that of the over 1,000 students I taught, those were few and far between. Not all of my students were angels, but it was definitely managable 99% of the time.

I thought the findings of the BYU study showing that a socially distinct (and they point out that distinct does not necessarily mean inept) person can force a group out of their comfort zone and towards the solution of a problem faster. That’s an interesting fact to consider in my area when forming student groups for different assignments.

And finally, a good story to end on, being cheerful makes you more reslient in difficult circumstances and more enjoyable to be around. So go ahead, laugh it up fuzz ball. 😀