STRANGE BUT TRUE

• It was 19th-century German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche who made the following sage observation: “One will rarely err if extreme actions be ascribed to vanity, ordinary actions to habit, and mean actions to fear.”

• Are you an agelast or an abderian? If you never laugh, you’re the latter; if you laugh too much, you’re the former.

• There is one species of frog, found in the Southeast Asian country of Indonesia, that has no lungs; it breathes entirely through its skin.

• You might be surprised to learn that the largest employer in the United States is the Department of Defense. Wal-Mart is No. 2, followed by the U.S. Postal Service.

• Those who study such things say that as we age, a man’s brain shrinks more rapidly than a woman’s.

• According to Tibetan tradition, a man must get permission from his lady love’s maternal uncle before the couple can get married.

• If you’re in Florida and make a trip to the hair salon, keep in mind that in that state, it’s illegal to fall asleep under a hair dryer. Both the client and the salon can be fined.

• It seems that almost every little girl has a Barbie doll, but have you ever thought about what a life-size Barbie would look like? She would be 7 feet, 2 inches tall, weigh 125 pounds and have bust-waist-hip measurements of 40-22-36.

• The white rhinoceros is not actually white. The “white” part of the name comes from the Afrikaans word “wijd,” which means “wide”; it describes the animal’s lips.

• Iconic German-American actress Marlene Dietrich once said that her favorite meal was hot dogs and champagne.

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Thought for the Day: “We all have strength enough to endure the misfortunes of others.” — Francois de La Rochefoucauld

(c) 2011 King Features Synd., Inc.