-4/20/22 Some Interesting Stuff To Chew On

OK, welcome, you. Yeah, you. You reading this. Congrats, you are the only person to ever read this and probably the only one who ever will so give yourself a big round of applause. And I thank you for being here with me. It means the world to me, really.

Welcome to my 4/20 blog and no, it will not be dedicated to all things green and burnable that gives one the munchies. I aim to dedicate today's blog to something with more of a head scratching/HMMM vibe to it than one of paranoia and cottonmouth. Every now and then one comes across some interesting facts that (if you're lucky) you'll take the time to stop and soak them in. Life travels at a thousand miles an hour and sometimes we just gotta slow down and enjoy the simple things. We gotta remember to look up at a nighttime sky and gaze at all those tiny little twinkling dots like we did when we were younger. Find serenity in one pole, one hook, one bobber, and a worm. Allow it to reboot your lifestyle just a little. We gotta take in the smaller moments and enjoy them for what they are. And what I have for you today is a smaller moment of fun stuff to read and know about. It interested me so I share it in hopes it will you, as well.

Allow me to reach into the bucket of interesting things, grab ahold of whatever is inside, and pull them out for your entertaining pleasure. Ready? OK, go. Hand goes in. It's clean, I washed it, but not sure if it will be when I pull out whatever it is inside.

Interesting knowledge from the bag of surprises #1.

I've just recently stumbled on this little tidbit of wonder and found it pretty cool. Some of you who are familiar with the exercise world may have already heard about this little story. If you've spent any time in the gym over the last 116 years you might have heard someone mention the "Impossible dumbbell." Ok, now that brings up questions.

Q1: What makes it impossible?

Well, how about the fact that only 1 man was able to lift it for over for 96 years.

Q2: And who was this man?

Thomas Inch, the inventor of this particular dumbbell. In 1906 he marveled the world with the creation of a single dumbbell that would challenge and conquer the strongest of men. Many tried but all failed to lift it. Until his death in 1963, no one else was ever able to lift it. But in 2002 someone finally succeeded, American powerlifter, Olympic weightlifter, and professional wrestler, Mark Henry. He actually failed on his first attempt.

I know, I know ... we aint asking the question you really wanna know yet. Giving you time to stew it around in your head just a little bit. OK, here it is.

Q3: How much did it weigh?

You ready for this? Wait, what's your guess first? How much would a dumbbell have to weigh for some of the world's strongest men to fail at lifting it? You go to most gyms and you could easily find one weighing 100 pounds, and trust me, there's someone in that gym who can lift it. But if it's impossible to lift then it has to weigh a lot more, right?. What do you think? 200 lbs, 250, 300? Can you imagine anyone lifting a single dumbbell weighing 300 pounds? Now that'd be a whole lot of weight for one hand. Alright, giving up the good now. The dumbbell actually weighs ... (drum roll) ... 172 pounds.

Wait, what? That's all? Well, if you think you're tough enough to lift it ... more power to you. But there are some really big guys (ladies included) out there with some mighty guns. Surely they could get it done. Here's the kicker, kiddos ...

The secret lies in the handle. It's diameter is close to 2 1/2 inches wide. Imagine wrapping your hand around a soda can that weighed 172 pounds and try to lift it. Think about it, when you grasp a dumbbell, your fingers wrap around it (completely) and can probably touch your thumb. A closed grip. When you grab a handle the size of a soda can, an open grip that can only go around half way, and try to lift 172 pounds the weight of it will pull out of your grasp. So it's not the weight of the dumbbell in relation to the strength of one's hand grip ... it's the weight of the dumbbell in relation to the strength of one's finger grip. That's a lot of weight to maintain by pure finger strength alone. Interesting? Yes? No? Maybe?

Interesting knowledge from the bag of surprises #2.

OK, this one I've known for a very long time, perhaps you have, as well. If you see a statue (say, in a park) of a man on a horse, pay attention to the placement of the horses front legs. If both of its legs are raised (off the ground) then that person died in battle. If only one leg is raised then that person eventually died from wounds they received during said battle. If both legs are on the ground then that person died from natural causes unrelated to any battle. Any of you already know this one? Sometimes there are some interesting facts hidden in everyday objects that elude our attention only we look for them. So look, people.

Interesting knowledge from the bag of surprises #3.

Would you believe that all polar bears are left handed? Seriously? I guess the next time I'm sparring with one I now know which arm to watch out for on the swing. FYI, Mr. Bear would get shot. I don't ever wanna shoot one (which I don't see as a possible problem for me) but in the event of a throw down, Mr. Me versus Mr. Bear ... yeah, pew pew at you, fuzzy britches!

Interesting knowledge from the bag of surprises #4.

Ok, and now one for the ladies (and possibly some men). Did you know that most lipstick contains the byproduct of ... (ratta tatta tat ta da tat) ... FISH SCALES! Oh yeah. Next time you're swapping smooches with that special someone, think fish. But tell them I said so. I can't be responsible for the s#*t that hits the fan afterwards. You're on your own, buddy. Actually, if you do a little research into exactly what is in what ... your gonna find some weird freaking stuff you might not want to know. Yummy.

OK, people, there's a few interesting facts to wet your whistle. Something to chew on for a bit, For good measure I think I'll throw an extra one in there. Why? Because it'd make it an odd number, a tie breaker of sorts.

Bonus interesting tiebreaker

You ready for this? If you pick up a copy of my serial killer book titled Caesar's Move you will be entertained and will never hear the word "Whatever" again without thinking of him. Interested? Need a little more persuasion? Check out my website angelobain.com and read a little about it. Check out the reviews and venture over to my blogs page where I have a couple of little teases for you. (-12/22/21 Caesar's Move Tease & -2/9/22 Another Tidbit From Caesar's Move) . Give it a look. Available for purchase on Amazon in print and eBook. Come on now, people. We know you understand how to order things on Amazon after having survived the Rona lockdowns.

Find yourself something to be amazed at, Bainheads. There's an entire world full of stuff to blow your minds. Live, laugh, love, and feed that brain. You owe it to yourself.

Angelo