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Other facts are simply zany. Zany means funny, comic, whacky, unexpected. This handful of facts certainly fall inot this category.

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The phrase “brand spanking new” was used in the article on New Year’s Resolutions. Can you find it again? Did you know what it meant? Could you tell from the surrounding sentence what meaning it was supposed to convey? This phrase is known as an idiom.

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Melissa and Kate are inseparable best friends, which is pretty amazing because they’re also sisters! At this point in time however, they are both in big trouble.

They had slung their mother’s treasured quilt over the backs of four chairs to make a roof for their makeshift playhouse. Both girls loved the quilt with all the pretty images that told the story of their mother’s earlier life. Grandma had stitched each piece carefully and lovingly by hand for her daughter. But now there was a big tear in the corner where Scruffy II, their little Scotch terrier, had grabbed it.

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Betsey pumped with her legs until the swing traveled in such a large arc that it felt like her face was touching the sky. This was her favorite playground, 3 long blocks from home and right on the waterfront. From here she could swing into the sky or stare out at the dazzling water.

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crepuscular

Function: adjective

1. of, relating to, or resembling twilight: Dim
2. active in the twilight

Used in a sentence: Because of the extreme altitudes at which the snow leopard roams and because of its crepuscular hunting habits, very few humans have ever seen the solitary and elusive creature.

Here’s a perfect word for today’s issue of the Tribune. If you checked your calendar, you know today is Friday, the 13th, a day many people are superstitious about. Armed with a word like this one, you should have nothing to fear.

friggatriskaidekaphobia

Function: noun

Definition: an exaggerated fear of Friday, the 13th.

Used in a sentence: This Friday, July 13th, will be an anxiety filled day for people who suffer from friggatriskaidekaphobia.

Caterwaul (’ka tuhr wol) Function:Noun Definition: a harsh cry or a noisy quarrel. Used in a sentence: The caterwaul of the two neighbors over ownership of the tree brought people out of every nearby house.

Respite (’res pit) Function: Noun Definition: an interval of rest or relief. Used in a sentence: The oasis has afforded you a night of respite.

The telephone is one of the cornerstones of the modern age, one of those inventions we cannot imagine living without although our ancestors managed just fine, thank-you very much, for thousands of years. Today we face telephones in every pocket or handbag. Here are some facts that speak to the early days of the wired phone, when the march of this inventiona cross the landscape of human history had just begun. How many of them are familiar to you?

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Have you ever had the hiccups and wondered what caused them? They are actually a really weird sound and are hard to control. Hiccups are caused by a sudden jerk in your diaphragm that causes you to breathe in air very quickly.

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The short quizzes that have appeared in the recent issues of the Tribune have been very popular. Many of the Chevron Cars have taken the following quiz. The scores were very close but Holly Hatchback and Patty Patrol did the best-they were the only two cars that knew all of the correct answers. Try to answer these interesting questions before you look at the answers.

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We actually have two interesting questions for you…if you do not know the answers try to ask your friends and see if they know the answers.

How did the Teddy Bear get its name?

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Here are some great questions for you…if you do not know the answers try to ask your friends and see if they know the answers. Try to answer each question before you look at the answer.

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