You’d think that the option to effortlessly push your groceries in front of you rather than lugging them in a basket would be a no-brainer. However, when the first conventional shopping cart was invented in 1936, people were not very into it. Sylvan Goldman, a storeowner in Oklahoma realized that shoppers were heading for the check out line the second their baskets got too heavy—not a very good pattern when you want customers to buy more. To combat this, he fashioned a cart on wheels and began offering them to his customers. Much to his dismay, only the elderly customers were interested in such a convenience. The men were too proud to admit they needed help and the women associated the carts on wheels with baby buggies, which they were sick of pushing around. That’s when the oldest marketing trick in the book came in handy—Goldman hired attractive men and women to push around carts and pretend to shop. When real customers came through the door and refused a cart, the (also attractive) cart wrangler at the entrance answered, “Why not? Everyone else is using them!” Peer pressure wins again!
Nope. So inconsiderate! While your freeloading finned friend might not have remembered to buy you a birthday cake, he does remember a little more than common knowledge gives him credit for. It’s been said that goldfish have a memory span of three seconds, meaning every swim by the decorative mermaid is a new and exciting adventure in underwater flirtation. However, according to numerous studies, this is a myth. Jamie Hyneman from Mythbusters challenged his goldfish to recognize color patterns and run an underwater obstacle course. A month later, the fish remembered the prompts, completing it easily without any help from Hyneman. A 2003 study at the School of Psychology at the University of Plymouth trained fish to push a lever for food. When the lever was fixed to only work for one hour a day, the fish learned to only push it at the correct time, not even bothering with it for the rest of the day. So with that in mind, are you going to be a little more careful about what you say in front of Goldie? Ix-nay on the Ushi-shay.
That unmistakable aroma you get when you open a well-loved tome is a result of chemistry. As a book ages, the glue, paper, and ink begin to break down and release volatile compounds. A study in 2009 found that the chemical makeup of a book’s aroma consisted of hundreds of these compounds, giving it an organic mustiness with grassy notes. One main compound is lignin, which is present in all wood-based paper. Lignin is closely related to vanillin, which is what lends that faint, comforting smell of vanilla. No wonder curling up with an old book and a cup of tea sounds so inviting.
Once the weather gets dreary and the bikes get put into storage, the typical morning commute of a U-Gooder involves a meandering, pre-coffee descent into the New York subway, followed by a (hopefully) quick transfer to the N or R trains. These are the two main lines that run through our neighborhood of Sunset Park, so it’s not unusual to bump into coworkers with their noses in a book. Given these frequent literary sightings, it seemed apropos to ask my fellow U-Gooders just what has them so engrossed that they almost miss the 59th Street stop.
What are you reading right now?
“I just finished Magician’s Land by Lev Grossman, the final book in a series which starts off as a darker, more grownup up version of wizard school a la Harry Potter. It’s great because it allows me to continue my life long fantasy of the magical life that was STOLEN FROM ME.”
–Nikki DeSautelle, Graphic Designer
What’s your all-time favorite book?
“Tropic of Cancer by Henry Miller. I remember walking into my college bookstore freshman year, reading the first paragraph, falling in love with it, and immediately deciding Henry Miller was my favorite author ever. Years later, and after reading every single book (both fiction and non-fiction) that Miller ever wrote – and he wrote a lot – it still holds true. Actually, just over Labor Day, I visited the Henry Miller Memorial Library in Big Sur, which was like a pilgrimage for me.”
–Brian Hashemi, Director of Marketing
“It’s a tie between A Tale of Two Cities (the first book that really sucked me in; it made me love reading) and Prince of Tides. (I have no idea why I love this book. I just do. Every time I put it down I wanted to pick it back up.)”
–Rebecca Marshall, Associate Art Director
Reading tablet or the real thing?
“While I own hundreds of real books, I vote for tablet. I travel a lot and love the convenience of always having several books to read without having to sacrifice suitcase space for books.”
–Jennifer Grim, Director of Customer Service
“The real thing. I read a novel on my iPhone once and my eyes hurt for weeks afterwards, but more importantly: I m a bit nosy— I like to know what other people are reading on the subway and can use any excuse to talk to strangers (the fault/charm of being a Southerner.) Therefore, I prefer my books to proudly display their titles as well”–Jille Natalino, Graphic Designer
Sum up your you life with a book title.
“Catch 22 – From deciding what shoes to wear in the morning, to choosing what to eat for lunch, to booking an AirBnb accommodation for my next travel plans — I’m always thinking “I should have went with the other choice” even if I know exactly why I didn’t.”
–Emily Hodges, Community Outreach Associate
“Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris—sums up how I feel before my morning coffee!”
–Jennifer Coleman,Community Outreach Assistant
Other titles that made the cut: Omnivore’s Dilemma (Michael Pollan), Jitterbug Perfume (Tom Robbins), The Alchemist (Paulo Coelho), Signature of All Things (Elizabeth Gilbert), and A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius (Dave Eggers).
Probably the best takeaway from this office poll is how eager everyone was to talk about what’s in his or her reading queue. Just add some good wine and bite-sized snacks, and we’d have had a good old-fashioned book club meeting. Too bad a crowded subway car isn’t an ideal setting for a tasteful crudité.
Do you have a can’t miss book club pick? Let us know in the comments below or by tweeting @UncommonGoods!
It doesn’t take much exposition to connect literature and art. Artist Tori Tissell fuses both with fashionable flair in her literary scarves. Full of storybook charm, they harken back to Tori’s days as a budding artist. “Some of my earliest memories are from the age of three years old when I was painting in watercolors,” says Tori, “there’s a video recording of me being asked what I want to be when I grow up–my answer was an artist.”
This passion continued into adulthood, landing Tori as a drawing and painting major before deciding to move to New York City to study fashion design. “I thought that outlet would allow for a wider audience and quicker reception of my work and ideas.” Tori was right, and after being stumped for Christmas gift ideas during the 2011 holiday season, she decided to use her education and passion for screen printing, fashion, and literature to create something memorable for family and friends. “Since those closest to me also have an affinity towards reading, [book-inspired scarves] seemed like the perfect solution for gifts and possibly more.”
Tori sourced some fabric for the scarves and found a rich cream-colored knit. With this new material, she was inspired to print the scarves to resemble the page of a book. After the scarves were a hit, Tori began selecting other book texts to be screen-printed. “Initially books and passages were picked by what I favor and some of that will always hold true but lately we’ve been getting a lot of additional input,” says Tori. From Alice in Wonderland to Jane Eyre, each scarf showcases a window into a world of storybook magic.
Tori’s husband Chris became a part of the project when they got married in 2012. The scarves had really started taking off, and he began helping with screen printing, sourcing, and streamlining production. “By the end of that year, he was practically a full time employee on top of his other job as a computer programmer.”
Tori and Chris work out of a few spaces in Portland. “My workspace is a bit of a joke,” says Tori, “Chris is the one with a beautifully painted office, complete with overflowing bookshelves, leather furniture, and artifacts from past travels. My office is continually on the move. I either print pieces within our rented studio space in downtown Portland, or I cut and sew fabric on our dining room table.”
Wherever she happens to be working, Tori keeps pieces of inspiration handy. One such piece is the print cover art for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, signed by the artist. This is one of many hints at her love of reading, a passion that perfectly enhances her art. Another source of inspiration can be found within. “I think it’s really important for an artist to surround oneself with his or her own work because taking on new illustrations is terrifying. It’s comforting to see what’s already been overcome and to be reminded that you can do this.”
We’ve all experienced the devastating loss of freshly buttered toast. One careless knock off the plate, a case of…butterfingers…en route to your mouth, and the whole slice goes plummeting to its certain doom—almost always to land butter-side down. Conventional wisdom would suggest that you only stand a 50-50 chance of completely ruining breakfast. However, conventional wisdom does not take into account the nature of bread. Bread is made up of delicious pockets of air, which affect its drag as it falls. Cover up those pockets with butter, and you have a rotation situation, meaning (according to science) the bread is only able to rotate one and a half times on its way to your kitchen tile. If your table is standard height, this means you’ll probably be cleaning butter off the floor in the near future. So what’s a bruncher to do? After dropping 100 perfectly good pieces of toast, food science specialists determined that an eight-foot tall table would allow for a full 360-degree rotation, and the salvation of your morning carbohydrate. Incredibly tall toast fans rejoice!
From acing an interview to the perfect first date, the safest follow up to ensure a good outcome is a hearty knock on the nearest tree or tabletop. In a pinch, even shiny laminate or your loopy aunt tapping on her head for show can do the trick. Rooted in superstition, many believe that this practice stemmed from pagan Europeans raising a loud ruckus to chase away evil spirits from their homes and in trees. This noise would prevent them from hearing about or ruining a person’s good luck. Over time, the “ruckus” needed was reduced to a simple knock on wood, so either the spirits grew hard of hearing or we just got lazy. Either way, you’re going to nail that promotion—knock on wood.
From children’s books to theme park rides to childhood games that had your little sibling walking the plank, the hallmark of any good pirate is an eye patch. So did that many pirates really have a missing eye? That seems like a very specific ailment to suffer from. Though researchers have yet to find a historical source to confirm, it’s becoming more and more plausible that the plundering sailors used the ocular accessory to improve their night vision. Moving from the outside of the ship to the near darkness below decks required a moment of adjustment to the dark. However, if Captain Hook had one eye that was constantly in darkness, all he’d have to do it switch the patch to the other eye to enjoy the old school, high seas version of night vision. Shiver me timbers!