Special offer

Fun Friday Factoids (on Saturday)

By
Real Estate Agent with RE/MAX..214-289-6176 Irving and all of Dallas Fort Worth 0525401

Fun Friday Factoids.....

 

Itsy bitsy teeny weeny yellow polka dot................

Bikini

 

The first (modern day) teensy weensy swimsuit known as the "bikini" went on sale in 1947. But how did it get its name? The male reaction to this was often described to be like an atomic bomb. Since a year prior, 1946, the Marshall Islands were used for the atomic bomb test. 167 natives were moved to Rongerik under "Operation Crossroads" by William H.R. Blandy. Later more commonly referred to as "Bikini Island Bomb Tests." Since this skimpy swimsuit created about the same earth shattering reactions as the bomb, it was explosively named the Bikini. After a few years, it was no longer capitalized and became bikini to represent a fashion style that showed a lot of skin, not necessarily for swimwear. I.E. A bikini-style top...but history shows bikinis are much older than 1947...the picture on the left shows The "Bikini girls" mosaic showing women exercising, first quarter of the 4th century AD. Villa Romana del Casale, Sicily.. which just proves if you wait long enough it will come back in style..but could be centuries....be patient....

 

 

Hands Down

....This basically means to score a victory without much work. One version is with horse racing the jockey doesn't even have to lift his hands to guide his horse if he's way out in front. Another one is for boxing in which the opponent is a pushover and so the winner doesn't even have to raise his hands to protect himself.

 

 

Lock, Stock and Barrel

In old days, a rifle (or musket) had 3 major parts: A lock, a stock of wood and a metal barrel. Each part was totally useless without the other one. They had to all work together or well, you got nothing. But when they were all in sync, what a BLAST! Thus, when a person chose to put everything 100% into an decision, action or commitment and not just half-heartedly, he is said to be doing it "lock, stock and barrel."

Also could mean.... lock stock and barrel also referred to when you bought a farm. Lock meant the house , stock was all the animals and barrel was the rain barrel meaning all the trivial junk, so that it was absolutely everything at the time of sale that was on the land that was sold If the previous owner left something valuable behind it was yours (too bad for them) as it had all been sold lock stock and barrel.

 

 

Break the Ice

 

All cities that grew as a result of being on rivers (for trade) suffered during bitter cold times when the river froze. Even large ships got stuck, making them icebound for weeks. Little small sturdy ships known as "icebreakers" were develop to precede the ships breaking ice and making a path. This was important for the ships to get the goods to market. And so every boatman knew that in order to get down to business, you first had to break the ice. Today it represents any sort of start to a project.

 

             It Ain't Over Till The Fat Lady Sings____

is a colloquialism, essentially meaning that one should not assume the outcome of some activity (e.g.: a sports game) until it has actually finished, similar to a common proverb. It is a perception of Grand Opera, typically overweight sopranos, and perhaps Brünnhilda's final arias from Die Walküre or Götterdämmerung in particular, from an American working class cultural perspective of the early 20th century.

 

Posted by

Pat O'Reilly

I can be reached at 214-289-6176 or email me at pat@patohomes.com. I work all of Dallas Fort Worth and I am available to help you relocate anywhere in this great area. (Irving, Coppell, Grapevine, Euless, Lewisville, Carrollton, Dallas, Fort Worth and all surrounding Areas)

- Free Home Buyers Guide

- Free Home Evaluation

                         - Free Search DFW Homes For Sale

               

Jody Lautenbach
Century 21 Premier Associates - Pella, IA

Thanks for sharing those fun facts.

Apr 03, 2010 03:57 AM
Stephanie Reynolds
Integrity First Financial Group, Inc. - Santee, CA
East County San Diego Homes 619-838-4408

I love stuff like this! It is always fun to understand the origin of certain phrases!

Apr 03, 2010 04:12 AM