Yahoo! Answers

Photo by Cappellmeister

When I was young, leap year was a mystery. I had a friend whose birthday fell on February 29, and though we were both born in the same year, Laurie always claimed to be a fraction of my age (1/4 to be exact). When I was 8, she insisted she was only 2. She didn’t turn 3 until I was 12. I have to admit, that phenomenon both confused and amazed my young mind. Obviously, I didn’t really understand what leap year was and simply accepted that Laurie must be pretty remarkable and unique for being born on such a special day.

Tomorrow is that special day, and Answers is abuzz with questions about leap year. Amanda C explains why we have a leap year, and MOM KNOWS EVERYTHING shares the formula for determining whether a year contains that mysterious extra day. I share uofiowagirl’s confusion about why it’s called a “leap year” when you’re actually adding a day, but effeykins sorts it out. If you’re hoping that your paycheck might feel a little heavier thanks to that surplus day, Bardic sets the record straight. Finally, despite Laurie’s insistence that she gained only one year to my four, the consensus is that leap year babies age at the same rate as the rest of us. However, when to celebrate a birthday in non-leap years is up for debate.

What I found most interesting is that February 29 is traditionally one of two days when it’s acceptable for a woman to propose marriage to a man (the other is Sadie Hawkins Day). Of course, customs have evolved and a woman asking for a man’s hand is no longer the outrageous act that it once was. But I wonder how many women will stick to the leap year tradition and pop the question tomorrow.

Will you do anything special to commemorate this leap year?

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

Hey Guys,

Consider the moon. It’s nice to look at, but does it really serve a purpose? I asked the folks of Yahoo! Answers if humankind would miss “la luna” if it all of a sudden disappeared.

As it turns out, not only would people miss it, we’d be on our knees begging for it to come back ASAP. Several folks pointed out that without the mighty moon, the planet’s tides would be greatly affected. This would cause sea levels to rise and the Earth’s temperature to drop dramatically. One community member speculates that the planet would freeze up and become “Snowball Earth.”

Another responder writes that without the moon, Earth would stop rotating at an even spin, which would lead to all sorts of wild weather patterns. According to the site Damn Interesting, “without the moon, the Earth might rotate much faster, causing a more turbulent atmosphere, and thus unending gales of life-hostile, skirt-blowing winds.” You can read more about the scary yet unlikely scenario at Starry Skies.

So, apparently the moon isn’t just for show. It controls the tides, the rotation of the planet, and much more (including, I’m told, the eating schedules of werewolves).

Think the space program will ever put another person on the moon? Is there more to learn? Please leave a comment below.

Thanks for reading,

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

Based on the preliminary ratings from Nielsen Media Research, the award goes to last night’s Oscar performance for the least-watched ceremony in the history of the Academy Awards. Even with the trotting out of tween fave Miley Cyrus (for those of you who wondered why in the heck she was there). After reading about the dismal ratings, I did a quick check-in with the Answers community to see what the level of interest was in Hollywood‘s big night.

As expected, many people tuned in to see the fashion hits and misses. Another big topic was the music. Some wanted to know who the awesome 11-year-old singer was from the “Raise It Up” performance, while others were less enchanted with the song nominees altogether. Overall, it seemed too predictable with few surprises and not enough pizzazz. Considering the amount of talent gathered in one very large room, I think we were expecting a little more entertainment.

What do you think? Are we just experiencing award overload or does the Oscars show need a major makeover?

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

Hey Guys,

Everyone loves a vacation, yet the time away can be quite stressful. The planning, the cost, and the embarrassment at not being able to speak the language… these things often add up to two weeks that are more draining than everyday life. What to do?

I asked the Answers community for tips on how to make vacations more like a vacation and people had plenty of ideas. Interestingly, some of these ideas conflicted. For example, several people wrote that proper planning is key. They argue that if you plan well enough, you won’t be a huge ball of stress when you arrive at your destination. Makes sense, but not everyone sees it that way. HappyMom recommends taking it easy on the plans and just letting things happen. Very Zen, HappyMom.

Other community members offered advice on who you should (or shouldn’t) travel with. Shleenish wrote four little words that many people will no doubt agree with — “don’t go with family.” Fellow responder tan0301 agrees, writing that she and her husband both took their respective mothers on a joint vacation and she nearly went bananas.

Finally, mylifeisHis gave some sage advice that I think many people often forget: Don’t cram two weeks of activities into one week of travel. Be aware that you won’t see everything, so don’t try. Heck, you can always go back.

Do you have advice on how to stay stress-free while traveling? Do you plan everything a la Clark Griswold or do you like to go with an open agenda? Please leave a comment below and let me know.

Thanks for reading,

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

Photo by Dominics pics

My first and only lawn was a disaster. During the California winter it was full of weeds and yellow patches. I never thought I would become the kind of guy to obsess over his lawn, but then I caught myself early one chilly Saturday morning, outside before the rest of the neighborhood was awake, talking to the yellowed grass. When spring came, the grass grew so quickly I had to mow it twice a week just to keep up. This was madness.

If only Yahoo! Answers had been available then. Community member “logan_sell” has some excellent advice on maintaining a healthy lawn, particularly during the cold winter months. And other members chimed in with tips on caring for a patchy lawn and avoiding overwatering during the winter. As it turns out, many grasses go dormant during this time, and the yellow patches I was talking to were perfectly natural. At least my grass was normal, even if I wasn’t.

For those of us who micromanage our lawns, winter can be a difficult season. Do you have any advice for keeping a lawn healthy when it’s cold and wet outside?

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!