Random Facts I Learned in 2013
World War One (Photo credit: San Diego Air & Space Museum Archives)
To round out 2013, I’m sharing random facts I discovered this year.
Feel free to chime in!
Historical
*Once put into motion, it was physically impossible to recall the Russian call up of reservists–thus World War I
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Cover via Amazon
*Lawrence of Arabia was illegitimate, as were his four brothers.
*Biddy Chambers was nearly deaf in her left ear
*The last casualties from World War I died only five years ago–four people picked up an old mustard gas shell and it exploded, killing them all.
*British men signed up for the Army at Scotland Yard in 1914 London.
Research-wise
*You can actually learn facts from Pinterest you cannot find on Google! (Check out my Egypt scenes!)
*A lot of people have written books about World War I.
*Truffle oil is expensive
Book Selling
*People who work at Barnes and Noble really should read the “anti-Amazon” book The Everything Store.
*Each book you write is like a child and while you don’t want to favor any of them (particularly when you are marketing four in one year), sometimes you have to go with the most popular just to keep your head above the water.
*While writing a novella for a collection may not be as glamorous as having your name by itself on the cover, it’s a whole lot more fun and easier to sell with eight others!
Book Reading
*You don’t have to finish a book just because you started it. (Thanks, Jamie Chavez!)
*Just because it’s a best-seller doesn’t mean it’s worth reading. (Think Wild; or better yet, skip it.).
*My time is valuable. If I don’t like a book I can quit reading it.[image error]
*Sometimes a first impression isn’t quite right. If the world adores a book, maybe you should give it a second chance. (Loved , once I gave it a second chance!)
* At least one book made a better movie: Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House.
Blogging
*The words “nudist” and “colony” will attract a lot of readers.
*”Free gift” works wonders, too. :-)
(Comment here and tell me if you’d like a copy of our Pioneer Christmas Cookbook! Free!)
*Traveling makes it easy to come up with blog posts. 
Travel
*Lufthansa is an excellent airline and a fine way to get to Scotland, even if you have to fly to Germany first.
*The Airbus is a comfortable jumbo jet, even if you’re stuck in the middle of five seats.
*Nyquil enables me sleep on a flight to Europe.
*Talking (hands free) to a close friend makes a three-hour drive go quicker.
Personal
*The body really is a giant chemical experiment
*My husband likes Brussel sprouts
* Dancing shoes make you spin faster, but are slippery
*If you’ve never worn makeup and you’re about to appear on television, enlisting your friendly neighborhood Mary Kay expert can help.
Odds and Ends
* A toothbrush should be replaced every six moths, especially one with tough bristles, because those bristles begin to fray into microscopic hairs that do damage on the cellular level to your gums.
*Even when your dog is blind and spends most of her days sleeping, once she’s gone you’ll miss her.
Spiritual
*If Jesus came to earth only to heal people, he could have set up a hospital in Jerusalem and spent his days so doing. Or, better yet, just waved his hand and announced “everyone is healed.”
*Because he didn’t do so, he probably had another purpose in mind, like maybe obedience to his father’s will to demonstrate God’s love to all?
*My free will gives me one basic choice: to follow God or not follow God. (Binary, right? Computer jocks should love it).
Amazing.
What did you learn in 2013?
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