Today I learned…

Once upon a time, I was a regular user of an online forum where one of the popular threads was called “Today I learned…” And I have to admit that – nearly 15 years later – I still think about having a place to mention those things I have recently learned, so I thought I’d start to collect them here. I’ll share the post when it gets full enough – it’ll be interesting to see how quickly that happens.

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… that if you select Albania as your country of location on a VPN when connecting to YouTube, it doesn’t alter your timeline, but you don’t get any adverts. As we watch a reasonable amount on YouTube, this has been an absolute game-changer because the quality of adverts on YouTube is utterly dire. Presumably they aren’t governed by the regulations of individual countries so they’re even less trustworthy than those you see on Meta – by a multiple of 10s.

… that when you live somewhere they have polo tournaments, the area will smell like a stable yard while one is taking place. I suppose it’s not entirely surprising when each team will bring upwards of 20 ponies, and there are 12 teams taking part. That’s a lot of polo pony poo 😉 It’s an odd smell, and different from when fields get fertilised – as added to the aforementioned – is a blend of straw, horse nuts, and sweat.

… about the “poop rule” which is an alternative to Marie Kondo’s “sparking joy” rule. You pick up said item you’re considering whether to keep or get rid, you visualise it with poop on it, and then decide if you would clean it or throw it out. It’s said to work well for those with ADHD, and as it makes way more sense to me than the Kondo rule, do I have to wonder if I have ADHD?

… that when you live near Goodwood House, a place famed for its connection to the world of speed, you’ll often see lovely sights. Yesterday Himself enjoyed a Spitfire flying low after the supermarket shop and we get the full range of sports cars on the roads. My favourite encounter was when we popped in to fill up my petrol tank, only to be followed by a crowd of TVRs (a rather marvellous British sports car, sadly now no longer manufactured. If you don’t know them, check out Jay Leno’s YouTube). I love the distinctive burble of their engines and knew immediately, even before I saw them. I wasn’t the only one at the petrol station that day with an idiot grin on their face 😀

… that we have a couple of birds of prey nesting nearby. We discovered this when they dropped some titbit on the lawn and swooped down to fight over it. We’ve since heard quite the racket from their nest, presumably as they continue to bicker on. While it was amazing to see them up close and personal, we are rather concerned for the safely of our regular visiting wildlife (grey squirrel, robin and blackbird). Fortunately, so far, all is well with them.

… that some people (OK, one person I know of) pronounces gateaux as gay-toe 😀

… that some people believe the Apple logo is a reference to Alan Turing’s method of suicide (he ate a cyanide laced apple).

… that Ozzy Osborne’s funeral procession coincided with the anniversary of the death of our good friend, a man who was a huge fan and would otherwise have been in the crowd. We didn’t attend, but watched the live stream in his stead.

… that there is a paint colour in the US called Haint Blue, commonly used for porch ceilings in the southern US states to mimic sky and thus avoid birds or bugs nesting and so you don’t get ghosts. No doubt my US readers will be familiar with this, but I was entirely ignorant and, while slightly puzzled, also charmed by the notion.

… that there are villages in the UK known as Thankful Villages because they are among the few which experienced no losses of life due to fighting in WWI. There are also even fewer which are doubly thankful, having lost no lives due to fighting in WWII either. Remarkably one of the latter is called Upper Slaughter.

What have you learned recently that either informed or amused you?

© Debs Carey, 2025