OH NO! NOT MORE SNOW?

OH NO! NOT MORE SNOW? 

More snow is forecast across the middle of the UK today and into the weekend. Although you might think that it’s a little bit late for the white stuff don’t feel too hard done by.

The UK gets on average 33 days of snow fall or sleet a year.  Most of this is snow falling on higher ground where temperatures are lower. The snow sticks on the ground a lot less often with an average of only 16.6 days a year.

Did you know that on 2 June 1975 snow showers forced the abandonment of several cricket matches across the country? The snowiest winter of the twentieth century in the United Kingdom was 1947. Between 22 January and 17 March snow fell every day somewhere in the country. The most disastrous avalanche in the United Kingdom occurred in Lewes, East Sussex on 27 December 1836. Several houses were destroyed.

So it’s not all that uncommon to see a white Easter, we suggest that you turn up the heating and put the sun lotion back in in the cupboard. Put the kettle on and make yourself a nice brew, maybe treat yourself to a nice new teapot or mug we have lots to choose from at Rubberduckz.co.uk. I know that link was a bit tenuous but it’s late and I’m desperate.

Do you know your doggy?

We have been living alongside our canine friends for around 15,000 years.

But do you really know your pooch?

If you have cancer, diabetes, or epilepsy, your dog might be the first to know. Studies have shown that dogs can be trained to sniff out cancers of the lung, breast, skin, bladder and prostate. Researchers suspect the canines are picking up on extraordinarily faint scents given off by the abnormal cells.

Dogs can be as smart as 2-year-old children, according to research. Border collies are the top dogs in the intelligence category, with some in the breed capable of understanding up to 200 words.

Do dogs feel envy? Recent studies have found that when dogs saw other dogs getting treats for a trick they'd been performing unrewarded, the unrewarded dogs became agitated, scratching themselves and avoiding the gaze of the rewarded dogs. They also stopped doing the trick much faster than if they were alone and not getting a reward.

Or guilt? When dog owners thought their dogs had eaten a forbidden treat and reprimanded them, the pooches looked just as "guilty" regardless of whether or not they had actually eaten the treat. In fact, dogs who were wrongly accused of snack-snatching often looked more guilty than dogs who had really eaten the treat. Turns out those soulful eyes don't reflect any soul-searching, after all.

Dogs are the most diverse animals around, did you know that the skull of Pekingese is as different to that of a Collie as a cat’s skull is to that of a walrus's?

And finally, if you want to make new friends get a dog. Research has proven that people who walk dogs have 3 times more social interactions than those who didn’t.

So owning a dog has more benefits than you think. So how can we repay the favour? We at Rubberduckz.co.uk have a fantastic range of Personalised Pet Bowls and Pet Place Mats which make fantastic Gifts for Pets all year round and will make your doggy feel extra special.

(Thanks to "livescience.com")

It's that time of year again

Spring is in the air and all over the country keen sports men and women are polishing their nine iron and dreaming of that perfect drive. Golf is played by millions of men and women of all ages worldwide.

Here are some amazing facts:

- The chances of making two holes-in-one in a round of golf are one in 67 million

- There are 336 dimples on a regulation golf ball

- The first golf balls were made of thin leather stuffed with feathers. Tightly-packed feathers made     balls that flew the farthest. Feather balls were used until 1848.

- The youngest golfer to shoot a hole-in-one was Coby Orr, who was five years old at the time. It happened in Littleton, Colorado, in 1975.

- 22.8% of golfers are women

- Golf was banned in Scotland from 1457 to 1502 to ensure citizens wouldn't waste time when preparing for an English invasion

- There's a long-standing myth that the word "golf" is an acronym of Gentlemen Only, Ladies Forbidden. Which is amusing, but unfortunately complete rubbish. The word actually stems from original 15th Century spellings that included "gouf", "goulf", "goiff" and "gouff" (indecisive lot, 15th Century Scots).

And the last word goes to that fine gentleman Winston Churchill who stated "It is a game whose aim is to hit a very small ball into an even smaller hole, with weapons singularly ill-designed for the purpose." Sir Winston had obviously had a bad experience.

Love or loath the game we all know a golfer and we at rubberduckz.co.uk have just added some great golfing gift ideas that would make a great Father's Day presents, Birthday gifts or even as a unusual Retirement gift.

(source-intotherough.com)

Daffodil v Leek

Today is St David's but do we wear a Daffodil or a Leek?

According to legend, St David advised the Britons on the eve of a battle with the Saxons, to wear leeks in their caps so as to easily distinguish friend from foe. This helped to secure a great victory. Today Welsh people around the world wear leeks on St David's Day. It is also a surviving tradition that soldiers in the Welsh regiments eat a raw leek on St David's Day.

The Welsh for leek (the original national emblem) is Cenhinen, while the Welsh for daffodil is Cenhinen Pedr. Over the years they became confused until the daffodil was adopted as a second emblem.

So it seems that the Leek came first although I'm sure most people would prefer to wear a daffodil on their lapel rather than pinning a vegetable to their jacket.

If your looking for a gift for the Welsh patriot in your life have a look at our Welsh Flag and Dragon Cufflinks or our Cymru Pewter Tankard ideal as a Birthday Gift or Father's Day present.