I will let you in on a little secret about me: I am notoriously bad at following directions. I do not do well with sticking to plans or keeping within time constraints. I have never in my life excelled at being tidy and or organized; just not things I got when the genetics were distributed. I have tried, as of late, to rein myself in and set aside certain times for certain tasks.

For instance, I tried to allot myself a window of time each and every day for writing. The problem here is that the “window,” no matter where in the day it falls, is not the time when I am inspired to write. During the “window” is now when I would like a snack or a cup of cocoa; it’s when I seem to think the dishes need doing or the laundry needs folding or an article in a magazine grabs my attention. I am resistant to rules and standards ... I even want to bend the rules that I, myself, design.

So during this window recently, (you know, the one that finds me diligently typing away at my desk), I was distracted by bizarre facts. These are the sorts of little known things that so intrigue me, it’s no wonder the window is constantly shattered. Did you know that tigers not only have striped fur, but that their skin is also striped? I read this and put my chin on my fist and let out a, “Huh.”

I find strange enjoyments in knowing these things that are, in the grand scheme of things, trivial.

Get ready for this one: You can see the stars during the day if you are at the bottom of a well. I would like to know who discovered this and how. I automatically think there is either a great story or one rather macabre behind this knowledge. Who is loitering at the bottom of a well for a span long enough to notice that the stars are visible, I wonder? Unless they were put in the well by some evil-doer, which certainly makes more sense to me because I am certainly not volunteering to venture to the depths of a well.

Did you know that if I yelled for 8 years, 7 months, and 6 days I would produce enough sound energy to heat exactly one cup of coffee. It seems extreme, but I’m working on it as a side project. I figure I have a pretty good head start on that one and, paired with a hot cup of coffee, I may have some sort of Guinness world record entry when I reach the finish line. Dare to dream.

There are no words in the English language that rhyme with the following: silver, month, orange, purple. Do with that what you will, but I’ll share that I was certain this was an error and wracked my brain for a good long time to prove this fact wrong. I got nothing out of this but a headache and a lot of made up words.

Were you aware that it is against the law to pawn your dentures in Las Vegas? I, for one, would like to see a most wanted poster with the tag, “Denture Pawning,” underneath the mug shot. Luckily I hear whatever happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, so let’s hope the same applies to dentures.

Another tidbit that came to my attention was the fact that a dentist invented the electric chair. I’m not sure if I already knew this in a tiny corner of my mind or if I just assumed it was so. (Disclaimer: I adore my dentist and his fine staff.)

This one really got me. A pregnant goldfish is called a, “twit.” That isn’t all that amusing in itself except that someone took the time to come up with a name for a pregnant goldfish. The fact that a goldfish has a memory span of three seconds, paired with the fact that she’s a pregnant twit ... that one made me laugh.