jim_supra Posted October 8, 2005 Share Posted October 8, 2005 Right, have checked the site and cannot find these anywhere so hopefully not a repost! well, maybe some but oh well! Many years ago in Scotland, a new game was invented It was ruled "Gentlemen Only...Ladies Forbidden"...and thus the word GOLF entered into the English language. In the 1400's a law was set forth that a man was not allowed to beat his wife with a stick thicker than his thumb. Hence we have "the rule of thumb" The first couple to be shown in bed together on prime time TV were; Fred and Wilma Flintstone. Every day more money is printed for Monopoly than the US Treasury. Men can read smaller print than women can; women can hear better. The percentage of Africa that is wilderness: 28% (now get this...) The percentage of North America that is wilderness: 38% The average number of people airborne over the US any given hour: 61,000 Intelligent people have more zinc and copper in their hair. The first novel ever written on a typewriter: Tom Sawyer. Each king in a deck of playing cards represents a great king from history: Spades - King David Hearts - Charlemagne Clubs -Alexander, the Great Diamonds - Julius Caesar If a statue in the park of a person on a horse has both front legs in the air, the person died in battle. If the horse has one front leg in the air the person died as a result of wounds received in battle. If the horse has all four legs on the ground, the person died of natural causes. Q. If you were to spell out numbers, how far would you have to go until you would find the letter "A"? A. One thousand Q. What do bulletproof vests, fire escapes, windshield wipers, and laser printers all have in common? A. All invented by women. Q. What is the only food that doesn't spoil? A Honey Q. Which day are there more collect calls than any other day of the year? A. Father's Day In Shakespeare's time, mattresses were secured on bed frames by ropes. When you pulled on the ropes the mattress tightened, making the bed firmer to sleep on. Hence the phrase......... "goodnight, sleep tight." It was the accepted practice in Babylon 4,000 years ago that for a month after the wedding, the bride's father would supply his son-in-law with all the mead he could drink. Mead is a honey beer and because their calendar was lunar based, this period was called the honey month. which we know today as the honeymoon. In English pubs, ale is ordered by pints and quarts... So in old England, when customers got unruly, the bartender would yell at them "Mind your pints and quarts, and settle down." It's where we get the phrase "mind your P's and Q's" Many years ago in England, pub frequenters had a whistle baked into the rim, or handle, of their ceramic cups. When they needed a refill, they used the whistle to get some service. "Wet your whistle" is the phrase inspired by this practice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mad Matt Posted October 8, 2005 Share Posted October 8, 2005 I'm all the more knowlegable for that m8! Well done, some surprising facts there Jim! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Prawn Posted October 8, 2005 Share Posted October 8, 2005 Q. If you were to spell out numbers, how far would you have to go until you would find the letter "A"? A. One thousand One hundred And one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeordieSteve Posted October 8, 2005 Share Posted October 8, 2005 Q. If you were to spell out numbers, how far would you have to go until you would find the letter "A"? A. One thousand What about ONE HUNDRED AND ONE? In English pubs, ale is ordered by pints and quarts... So in old England, when customers got unruly, the bartender would yell at them "Mind your pints and quarts, and settle down." It's where we get the phrase "mind your P's and Q's" Which English pubs are they!?!?!? In my local you can't even order a soft drink without being kicked out! lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jim_supra Posted October 8, 2005 Author Share Posted October 8, 2005 One hundred And one What about ONE HUNDRED AND ONE? oh yeah, well spotted! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jake Posted October 8, 2005 Share Posted October 8, 2005 The golf one isn't true. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeordieSteve Posted October 8, 2005 Share Posted October 8, 2005 One hundred And one Bugger... I was feeling all smug as well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ewen Posted October 8, 2005 Share Posted October 8, 2005 Cool facts there.... Shame about GOLF being fishy....other fishy ones include 'POSH' - Port out, Starboard Home, refering to the richer class being able to afford cabins on the side of a ship way from the wind and spray. 'Gannin oot to see a man aboot a dog' - alledgedly a euphanism refering to northern henpecked husbands not wanting their wifes to know they were actually goinf to the pub to dring 'dog', or Newcastle Brown. How about 'thinking outside of the box' ? - Draw three lines of three dots, so that you have a 'box' with a dot in each corner and one in the middle...the challenge is to draw four straight lines, that pass though each dot, without taking the pen off the paper and not going back over a previous line....those who manage this are 'thinking outside of the box' Its still legal to shoot a Welshman with a bow and arrow in Colchester or somewhere, unless its a sunday Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivan Posted October 8, 2005 Share Posted October 8, 2005 'POSH' - Port out, Starboard Home, refering to the richer class being able to afford cabins on the side of a ship way from the wind and spray.This actually refers to the old India Line ships. Port was the side with the shore view (and sunrise) on the way there, starboard on the way back. Its still legal to shoot a Welshman with a bow and arrow in Colchester or somewhere, unless its a sundayChester. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ewen Posted October 8, 2005 Share Posted October 8, 2005 This actually refers to the old India Line ships. Port was the side with the shore view (and sunrise) on the way there, starboard on the way back. Chester. Hi Ivan....I bow to your superior knowledge Is this Chester / Welshie / sharp pointy thing where it hurts true then ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobSheffield Posted October 8, 2005 Share Posted October 8, 2005 another interesting one is the (possibly) true (ish) story of where the word F*ck comes from in medieval times sex was only allowed under licence (allegedly) and at times when new licences were being granted a sign would be hung on the office door saying Fornication Under Consent of King - F - U - C - K never checked the reliability of my sources on that one though - most are dead! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scoboblio Posted October 8, 2005 Share Posted October 8, 2005 Egyption slave traders used salt as a bartering material as it was very valuable... hence any slave not working hard enough was considered to be "not worth his salt". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeordieSteve Posted October 8, 2005 Share Posted October 8, 2005 Nope, affraid not http://www.snopes.com/language/acronyms/fuck.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobSheffield Posted October 8, 2005 Share Posted October 8, 2005 interesting Steve! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ewen Posted October 8, 2005 Share Posted October 8, 2005 Bet the guy who wrote that has never farted in a lift...he needs to get out more Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jake Posted October 8, 2005 Share Posted October 8, 2005 The Posh thing about "Port Out, Starboard Home" is bollocks too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jake Posted October 8, 2005 Share Posted October 8, 2005 From http://www.wordorigins.org/wordorp.htm Posh This is another word with an apocryphal acronymic origin. Popular etymology has it that posh is an acronym for Port Out, Starboard Home. Supposedly, this acronym was printed on first-class tickets issued by the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company going from England to India. The port side on the trip out would have the coolest cabins (or alternately the cabins with the best view). The same would be true of the starboard cabins on the return trip. From this origin, sprang the usage of the term meaning swank, elegant, or fashionable. Unfortunately for this excellent story, no tickets with Posh stamped on them have been found and company records reveal no sign of the phrase. The earliest recorded use of posh to mean swank is from the 25 September 1918 issue of the British humor magazine Punch. In 1903, P.G. Wodehouse in Tales of St. Austin's used push to mean fashionable. Whether this was a printer's error or Wodehouse actually meant to use push is unknown (several later editors "corrected" this to read posh). In contrast, according to Merriam Webster the earliest claim to the acronymic origin dates to 17 October 1935 in the London Times Literary Supplement, where it is claimed to be of American origin. The earliest association with the P&O dates to two years later, almost twenty years after the word's usage was established. Posh dates back to at least 1867 in the sense of meaning a dandy or fop. The best guess as to its origin is that it derives from Romani, the language of the Rom (commonly known as Gypsies). In Romani, posh means half and is used in monetary terms like posh-houri or half-pence, and posh-kooroona meaning half-crown. The progression from money to a fancy dresser to swank is logical, if undocumented. Alternatively, Partridge postulates that the "swanky" meaning of posh may be a contraction of polish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivan Posted October 9, 2005 Share Posted October 9, 2005 Jake, in turn I bow to your better web research skills (instead of my believing what I see on the tele). Is this Chester / Welshie / sharp pointy thing where it hurts true then ?LOL Apparently so - I remember my daughter telling me after she went to live up that way (she's into castles, history and that sort of stuff). Something to do with Chester being in England but geographically should be in Wales I think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DamanC Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 Its still legal to shoot a Welshman with a bow and arrow in Colchester or somewhere, unless its a sunday Result! *goes and purchase's a bow and arrow* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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