Tom
Well-Known Member
And here I thought I had baited breath after eating sardines.
so waht ya doin today?
- Thread starter fiver
- Start date
Pistolero
Well-Known Member
You got your theory, I got mine. 
I agree on tow headed, and tow sacks. But not on "toe the line".
Old military saying from a DI, "{Mister you better toe the line, or I will......."
I have seen multiple pages of dueling theories on a lot of these old sayings.
How about "freeze the balls off a brass monkey"? Nothing to do with scuptures.
I agree on tow headed, and tow sacks. But not on "toe the line".Old military saying from a DI, "{Mister you better toe the line, or I will......."
I have seen multiple pages of dueling theories on a lot of these old sayings.
How about "freeze the balls off a brass monkey"? Nothing to do with scuptures.
Last edited:
Bret4207
At the casting bench in the sky. RIP Bret.
Try "Son of a gun" (an insult to you and your mother). It's the mispronounced words that drive me nuts. Wheelbarrow becomes wheelbarrel, escape becomes exscape, specific becomes pacific, exit becomes eggsit. And those are the common type. If I had a dollar for every time I heard Perch-er-ron instead of Percheron (persh-ur-on) or Hallf-linger instead of Haflinger (haff-linger) i could probably buy a new haybine! Or how about the 9mm Para-bell-ium or Leo-pold scope. In the carpentry line you have clap-boards instead of clabb-erds and wains-scot instead of wains-coat (no, really, it's COAT). Up here a harrow, rhymes with arrow, is a harr-o and a battery is a bat-ree. But then Monpetit (mo-peh-tee) is mon-pet-it!!! And we're on the Canadian border 30 miles south if the Quebec line! BTW- it's not Kweh-bek, it's Keh-bek. I give up. We used to have a 911 dispatcher that would misuse "whom" at least a dozen times a shift. I don't know where she picked it up or why she insisted on using the word but she'd use it where who
was the proper word every time. It was just a habit for her but it was like being forced to listen to rap to me.
Fixed a mess of stuff yesterday, spent some barn cleaning time (always fun), ordered several parts for busted machines and found these days a Kohler carburetor, brand new, is under $30. A kit to rebuild an old worn one with stripped screws is also just under $30. Easy choice there. Went to calling hours for a local guy who fought brain cancer for close to 10 years, left a wife and 4 girls behind, sad. Amish guy stopped by to re-evaluate my foundation repair, again. Got the goat research paperwork all done. Rained like cats and dogs ( a saying that comes from thatched roofs in merry old England when cats and dogs would literally fall through the old roof of a bank barn or dugout type shelter they got up on- or so it's claimed by historians). Spent 15 minutes figuring out how to shut off the weather alert function on my phone! The slightest hint of a black cloud or thunderhead on the horizon and that thing was beeping at me non-stop.
Vocabulary- when we were working on Gords school work one of his projects was to read aloud to someone. So, being the dinosaur I am I gave him a Hardy Boys book to read that he thought looked interesting. My wife, the speech therapist/teacher, was sitting there one night as he read aloud and asked if I'd read a lot of the series. I acknowledged I had. She said it was no wonder I had a decent vocabulary as the book used words in descriptions she said would never even be taught in school today. We got a lot of it by osmosis in reading. Of course most kids don't read at all today, they just watch it on a phone. Heaven help them if they ever try to read something like James Fennimore Cooper, to say nothing of The Canterbury Tales or the early King Arthur legend! I have a hard enough time trying to decipher the writings of Jefferson and Washington, much less the real old stuff.
was the proper word every time. It was just a habit for her but it was like being forced to listen to rap to me.
Fixed a mess of stuff yesterday, spent some barn cleaning time (always fun), ordered several parts for busted machines and found these days a Kohler carburetor, brand new, is under $30. A kit to rebuild an old worn one with stripped screws is also just under $30. Easy choice there. Went to calling hours for a local guy who fought brain cancer for close to 10 years, left a wife and 4 girls behind, sad. Amish guy stopped by to re-evaluate my foundation repair, again. Got the goat research paperwork all done. Rained like cats and dogs ( a saying that comes from thatched roofs in merry old England when cats and dogs would literally fall through the old roof of a bank barn or dugout type shelter they got up on- or so it's claimed by historians). Spent 15 minutes figuring out how to shut off the weather alert function on my phone! The slightest hint of a black cloud or thunderhead on the horizon and that thing was beeping at me non-stop.
Vocabulary- when we were working on Gords school work one of his projects was to read aloud to someone. So, being the dinosaur I am I gave him a Hardy Boys book to read that he thought looked interesting. My wife, the speech therapist/teacher, was sitting there one night as he read aloud and asked if I'd read a lot of the series. I acknowledged I had. She said it was no wonder I had a decent vocabulary as the book used words in descriptions she said would never even be taught in school today. We got a lot of it by osmosis in reading. Of course most kids don't read at all today, they just watch it on a phone. Heaven help them if they ever try to read something like James Fennimore Cooper, to say nothing of The Canterbury Tales or the early King Arthur legend! I have a hard enough time trying to decipher the writings of Jefferson and Washington, much less the real old stuff.
Last edited:
Ian
Notorious member
I never had a single lesson in spelling, grammar, or sentence structure. Just lots and lots of good reading.
Ok Bill, I concede the point on "Toe the Line", after resorting to internet research it appears that the English Navy invented that one a few hundred years ago, and it has evolved from there. I do find it interesting that "tow", as in flax fiber, is a term that has virtually been lost, as have many, many other words which have fallen out of usage. When most people gain vocabulary from conversation rather than literature, words that fall out of usage disappear entirely after a short time.
Ok Bill, I concede the point on "Toe the Line", after resorting to internet research it appears that the English Navy invented that one a few hundred years ago, and it has evolved from there. I do find it interesting that "tow", as in flax fiber, is a term that has virtually been lost, as have many, many other words which have fallen out of usage. When most people gain vocabulary from conversation rather than literature, words that fall out of usage disappear entirely after a short time.
smokeywolf
Well-Known Member
Both my parents, particularly my father, were very well read and had broad vocabularies. "Ain't" was not permitted in the household and if you were heard ending a sentence with a preposition, you would be teased and harassed for days. As a result, hearing "Where are you AT?" or "Where was it AT?" is like fingernails down a chalkboard to me.
KeithB
Resident Half Fast Machinist
One of the best bosses (and just a really fine guy) I had at the University was a big believer in being able to write clearly and precisely. “We can’t all be Hemingway but we should all be able to write a lab report” type of guy. He claimed that if you wanted to be a good writer/author then you needed to read good writing instead of trash literature. (He put Tom Clancy in that category).
He is one of main reasons U has a writing requirement school wide and the Engineering Dept there has its own policies. It’s also reason I require students in any class I teach to write something original (not fill I blank lines in pre-written lab report for example). Some students complain to Dept head every time and get shut down real fast. All that does is confirm I’m meeting writing requirement standards and I get big thumbs up from boss.
Had eye injection yesterday so plan to stay mostly inside today. Going to run a highly automated mill job and cut some stock off in saw while it’s cycling. We will be signing final loan papers after lunch. Yippee, one more step.
He is one of main reasons U has a writing requirement school wide and the Engineering Dept there has its own policies. It’s also reason I require students in any class I teach to write something original (not fill I blank lines in pre-written lab report for example). Some students complain to Dept head every time and get shut down real fast. All that does is confirm I’m meeting writing requirement standards and I get big thumbs up from boss.
Had eye injection yesterday so plan to stay mostly inside today. Going to run a highly automated mill job and cut some stock off in saw while it’s cycling. We will be signing final loan papers after lunch. Yippee, one more step.
JonB
Halcyon member
The Fowl is caged. the cats run free and are well fed.
while the chicken tractor (coupe/cage) is appropriately sized, the house/cage the ducks are in is surprisingly small, IMHO...3 ducks in a cage house the size of a average dog house. I guess the 3 ducklings were a impulse purchase at the feed store in April or May? They look full size now, but they said they won't be laying until they are 6 months old.
JonB
Halcyon member
Pistolero
Well-Known Member
Michel, I think both kinds may have existed, but as you stack more balls, the four sided is more efficient of
quantity. Either system will work, and regardless, the shrinkage issue is real. Brass has about twice the coefficient
of expansion of cast iron. Most bimetal strips for thermostats have been made with iron and bass strips fused.
BUT, regardless of geometry, it could happen. And maybe only the four sided ones were used. I do know of
at least ONE triple stacking setup (monkey may be buried here) The is the Tsar's Cannon in the Kremlin in Moscow.
The story is that the Tsar (like any good Russian) JUST HAD TO HAVE the biggest cannon, so he had this one with a
one meter bore made up. You will note, that unlike most cannon of the era, the barrel wall thickness is essentially
constant, not thicker at the breech end. A rumor has it that the four balls are 1 cm larger than the bore diameter,
just in case some latter day fool decided to try to actually shoot it. I wish I had an accurate caliper at the time.
Here is a square stack.
The one question I still have, is whether one can find a reference in ancient literature where the cannonball storage
plate/rack is called a "monkey". This one has always 'seemed like it is true' but I will not be totally certain
until I read a book somewhere written in 1840 or so about storing their cannonballs "on a monkey".
I personally call this one 'credible, but unproven' at this point.
Bill
quantity. Either system will work, and regardless, the shrinkage issue is real. Brass has about twice the coefficient
of expansion of cast iron. Most bimetal strips for thermostats have been made with iron and bass strips fused.
BUT, regardless of geometry, it could happen. And maybe only the four sided ones were used. I do know of
at least ONE triple stacking setup (monkey may be buried here) The is the Tsar's Cannon in the Kremlin in Moscow.
The story is that the Tsar (like any good Russian) JUST HAD TO HAVE the biggest cannon, so he had this one with a
one meter bore made up. You will note, that unlike most cannon of the era, the barrel wall thickness is essentially
constant, not thicker at the breech end. A rumor has it that the four balls are 1 cm larger than the bore diameter,
just in case some latter day fool decided to try to actually shoot it. I wish I had an accurate caliper at the time.
Here is a square stack.
The one question I still have, is whether one can find a reference in ancient literature where the cannonball storage
plate/rack is called a "monkey". This one has always 'seemed like it is true' but I will not be totally certain
until I read a book somewhere written in 1840 or so about storing their cannonballs "on a monkey".
I personally call this one 'credible, but unproven' at this point.
Bill
Last edited: