The Old Farmer's Almanac 2015 (20 page)

Then there’s the humble carrot. In the Middle Ages, the most powerful tool in a witch’s love potion arsenal was this simple root vegetable, which makes
Carrot Ginger Soup
[>]
a doubly ideal meal for seduction.

In fact, hot food—in every sense of the word—has long been known for its capacity to captivate. Thanks to their ability to stimulate “feel good” endorphins and to set the heart racing, chiles have long been associated with desire. The Aztec ruler Montezuma was reputed to have mixed chiles with a chocolate drink before visiting his concubines.

Or you could just skip the chiles and go right for the chocolate. If you’re thinking that a box of chocolates is the way to your intended’s heart, you may be on the right track. Dark chocolate contains chemicals like serotonin that make us feel good. And when we feel good, we might be more receptive to romantic suggestion.

Here’s another great reason to give thanks when the harvest holiday rolls around. Pumpkin has long been lauded for its ability to increase ardor. The scent of pumpkin pie spice is reputed to drive men wild. (Is it just a coincidence that more babies are born in the United States in August than in any other month?)

Finally, we’ve all popped a breath mint after a nice, garlicky dinner. But this may be a mistake. Tibetan monks of yesteryear were not allowed to enter the monastery after eating garlic because it incited feelings of passion.

As in all matters, moderation is the key. Even if the object of your affection fails to fall for you, at the very least you’re going to have a good supper.

Ann Thurlow is a writer from Charlottetown, PEI, who believes that kindness is always the best way to a person’s heart.

By Danielle S. Hammelef

Hardly a day goes by when we do not consider the likelihood, or chance, of an event happening. Here are 70 real odds in a variety of categories. Some may surprise you, some will tickle your funny bone, others may make you scratch your head. Some may make you say, “I’ve beaten those odds!”

How to Calculate Odds

Let’s say that you want to be a farmer in the United States. The Environmental Protection Agency’s agricultural report confirms that there are approximately 2 million U.S. farms. About 500,000 of these farms make sufficient income to meet farm family living expenses.

What are the odds that your farm will make enough money to take care of you and your family? The calculation is a ratio of prosperous farms to the total number of farms: 500,000/2,000,000. This works out to 1/4, so this means that your farm has a 1-in-4 chance of being able to support you.

As the difference, or spread, between the numbers in an odds ratio increases, the likelihood of an event happening decreases.

And Now, the Odds...

FEARS

of being acrophobic (afraid of falling):
1 in 3

of being arachnophobic (afraid of spiders):
1 in 4

of being ariophobic (afraid of flying):
1 in 5

of being claustrophobic (afraid of small spaces):
1 in 3

of being cynophobic (afraid of dogs):
1 in 9

of being entomophobic (afraid of insects):
1 in 4

of being glossophobic (afraid of public speaking):
2 in 5

of being herpetophobic (afraid of snakes):
1 in 2

of being iatrophobic (afraid of doctors):
1 in 11

of being lygophobic (afraid of the dark):
1 in 20

of being musophobic (afraid of mice):
1 in 5

of being mysophobic (afraid of germs):
1 in 4

of being trypanophobic (afraid of needles and injections):
1 in 5

NATURAL DISASTERS

of a tsunami impacting the East Coast of North America:
1 in 1,000

of a tsunami impacting the West Coast of North America:
about 1 in 2

of an asteroid hitting Earth:
1 in 100,000,000

of being struck by lightning during any 12-month span:
1 in 700,000

of a major earthquake occurring in the eastern United States in the next 50 years:
1 in 67

of a major earthquake occurring in the central United States in the next 50 years:
1 in 10

of a major earthquake occurring in the northwestern United States in the next 50 years:
1 in 3

that if a tornado develops, it occurs in the United States:
3 in 4

BIRTH

of being double-jointed:
3 in 100

of being left-handed:
1 in 10

of being born a quadruplet:
1 in 700,000

of being born an identical twin:
1 in 285

INJURY

of a surgeon leaving an instrument inside a patient:
1 in 7,000

of contracting food poisoning:
1 in 6

of injury while handling fireworks:
3 in 100,000

of a person injured while launching fireworks in the month surrounding July 4 being an amateur:
2 in 3

of requiring hospital care after slipping on a wet bathroom floor:
1 in 1,000

of hospitalization for an injury incurred on an amusement park ride:
1 in 7,000,000

AMERICAN HISTORY & POLITICS

of an American being a descendant of a Mayflower pilgrim:
1 in 10

of an American not being able to name a single justice of the U.S. Supreme Court:
1 in 3

of an American adult not being able to name the U.S. vice president:
1 in 3

of an American not knowing the title of the U.S. national anthem:
2 in 5

of a bill introduced in Congress being signed into law:
1 in 25

FOOD

of being a vegetarian in Canada or the United States:
1 in 20

of being a vegan in Canada or the United States:
1 in 50

of being a person who can eat all that he or she wants, thanks to “skinny genes”:
1 in 2,000

of getting “brain freeze” after eating ice cream too quickly:
1 in 3

PERSONAL HABITS/BEHAVIORS

of an adult biting his or her fingernails:
1 in 6

of a child biting his or her fingernails:
3 in 10

of having a tattoo:
1 in 5

of being a compulsive shopper:
1 in 16

of being a chronic procrastinator:
1 in 5

of someone pretending to talk on a cell phone to avoid interacting with others:
1 in 8

EDUCATION & INTELLIGENCE

of having an IQ above 135:
1 in 100

of an American young adult not being able to locate the United States on a map:
6 in 100

of an American young adult not being able to locate the state of New York on a map:
1 in 2

of an American not knowing that Earth revolves around the Sun:
1 in 4

SPORTS

of surviving being buried by an avalanche for 45 minutes:
3 in 10

of being injured while alpine skiing:
1 in 500

of winning an Olympic gold medal:
1 in 660,000

of a mountain climber who begins ascending Mt. Everest reaching the peak:
3 in 10

of becoming a professional athlete:
1 in 22,000

of an average golfer making a hole-in-one:
1 in 12,000

of a professional golfer making a hole-in-one:
1 in 3,000

of bowling a perfect 300 game:
1 in 11,500

of a Major League Baseball player being caught stealing a base:
3 in 10

of a Major League Baseball fan catching a ball hit into the stands:
1 in 563

MISCELLANY

of a person believing in ghosts:
1 in 2

of a person always dreaming in color:
4 in 5

of a person claiming blue as his or her favorite color:
2 in 5

of an American worker not using all of his or her available vacation days:
4 in 7

of a Canadian worker not using all of his or her available vacation days:
4 in 10

of a person turning his or her head to the right when kissing:
2 in 3

of finding a four-leaf clover:
1 in 10,000

of a lottery winner keeping his or her job:
2 in 3

Danielle S. Hammelef is the author of
This Book Beats the Odds
(Capstone Press, 2012)
.

By Heidi Stonehill

Color Curiosities

Pair each description with its true color

DESCRIPTION

1.
clear, early American “pattern glass” containing manganese that has been exposed to sunlight for too long

2.
a ripe banana under a black light

3.
a rare (1 in 2 million) variant of the normally olive-brown American lobster

4.
a traditional Chinese wedding gown

5.
the protective enamel on a beaver’s four continuously growing front teeth

6.
a penalty card used by soccer referees to caution a player about unsportsmanlike conduct

7.
the sheath of a ground wire, according to U.S. and Canadian electrical codes

Answers
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Heidi Stonehill, an editor at The Old Farmer’s Almanac, was tickled pink when, out of the blue, she got the green light to develop a game. Now that it is in black and white, she hopes that it passes with flying colors and is widely “red” by all.

By Martie Majoros

Throughout history, people have relied on techniques and special formulas to enhance their attractiveness. Some were based on ingredients that were found in the home or, in some cases, the barnyard (think boiled calves’ feet as an ingredient in facial cream). Here’s an assortment of safe beauty treatments that you can make easily from items available in natural food stores or that perhaps you already have in your pantry.

For Fingertips

CUTICLE MASSAGE

Wash the grapes, then slice them in half widthwise. Dip the cut side into the sugar. Using half a grape for each finger, massage the skin around each fingernail for about 30 seconds each. Wipe off the excess sugar with a soft towel, then rub hand cream onto hands and cuticles.

For hair

To restore luster to your tresses and make them more manageable.

AROMATIC CONDITIONER

Mix the oils together in a bowl until blended. Part your hair in sections, put a few drops of the blended oil on your fingertips, and massage into your scalp. Cover your head with a towel for 15 minutes, then shampoo. (You may need to shampoo twice.)

HERBAL CONDITIONER

Pour 1 pint of boiling water over the herbs in a bowl and let them steep for 30 minutes. Strain the liquid into a second bowl and add the vinegar. Shampoo, rinse, then pour the conditioner on your hair. Comb the conditioner through evenly. Do not rinse.

For the face

Regular cleansing removes surface dirt and oils, but facial masks clean out the toxins that are found deep in pores.

FRUIT FACIAL

This nutrient-rich cleansing facial mask contains many of the same age-defying ingredients—such as alpha hydroxy acid (in grapes), vitamin B (in cranberries), and vitamin C (in grapefruit)—that are found in store-bought products. Gelatin, which is often used in commercial facial peels, dries and stiffens. When it is peeled off, it helps to remove dead skin and unclog pores.