› added 6 years ago

392

TIL about the Gympie Gympie bush (or “Suicide Tree”). It delivers a sting described as “like being burnt with hot acid and electrocuted at the same time”. One man was stung and after 3 weeks of agony, was driven “as mad as a cut snake”. Another shot himself after using the leaves as toilet paper.

Read more australiangeographic.com.au

via reddit.com

wLJP1 TIL of the coffin / casket company named Lindner that has a “sexy coffin calendar”
OoGR1 TIL that in Lagos, Nigeria people paint "This house is not for sale" outside their homes to prevent fake estate agents selling their house to someone using fake documents. In many cases the scammed buyer then has the true owner evicted from their own home.
4kk6b TIL about "Pittsburgh toilets," common fixtures in pre-WWII houses built in Pittsburgh, PA and surrounding region. It consists of an ordinary flush toilet installed in the basement, with no surrounding walls to in order to prevent sewage backups from occurring on the main floor of the house.
gX4L TIL people in Seattle are considered cold and stand-offish, making it extremely hard to make new friends in the city. This phenomena is referred to as the “Seattle Freeze”
grWE9 TIL at the turn of the 20th century, baseball umpires were prominent community members chosen from the crowd. They were given easy chairs in the general vicinity of home plate, a fan for hot days, food, and beer.