Tuesday, December 25, 2012

Historical Trivia and The Rest of The Story


HMN (kinda) Historical Trivia and The Rest of The Story
Posted By: Watchman
Date: Sunday, 23-Dec-2012 21:55:03
HISTORICAL TRIVIA:
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.'

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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.

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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."

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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.

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And saving the best for last...........
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, now didn't you?

AND NOW YOU KNOW THE REST OF THE STORY!
(If you can believe it)

http://www.rumormillnews.com/cgi-bin/forum.cgi?read=264236

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