“Facts sometimes have a strange and bizarre power that makes their inherent truth seem unbelievable.” — Werner Herzog
I am an avid reader, nowadays mostly it’s trashy novels, Bloomberg and the Wall Street Journal. They always have these attention-grabbing headlines that never fail to hook me in. Sometimes they are awe-inspiring but oftentimes they are just unbelievably outrageous, frightening, and bizarre. It somehow takes me away from my mundane everyday existence and brings back my sense of wonder.
I guess that’s how theRipley’s Believe it or Not franchise became so popular. I love visiting their museums — especially the one on Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco. They display so many yarns it’s hard to believe they are true…but…who am I to question their integrity?
So, as a salute goodbye to the unbelievably crazy year we’ve had — that is 2020, here is a list of strange but true facts that everyone should know about.
Weird but incredibly true facts
The fastest man in the world has scoliosis.
Janis Joplin left $2,500 in her will for her friends to have a party.
The bubble wrap was originally intended to be a wallpaper.
In Ohio, DUI offenders must use yellow license plates.
Squirrels are behind most power outages in the U.S.
Sunglasses were originally designed for Chinese judges to hide their facial expressions in court.
The Goodyear Blimp is the official bird of Redondo Beach, California.
Grooves in the road on Route 66 play “America the Beautiful.”
Frankenstein is the scientist’s name, not the monsters.
Children of identical twins are considered siblings not 1st cousins.
Welcomed and true facts of 2020
Business donations of $800 Million-Google, $121Million-Amazon, and Pepsico-$50Million
Initial Cares Acts-$2T & subsequent COVID Relief Bill-$908B
$600/week extra Fed dollars added to state unemployment benefits
Deferred rent and extension of eviction
Small business ownership increased by 1.7 Million to 31.7 Million
Top 3 most profitable businesses — auto repair shops, food trucks and car wash
Amazon became #1 brand in the world beating out Apple & Google
Facts we wish aren’t true but of course they are — Trump by the numbers
Trump's tax cut increased US deficit by $2T while retaliatory tariffs led to consumer costs increase of $171B & 41 fast-tracked trademark approvals for Ivanka in ChinaTrump
Trump tweeted/retweeted 25,000 times (average of 18 tweets/day).
91% turnover rate among senior-ranking advisers in executive office of the president (39% turned over more than twice)
53 lifetime judicial appointments and 3 Supreme Court Justices
3600 legal cases, 10 instances of obstruction and 1 impeachment
Trump played golf 307 times (or 1/3 of his presidency) cost US taxpayers $151M.
GOP and other dignitaries spent $8.1M staying/dining at Trump properties.
As of Nov 30th Trump’s super spreader rallies led to 30,000+ COVID cases & 750 deaths.
Under Trump — in 2020 alone we lost 740,000+ manufacturing jobs
50 lawsuits have been filed/lost fighting election results & let’s not forget his 25 (and counting) presidential pardons including Roger Stone, Paul Manafort & Michael Flynn.
As entrepreneurs, we too are a strange breed in that we find all kinds of weird ways to make money…
A pet rock — who in their right mind would buy a pet rock? But in 1975 founder Gary Dahl was able to convince people it was a good idea earning him an estimated $15M.
Reserving a spot in heaven for only $15. It’s a funny little gag gift. Some people loved it, and others think it’s a mockery of religion. Regardless, they’ve been at it for some time now and are still going strong.
Renting out chickens for six months, for $350. Basically, interested parties get a few chickens to take care of to see how raising a chicken works for them.
During this time, we should not lose our ability to create and innovate. It doesn’t matter if it borders on the odd, as long as it keeps us afloat and moving ahead in our businesses. Make sure to use it wisely and with compassion and the opportunities are endless.
“You have to be odd to be number one.” — Dr. Seuss
Wishing you all better days ahead for 2021. Happy New Year!