telephone wires and
walking versus hopping
worms and
Birthday candles, trick
“Birthday suit”
Biting of fingernails, reasons for
Bitings in keys
“Bitter end”
“Biweekly”
Black
clothing and bohemians
gondola color
judges’ robes
specks in ice cream
stripes on baseball bats
“Blackmail”
Blacktop roads, lightening of
Blades, razor, hotel slots for
Bleach, flour and
Blind
money counting
wearing dark glasses
Blinking and babies
“Blockhead”
Blood, color of
Blouses, women’s, lack of sleeve length sizes in
Blue
as color for baby boys
as color of blueprints
as color of racquetballs
in hair rinses
“Blue blood,” origin of term
Blue Demons and De Paul University
Blue jeans and orange thread
“Blue jeans”
“Blue moon”
Blue plate special, origins of
Blue ribbons (as first prize)
“Blue streak”
Blueprints, color of
“Blurb”
Blushing and feelings of warmth
Boats, red and green lights on
“Bobbies [London officers]”
“Bobby pins”
Body hair
loss of, in humans
pubic hair, purpose of
underarm hair, purpose of
Body odor, human immunity to own
Boeing, numbering of jets
“Bogey”
Boiling water during home births
Bombs and mushroom clouds
Book staining, of paperback book pages
Books
checkered cloth on
pagination in
Boots on ranchers’ fence posts
“Booze”
Bottle caps, beer, twistoff, merits of
Bottles, cola, one- and two-liter
Bottles, soda, holes on bottom of
Boulder, Colorado, magazine subscriptions and
Bowling, “turkey” in
Bowling pins, stripes on
Bowling shoes, rented, ugliness of
Boxer shorts, versus briefs
Boxers, sniffing and
Boxes, Japanese, yellow color of
Bracelets, migration of clasps on
Brain, Ten percent use of, alleged
“Brass tacks”
“Bravo Zulu” origins of
Brazil nuts in assortments
Bread
“French” versus “Italian”
kneading of
staling of
yeast in
“Break a leg”
Breath, bad, upon awakening, in the morning
Brick shape of gold bullion
Bricks
holes in
in skyscrapers
Bridges versus roads, freezing characteristics of
Bridges, covered, purpose of
Briefs, versus boxer shorts
Brights/dimmer switch, position of, in automobiles
Broccoli and cans
Brominated vegetable oil in orange soda
Brushes, hair, length of handles on
Bubble gum
baseball card gum
Bazooka Joe’s eyepatch
bubble-making ingredients
flavors of
pink color of
“Buck”
Buckles, pilgrim hats and
Buffets, new plates at
Bulbs, light
and noise when shaking
halogen
high cost of 25-watt variety
Bull rings, purpose of
“Bulls [stock market]”
“Bunkum”
Bunnies, chocolate Easter
Buns
hamburger bottoms, thinness of
Buns (cont.)
hot dog, number of in package
versus rolls
Burger King wrappers, numbers on
Burials, position of deceased
Burping and babies
Buses
entry into
idling of engines on
ridges on sides of
seat belts and
Busy signals, fast versus slow, on telephones
Butter
hardening after refrigeration
sticks, lengths of
versus margarine, in restaurants
Butterflies
rain and
sneezing and coughing in
“Butterfly”
Buttons, men’s versus women’s shirts
Buzzing, bees and
“BZ,” origins of expression
“Cab”
Cable TV
channel allocation of
volume levels of
“Caboodle,” “kit” and
“Caddy”
Cadets, military, cap throwing and
Cadillacs, ducks on
Cafeterias, popularity of, among elderly
Caffeine, leftover, from decaffeinated coffee
Cakes
angel food and cooling position
reaction to loud noises
seven layer, missing layers of
Calculators, key pad configurations of
Calico cats, gender of
Calories, measurement of
Calves, versus cows
Cameras, black color of
Camouflage, colors in
Can openers, sharpness of blades on
Canada Dry, origins of name
Canadiens, Montreal, uniforms of
Canceled checks
numbers on
returned, numerical ordering of
white paper attachments
Candles, trick birthday, relighting of
Candlestick Park, origins of
Candy
Baby Ruth, origins of
caramels versus toffee
Milk Duds, shape of
Oh Henry, origins of
placement in vending machines
shapes of boxed chocolate
wrapping of boxed chocolate
“Cannot complete your call as dialed” telephone message
Cans, aluminum, crushability of
“Can’t hold a candle”
Capital punishment, hours of execution and
“Capital punishment”
“Capitalization”
Caps and gowns, at graduations
Caps, baseball
buttons atop
green undersides
Captain, Navy and Army rank of
Caramels, versus toffee
Cardboard on automobile grills
Carpenter’s pencils, shape of
CAR-RT SORT on envelopes
Cars (see “Automobiles”)
Cartoon characters
Casper the ghost
Donald Duck
Goofy
Mickey Mouse
Cash register receipts, color of
Cashews, lack of shells in
Caskets, position of heads in
Casper the ghost, identity of
Cassette players, audio, battery drainage in
Cassette tapes, audio, on roadsides
Cat feces, as food for dogs
Cat food, tuna cans of
“Cat out of the bag”
“Catercorner”
Catnip and effect on wild cats
Cats
calico, gender of
catnip
ear scratching
eating posture
hair, stickiness of
miniature
sight, during darkness
swimming
and
“Cats and dog, raining”
“Catsup”
Cattle guards, effectiveness of
“Cattycorner”
Cavities, dogs and
CDs, Tuesday release of
Ceiling fans
direction of blades
dust and
Ceilings of train stations
Celery in restaurant salads
Cement
laying of
versus concrete
Cemeteries
financial strategies of owners of
perpetual care and
Ceramic tiles in tunnels
Cereal
calorie count of
Cereal (cont.)
joining of flakes in bowl
Snap! And Rice Krispies
Chalk outlines of murder victims
Champagne
aluminum foil on neck of
name of, versus sparkling wine
Channel 1, lack of, on televisions
Chariots, Roman, flimsiness of
“Checkmate”
Checks
approval in supermarkets
numbering scheme of
out-of-state acceptance of
white paper attachments
Checks, canceled
numbers on
returned, numerical ordering of
white paper attachments
Cheddar cheese, orange color of
Cheese
American, milk in Kraft
cheddar, orange color of
string, characteristics of
Swiss, holes in
Swiss, slice sizes of
Chef’s hat, purpose of
Chewing gum
lasting flavor
water consumption and hardening of
wrapping of
Chewing motion in elderly people
Chianti and straw-covered bottles
Chicken
cooking time of
versus egg
white meat versus dark meat
“Chicken tetrazzini”
Children, starving, and bloated stomachs
Children’s reaction to gifts
Chime signals on airlines
Chirping of crickets, at night
Chocolate
Easter bunnies
shapes of
white versus brown
wrapping of boxed
Chocolate milk, consistency of
“Chops”
Chopsticks, origins of
“Chowderhead”
Christmas card envelopes, bands around
Christmas tree lights
burnout of
lack of purple bulbs in
purple
Cigar bands, function of
Cigarette butts, burning of
Cigarettes
grading
odor of first puff
spots on filters
Cigars, new fathers and
Cities, higher temperatures in, compared to outlying areas
Civil War, commemoration of
“Claptrap”
Clasps, migration of necklace and bracelet
Cleansers, “industrial use” versus “household”
Clef, treble, dots on
Clicking noise of turn signals, in automobiles
Climate, West coast versus East coast
Clocks
clockwise movement of
grandfather
number 4 on
Roman numerals
school, backward clicking of minute hands in
versus watches, distinctions between
Clockwise, draining, south of the Equator
“Cloud nine”
Clouds
disappearance of
location of
rain and darkness of
Clouds in tap water
“Cob/cobweb”
Coca-Cola
2-liter bottles
taste of different size containers
Cockroaches
automobiles and
death position of
reaction to light
Coffee
bags in lavatories of airplanes
bags versus cans
electric drip versus electric perk in
restaurant versus home-brewed
Coffee, decaffeinated
leftover caffeine usage
orange pots in restaurants
Coffeemakers, automatic drip, cold water and
Coins
lettering on U.S. pennies
red paint on
serrated edges of
smooth edges of
Cola bottles, one- and two-liter, black bottom of
Colas, carbonation in
Cold water and automatic drip coffeemakers
Colds
body aches and
clogged nostrils and
liquids as treatment for
symptoms at night of
“Coleslaw”
“Collins, Tom [drink]”
Color
blood
cash register receipts
wet things
Comic strips and capital letters
Commercials, television, loudness of
Commonwealths, versus states
Computer monitors, shape of
Computers
erased files on
monitors, shape of
Concrete, versus cement
Conserves, contents of
Construction cranes, assembling of
Construction sites
bill posting at
pine trees and
soaping of retail windows
Consumer Price Index, changes in base year of
Containers, for rain measurement
Contemporary greeting cards, shape of
Coolers, Styrofoam, blue specks on
“Cooties”
Cop”
Copper bowls and egg whites
Copyright pages, strange numbers on
Coriolis effect
Corn chips, black specks on
Corn Flakes, calorie count of
Corn silk, purpose of
Corn tortillas, size of, versus flour
Corn, baby, supermarkets and
Cornish game hens, identity of
“Corny”
Corvette, 1983
Cottage cheese, origins of
Cotton
in medicine bottles
shrinkage of, versus wool
Cough medicine, alcohol in
Countdown Leader, film and
Counterclockwise, draining, north of the Equator
Counters on VCRs and audio recorders
Coupons
cash value
expiration date
versus mail-in refunds
Courtrooms, bibles in
“Couth”
Covered bridges, purpose of
Cow Palace, naming of
Cowboy hats, dents on
Cows
calves and
milking positions
nose rings and
sticking of tongues up nostrils of
CPR training in schools
Crabs, hermit, “bathroom habits” of
Crackling sound of fire
Cracks on sidewalks
Cranes, construction, assembling of
“Craps”
Cravings, food, pregnant women and
Credit card receipts, printing of, at gas stations
Credit card slips, and phone numbers
Credit cards
and waiter tips
dipping versus swiping and
major versus minor
quick swiping of
Crickets
chapped legs and chirping
chirping at night of
“Crisscross”
“Crocodile” shirts
Crowd estimates, police and
Crowing of roosters
Cruise controls, minimum speeds of
Crying at happy endings
Cue balls, dots on, in pool
Cups
drinking, width of
shape of paper and plastic
Curad bandages, wrappers of
Curly tails of pigs
Currency, color of
Cursive handwriting versus printing, teaching of
Curves on highways
“Cut and dried”
“Cut the mustard”
Cuts, paper, pain and
Daily doubles in Jeopardy, difficulty of
Dalmatians in firehouses
Dams, beavers and
Dance studios, floor location of
Dancing, men versus women
“Dandelion”
“Dangerous Curve” signs, placement of
Dartboards, numbering schemes of
DC, AC and
De Paul University and “Blue Demons”
“Dead End” signs, versus “No Outlet” signs
When Do Fish Sleep? Page 24