I
call bullshit on most of this…but what do I know?
Did
you know the saying "God willing and the Creek don't rise" was in
reference to the Creek Indians and not a body of water? It was written by Benjamin Hawkins in the late
18th century. He was a politician and Indian
diplomat. While in the south, Hawkins
was requested by the President of the U.S. to return to Washington. In his response, he was said to write,
"God willing and the Creek don't rise." Because he capitalized the word
"Creek" it is deduced that he was referring to the Creek Indian tribe
and not a body of water.
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In
George Washington's days, there were no cameras. One's image was either
sculpted or painted. Some paintings of
George Washington showed him standing behind a desk with one arm behind his
back while others showed both legs and both arms. Prices charged by painters were not based on
how many people were to be painted, but by how many limbs were to be painted. Arms and legs are 'limbs,' therefore painting
them would cost the buyer more. Hence
the expression, 'Okay, but it'll cost you an arm and a leg'. (Artists know
hands and arms are more difficult to paint)
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As
incredible as it sounds, men and women took baths only twice a year (May and
October). Women kept their hair covered,
while men shaved their heads (because of lice and bugs) and wore wigs. Wealthy men could afford good wigs made from
wool. They couldn't wash the wigs, so to
clean them they would carve out a loaf of bread, put the wig in the shell, and
bake it for 30 minutes. The heat would
make the wig big and fluffy, hence the term 'big wig'. Today we often use the term 'here comes the
Big Wig' because someone appears to be or is powerful and wealthy.
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In
the late 1700's, many houses consisted of a large room with only one chair. Commonly, a long wide board folded down from
the wall, and was used for dining. The
'head of the household' always sat in the chair while everyone else ate sitting
on the floor. Occasionally a guest, who was usually a man, would be invited to
sit in this chair during a meal. To sit
in the chair meant you were important and in charge. They called the one sitting in the chair the
'chair man'. Today in business, we use
the expression or title 'Chairman' or 'Chairman of the Board.'
*********************************
Personal
hygiene left much room for improvement. As
a result, many women and men had developed acne scars by adulthood. The women would spread bee's wax over their
facial skin to smooth out their complexions. When they were speaking to each
other, if a woman began to stare at another woman's face she was told, 'mind
your own bee's wax.' Should the woman
smile, the wax would crack, hence the term 'crack a smile'. In addition, when they sat too close to the
fire, the wax would melt. Therefore, the
expression 'losing face.'
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Ladies
wore corsets, which would lace up in the front. A proper and dignified woman, as in 'straight
laced' wore a tightly tied lace.
*********************************
Common
entertainment included playing cards. However,
there was a tax levied when purchasing playing cards but only applicable to the
'Ace of Spades'. To avoid paying the
tax, people would purchase 51 cards instead. Yet, since most games require 52 cards, these
people were thought to be stupid or dumb because they weren't 'playing with a
full deck.'
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Early
politicians required feedback from the public to determine what the people
considered important. Since there were
no telephones, TV's or radios, the politicians sent their assistants to local
taverns, pubs, and bars. They were told
to 'go sip some Ale and listen to people's conversations and political concerns.
Many assistants were dispatched at
different times. 'You go sip here' and
'You go sip there.' The two words 'go sip' were eventually combined when
referring to the local opinion and, thus we have the term 'gossip.'
**********************************
At
local taverns, pubs, and bars, people drank from pint and quart-sized
containers. A bar maid's job was to keep
an eye on the customers and keep the drinks coming. She had to pay close attention and remember
who was drinking in 'pints' and who was drinking in 'quarts,' hence the phrase
'minding your 'P's and Q's'.
**********************************
One
more: bet you didn't know this!
In
the heyday of sailing ships, all war ships and many freighters carried iron
cannons. Those cannons fired round iron cannon
balls. It was necessary to keep a good
supply near the cannon. However, how to
prevent them from rolling about the deck? The best storage method devised was a
square-based pyramid with one ball on top, resting on four resting on nine,
which rested on sixteen. Thus, a supply
of 30 cannon balls could be stacked in a small area right next to the cannon. There was only one problem....how to prevent
the bottom layer from sliding or rolling from under the others. The solution was a metal plate called a 'Monkey'
with 16 round indentations. However, if
this plate were made of iron, the iron balls would quickly rust to it. The solution to the rusting problem was to
make 'Brass Monkeys.' Few landlubbers
realize that brass contracts much more and much faster than iron when chilled. Consequently, when the temperature dropped too
far, the brass indentations would shrink so much that the iron cannonballs
would come right off the monkey. Thus,
it was quite literally, 'Cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey.'
(All this time, you thought that was an improper expression, didn't you.)
If
you don't send this fabulous bit of historic knowledge to all your unsuspecting
friends, your hard drive will kill your mouse.
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