Folk Saying: Crow

Yes, I know these are not crows, but I have been dying to use this photo!
Taken by Kimberly Burnette-Dean 10/28/14

Have you ever heard the saying, "I've got a crow to pick with you?" My dad used it all of the time and I also have heard many other people use it too. He used to say that to me if I had forgotten to do something or did something wrong. For example, I would come into the room and he would say "I've got a crow to pick with you!"  Then he might follow that up with I forgot to pick him up some Pepsi the last time I went to the grocery store. Basically, he was saying that he had a complaint against me.   If you have ever heard someone say "I've got a bone to pick with you", it means the same thing.

I finally found this in The Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898), page 254): on the Internet Archive.

 "I must pluck a crow with you; I have a crow to pick with you. 

I am displeased with you, and must call you to account.

 I have a small complaint to make against you. 

In Howell’s proverbs (1659) we find the following, 

“I have a goose to pluck with you,” used in the same sense." (p. 254)

Have you ever heard or used this saying?

Rain Crows

Have you ever heard a rain crow? When I was growing up, my Grandpa Burnette told me that any time that you can hear a rain crow calling, it will rain later on that day or night.

For years, I thought that a rain crow is what it was really called. One day I commented to a co-worker about a rain crow that was calling.  He looked at me a bit strangely and asked me what I was talking about.  I told him to listen a minute and I would tell him when I heard it again. He then told me that it was a yellow-billed cuckoo!

Listen for the rain crow.  You are guaranteed that it will rain when you hear one!

Visit this link to hear the rain crow.

I posted about rain crows and other rain signs a couple of years ago here.

For other folk sayings and beliefs, click on "Folk Sayings" & "Folk Beliefs" under the Topics Cloud in the right hand column.

Copyright 2014--All Rights Reserved--The Wheel & Distaff by Kimberly Burnette-Dean 

Hoop Snakes

When I was growing up, we always watched out for snakes.  The thought process in our family was that the only good snake was a dead snake!  The only poisonous snakes in that part of Virginia are rattlesnakes and copperheads, although the only snake that we ever saw was either a garter snake or a black snake.  

My grandpa always told me that the snake that I had to worry about the most was the dreaded hoop snake. He said that it looks just like a black snake, until it gets mad at you. Then it will bite its own tail, form a hoop and roll after you!  He said that they only way you could escape from the rolling hoop snake was to run up a hill!

Did you ever have an encounter with a hoop snake?

Weather Lore

I have heard that using seaweed as a barometer is very effective and that people used to bring home a piece of seaweed and hang it on their porches.  If fine weather is predicted, the seaweed will be dry and crumbly.  If wet weather is coming, then it will expand and feel damp since it will absorb moisture from the air.

If trees show the lighter underside of their leaves, wet weather is a sure thing. (This is caused by the increasing moisture in the air which softens the leave stalks, causing them to turn over.)

If your cat gets extremely frisky, then expect high winds.

Dogs tend to get agitated before the arrival of a thunderstorm.  Of course, their keen ears hear it long before our pitiful human hearing detects the booming thunder.

If you see all of the cows in a field lying down and chewing their cud, rain is on the way.

A cat washing behind its ears is a sure sign of rain to come.

When the day is going to be hot and dry, spiders spin longer and larger webs.  If rain is coming, the webs are short and small or the spiders disappear altogether.

If a cock goes crowing to bed, he will surely wake with a watery head.  (If a rooster crows at night, there will be rain by the next morning.)

 Copyright 2013--All Rights Reserved--The Wheel & Distaff by Kimberly Burnette-Dean

Weather Lore

Since we are having a Spring snowstorm, 

I thought that a bit of weather lore might be interesting!

March 24, 2013
Photo by Kimberly Burnette-Dean

Easter in snow, Christmas in mud.  

Christmas in snow, Easter in mud.

If it rains on Easter Day,

There shall be good grass but very bad hay.

As many mists in March as there are frosts in May.

Thunder in April, Floods in May.

March winds and April showers. Bring forth May flowers.

Rain before seven, fine before eleven.

Smoke falling instead of rising is a sure sign of bad weather to come.

Soot falling down your chimney is also an indicator of coming bad weather.  

(This is because the soot will become heavy from absorbing moisture 

from the atmosphere causing it to fall.)

Rain from the east will last three days at least.

It is said that if snow hangs around on the ground for an extended time, 

that it is waiting for more snow to fall.

March 24, 2013
Photo by Kimberly Burnette-Dean

Copyright 2013--All Rights Reserved--The Wheel & Distaff by Kimberly Burnette-Dean

Very Superstitous

Grandma & Grandpa Burnette--December 1977

When I was growing up, I was fortunate that my Grandpa & Grandma Burnette were my babysitters. Much of my life was shaped by both of them and I would not change it for the world! Both of them taught me wonderful values and that you have to work for what you want.

I do not think that either of them were truly superstitious, but there were certain things that they would always say or do and it rubbed off on me.  I mean, really, why tempt fate?!

Here are some of the ones that I remember and I still do most of them.

Don't rock an empty rocking chair. Grandpa & Grandma both always sat in wooden rocking chairs and I was forever sitting on the couch with my foot on one of the chairs and I would start rocking it. They both always told me that I would have bad luck if I did that.

Always leave a house by the same door that you came in. I typically always went in the back door when I visited them, but sometimes I would start to leave by the front door. Many times, they would be sitting on the front porch and Grandma would always tell me to go back through the house and go out the back door.  I still have a tendency to do this no matter where I am.

Don't open an umbrella in the house. I'm sure that much of the reasoning for this one is so that you do not poke someone in the eye with one of the umbrella ribs, but I still will not open an umbrella in the house because Grandma said that it would be bad luck.

Make an "X" on the windshield when a black cat crosses in front of your car. Grandma used to always tell me of a lady who lived just down the road. If a black cat crossed in front of her, she would refuse to go any further and would return home!  I'm not quite that bad.  Just to be safe, any time that a cat runs in front of my car, I make THREE sets of THREE "X"s on the windshield and I do that no matter what color the cat.

Knock on wood--Always knock on wood after you say something so you will not be tempting fate. An example might be, "Our potatoes are sure growing good this year. I haven't seen a single potato bug so far!"  Always knock on wood.  I still do this one, probably at least 3-4 times per week!

The ever popular "don't walk under a ladder." I suspect that just about everyone has heard this one. Of course, it makes lots of sense because a couple of bad things could happen: If you bumped into the ladder, you might knock someone off of it and of course, you might knock something like a tool or paint bucket off off the ladder onto your head. 

Never say that you are going to so something tomorrow unless you say "if the Lord's willing." My Grandma was a big believer in this one. I remember that I would be so excited that I was going to go stay at a friend's house the next day and I was just chattering on and on about it. Grandma finally told me that I should always say "if the Lord's willing" when I was talking about doing something in the future.

Copyright 2013--All Rights Reserved--The Wheel & Distaff by Kimberly Burnette-Dean

Folk Sayings #4

Do you use these sayings or have you heard them before?

Since the temps are supposed to be in the 70s tomorrow and it is 1/11/13,
I thought that a glimpse of snow might be nice!

Like a bump on a log.

Sneezing three times in a row is a sign of a stranger coming.

If your ears burn, someone is talking about you. If it is the right one, someone is "talking good" about you, the left, someone is "talking bad" about you.

If your palm itches, you will receive money soon.

If your nose itches, company is coming. Right side a man, left side a woman.

Teach your granny to suck eggs.

To be down in the mouth

If you kill a snake it can still bite you because it is not truly dead until after sundown.

Scarce as hen's teeth.

Old as the hills. 

The Mystery of Grandpa's Sayings

John Edward Burnette
ca. 1980

My Grandpa Burnette had some very unusual and colorful sayings.  I would give most anything if he were still alive so that I could ask him where he picked up these sayings or why he said them. He died when I was in my teens and it never occurred to me to question him then. I am sure there are other sayings that were just as intriguing, but here are the ones that I remember the most.

 *****

My parents and I lived just across the road from Grandpa and Grandma Burnette, so we were all always in each other's homes. When Grandpa used to be at our house and it was time for him to go home, he would say "I'm going back across the channel."  Well, as a little girl, when he said "channel" the only thing that I could picture in my mind was a television channel! That didn't make sense to me, but Grandpa was always saying things that sounded a bit strange to my ears. Now, I am wondering if he was making a reference to the English Channel and why would he have been doing that?

If Grandpa was referring to something that happened before I was born when he was talking to me, he would always say "that happened while you were over in the Old Country." I had no idea what that meant, but it always made me giggle. Of course, years later I found out that he was referring to Europe the way that many immigrants would have referred to it after they came to the United States.

When Grandpa was ready to leave, I would always beg him to stay a bit longer. He would say that he had places to go and things to do. When I would ask him where he was going, he would say "I'm off to Nova Scotia!"  To my knowledge he was never there and had no relatives there either. Another mysterious saying.

*****

Now, some things to keep in mind. My Grandpa was born, raised, and lived most of his life in Virginia.  He did live in West Virginia for a brief time when he worked in the coal mines.  No matter what branch of the family tree that I trace, all of his ancestors came directly to Virginia from either Scotland or England in either the 1600s or early 1700s. So he was quite a few generations removed from his ancestors that did immigrate to this country. So why did he have all of these references to what must have been Great Britain and Nova Scotia?

Have you ever heard anyone use these sayings before? Do you have any theories about why my Grandpa may have used these sayings?


Copyright 2012--All Rights Reserved--The Wheel & Distaff by Kimberly Burnette-Dean

Weather Lore

The number of fogs in August determines the number of snows in the upcoming winter.  If they are just light fogs that burns off quickly, then there will be light snows. Heavy fogs?  HEAVY SNOW!

When you hear the first katydid, it will frost in sixty days.

If berries and nuts are plentiful, there is a hard winter coming.

The more black than brown on a wooly worm or the wider the black stripe, the worse the winter.

A warm November indicates a bad winter.

Big wet snowflakes indicate a short snow storm.  If the snowflakes are small and powdery, you better be ready to start shoveling!

The day of the month on which the first snow falls will tell you how many storms you will have in the upcoming winter.  For instance, if the first snow happens on December 3, then there will be 3 storms.

Real spring will not occur until it snows on some daffodils in bloom. That snow is called a daffy snow.

If you hear thunder in winter it means that colder weather is coming.

If it rains while the sun is shining, it means that the devil is beating his wife.

When you see cows huddling up in the pasture, you know to expect rain.

Copyright 2012--All Rights Reserved--The Wheel & Distaff by Kimberly Burnette-Dean.

Cats!

Mr. Ike
AKA
Sir Puss-A-Lot

What do people in Tennessee call little gray cats? (see answer below)

You can break a cat from the habit of catching birds by burning a match and rubbing the charred matchstick three times on the cat's nose.

If you butter the front paws of a cat, once it has licked it all off, it will never leave home.

If you put a new kitten under the covers of your bed and let it crawl out on its own, it will never run away from home.

When a cat bathes its rear end, notice which way its leg is pointing.  That will indicate the direction that your next visitors will be coming from.

Spell "mouse trap" using only three letters. (see answer below)

If a cat sits with its back to a fire, you can count on a cold spell coming soon.

If you kick a cat, you will get rheumatis' in that leg.

If you are unmarried and you step on a cat's tail, you know that you will not get married in the upcoming year.

If a cat keeps on looking out the window, rain is on the way.

Phantom J. 

Answers:

People in Tennessee call little gray cats "kittens" just like everyone else.

You spell "mouse trap" with only three letters like this:  "C-A-T" (unless they are my cats and they only play with the mice.)

Copyright 2012--All Rights Reserved--The Wheel & Distaff by Kimberly Burnette-Dean. 

Birds!

When you see a buzzard say this rhyme:

Poor old lonesome turkey buzzard,

Fly to the east, fly to the west,

Fly to the one I love the best.

If the buzzard flaps his wings, 

you will see your sweetheart before Saturday night.

A hoot owl crying at night is bad luck.

To counteract the bad luck you can try:

putting a broom across the doorway, 

or throwing salt in the fire, 

or turning your pockets inside out

When you see a redbird, throw it a kiss and make a wish.

The wish will come true.  

If an owl's hooting is driving you crazy, 

grasp the wrist of one hand with the fingers of the other. 

This will choke the hoot owl and make him hush.

(I need to try this because our house is surrounded by hooting owls!)

Some folks believe that the jay bird is the devil's bird.

Supposedly on every Friday they gather sticks 

and carry them to hell to keep the fires going.

If an owl speaks or hollers "WHO?" at you, 

always answer with your full name.

And a riddle for you!  Do you know the answer?

If my peacock lays an egg in your yard, who owns the egg?

Copyright 2012--All Rights Reserved--The Wheel & Distaff by Kimberly Burnette-Dean.

Rain Signs

When I woke up this morning and glanced out the window, there was a glorious sunrise. Grandpa always told me that if there was a red sky in the morning that there would be rain later in the day, (Red sky in the morning, sailor's take warning.  Red sky at night, sailor's delight.)

Then, when I stepped outside to get a better look at the sky, I heard a rain crow just singing its heart out. Grandpa always said that it was sure to rain when you hear the song of the rain crow. For years, I had no idea what a rain crow's true name was. One day I heard one and commented on it to a co-worker.  He looked at me a bit strangely and asked me if I was referring to the yellow-billed cuckoo! I told him about the lore surrounding the rain crow and then it became a game each time that we heard one to see if the bird's predictions came true. It usually did rain!

I never do see a red sunrise or hear a rain crow without having an immediate flashback to my childhood and all of the wonderful lore that Grandpa passed on to me.

Two rain signs this morning.  Let's see if it does rain later today!

UPDATE:  By noon today, the trees were starting to turn up their leaves, which is another sign of coming rain.  By 2 pm, the skies were dark and it started POURING around 2:10 pm.  Of course, then the sun came out and the humidity was somewhere in the neighborhood of 2,500%!  Now, at 4:05 pm, it is getting dark again and I can hear thunder rumblin' in the distance.

Maybe the local television stations need to hire that rain crow . . .

(Here is a Linkto  a good audio of the cuckoo's song.)

Copyright 2012--All Rights Reserved--The Wheel & Distaff by Kimberly Burnette-Dean.

Folk Superstitions

Are you familiar with any of these sayings?

If you shiver someone is walking on your grave.


If scissors fall and stick up in the floor, it is a sign that someone is coming.


It is bad luck to plant gourd seed. You should just throw the seeds at random to come up.


You can't grow good gourds unless you cuss them.


The more you cry, the less you piss.  This is said to children that cry too much.


Never cross a funeral procession or count the followers or you will have bad luck.


Sneezing three times in succession is a sign of a stranger coming.


Stumbling on the sidewalk is a bad sign.  Stumbling when going up steps a good one.


To put up an umbrella while in the house will bring bad luck.


To rock an empty rocking chair is bad luck.

Copyright 2012--All Rights Reserved--The Wheel & Distaff by Kimberly Burnette-Dean. 

A Child By Any Other Name . . .

Most of us have heard children referred to as "kids". I once had a teacher tell me to stop that because "kids" are baby goats!  Young'uns is another fairly common term.  I have also heard "lil' shaver". BUT, have any of you ever heard children referred to as "suck eggs"?  I remember my grandpa telling me that I was just a little suck egg when I was a little girl.  I also remember him referring to other children the same way.

Me back when I was just a lil' suck egg

What names have you heard for children?  Have you ever heard "suck egg"?

Copyright 2012--All Rights Reserved--The Wheel & Distaff by Kimberly Burnette-Dean. 

Folk Speech

gallowses--another word for suspenders.   "If you can't keep your pants up, maybe you need a pair of gallowses."  My grandparents used this word quite a bit.

gaumed up--to make a mess.  "She obviously does not know how to sew.  I have never seen such a gaumed up dress in my life."

gettin' above yer raisin'--acting stuck up or like you are rich and famous when you are not. "Just look at Suzie with that fancy hairdo and all of that jewelry.  If you ask me that girl is gettin above her raisin'!"

plumb--completely or all out.  "I scared Grandma plumb to death when I jumped from behind the door!"

got a face that would stop an 8 day clock--very ugly.  "That girl's face could stop an 8 day clock!"

gum'd it--chew it.  "Granny had to gum that chicken since she ain't got no teeth!"

gussied--getting dressed up nicely.   "What are you gettin' all gussied up for?  Are you going to a party?"

foller yer own lights--do what you know is right.  "You better stop doing what all of your friends are doing and foller yer own lights!"

fit as a fiddle--fine.  "I think I will go climb that mountain today because I am feelin' just as fit as a fiddle!"

farn--foreign or unusual.  "That dragonfruit is farn to this country. I'm not sure where it comes from."

Happy Old Christmas!

The period between Christmas (December 25) and Epiphany (January 6) represents the Twelve Days of Christmas. Historically, there are many superstitions and traditions associated with this time. The spirit world was supposed to be particularly active during this dark and cold time of year, so there were many ways to ward them off.

People believed that ancestral ghosts would pay a visit during this time. When they visited, they might cause mischief around the house, so you wanted to be sure and clean and straighten the house so that the spirits would have little to tinker with.  Anything that runs round should never be set in motion during this time.  No threshing should be done during the Twelve Days.

The period was also a time when all work, except for the most necessary, was put aside and it was a time of feasting and fun.  Women would put aside their spinning, because if any flax were to be left on the distaff, the devil might come and cut it.  In some European countries, there was a spirit who would visit at this time and she was said to punish girls who left their flax unspun on the distaff.

January 6 is Epiphany.  The eve of Epiphany, is believed to be the night, over 2000 years ago, when the Three Wise Men came to Bethlehem to honor the Christ child.  One old belief associated with Old Christmas Day is that you should never lend anything because you will never get it back. This is also the night when people believed that flowers would bloom, bees would hum Christmas songs, and animals would kneel and pray at midnight. I don't think that any of that happened here last night, but then again, I was snuggled up under a pile of quilts, sound asleep!

In the mountains, there is an old tradition called "Breaking Up Christmas."  Since the time between Christmas and Epiphany was a time of visiting, feasting, and dancing, it all had to come to an end eventually, so they would have "Breaking up Christmas parties.   There is a great traditional tune called "Breaking Up Christmas".  

I love the idea of celebrating for twelve days, so I always leave my holiday decorations up until after Old Christmas Day.

HAPPY OLD CHRISTMAS!

Folk Sayings #3

If you find a pin on the floor with the head towards you, good luck; point, bad luck.

If you drop a pair of scissors and they stick in the floor, it is a sign that somebody is coming.

He'll take anything that isn't too hot to hold or too heavy to carry. (Refers to someone who will steal anything)

It's not the worth of a thing but the want of it that makes its value.

Not worth a tinker's damn. (Not worth much)

Proud as a peacock. (Refers to a vain or self-centered person)

Root hog or die. (Do your work or fail)

Scarce as hen's teeth. (Refers to something that is very uncommon)

Sneezing three times in succession is sign of a stranger coming.

Soot falling down the chimney is a sign of rain.

Teach your Granny to suck eggs.  (Don't offer advice to someone who has more experience.)




On the seventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, seven swans a-swimmin', six geese a-layin', five golden rings, four colly birds, three French hens, two turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear tree.

A Bad Omen or Bad Timing?

Back on December 4, my blog post was about the practice of cutting fruit tree limbs and bringing them into the home so that they would burst into bloom around Christmas .

Here are the limbs that I cut and what they looked like on Christmas Day:

Let's see now. The superstition says that if there are many blooms then you will have much good luck in the upcoming year. No blooms means very bad luck.

I am just hoping that the superstition is referring to OLD CHRISTMAS, which is on January 6. Keep your fingers crossed for me!



On the third day of Christmas my true love gave to me, three French hens, two turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear tree.

Christmas Lore--Day 2

Christmas Superstitions


Take nine holly leaves and tie into a handkerchief with nine knots and put it under your pillow to dream of the future.  (It might be less painful if you use smooth-leaf holly!)

At midnight on Christmas Eve, it is said that animals kneel down to adore the new-born King and that they also have the power of speech. (Several years ago, I did go to the barn to see what the sheep and pigs were doing.  Guess what?   They were looking at me like "HEY!  You are here at a strange time of night, but since you are here, why not give us some feed?"  They did not have to speak to get that message across to me!)

Bees are said to assemble on Christmas Eve and hum a Christmas hymn  BUT, if you hear them, you will die within the year.

On Christmas Eve, all water turns to wine.  BUT, if you go look, you will die within the year.



**There is something that I have always wondered about these superstitions:  When they mention "Christmas Eve"  are they referring to Dec 24 or Old Christmas Eve on Jan 5?  Since it seems like a potential deadly venture, I would advise you to avoid trying to see if these things happen on either night!

Folk Sayings #2

"Sammy"--Virginia's Explore Park, Roanoke, Virginia

 Some scholars are like donkeys, they merely carry a lot of  books.

A hair from a horse's tail in running water will turn into a snake.

A new broom sweeps clean.

It is bad luck to kill a cricket. (I have let crickets drive me crazy chirping in the house rather than risk harming them!)

 As big as I don't know what.  (So big that you can't even begin to compare it with something.  "That pumpkin is as big as I don't know what!")

As easy as rolling off a log. (Something that is very simple to do.)

It is bad luck to hear a hen crow; kill her at once. (Grandma always talked about grabbing up hens that crowed and wringing their neck to avoid having bad luck.)

As full as a tick. (This one has always sort of grossed me out because of the image in my mind of a blood-filled tick!)

It is bad luck to open an umbrella inside the house.

As good as gold.

As pleased as Punch.  (I had never really thought about this saying even though I use it all of the time.  Of course, it refers to the puppet character, Mr. Punch of "Punch & Judy" fame.)

It is bad luck to rock an empty rocking chair. (I used to get chastised often at my grandmother's house for rocking empty chairs.)

Between me and you and the gate post. ("Now, I am going to tell you something that is just between me and you and the gate post."  I have also heard fence post instead of gate post.)

A ring around the moon indicates snow is on the way.  The number of stars inside the ring tells how many inches.

It is bad luck to cut cornbread. You should always break off a piece.  (We always broke cornbread at home.  I started to use a knife one time and grandma put a stop to that immediately!)

Cool as a cucumber.

Proud as a peacock.