Thread: Things You Need to Know....

Things you need (?) to know
>
>
>
>
>Things you need to know....or want to learn or as Paul Harvey would
say,
>"Now you know the rest of the story..."
> Q: Why are many coin banks shaped like pigs?
>
>A: Long ago, dishes and cookware in were made of a dense orange clay
>called "pygg". When people saved coins in jars made of this clay, the
jars
>became known as "pygg banks." When an English potter
> misunderstood the word, he made a bank that resembled a pig. And
it
>caught on.
>
>Q: Did you ever wonder why dimes, quarters and half dollars have
notches,
>while pennies and nickels do not?
>
>A: The Mint began putting notches on the edges of coins containing
gold
>and silver to discourage holders from shaving off small quantities of
the
>precious metals. Dimes, quarters and half dollars are notched because
they
>used to contain silver. Pennies and nickels aren't notched because the
>metals they contain are not valuable enough to shave.
>
>Q: Why do men's clothes have buttons on the right while women's
clothes
>have buttons on the left?
>
>A: When buttons were invented, they were very expensive and worn
primarily
>by the rich. Because wealthy women were dressed by maids, dressmakers
put
>the buttons on the maid's right. Since most people are right-handed,
it is
>easier to push buttons on the right through holes on the left. And
that's
>where women's buttons have remained since.
>
>Q: Why do X's at the end of a letter signify kisses?
>
>A: In the Middle Ages, when many people were unable to read or write,
>documents were often signed using an X. Kissing the X represented an
oath
>to fulfil obligations specified in the document. The X and the kiss
>eventually became synonymous.
>
>Q: Why is shifting responsibility to someone else called "passing the
>buck"?
>
>A: In card games, it was once customary to pass an item, called a
buck,
>from player to player to indicate whose turn it was to deal. If a
player
>did not wish to assume the responsibility, he would "pass the buck" to
the
>next player.
>
>Q: Why do people clink their glasses before drinking a toast?
>
>A: It used to be common for someone to try to kill an enemy by
offering
>him a poisoned drink. To prove to a guest that a drink was safe, it
became
>customary for a guest to pour a small amount of his drink into the
glass of
>the host. Both men would drink it simultaneously. When a guest trusted
his
>host, he would then just touch or clink the host's glass with his own.
>
>Q: Why are people in the public eye said to be "in the limelight"?
>
>A: Invented in 1825, limelight was used in lighthouses and stage
lighting
>by burning a cylinder of lime which produced a brilliant light. In the
>theatre, performers on stage "in the limelight" were seen by the
audience
>to be the centre of attention.
>
>Q: Why do ships and aircraft in trouble use "mayday? as their call
for
>help?
>
>A: This comes from the French word m'aidez -meaning "help me" -- and
is
>pronounced "mayday."
>
>Q: Why is someone who is feeling great "on cloud nine"?
>
>A: Types of clouds are numbered according to the altitudes they
attain,
>with nine being the highest cloud. If someone is said to be on cloud
nine,
>that person is floating well above worldly cares.
>
>Q: Why are zero scores in tennis called "love"?
>
>A: In France,where tennis first became popular, a big, round zero on
>scoreboard looked like an egg and was called "l'oeuf," which is French
for
>"egg." When tennis was introduced in the , Americans pronounced it
"love."
>
>Q: In golf, where did the term "Caddie" come from?
>
>A: When Mary, later Queen of Scots, went to France as a young girl
(for
>education & survival), Louis, King of France, learned that she loved
the
>Scot game "golf." So he had the first golf course outside of Scotland
built
>for her enjoyment. To make sure she was properly chaperoned (and
guarded)
>while she played, Louis hired cadets from a military school to
accompany
>her. Mary liked this lot and when she returned to Scotland (not a very
good
>idea in the long run), she took the practice with her.
>In French, the word cadet is pronounced 'ca- day' and the Scots
changed it
>into "caddie."

Originally Posted by neno

Things you need (?) to know
>
>
>
>
>Things you need to know....or want to learn or as Paul Harvey would
say,
>"Now you know the rest of the story..."
> Q: Why are many coin banks shaped like pigs?
>
>A: Long ago, dishes and cookware in were made of a dense orange clay
>called "pygg". When people saved coins in jars made of this clay, the
jars
>became known as "pygg banks." When an English potter
> misunderstood the word, he made a bank that resembled a pig. And
it
>caught on.
>
>Q: Did you ever wonder why dimes, quarters and half dollars have
notches,
>while pennies and nickels do not?
>
>A: The Mint began putting notches on the edges of coins containing
gold
>and silver to discourage holders from shaving off small quantities of
the
>precious metals. Dimes, quarters and half dollars are notched because
they
>used to contain silver. Pennies and nickels aren't notched because the
>metals they contain are not valuable enough to shave.
>
>Q: Why do men's clothes have buttons on the right while women's
clothes
>have buttons on the left?
>
>A: When buttons were invented, they were very expensive and worn
primarily
>by the rich. Because wealthy women were dressed by maids, dressmakers
put
>the buttons on the maid's right. Since most people are right-handed,
it is
>easier to push buttons on the right through holes on the left. And
that's
>where women's buttons have remained since.
>
>Q: Why do X's at the end of a letter signify kisses?
>
>A: In the Middle Ages, when many people were unable to read or write,
>documents were often signed using an X. Kissing the X represented an
oath
>to fulfil obligations specified in the document. The X and the kiss
>eventually became synonymous.
>
>Q: Why is shifting responsibility to someone else called "passing the
>buck"?
>
>A: In card games, it was once customary to pass an item, called a
buck,
>from player to player to indicate whose turn it was to deal. If a
player
>did not wish to assume the responsibility, he would "pass the buck" to
the
>next player.
>
>Q: Why do people clink their glasses before drinking a toast?
>
>A: It used to be common for someone to try to kill an enemy by
offering
>him a poisoned drink. To prove to a guest that a drink was safe, it
became
>customary for a guest to pour a small amount of his drink into the
glass of
>the host. Both men would drink it simultaneously. When a guest trusted
his
>host, he would then just touch or clink the host's glass with his own.
>
>Q: Why are people in the public eye said to be "in the limelight"?
>
>A: Invented in 1825, limelight was used in lighthouses and stage
lighting
>by burning a cylinder of lime which produced a brilliant light. In the
>theatre, performers on stage "in the limelight" were seen by the
audience
>to be the centre of attention.
>
>Q: Why do ships and aircraft in trouble use "mayday? as their call
for
>help?
>
>A: This comes from the French word m'aidez -meaning "help me" -- and
is
>pronounced "mayday."
>
>Q: Why is someone who is feeling great "on cloud nine"?
>
>A: Types of clouds are numbered according to the altitudes they
attain,
>with nine being the highest cloud. If someone is said to be on cloud
nine,
>that person is floating well above worldly cares.
>
>Q: Why are zero scores in tennis called "love"?
>
>A: In France,where tennis first became popular, a big, round zero on
>scoreboard looked like an egg and was called "l'oeuf," which is French
for
>"egg." When tennis was introduced in the , Americans pronounced it
"love."
>
>Q: In golf, where did the term "Caddie" come from?
>
>A: When Mary, later Queen of Scots, went to France as a young girl
(for
>education & survival), Louis, King of France, learned that she loved
the
>Scot game "golf." So he had the first golf course outside of Scotland
built
>for her enjoyment. To make sure she was properly chaperoned (and
guarded)
>while she played, Louis hired cadets from a military school to
accompany
>her. Mary liked this lot and when she returned to Scotland (not a very
good
>idea in the long run), she took the practice with her.
>In French, the word cadet is pronounced 'ca- day' and the Scots
changed it
>into "caddie."

Always like to read facts about where things derived from. I have a whole book of idioms I use to put one a day on the board for my students to ponder over.

very interesting stuff, i love things like that