Sunday, September 12, 2010

A Day We Will Never Forget.

Post 702 ~ ~ Sunday, !2th September, 2010.

Hello my dear friends. I do hope all is well with you and I see we have the
dreaded underlining with us. Well we did, thanks blogger. Yesterday was a sad
day of memories of 9/11, 2001, a day none of us will ever forget. So many lives
lost, and others changed forever. My sympathy for all those who still suffer as
a result.



Peter and Warren just as they left last Tuesday with Peter's car Frank behind them.
It is a Sonata - hence Frank, who we all liked his beautiful music.

I have been tired and not too energetic since they left as they sure brightened the
place up. I hope to feel brighter when the warmer weather arrives.




My cousins Carol and Brien sent me this nice fwd yesterday. We lost an 80 year
old cousin yesterday, but she was very ill and had alzheimers, so it is a blessing.

Life is too short to wake up with regrets.
Love the people who treat you right.
Forget about the one who don't.
Believe everything happens for a reason.
If you get a second chance, grab it with both hands.
If it changes your life, let it. . . .
Nobody said life would be easy.
They just promised it would be worth it.

Friends are like balloons,
Once you let them go, you can't get them back.
So I'm gonna tie you to my heart so I never lose you.
Send these balloons to your friends.
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Next item is rather long and a history lesson sent by my son
John. Thank you for ""An Educated Moment."

There is an old Hotel/Pub in Marble Arch, London which used to
ha
ve gallows adjacent. Prisoners were taken to the gallows,
(after a fair trial of course) to be hung. The horse-drawn dray,
carting the prisoner was accompanied by an armed guard, who
would stop the dray outside the pub and ask the prisoner if he
would like "ONE LAST DRINK."

Id he said YES, it was referred to as ONE FOR THE ROAD. If
he declined, that prisoner was ON THE WAGON. So there you go.
More bleeding history. They used to use urine to tan animal skins,
so families used to all pee in a pot and then once a day it was taken
and sold to the tannery. If you had to do this to survive you were
"Piss Poor" But worse than that were the really poor folk who couldn't
even afford a pot they "Didn't have a pot to piss in" and were the
lowest of the low.

Here are some facts about the 1500s: Most people got married in
June because they took their yearly bath in May, and they still
smelled pretty good by June. However, because they were starting
to smell, brides carried a bouquet of flowers 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 the animals to get warm so all
the cats and other small animals (mice, bugs) lived in the roof.
When it rained it beame slippery and sometimes the animals would
slip and fall off the roof. Hence the saying, "It's raining cats & dogs."
There was nothing to stop things fall into the house. This posed a
real problem in the bedroom where bugs and other droppings could
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
floor to help keep their footing. As the winter wore on, they added
more thresh until, when you opened the door, it would all start
slipping outside. A piece of wood was placed in the entrance--way.
Hence a thresh hold.

Getting quite an education aren't we? 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 quite a while. Hence the rhyme "Peas porridge hot,
peas porridge cold, peas porridge in the pot nine days old.
Sometimes they could get some pork, which made them feel
quite special. When visitors came over, they would hang up their
bacon to show it 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 talking 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 "THE UPPER CRUST."

Lead cups were used to drink ale or whisky. The combination
would sometimes knock the imbibers 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 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 would tie a string on the wrist of the corpse , lead it through
the coffin and up through the ground and tie a bell to it.
out in the graveyard all night (the graveyard shift). Someone would
have to sit up in the graveyard and listen for the bell. Thus someone
could be "Saved by the bell" or was considered a "Dead ringer".

Now, who said History was boring??
<><>

Last one tonight from my friend in Canberra, Linda. Thank you
for "The Nun and the Soldier."

A soldier ran up to a nun. Out of breath he asked, "Please, may
I hide under your skirt? I'll explain later.
The nun agreed.

A moment later two Military Police ran up and asked, "Sister,
have you seen a soldier?"
The nun replied, "He went that way."

After the MPs ran off, the soldier crawled out from under her
skirt and said, "I can't thank you enough Sister. You see, I don't
want to go to Afghanistan."
The nun said, "I understand completely."

The soldier added, "I hope you don't think I'm rude, but you
have a great pair of legs."
The nun replied, "If you had looked a little higher, you would have
seen a great pair of balls. . . . I don't want to go to Afghanistan
either."
<><>

Well I am off to bed, hope you found something to smile about.
Look after yourselves and each other. My love to you all.
Hi Peter, Warren and Vicki. Cheers, Merle.

Post 702 ~ ~ ~ Sunday, 12th September, 2010.
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13 comments:

Jack K. said...

It's good to know that Peter and Warren's visit was so therapeutic for you. Hope the warmer weather comes your way soon.

The history lesson passed my way before. It is still most amusing.

And, as for the funny story, I was a Military Police officer when I was on active duty many years ago. The story is hilarious. Thanks for sharing.

Bwahahhaha!

Lady Di Tn said...

Merle
The history lesson was a truly enjoyable read. Thanks for sharing and again "I wish you enough." as you are one of blogging world's treasures. Peace

Patty said...

LOL, Dear Merle, you certainly are up to your old self in this post. LOL Did enjoy the history lesson, and loved the nun and soldier joke. Rest up and get your energy back. I quit taking a pill the doctor had prescribed for me for my allergies, Singulair. It seemed each day I was feeling worse and worse, I had gotten so depressed. I told our one daughter I didn't feel well once before when I tried them. So after three weeks and feeling worse each day, I stopped them. It might be my imagination, but with in two days I was feeling so much better, then i wondered if perhaps the medicine had just kicked in and was helping, but I wasn't about to try them again to find out. I hated that feeling. I was tired and could hardly drag around some days, had to force myself to get things done. Doctor claims I shouldn't have felt that way, but I think I know how my body feels better than my doctor. And after reading some of the side effects some people do get from it, I don't know why it couldn't have been my problem. So try to think, are you taking any different kind of medicine, or did they take you off of some medication? I wouldn't let it go on too long, I would call the doctor. Take care, thinking of you, Patty

Sharon's Cottage Quilts said...

Dearest Sweet Merle, I so enjoyed your post today, as I do every single time. Company, though wonderful to enjoy, can be tiring. Rest well my friend, warmer weather is on its way!! It is getting cooler here only 1 1/2 weeks of summer left. Boo hoo...I'm thinking of you.
Love, Sharon

Peter said...

WELL!!!! what can I say... we'll settle for Good Post!!

Rob said...

Hi Merle. I always find it hard when friends leave, I hope you feel better about it soon.

Margaret Cloud said...

Yes, this day is etched in our memories for all time. Your sons look like jolly ole fellows and great smiles. You need to rest and get your energy back, but, I bet you would not trade it for anything, the fun you had. This is so great, life is too short. Life is like a blink of an eye, it goes by too fast. Those sayings made me smile, but, I never heard the baby & bath water one. I don't care if the history lesson was long, I enjoyed it. Thanks for a great post as usual.

Dave said...

I really must learn to NOT drink my coffee when reading your jokes Merle! *LOL*

Excellent post as always.. *S*

Big Dave T said...

Glad you had a nice visit with Peter, even if it wore you out. It was raining cats and dogs here this morning. I almost stepped in a poodle (I know, I know--old joke).

audrey` said...

"Love the people who treat you right.
Forget about the one who don't."

It's so true, Merle. True friends are a great blessings from our good Lord. Take care =)

Joy Des Jardins said...

There's something about having visitors around that sparks our lives up...it really is kind of therapeutic. I hope you get some of your energy back sweetie. The nice thing is that you always seem to have visitors coming by your way. I guess you're just too loveable.

Take care sweet friend... Love, Joy

linda may said...

That brother of yours is a real character ....must run in the family. Lol.

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