January/ February / March 2015
Holiday Fun Facts
* Charles Dickens wrote “A Christmas
Carol” between October and November
of 1843. He wrote obsessively for six
weeks. The first printing of 6,000 copies
sold out in a day, and the book has never
been out of print.
* The movie “How
the Grinch Stole
Christmas” (2000)
features more
than 52,000 twinkle
lights, about 8,200
ornaments, and
nearly 2,000
candy canes.
* Over 1.76 billion candy canes are
made for the holidays each year, enough
to stretch from Santa Claus, Indiana, to
North Pole, Alaska, and back again 32
times.
* The largest gingerbread man in the
world weighed in at 1,435 pounds, 3
ounces. It was made by IKEA Furuset
(Norway) in Oslo, Norway, on November
9, 2009. The giant gingerbread man was
baked in one piece.
* The world’s largest gift was the Statue
of Liberty. The people of France gave it
to the U.S. in 1886. It’s 151 feet, 1 inch
high and weighs 225 tons.
Just For Laffs
Q. Why did the computer squeak?
The Fish With A Human Face
With a frown, little eyes, and a huge nose, the blobfish
is one unique looking fish with human facial features.
Check out these interesting facts
about this deep-sea creature.
* The blobfish lives in the
deep depths (2,000 to 4,000
feet) beneath the waves of the ocean where the pressure
is 80 times higher than normal sea levels.
* Unlike most fish, the blobfish has no gas bladder to
maintain buoyancy; therefore, it is able to live at the
ocean floor.
* These fish are found off the coasts in Australia, New
Zealand, and Tasmania.
* A blobfish’s body is approximately a foot long with
grey-white coloration.
* The flesh of a blobfish is mostly a gelatinous mass
with a density slightly less than water; this allows the
fish to float above the sea floor without using energy
to swim.
* Blobfish have absolutely no muscles so all they can
do is float. Their lack of muscle is not a disadvantage
to them since they primarily swallow prey that floats in
front of them.
* The female blobfish lays thousands of eggs at a time
and stays near them until they hatch. She usually floats
above the eggs or sometimes rests against them.
* When exposed to air, the blobfish shrivels up. It is
completely inedible.
* Blobfish are often caught as bycatch in bottom trawling
nets. Scientists fear they could become an endangered
species due to accidental over fishing.
Be A Credit Union
Super Saver
Would you like to have money put away to buy the
things you want? Do you want to have a special power
like your favorite Superheroes? If you answered “yes”
to these questions, then it’s time for you to become a
Credit Union Super Saver!
Just follow some simple
steps to help you learn the
Power of Saving:
1. What do you want to
save for, either now or
later? Make a list of these.
2. When you earn money
from household chores, gifts, or allowances, you should
have a safe place at home to save it. Pick a day, and
each week put part of your money away in your Share
Savings Account at the credit union for the things you
want to buy. It’s probably a good idea to also put a
few dollars in your wallet or purse to use for spending
money.
3. Do you know where the rest of your moolah should
go? You guessed it! Your credit union’s Share Savings
Account.
4. Keep track of your money. How much are you earning,
how much are you spending, what are you spending it
on, and how much are you saving? This will make it
easy to see how you’re spending your money and will
help you save more easily.
5. Once you’ve mastered the Power of Saving, pass it
along to your friends so they can become Super Savers,
too. Have fun on your Super Saving missions!
A. Because someone stepped on its mouse!