How it came to be...

[OttawaChris]

Darlene's story made me think of one of my favorite hobbies... finding out why things are the way they are!

Ever wonder where some strange sayings came from?

Rule of thumb:
From old English law... which stated that a man could not beat his wife with anything thicker than his thumb.

Its cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey:
From the old sailing days... Iron cannon balls were sat in brass rings called a monkey. When it was cold enough, the brass rings contracted more than the iron in the cannon balls causing them to fall off... hence the balls were frozen off the brass monkey.

The whole 9 yards:
Back in the days when women still made their own dresses... fabric came on spools 9 yards in length. When they wanted to make an elaborate dress it would take a lot more fabric, therefore they went the whole 9 yards.

I have lots more to share... but I would like to hear some of yours too! Anyone have more?