SmartDrivel

The first go round with fun phrases was such a hit, Jon and Kurt decided to give it another whirl. Not wanting to "Let the Cat Out of the Bag," but proving to not be a "Flash in the Pan," they wanted to see if they could do it again. Enjoy their presentation of more fun phrases and from whence they came.

Jon and Kurt dig deep to bring you little nuggets you can use to dazzle your friends at your next dinner party. What words in the English language don’t have a rhyme? Who is the model for the NBA logo? Where did the word suede come from? Why do we have Gin & Tonics? And many more truly relevant facts.

The fanny pack. Spray on hair. Corsets. Beanie Babies. Eating placentas. Polyester leisure suits. Yes, in this episode, Jon and Kurt explore fads and trends of the past that have, thankfully, passed us by.

You are probably asking yourself right now, “solo synchronized swimming…Isn’t that an oxymoron?” And while you would be correct, it didn’t stop it from being a honest-to-god true Olympic sport in not one, but three, Olympic Games: 1984, 1988, 1992. We guess that by 1992 a dictionary or thesaurus ended up at the IOC headquarters and they quietly got rid of it. All of which leads Jon and Kurt to have fur this episode sharing absolute true stranger than fiction legitimate crazy (getting the idea) Olympic sports. Like chorus singing (1912-1948), live pigeon shooting (1900), hot air ballooning (1900), etc. Nothing needs to be embellished here…the authenticity of these events generates the humor. Take a listen and be amazed at what humans can come up with to compete for medals. Olympic bobbing for apples anyone?

Part of the explanation of what makes humans on top of the food chain is our ability to govern ourselves and make communal laws. However, like all things humans touch, invariably things get out of control. In this episode, Jon and Kurt talk about some of the most ludicrous, head-scratching, obscure laws that are still on the books in cities across the globe. Whatever you do, do not have an ice cream cone in you back pocket on a Sunday in Georgia.

What? That is toads, not rhinos, that give you warts. Well, actually, that’s not true either. For centuries, we have blindly (not like a bat) given myths to animals that we hold to be true. But here is the kicker, they are patently false. Jon and Kurt go on a debunking mission and spread the truth gospel about many cherished animal legends (spoiler alert…ostriches don’t bury their heads in the sand and goldfish can remember things for well more than 3 seconds). There goes our little water cooler bon mots. Damn.

Jon and Kurt decide to check the veracity of time-honored and venerated sayings/proverbs/idioms by applying science, math, logic to the idioms. Can lightning really not strike the same location twice? Can a walnut remove scratches in the floor? Can you really teach an old dog new tricks? Tune in, have a listen, and don’t take any wooden nickels.

Join Jon and Kurt in the greatest, funniest, smartest, drivelest episode ever. Yes, indeed, they reveal the biggest, oldest, smelliest, farthest “ests” of all time. Oldest piece of art? Highest IQ? Strongest animal on earth? Shortest novel ever written? Smallest country? Geeze, this is just the best.

If you knew that the etymology of the word “decide” killed off all other choices, then you might be apt to decide for yourself to listen to this latest episode. Jon and Kurt decide to continue their discussion on words in the English language–where they come from, why they exist, and some crazy fun facts about them thrown in for good measure. We’re not being sarcastic (spoiler alert), we do think you will want to figure out all the words that have e before i. Give it a listen, ya?

Bowing to popular demand, Jon and Kurt are back with a whole new episode dedicated to words. Revisiting a favorite topic – fun facts about words–our two co-hosts provide a bevy of tidbits, etymologies, backstories, and really cool information about some of the most used and interesting words. Where did “mentor” the word originate and why? What word has the most definitions? Well, you get the idea. Consider yourself armed for your next dinner party conversation.