4. Dow Flew on Boeing: The biggest percentage gainer for the Dow industrials was Boeing, up about 35 percent for the half. In terms of Dow points, the aircraft manufacturer contributed 207.95 of the blue chip index's 1,805.46-point gain. (S&P Dow Jones Indices)
5. But It Crawled on CAT: Only three companies subtracted points from the industrials, and the worst offender was Caterpillar, a stock weakened by a global slowdown in demand for its construction machinery. The company pulled 15.45 points from the Dow, joining only IBM and Alcoa as losers. (S&P Dow Jones Indices)
6. No Junkyard Dogs: The first half wrapped and the second half began with huge questions surrounding the fixed income market. No sector has performed better than junk, which saw issuance that set a first-half record despite a precipitous June decline. Companies went to market with $278 billion of high-yield debt, a stunning 55 percent rise over 2012. Investors in the bonds were rewarded ... sort of. Amid a sea of bond-market red, the Barclays Corporate High Yield Index rose 1.4 percent through June. (Dealogic)
(Read More: Before Exiting Bonds, Try These Ideas)
7. Quality Counts, Too: It wasn't just junk that was popular. Despite fears that the Federal Reserve backstop would be fading for the debt markets, high-grade companies weren't shy about issuing debt, either. Investment-grade debt totaled $910 billion, up 10 percent from 2012, of which $448.6 billion came in the second quarter, a 17 percent increase and the best second-quarter ever. (Dealogic)
8. Dividends Were Just Delightful: The period saw 1,535 dividend increases against just 204 decreases or suspensions. In the second-quarter alone that amounted to $17.6 billion, with the year-to-date total about $31 billion. (S&P Dow Jones Indices)
9. Insert Your Favorite "Tarnished Gold" Wordplay Here: Hold gold? Not much point in selling now, with the yellow metal off 30 percent from its Oct. 4, 2012, intraday peak of $1,803 an ounce. How bad was the gold liquidation this year? The SPDR Gold exchange-traded fund surrendered $18.2 billion in assets for the first six months, while the Powershares DB Gold ETF lost another $269 million. Never-say-die gold bugs are hoping for a pop ... somewhere. (IndexUniverse)
(Read More: Gold Bugged: Contrarians Not Ready to Give Up Yet)
10. Nothing Like the First Time: While the year has had so many positive trading sessions, nothing matched opening day. Relieved that the "fiscal cliff" hysteria had passed, traders sent the Dow up 308.41 points on Jan. 2. The worst day: That happened on June 20 with a 353.87-point drop when panicky traders worried that Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke was about to take his punch bowl and go home, spoiling the raucous four-year-long stock market party. (S&P Dow Jones Indices)
—By CNBC's Jeff Cox. Follow him @JeffCoxCNBCcom on Twitter.