Y: A to Z Blogging Challenge

For my 2016 A to Z Challenge, I’m sharing three facts for each letter. The genres I write and love to read are mostly science fiction and high or epic fantasy. In fantasy, there is often magic associated with crystals or metals. They also used herbs both for medicine and for magical spells. Each day I will post a short description of an herb or a mineral you might find in medieval or fantasy writings. For the record, most of the herbal remedies I’ve investigated are not recommended by the FDA. Many are actually poisonous and dangerous. As tribute to my second love, I will post a scientific fact that may deal with physics, biology or health science. And because another name for a writer is wordsmith, each day I’ll share a strange word that I would probably never use in my writing, but that amuse me in some way. So enjoy my trio of quick facts. And don’t forget to visit the IWSG site where we’ll share a writer’s resource for every day of the challenge.

Yestreen: Yesterday Evening

Yarrow is an herb found across Asia, North America and Asia. Many believe it will help with digestive disorders, eczema, and female reproduction issues.

Yawning. Everyone knows yawning is contagious and not just in humans. All vertebrate animals yawn. It is the normal response to drowsiness. Some scientists think the contagious part is an evolutionary necessity to keep a group alert for predators. One starts yawning, then the entire group does and wakes up. Physiologically, most believe that yawning not only keeps us alert but does so by cooling the brain.

With only one more letter to go in the Challenge, have you had to yawn a few times? Did you yawn while reading about yawning? Ever have anything with yarrow in? Do you remember what you were doing yestreen?

"Tomorrow is often the busiest day of the week." Spanish proverb