mangogroove
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| posted on 8/4/04 at 11:50 AM |
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Facts of the 1500`s
> Most people got married in June because they took their yearly bath in May
> and still smelled pretty good by June. However, they were starting to
> smell so brides carried a bouquet of flowers to hide the body odor. Hence
> the custom
> today of carrying a bouquet when getting married.
>
> * * * * * *
>
> Baths consisted of a big tub filled with hot water. The man of the house
> had the privilege of the nice clean water, then all the other sons and
> men, then the women and finally the children-last of all the babies. By
> then the water was so dirty you could actually lose someone in it. Hence
> the saying, "Don't throw the baby out with the bath water."
>
> * * * * * *
>
> Houses had thatched roofs-thick straw-piled high, with no wood underneath.
> It was the only place for animals to get warm, so all the dogs, cats and
> other small animals (mice, bugs) lived in the roof. When it rained it
> became slippery and sometimes the animals would slip and fall off the
> roof. Hence the saying "It's raining cats and dogs."
>
> * * * * * *
>
> There was nothing to stop things from falling into the house. This posed a
> real problem in the bedroom where bugs and other droppings could really
> mess up your nice clean bed. Hence, a bed with big posts and a sheet hung
> over the top afforded some protection. That's how canopy beds came into
> existence.
>
> * * * * * *
>
> The floor was dirt. Only the wealthy had something other than dirt. Hence
> the saying "dirt poor."
>
> * * * * * *
>
> The wealthy had slate floors that would get slippery in the winter when
> wet, so they spread thresh (straw) on the floor to help keep their
> footing. As the winter wore on, they kept adding more thresh until when
> you opened the door it would all start slipping outside. A piece of wood
> was placed in the entranceway. Hence the saying a "thresh hold."
>
> * * * * * *
>
> In those old days, they cooked in the kitchen with a big kettle that
> always hung over the fire. Every day they lit the fire and added things to
> the pot.
> They ate mostly vegetables and did not get much meat. They would eat the
> stew for dinner, leaving leftovers in the pot to get cold overnight and
> then start over the next day. Sometimes the stew had food in it that had
> been there for quite a while. Hence the rhyme, "Peas porridge hot, peas
> porridge cold, peas porridge in the pot nine days old."
>
> * * * * * *
>
> Sometimes they could obtain pork, which made them feel quite special. When
> visitors came over, they would hang up their bacon to show off. It was a
> sign of wealth that a man "could bring home the bacon."
> They would cut off a little to share with guests and would all sit around
> and "chew the fat."
>
> * * * * * *
>
> Those with money had plates made of pewter. Food with high acid content
> caused some of the lead to leach onto the food, causing lead poisoning and
> death.
>
> This happened most often with tomatoes, so for the next 400 years or so,
> tomatoes were considered poisonous.
>
> * * * * * *
>
> Bread was divided according to status. Workers got the burnt bottom of the
> loaf, the family got the middle, and guests got the top, or "upper crust."
>
> * * * * * *
>
> Lead cups were used to drink ale or whisky. The combination would
> sometimes knock them out for a couple of days. Someone walking along the
> road would take them for dead and prepare them for burial. They were laid
> out on the
> kitchen table for a couple of days and the family would gather around and
> eat and drink and wait and see if they would wake up. Hence the custom of
> holding a "wake."
>
> * * * * * *
>
> England is old and small and the local folks started running out of places
> to bury people. So they would dig up coffins and would take the bones to a
> "bone-house" and reuse the grave. When reopening these coffins, 1 out of
> 25 coffins were found to have scratch marks on the inside and they
> realized they had been burying people alive. So they thought they would
> tie a string on the wrist of the corpse, lead it through the coffin and up
> through the ground and tie it to a bell. Someone would have to sit out in
> the graveyard all night (the "graveyard shift" to listen for the bell;
> thus, someone could be "saved by the bell" or was considered a "dead
> ringer."
>
> * * * * * *
>
> And that's the truth...
>
> Now , whoever said that History was boring ! ! ! !
>
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sgraber
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| posted on 8/4/04 at 08:21 PM |
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Most interesting! I love reading about stuff like that. How do these "truths" come to light after so many years? Or - where are you
finding this info?
Graber
Steve Graber
http://www.grabercars.com/
"Quickness through lightness"
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mangogrooveworkshop
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| posted on 8/4/04 at 09:29 PM |
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Theres more!
Steve Check out your email
Weird Law Facts - Woman Drivers! (rating - 4.95833/5)
In Memphis, Tennessee, a woman is not to drive a car unless a man warns approaching motorists or pedestrians by walking in front of the car that is
being driven.
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Rorty
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| posted on 9/4/04 at 06:40 AM |
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I've seen mangogrooveworkshop's contribution several times in emails, and while it makes very amusing reading, it is complete hogwash.
Social history is a very keen interest of mine, and I can state not one of those "explanations" is even remotely true.
I suspect it was written with tongue firmly planted in cheek for some review or other.
Cheers, Rorty.
"Faster than a speeding Pullet".
PLEASE DON'T U2U ME IF YOU WANT A QUICK RESPONSE. TRY EMAILING ME INSTEAD!
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Staple balls
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| posted on 9/4/04 at 06:45 AM |
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i'll have to agree with rorty here, these sort of things are usually 95% bullpoo, but in that there's probably some level of truth in
there somewhere
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Staple balls
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| posted on 9/4/04 at 06:52 AM |
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snopes debunks it too
clicky
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