› added 11 years ago

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TIL that Don Mclean’s kids sang the Weird Al Yankovic parody (‘The Saga Begins’) of his classic 'American Pie’ so much that he sometimes sings it accidentally in concert.

VBkjD TIL: In 1998, American, British and Canadian air forces all failed to shoot down a rogue weather balloon from Canada. The balloon was 25 storeys high and as wide as several football pitches. Two CF-18 fighters fired more than 1,000 rounds into it off the coast of Newfoundland.
Qw59 TIL that despite containing a sizable population that despises homosexuality and Western liberal values, Zanzibar’s tourism industry thrives because of Queen fans that visit the island to see Freddie Mercury’s birthplace.
ZlPR TIL a British man spent three days pushing a Brussels sprout with his nose to the summit of one of the UK’s tallest mountains: “People definitely think I’m mad, and I’m beginning to think it myself.”
Me1Em TIL Norway has a sovereign wealth fund to the value of over $1 Trillion USD which includes 1.3% of global stocks and shares, it is primarily funded by the profits of the Norwegian petroleum sector. In total the fund has a value of over $180,000 per Norwegian resident.
40RR TIL a cat named Artful Dodger, regularly catches the bus by himself in his hometown of Bridport, UK. He waits at the station for the bus to arrive, and travels the 10 mile round trip to neighbouring Charmouth so often, that the drivers bring in tins of cat food and know what stop to let him off at.