Legends and Lefties.

In certain circles 13 is considered an unlucky number. So it's no surprise that today, August 13th is Left Hander's Day. 

Left handed people are a minority. The world is designed for right handed people. 

Left in Latin is sinister.

There is nothing wrong or different about southpaws. After all, some of the best pitchers in baseball are left handed.

So celebrate the day. If you are a lefty sit on the right of someone at lunch and shoot them an elbow or two. If you are righty use your imagination and your left hand instead. 

Pretend it's sex with somebody else.

Some of these are older, having surfaced (or resurfaced) over the last year.

Today I've decided to explore Urban Legends. 

I'm partial to legends about dragons, knights and damsels in distress but I'm sure these will be interesting, even if you live in the suburbs.

Facebook Messenger

Yes, you need to approve the terms of service for the app to function properly. No, the new Facebook Messenger App will not commandeer your smart phone. It will not call and invite your friends to parties or text them for money but if you send someone a naked photo of yourself it may end up in the file of a guy named Sid.

Minimum Drinking Age to be Raised to 25

As of August 2 the U.S. will raise the legal drinking age to 25. 

Not true. 

Obviously the date has come and gone and I haven't spotted any 24-year-old's hanging around the liquor store asking people to buy them beer. 

The date August 2 should have been the give away. Everyone knows new laws go into effect in January.

Cheap Wine

There is no truth to the rumor that Charles Shaw wine was sold cheaply because airlines could no longer use corkscrews after 9/11 and dumped stocks of wine.

This wine is what was called (and may still be for all I know) Two Buck Chuck which conjures images of a broke me and tough cuts of beef, not wine. And who cares now, it's 2014. Two Buck Chuck hasn't been two bucks in two years. 

The price of wine shouldn't matter....taste with your senses not your wallet.

And there's concern about someone using a corkscrew to hijack a plane. I can barely get a cork out of the bottle with one.

I just watched a video on Facebook that purportedly shows a car with Paramagnetic Paint changing colors as voltage is varied. Is this true?

Yes, you did see a car change colors. It was part of a tutorial for photo/video manipulation software. 

Toyota and Nissan have been working on a practical application for this process since 2007. Engineers are trying to perfect a system for the sale of all white vehicles that will change colors using a dash mounted rheostat. They are having trouble trying to match popular shoes and handbags.

Animals are fleeing Yellowstone Park, an indicator that a super-volcano eruption is imminent. 

Nope...no...and not true.

The animals are not fleeing they're out looking for food. And as for the possibility of a super-volcano? I'm not ruling anything out.

Health care legislation requires that U.S. residents be implanted with RFID microchips.

Also nope...no...and not true.

When I'm a shuffling old man who can't remember where to find the toilet I'll make an appointment for my implant. That way if the government death panel refuses my health care and decides to kill me they can find me when I get lost. 

Many people do not want to microchip their animals. I doubt they'll go for this.

An article advocates the use of wasp rather than pepper spray for self defense.

Yes. While wasp spray will temporarily incapacitate a human it works best if your attacker has wings.

PS: Salt spray only works on slugs and snails but it will do a number on car paint.

The rumor is that Coca-Cola is recalling millions of bottles of Coke with the name Michael on the label because they were contaminated by a worker who wanted revenge on her boss named Michael.

Not true.

The story originally had a disgruntled worker named Phoebe Zack dumping soil (she brought it to work in her purse) into a vat of pre-bottled coke. 

Her boss was named Robert.

A school of killer whales attacked and killed 16 crew members off a Japanese whaling boat.

I've seen conflicting articles online about a Japanese Whaling Crew of 16 eaten alive by Killer Whales. Reportedly this occurred in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.

A Japanese whaling crew has fallen victim to a dramatic full on assault by a school of killer whales, killing no less then 16 crew members and injuring 12. 

The crew of the MV Nisshin Maru, Japan’s primary whaling vessel and the world’s only whaler factory ship, was forced to leave the deck temporarily as a gas leak was detected within the ship’s processing factory that resulted in the ship being temporarily disabled.

This is not true.

There were a dozen injured but the whales only ate 11 crew members. They took the other 5 to Alaska.

Actor Russell Johnson of Gilligan's Island fame has been identified as the Zodiac Killer.

Gilligan's Island may have been a crime but the actor who played Professor Roy Hinkley was not a murderer. He was too busy trying to screw Mary Ann or was it Ginger?

Cups of instant noodles pose a danger to consumers due to their wax coatings.

The following 'true' information is taken right off the Internet.

"For our health concern, pls pass on the msg to those you know who love Instant Noodles.

This is what I heard from a fellow colleague. Her nephew, who was studying in UK for about one and a half years, likes to eat cup-a-noodle. And guess what! 

His doctor has found that there is a layer of wax lining the walls of his stomach. Seems that instant noodles that comes with foam containers contain an edible layer of wax. However, regular consumptions make it hard for our livers to clear the toxic. 

This person died when he went for an operation to try to remove the layer. Pls do not boil the noodles in the container. Transfer to a glass bowl before you put the hot water."

I understand people may eat dry packaged god knows how old noodles due to financial necessity and it's probably a good idea to boil or microwave in glass containers but wax build up in the body is not a worry.

Come-on.....I ate the bottles.....didn't you?