DAILY DIRT: ‘Stressflation’ might be the next buzzword of this wacky time

I wonder if that new word (“stressflation”) has been patented yet? … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 377 of The Daily Dirt.

1. Well, as if we didn’t have to enough to worry about these days …

A biotechnical products distribution company (yeah, I have no real idea what that means either) has released a study that covered five years (2017-2021) that allegedly determined the combined effects of stress and inflation on people. That combination of stress and inflation is called “stressflation”.

MyBioSource.com, headquartered in San Diego, Calif., is the company that came up with a formula to measure the increased demands at home and work from the pandemic, plus the financial concerns tied with those predicaments. Hence, “Stressflation”.

Here are some of the study’s findings:

The Illinois county with the highest “stressflation” over the last five years was found to be Cass County, with a 9 percent increase. More specifically, citizens there had a 4 percent increase in physical stress, as well as 5 percent increase in mental stress.

Quincy has a stressflation rate of 6 percent, which is among the highest in the highest in the state.

Over the past five years, here are the states that have seen the largest increase in stress, both mentally and physically:

• 1. Maine.
• 2. North Dakota.
• 3. Ohio (apparently, those football losses to Michigan can be devastating).
• 4. Kansas.
• 5. Michigan.

Other notables:

• 24. Illinois.
• 26. Missouri.
• 36. Iowa.

2. Today’s little-known fact from pop music history:

There have been nine songs go to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 performed by two different artists.

The first: “Go Away Little Girl” by Steve Lawrence (1963) and Donny Osmond (1971).

The most recent: “Mady Marmalade” by Labelle (1975) and Christina Aguilera/Li’l Kim/Mya/Pink (2001).

3. This week’s most disgusting meal comes to us from the Philippines and Vietnam:

“Balut” is commonly found as a street-food delicacy in both Vietnam and the Philippines. It is usually either a chicken or duck embryo that is boiled alive and eaten straight out of the shell. (Yeah, my gag reflex just went through the roof, too.)

Steve Thought O’ The Day — OK, about that third thought. Here are a few other ways to enjoy a (chicken) egg besides eating the embryo that has been boiled alive:

• 1. Scrambled.
• 2. Over easy.
• 3. Sunny side up.
• 4. Baked.
• 5. Fried.
• 6. Deviled.
• 7. Egg sandwich.
• 8. Ham and eggs.
• 9. Egg salad.
• 10. Omelet.

Steve Eighinger writes daily for Muddy River News. He’s been ham and egging it for years.