Such a fun post! The one saying my grandmother repeated - red sky at morning sailors take warning, red sky at night sailors delight - was her weather prediction. Most of the others my grandfather said all had foul language in them, so I probably should post them.
How funny that your grandfather's sayings had foul language in them - probably to shock his grandchildren! I know a slightly different saying "Red sky at night, shepherds delight, red sky in morning, shepherds warning", probably because we had sheep farms nearby and were far from the sea. Apparently, the saying is a good indicator of good, or bad weather https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/learn-about/weather/how-weather-works/red-sky-at-night
Thank you for sharing this saying, such a typical grandmother type saying 🤣 It also illustrates the cultural aspect of sayings. We don't have molasses in the UK, I think the closest is treacle.
Treacle is an industrial waste product created during the sugar refining process and best fed to the livestock. It is the equivalent of what we would call "Blackstrap." Sorghum molasses is a very light, sweet product similar to honey but made from the boiled down juice from sorghum cane. Sugar cane such as grown in the tropics is similar but not at all the same. Wish you were closer, I'd send you a jar.
Thank you for the very interesting explanation, and the offer of a jar. The wonder of the Internet is that we feel close, even when we live thousands of miles away.
I may have a translation misunderstanding because we can buy black treacle, although it is not popular nowadays. On investigation, I think it is the same as molasses.
Black treacle was used in baking, with yellow 'golden syrup' (also made from cane sugar or sugar beet, and sometimes called treacle), replacing it.
When I next visit the USA I will look for molasses and compare the two!
Hi Elise! We had the same sayings, although I was not allowed to say "don't let the bed bugs bite" because such a thing was unthinkable in our house!!!
My husband travels a lot, and unfortunately, at one point, he brought home bed bugs. We discovered them in our bed, and that night, we decided to sleep on a futon in the other room. On the futon, my husband held me close and whispered in my ear, "Sleep tight." It's one of the funniest moments between us that I can remember.
My grandparents used to say "Wer A sagt, muss auch B sagen", which was basically reminding me to commit to whatever it is I was talking about. I heard it a lot when Grandma was teaching me to knit LOL The literal translation is "He who says A also has to say B." It is one of only a spattering of German I know, but one I find myself hearing a lot in my head.
Thank you, that is a new one to me. As these comments demonstrate, many of these sayings were told to us as children, as a teaching method. It is unsurprising that we remember them, though I rarely repeated any to my daughter. Has "He who says A also has to say B" lived on in your family?
Most of the sayings you've written about are familiar to me from my own childhood. Even though I grew up in what was then Rhodesia, I had Scottish grandparents who were born in the first decade of the 1900s. Thanks for reminding me of them, Kate!
one of my favorite Italian phrases is conosco i miei polli, I know my chickens. Meaning, I know the character of the person I am talking about.
An excellent saying, although like everything it sounds so much better in Italian!
I really like this as I am new to learning Italian. Thanks for this :)
I love this how we change and culture changes, yet some proverbs remain steadfast. Brilliant piece.
Thank you!
Such a fun post! The one saying my grandmother repeated - red sky at morning sailors take warning, red sky at night sailors delight - was her weather prediction. Most of the others my grandfather said all had foul language in them, so I probably should post them.
How funny that your grandfather's sayings had foul language in them - probably to shock his grandchildren! I know a slightly different saying "Red sky at night, shepherds delight, red sky in morning, shepherds warning", probably because we had sheep farms nearby and were far from the sea. Apparently, the saying is a good indicator of good, or bad weather https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/learn-about/weather/how-weather-works/red-sky-at-night
Kate, this was delightful. As a child when I would dawdle instead of work, my grandmother was prone to say, "You are slower than molasses in January.
Thank you for sharing this saying, such a typical grandmother type saying 🤣 It also illustrates the cultural aspect of sayings. We don't have molasses in the UK, I think the closest is treacle.
Treacle is an industrial waste product created during the sugar refining process and best fed to the livestock. It is the equivalent of what we would call "Blackstrap." Sorghum molasses is a very light, sweet product similar to honey but made from the boiled down juice from sorghum cane. Sugar cane such as grown in the tropics is similar but not at all the same. Wish you were closer, I'd send you a jar.
Thank you for the very interesting explanation, and the offer of a jar. The wonder of the Internet is that we feel close, even when we live thousands of miles away.
I may have a translation misunderstanding because we can buy black treacle, although it is not popular nowadays. On investigation, I think it is the same as molasses.
Black treacle was used in baking, with yellow 'golden syrup' (also made from cane sugar or sugar beet, and sometimes called treacle), replacing it.
When I next visit the USA I will look for molasses and compare the two!
See you later, alligator! After a while, crocodile!
Also, we still say, night night sleep tight, usually followed by, "don't let the bed bugs bite"
Hi Elise! We had the same sayings, although I was not allowed to say "don't let the bed bugs bite" because such a thing was unthinkable in our house!!!
My husband travels a lot, and unfortunately, at one point, he brought home bed bugs. We discovered them in our bed, and that night, we decided to sleep on a futon in the other room. On the futon, my husband held me close and whispered in my ear, "Sleep tight." It's one of the funniest moments between us that I can remember.
One of those silly moments that flavour a marriage 🤣. Thank you for sharing!
I saved a list of idioms from my Africa days. One I remember is “the fire is burning but the water isn’t hot.” A lot of folks meet that criteria!
That is an excellent one! A great idiom captures the emotion so perfectly. Sadly, I think I will be able to use this one. Thank you.
Thank you for the mention. I'm honored.
Love these, Kate!! Thanks for sharing!!
So glad you enjoyed them.
My grandparents used to say "Wer A sagt, muss auch B sagen", which was basically reminding me to commit to whatever it is I was talking about. I heard it a lot when Grandma was teaching me to knit LOL The literal translation is "He who says A also has to say B." It is one of only a spattering of German I know, but one I find myself hearing a lot in my head.
Thank you, that is a new one to me. As these comments demonstrate, many of these sayings were told to us as children, as a teaching method. It is unsurprising that we remember them, though I rarely repeated any to my daughter. Has "He who says A also has to say B" lived on in your family?
Most of the sayings you've written about are familiar to me from my own childhood. Even though I grew up in what was then Rhodesia, I had Scottish grandparents who were born in the first decade of the 1900s. Thanks for reminding me of them, Kate!
Another proof that they stand the test of time!