DAVID ADAMS provides a round-up of some stories on the odder side of life…
• Have you put up the Christmas tree yet? If you find it a chore, spare a thought for Thomas and Susanne Jeromin who set up a total of 444 ornate trees and were, as a result, recently certified as world record holders by the German World Record Institute. The Rinteln couple, who have been setting up massive displays for 10 years, have ensured no two trees are the same with their latest display reportedly featuring some 10,000 Christmas balls along with 300 strings of fairy lights across their house. The couple begin preparations months before Christmas to have it ready for the first day of Advent and are hoping to continue with the tradition in future years.
Not a replica – the real, full-sized, Taj Mahal. PICTURE: Rowan Heuvel/Unsplash.
• An Indian man has built a scaled down replica of the world famous Taj Mahal for his wife as a sign of his love for her. The replica property in Burhanpur has four bedrooms, a library and a special meditation room. “I jokingly told my wife, if you pass over, then I will build a Taj Mahal,” said Chouksey, 52, a hospital owner reportedly said. “She obviously refused and said she doesn’t want to die. Then I said, not a problem, I will make a Taj Mahal you can live in.” Artisans and sculptors from across India helped build the replica which took three years to build is open to visitors during school hours.
• What do cheugy, Omicron and Glasgow have in common? They are all on a list of the most mis-pronounced words for 2021 released this week. The US Captioning Company, which creates captions and subtitles for live TV and courtrooms, had commissioned language-learning company Babbel to create the list. Alongside cheugy (CHOO-gee – a word populairised by Gen Z to mock outdated and unfashionable style), coronavirus variant Omicron (AH-muh-kraan/ OH-mee-kraan) and the host city for COP26, Glasgow (GLAHZ-go), the list also reportedly included the surname of singer Billie Eilish (EYE-lish), Chinese retailer Shein (SHEE-in), crytocurrency Ethereum (ih-THEE-ree-um), and the name of the world’s fourth best tennis player, Stefanos Tsitsipas (STEH-fuh-nohs TSEE-tsee-pas).
– With Reuters
