What Makes Flamingos Pink?

by Bill McLain

The practice of kissing virtually died out during the bubonic plague in the 1600s, because people were afraid of spreading the plague by direct contact with one another. Fortunately, once the plague ended, kissing came back into style.

  It is believed that over 5 million women have kissed the armor-clad statue of Italian soldier Guidarello Guidarelli in Ravenna, Italy, because they believe that so doing will guarantee a happy marriage.

  In the 1926 film Don Juan, the hero kissed a variety of señoritas 191 times, or an average of one kiss every 53 seconds. Seven seconds more and he could have been a “Minute Man.”

  The first kiss ever recorded on film occurred in 1896, when John C. Rice kissed May Irwin in a film called, naturally, The Kiss.

  When someone in the military or industry uses the word kiss, they very often are using an acronym for “Keep It Simple, Stupid!”

  DID YOU KNOW?

  We must enjoy kissing, because it always seems to be cropping up in our language and our music. We even eat chocolate “kisses.”

  There are hundreds of “kiss” phrases such as “kiss and make up,” “kiss and tell,” and “kiss of death.”

  Song titles are filled with the word: “Kiss to Build a Dream On,” “Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me,” “Kisses Sweeter Than Wine,” “Then He Kissed Me,” “Sealed with a Kiss,” and many, many more. There is even a rock group called “Kiss.”

  We even kiss rocks! In the small village of Blarney, Ireland, on the top story of a 90-foot high castle, is the famous Blarney Stone. Legend says that if you kiss the stone you will receive the gift of eloquence. Kissing the stone is not that easy, however. In order to reach the stone to kiss it, you have to lean over backward and downward while someone holds your feet.

  The legend of the Blarney Stone says that an old woman cast a spell over the stone as a reward for a king who had saved her from drowning. When he kissed the stone, the king could speak sweetly and convincingly.

  Another folk legend claims that many years ago the ruler of the castle was told he had to give his fortress to Queen Elizabeth I to prove his loyalty. He said he would be more than happy to do that. However, whenever he was about to give up the castle, it seemed that at the last minute he had some excuse to prevent doing so. His excuses became frequent but quite plausible, and became a joke in the royal court. When the eloquent excuses of the castle owner were relayed to the queen, she replied, “Odds bodkins, more Blarney talk!” Today we use the term “blarney” to mean “an ability to influence without giving offense.”

  And that’s no blarney!

  Why is a wedding ring worn on the third finger of the left hand? (A path to the heart, for eternity.)

  As far as we know, the ancient Egyptians were the first to place a ring on the third finger of the left hand to signify the marriage union. It was placed on that finger because Egyptians believed that the “vein of love” ran from this finger to the heart. They used a ring because they believed that the circle was the symbol for eternity. It represented perfection because it had no beginning and no end.

  Rings found in ancient Egyptian tombs were made of pure gold. The name or title of the owner was engraved on the ring in hieroglyphs. The poorer citizens of Egypt wore rings of silver, bronze, amber, ivory, or simply glazed pottery.

  Because gold was precious to the early Romans, a gold ring symbolized everlasting love and commitment.

  King Edward VI of England decreed that the third finger on the left hand was to be the ring finger. In the 1549 Book of Common Prayer, the left hand was designated as the marriage hand.

  From the earliest times in our history, people have always given advice to newly married couples such as “comfort each other,” “respect one another,” and “listen to each other.” One of my personal favorites is “Never yell at each other unless the house is on fire!”

  FACTOIDS

  The old wedding phrase “Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue” has a definite history. Something “old” referred to a personal gift from the bride’s mother to provide a bond to the bride’s old life and family. Something “new” signified hope for the future and was symbolic of the new family to be formed by the married couple. Something “borrowed” was to be a gift from a happily married woman. The gift was supposed to carry some of the married woman’s happiness into the new marriage. Something “blue” had two different meanings. Ancient Roman maidens wore blue because it denoted modesty and fidelity, while for Christians the blue is associated with the purity of the Virgin Mary.

  The origin of the wedding shower is based on the legend of a Dutch maiden who fell in love with a poor miller. Her family could not afford a dowry so their friends “showered” them with gifts so that they could be married without a dowry.

  Hindus tie old shoes on vehicles leaving the wedding ceremony as a sign of good luck.

  Because an Anglo-Saxon bride was often kidnapped before a wedding, she stood to the left of the groom so his sword hand would be free. The best warrior in the tribe stood next to the groom to help him defend his bride. That is why in today’s weddings, the best man stands to the right of the groom.

  Many cultures believe that loud noises scare away evil spirits. Today the tradition continues with our custom of the bridal party honking their horns when leaving the wedding.

  In medieval times, Europeans believed that newly married couples were very vulnerable to evil spirits. If the groom carried the bride, she was protected from the floor and the evil spirits in the ground. That is the origin of the custom of carrying the bride over the threshold.

  DID YOU KNOW?

  Our wedding customs and traditions come from diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Although most of us are familiar with our own wedding customs, there are many fascinating customs in other times and countries.

  Because African-American slaves were not permitted to marry, they publicly declared their love by jumping over a broom to symbolize jumping through a doorway from single life to the domestic life. Couples had their hands bound together at the wrists so that they were symbolically linked. Although some people believe this is the origin of the phrase “tying the knot,” many other cultures have a similar ceremony. For example, in a Hindu marriage ceremony, the bridegroom hangs a ribbon on the bride’s neck and then ties it in a knot. The ancient Carthaginians bound the thumbs of the betrothed with leather thongs.

  In small Italian villages, the newlyweds walk to the town plaza, where there is a sawhorse, a log, and a double-handled saw. With the crowd cheering them on, they must saw the log apart. This symbolizes that in all of life’s trials and tribulations, the couple must always work together.

  In the simple Moravian wedding ceremony, the bride and groom together light one large candle. Every guest has a handmade beeswax candle. One guest lights his candle from the large candle and then uses his candle to light the candle of the guest next to him. This continues until everyone in the church has a lit candle, symbolic of the warmth of love from family and friends.

  No matter what the country, a wedding is filled with love.

  How long has the running of the bulls been held and how many people have died? (Don’t mess with these dangerous creatures, and that’s no bull.)

  The running of the bulls, known as the encierro, has a very long history, although, the current event in Pamplona, Spain, began around 1852 as part of the nine-day festival of San Fermin, usually in July.

  The tradition started when it was necessary to drive the bulls from their corral to the bullring. At first, drovers prodded the bulls along the way, but eventually the boys of the butchers guild, who were responsible for buying the bulls, began running in front of the bulls to show their courage. They felt if they didn’t run and prove their bravery, no Pamplona girl would ever marry them. That’s how the tradition started.

  Since the running of the bulls started, 13 people have been killed, all since 1924. Prior to 1924, there is no record of anyone being killed, mainly because no one kept any records.
In that year a young man received a mortal stab wound to his lungs just as the bulls were entering the ring. In 1995 Peter Matthews Tasio died on the horns of a bull, and the photograph was seen all over the world.

  In 1947 a bull named Semillero killed two people. In 1980 the bull Antioquio also killed two people, one at the town hall and another in the bullring. In 1997 the last person to die was a Spanish onlooker who fell from a high stone wall.

  In addition to the deaths, there have been a number of near-fatal injuries as well as a large number of contusions. An American was lifted by a bull’s horns and shaken furiously before being tossed to the ground. A Swede was lifted the same way and flipped around for over 10 seconds before escaping.

  Pamplona, Spain, is not the only place that promotes the running of the bulls. The United States now has its own version of the famous Pamplona event. It started in 1998 and is held annually in the small town of Mesquite, Nevada, near the Arizona border. Runners pay $50 each to be chased by twenty 1,500-pound Mexican fighting bulls down a narrow course as long as six football fields. There were no fatalities in the inaugural event, although a few people were injured.

  FACTOIDS

  The running of the bulls occurs every morning during the nine-day fiesta. It’s estimated that more than 2,000 runners take part.

  The run itself lasts, only a couple of minutes. The excitement is in the intensity of the spectacle and the risk of injury or death.

  A fighting bull is as fast as a race horse for a short distance, can turn sharper than a polo pony, can hook a falling leaf, can overturn an automobile with its tossing muscle, is considered one of the smartest animals, and is the only animal known to instinctively attack a man or a horse.

  DID YOU KNOW?

  If you should ever decide to partake in the running of the bulls, here are some tips for you.

  Never enter the fray if you’ve been drinking. It’s a good way to get killed.

  Keep your eye on the bull (not the ball). Bulls are very fast and can catch up to you very quickly. You also need to watch the runners in front of you. If one of them trips and you don’t notice, you’ll fall on him and the bull is going to be on top of both of you.

  Never try to get the bull’s attention. The bull simply wants to get out of the tight path as quickly as possible and will go straight to the bullring if you let him. If you get his attention and he gets separated from the group, you’ll have to confront him, which might be terribly unpleasant.

  If you fall, stay down. The bull will just step on you as he passes, as will the other bulls. Although you may get bruises and broken bones, it’s better than standing up and getting gored by a charging bull. People have died this way in the past. Hug the ground and cover your head with your hands. A few prayers would also help.

  When you get into the ring, fan out and head for the closest barrier. This will give the drovers room to drive the bulls into the waiting pens. If you go to the center of the ring, you’ll be in the path of the bulls—not a good spot to be in.

  Here’s the best tip of all: stay home and watch the running of the bulls on television.

  Why is there a crescent moon on outhouse doors? (A symbol of the times.)

  The main reason for carving anything into an outhouse door is for light. Outhouses didn’t have electric lights and putting in a window wasn’t a very good idea. So builders of outhouses carved a design into the door, above the line of sight, to let in light. The carved design let in sufficient light during the day, and at night the moon would also shine through the cutout. The hole also helped with ventilation.

  Although any design could be carved, in most pictures a crescent moon is carved in the outhouse. Most authorities believe that the use of this symbol dates back to the 1500s or 1600s. Because people were largely illiterate at that time, putting up signs saying MEN and WOMEN wouldn’t have been much help. So the builders used cutouts of the moon and sun to let people know which outhouse to use. The moon has long been accepted as representing women, while the sun represented men. These symbols also helped foreign travelers who might spend the night at an inn. It didn’t matter what language they spoke because the symbols told them which outhouse to use, much like the universal nonverbal symbols we use today for “no smoking,” “telephone,” “slippery when wet,” and so on.

  If one of the outhouses at an inn was damaged or destroyed and could no longer be used, it was automatically assumed to be the men’s outhouse. The reasoning was that men could always go behind a tree, so the crescent moon was put on the remaining usable structure for use by women. For economy, many inns only constructed an outhouse for women. This custom soon became so widespread that eventually the moon became a symbol used for all outhouses.

  FACTOIDS

  Most outhouses had two different-size holes, a larger one for adults and a smaller one for children.

  In a federal park in Pennsylvania, park rangers wanted people to have a nice rest room facility, so they designed a two-hole outhouse without running water. The park service spared no expense to create a unique structure. It was built of quarried limestone and had a gabled roof. It cost $333,000 and took two years to build, being completed in 1996. It’s even earthquake proof.

  An Illinois woman publishes an outhouse newsletter. She has also donated most of her 700 outhouse knickknacks to a Canadian museum.

  Centuries ago, plumbing pipe was made from wood or earthenware. Eventually lead was used, and it took skilled workers to fit or repair pipes in a building. The Latin word for “lead” is plumbum from which we get the word plumber.

  Many cities and counties hold annual outhouse races. Volunteers run along city streets pulling along outhouses of every design and color imaginable. Races are held in Alaska, New Mexico, New York, Texas, and Washington, to name just a few states.

  DID YOU KNOW?

  For some Americans, the only place to have a few minutes of quiet and solitude is their automobiles. In crowded Japan, a common sanctuary is the rest room.

  An American tourist in Japan might find using some of the more innovative Japanese toilets extremely intimidating. First of all, there is the array of buttons on the toilet’s keypad. The characters are in Japanese.

  There are controls for raising, lowering, and warming the seat, a tiny sprayer that cleanses you with water, a temperature control for the water spray, a fan for blow-drying you after the water, and even a deodorizing fan. Oh, yes, there is also a control to flush the toilet.

  Unfortunately, there are stories of tourists who never manage to comprehend the workings of these high-tech toilets. Some panic and get stuck in the stall. Others cannot figure out how to turn off the water spray and don’t know how to get up without being drenched in water. There was also the case of four old high-tech toilets that caught fire. That can be very disconcerting at best.

  Although the Japanese are noted for technology, if you’ve ever been befuddled by a high-tech Japanese toilet, you may decide that the old two-hole outhouse isn’t that bad after all.

  Why are barns always painted red? (Why paint them at all?)

  Early barns in this country were not painted. Farmers considered painting a barn to be extravagant and showy; they simply couldn’t afford it. By the mid 1800s red paint became cheap. It was made with iron oxide, which we call rust. This inexpensive paint appealed to the thrifty farmers of New England and New York. It soon became stylish to paint a barn red, a nice contrast to the typically white farmhouse. As people started migrating to the Midwest, they brought their customs with them, and it was rare to find a barn in the area that was not red.

  There are other theories, however. One theory claims that barns were painted red because of the influence of Scandinavians, who painted their barns red to simulate brick. Brick buildings were a sign of wealth. Another theory suggests they were painted red to complement the green fields.

  Perhaps one of the most interesting theories is a circular explanation. It asserts that red paint was readily available to farmers and was ch
eap because paint manufacturers made so much of it. The reason the paint companies made so much of it was that that’s what the farmers wanted.

  Today there are many different colors of barns. In parts of Kentucky, for example, barns are painted completely black. This is believed to be due to the tradition of creating a cheap wood preservative by using a mixture of lamp black and diesel fuel. In Pennsylvania, central Maryland, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Iowa, barns are typically painted white. One guess is that when barns were used for dairy production, they were painted white to associate them with the cleanliness of their milk production. However, that’s only a guess.

  In other areas of the country, barns may be painted yellow, green, blue, or gray.

  However, a barn painted any color other than red is still a barn.

  FACTOIDS

  Aside from the traditional barns, some round barns were built, often with a silo in the center, the idea being that it was more efficient to have all cows facing a central feeding area. Round barns became very popular at one time, and octagonal barns were also built as a variation.

  New England farmers often built a covered walkway between the farmhouse and the barn so they could care for their cattle without having to face the elements. They also banked manure around the sides of the barn and house to keep themselves and their cows warm in the winter.

  Some farmers decorate barn roofs by using different-colored roof shingles to create a pattern of a horseshoe, a cloverleaf, or even the farmer’s name.

  Early barns had neither ventilators for fresh air nor windows to let in light. As rooftop ventilators became more popular, farmers started enclosing them in wooden cupolas, often with elaborate designs crowned by a fanciful weathervane.