the term baker’s dozen has a pretty ancient origin? What we mean with it is any group of 13 (of baked products), i.e. a dozen plus one. But how did it come to be? It is thought to come from the former practice among bakers and other tradespeople in medieval England of giving 13 items to the dozen as a safeguard against penalties for short weights and measures. Thing is, you might even get a beating if your pieces of bread were too small. Continue reading

the recommendation to walk 10,000 steps daily is a truly arbitrary one? For the figure 10,000 is based on a marketing gimmick in Japan in the 1960s - and the fact that there is a kanji sign for the number 10,000 in the Japanese language. The advertisement you see here admonishes people with the slogan “Let’s walk 10,000 steps a day!” 一日一万歩あるきましょ Ichi-nichi ichi-man po arukimashou! So the device was neatly called a Manpokei - 万歩計. Continue reading

instant baby formula has been around for centuries? And the first ones were not based on cow milk at all, but plant-based - made of corn and nuts? From the stories of Elizabeth Hanson who was captured by the Native American Abenaki in 1724, we get to know of her troubles of breastfeeding her daughter, two weeks old at the time of the kidnapping. The lack of nourishment and clothing resulted in inadequate milk production. Continue reading

“The last attack of the Swedes” by Magnus Adlercreutz, illustrating the heroic Swedish attack in the Battle of Oravais, which ultimately led to their defeat. one of the nicknames that the Finns have for their dear Western neighbors, the Swedes - namely Hurrit - may have a more dramatic background than usually considered? The Battle of Oravais was one of the decisive battles in the Finnish War (1808-1809) between Sweden and the Russian Empire, fought on September 14th, 1808 by the Gulf of Bothnia in western Finland. Continue reading

Fontaine Molière on Rue Molière in Paris during the fourth performance of Molière’s comédie-ballet The Imaginary Invalid ( Le malade imaginaire) on February 17th, 1673, something unexpected happens to the playwright Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (better known by his stage name Molière) who also plays the title role of the severe hypochondriac Argan? Molière collapses on the stage in a fit of coughing and haemorrhaging. He insists though on completing his performance. Continue reading

the reason why ambulances have the word AMBULANCE written as mirror writing on the front of the vehicle is so that drivers (of cars driving in front of them) would be able to see the word the right way around in their rear-view mirror? Some people are naturally good at mirror writing. Leonardo da Vinci for example wrote most of his personal notes in this way. But it is a phase that most of us go through in childhood. Continue reading

the word taxi comes from the Greek word taxithi (ταξίδι) which means travel? And taxi being the means of travel. And that when you call a cab, you are calling a cabriolet? A term which originated from a carriage cabriolet, i.e. a light, two-wheeled, one-horse carriage with a folding top, capable of seating two persons. Taxi is a very universal word with only slight variations so it is easily recognizable wherever you are in the world. Continue reading

light moves around 300 000 km in a second, whereas the speed of sound is only one millionth of it, around 330 meters per second? Based on that, there is a formula on how to count how far a lightning occurs once we know when the thunder occurs. And did you know that the person who invented the lightning rod was Benjamin Franklin? By the year 1750 Franklin - in addition to wanting to prove that lightning was electricity - began to think about protecting people, buildings, and other structures from lightning. Continue reading

the Waldorf-Astoria on Park Avenue in Manhattan, New York received the first part of its name from the small town that the first American multi-millonaire and the patriarch of the wealthy and influential Astor family, John Jacob Astor, was born in, in 1763? And that this grand hotel used to be two separate hotels - the Waldorf and the Astoria - built by two feuding relatives, William Waldorf Astor (opened in 1893) and John Jacob Astor IV (in 1897)? Continue reading

Bernard Baruch (1870-1965) the very same day the future president Donald Trump was born in Queens, New York, the so called Baruch Plan was proposed to the United Nations in that same city? The plan was a proposal by the United States government to the United Nations Atomic Energy Commission (UNAEC) during its first meeting. On June 14th, 1946. Written largely by Bernard Baruch but based on the Acheson–Lilienthal Report. Continue reading

Bonngasse 515, Bonn two German composers, Johann Peter Salomon (1745-1815) and Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) were both born at Bonngasse 515 in Bonn, Germany? 35 years apart from each other. Beethoven who knew Salomon from his days in Bonn, wrote to fellow composer Ferninand Ries on hearing of his death, “Salomon’s death grieves me much, for he was a noble man, and I remember him since I was a child.” Continue reading

two great industrialists - and later philanthropists - were born two days apart in July 1839? One on Long Island, New York, the other in Kastel, Germany. John from New York built an empire around oil, Adolphus from Kastel around beer. 1839-0708 John D. Rockefeller Sr.* industrialist/philanthropist - Long Island, NY USA (97) 1839-0710 Adolphus Busch* co-founder of Anheuser-Busch/philanthropist - Kastel, Hesse, Germany (1913/74) If you happen to be in Manhattan in New York City, it is pretty hard not to notice the name Rockefeller. Continue reading

Hopalong Cassidy airs on NBC June 24th, 1949 June 22nd of 1949 is a date of birth shared by three people from three different U.S. states who came to leave their mark on the American society, all in their own unique way? These people are Alan from Utah, Meryl from New Jersey and Elizabeth from Oklahoma. Alan was born as the first child and had six siblings who all became singers. Continue reading

Journeys of Life, originally at the address www.jovestone.wordpress.com, is being transferred to another domain, namely this one? The exiting address will remain only as a source and will not be updated after this month. The blog continues to employ Wordpress though, continuously grateful for all the wonderful features of it. Hope you all like the new looks of the blog!

Cody Bellflower - Apr 3, 2020Hi. I’m glad he found jovestone.com website, I really like it, the article is very useful and I shared it! In order to survive the hard times ahead we found 2 very good books, you can download them here: https://bit.ly/2RlAHdb and here: https://bit.ly/3e3Bg59 Great success with this site!

Angelica keiskei aka 明日葉 ashitaba or “tomorrow’s leaf” there is a plant called Ashitaba that might help you stay healthier and age slower? Mother Nature Network recently published an article about this miracle plant. It is well worth your time to read both the article and the Wikipedia page, and perhaps try planting it yourself in your backyard or balcony. One fantastic thing about Ashitaba (which translates “tomorrow’s leaf”) is that it does so well in cold as well, is quick to recover and, like MNN writes, “a leaf cut off in the morning will start growing back the next day. Continue reading

[caption id=“attachment_10400” align=“alignright” width=“293”]Photo credit Arja Mielityinen[/caption] the funny looking tree (okay, there are admittedly a lot of funny looking trees around the world) in the picture taken in Icod de Los Vinos in Teneriffe, is actually not a tree at all, but a plant? It is called Millennium Dragon Tree (El Drago Milenario in Spanish), and there are claims of it being the oldest tree on the planet. But yes, even though it looks like a tree, it is nevertheless a plant - placed in the family of Asparagaceae, though in earlier classification systems, in the family Liliaceae. Continue reading

Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, decided this winter to introduce -as a trial basis - a new, gender equal approach to clearing roads and sidewalks from snow. The snowplows are to work the sidewalks and bicycle lanes first (and roads second) in order to favor women who use them much more frequently than men do. Men who tend to take (what is often the only) family car to work. This winter especially that decision has been met with great satisfaction as the sidewalks have often been so icy. Continue reading

[caption id=“attachment_9012” align=“alignleft” width=“272”]A Three-Star restaurant according to the Michelin Guide[/caption] the world famous Michelin Guide is not just about restaurants, but actually a series of guide books, published by the French tire company Michelin for more than a century. The one giving those stars for restaurants and hotels around the world is called Michelin Red Guide, but in addition to that, Michelin also publishes a series of general guides to cities, regions, and countries, called the Michelin Green Guides. Continue reading

two among the most popular and likable individuals in the entertainment business in the last century - Marilyn Monroe and **Andy Griffith - **were born on the very same day, on June 1st, 1926? She in Los Angeles, California, he in Mount Airy, North Carolina. We all know of her tragic death - however that took place - in Los Angeles in 1962. She had turned 36 that summer. Griffith died 50 summers later at the age of 86, in Manteo, North Carolina. Continue reading