Matt: I know this [M.A. web archive] page is almost ten years old, but in the last several years, since the FCC was basically dismantled by Bush and the younger Powell, all commercials are louder …
March 8, 2006
Straight from the Hip
Archived articles
Stop Yelling!
Stricken
Heymatt: If you strike a safety match on the approved, official strip on the side of the box, the match burns just fine. So why can't you generate a spark when you strike a safety …
March 6, 2006
Olive Knowledge
Matt: Why can't I buy black olives in glass jars, just in cans? -- Olivia, San Diego You can't buy them in jars because they don't sell them in jars. Ha-ha, hum� Well, its all …
March 2, 2006
Fig Who?
Matt: Who are Fig Newtons named after? Isaac? Huey? Juice? Wayne? -- JW, San Diego It's a what, not a who. In the late 1890s, a Philadelphia inventor devised a machine that could produce a …
March 2, 2006
Barefootin'
Hey, Matt: I'm an avid barefooter, and I go out as much as possible barefoot because it is healthier than it is to wear shoes. I enjoy being able to feel something with my feet …
March 1, 2006
No Grapes, No Nuts
Hey, Matt: What's up with Grape Nuts? There are no nuts or grapes in the entire box. Not even raisins. Who named this cereal, and why did they think it was a good idea to …
March 1, 2006
Mysterious Elvira
Matt: I was recently looking on-line at the Yahoo Maps map of the intersection of I-5 and Highway 52 and found the single word "Elvira." Then I was on a jog under this very intersection, …
February 23, 2006
Write Right
Heymatt: Being right-handed it seems natural that I write from left to right on the page. This way I can see what I've written. And since most people (at least in the Western world) are …
February 23, 2006
Go See Cal!
How old is Cal Worthington? I'm 65, and I remember watching him sell cars on TV ads when I was a kid. As seen on TV lately, he looks pretty good. Or has he been …
February 22, 2006
Rx?
Heymatt: Why does Rx mean prescription? -- Wendy, San Diego Rx is shorthand for recipe, the Latin imperative meaning, "Take it!" What passed for doctors in medieval times wrote Recipe at the top of a …
February 22, 2006
Lost-pet Litigation
Hi, Matthew: Concerning those heart-wrenching lost dog or cat flyers distraught humans post advertising a reward for the returned pet: do they create a contract? If you were to find and return the beloved pet, …
February 22, 2006