This stuff is cool. Where did all the stuff we say every day come from?

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."

“OK” comes from the expression, “oll korrect.” Back in the 1830s and 1840s, an interesting fad -- where people began using abbreviations rather than entire terms -- started in Boston and spread further West. People used expressions like “NG” for “no go” or “SP” for “small potatoes.” Naturally, the fad couldn’t last forever and many of the abbreviations went into immediate retirement. But “OK” persevered.

It actually gained significant momentum after being used in 1840 by supporters of soon-to-be-President Martin Van Buren, who was known as “Old Kinderhook” so named because he was a native of Kinderhook, NY. Van Buren’s Democratic followers adopted “OK” as a term of identification for their club and it was eventually integrated into the vernacular. later the military dubbed the expression "A-OK"

In the 1700s ....

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.

Your name is Mud - John Wilkes Booth broke his leg while escaping after shooting Abraham Lincoln in 1865. He was given medical help by Dr Samuel Mudd, who didn't then know about the assassination. Mudd was convicted of being Booth's conspirator, although he is widely believed to have been innocent. Actually, whether Mudd was innocent or not is of little consequence in regard to the origin of this phrase. It was in general circulation before Lincoln was assassinated. This comes from John Badcock's (aka 'J. Bee’) Slang - A dictionary of the turf etc., 1823: (credit to www.phrases.org )

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."

This expression derives from a familiar caution that had everything to do with how beds were constructed at the time. A mattress was placed on rope woven through a square frame, and if it wasn’t strung tightly enough, the bed would sag and possibly hit the floor. Which is where the bed bugs come into play: they are real and they do bite. So back when things were a lot less sanitary, if the bed or the sheets touched the floor you were in for some itchy sleep.

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."

Cheap Car Insurance - Free Insurance Quotes - More than an Expression

One more: I 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.

"Dead Ringer,” means an almost identical copy or likeness. In horse racing a substitute horse is referred to as a ringer. It is said that some less-than-honest owners maintain two horses that look almost identical, hence, the use of the word “dead” meaning “exact,” like if you were to say, “the target was hit dead center.” They race the slower horse until the odds are to their liking, then replace it with the faster horse to win big bucks on the race.4

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?)

Weird Things and Crazy Funny Stuff - Click Here

A little Bird Told Me - I like this one because it seems to have a Biblical origin. The saying conjures up visions of a small bird sitting on someone's shoulder, whispering secrets which should better be left unsaid. It could relate to a friend telling a necessary truth to another friend, to help a third party in a difficulty they are unwilling to take aid for. Or, since it relates to ancient sayings, it could come from the Bible at Ecclesiastes 10:20: "Do not curse a king even in your thoughts, and do not curse the rich while in your bedroom; for a bird might report what you are thinking, or some winged creature might repeat your words".

My Political statement of 02/10/08

My Latest Revised Political Statement in June 08