Dear Matt: Now that we baby boomers are rapidly turning gray and seeing the other side of 50, I got to wondering. Who are the first and last of the boomer generation to have been …
March 27, 2003
Straight from the Hip
Archived articles
The baby that started the boom.
Make that a beer with a Visine back.
Hey, Matt! Rumor has it that if you put Visine in somebody's drink it will give them major cramps and Montezuma's Revenge for about 24 hours. George might want to slip some in Saddam's drink. …
March 27, 2003
He was bitten by a hairy dog.
Dear Matt: Why does the "hair of the dog" theory work for hangovers, and where did the expression come from: -- Dog-bit Don, El Paso, TX Howdy, stranger. Physicians speculate that a hangover is just …
March 27, 2003
It's raining hats and frogs
Dear Matthew: In the movie Magnolia, it rains frogs near the end. At first I thought this was preposterous. Then I fond out that this actually happens. How does it rain frogs? -- Mrs. Ingrum, …
March 20, 2003
How many times can you recycle paper?
Hey Matt!! My seniors have two important questions. How many times can you recycle paper, and is there dirt in Antartica, or is it all ice? -- Linsey Kitchens, Grossmont High School Hey Linsey!! Can't …
March 20, 2003
Bluey, greeny, purpley lobsters
Hey Matt: I'm from Maine, and every good Mainer knows live lobsters are a bluey, greeny, purplish color. Why do lobsters turn red when you boil them? -- Mystified Mainer, the net The red pigment …
March 20, 2003
Is it a couch? Is it a sofa?
Hey Matt: What's the difference between a couch and a sofa? -- Jay, Bay Park Oh, maybe a hundred bucks. Actually, to Pa Alice they're pretty much the same thing, since he can easily fall …
March 13, 2003
Did Prohibition prohibit sacramental wine?
Heymatt: Was Communion wine affected by the Prohibition? -- Ike, downtown Yes. Prohibition made it extremely popular, since it was one of the few forms of alcohol not banned by the 18th Amendment. Between 1923 …
March 13, 2003
A squerble of eggs.
Hey, Matthew: I've been a long-time fan of your work, particularly the literary devoice of the Elves and Grandma. Here's my two-part question. Why is a baker's dozen actually 13? I'm guessing something along the …
March 13, 2003
Many, many nose problems.
Dear Matt: I read somewhere that a good piece of fruit smells like it should. A peach should smell peachy, for example. The other day I was browsing the produce aisles in Henry's, sniffing the …
March 13, 2003
How do I get to GLBTville?
Heymatt: Boys Town, Chicago; the Castro, San Francisco; Greenwich Village, New York; Hillcrest, San Diego. How did these communities become Shangri-Las for the Fa La Las, in other words, GLBT? I would like to start …
March 6, 2003