HISTORY YOU CAN USE

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)

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 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.'


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.'