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."


************************************************** **********

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.


************************************************** **********

In the late 1700s, 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."


************************************************** **********

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."


************************************************** **********
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 term "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.)

__________________

To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.


I can be found at
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.