Sneezing / a question to immigrants
Arcadian Rises
But most certainly they all spell it differently in their respective
languages.
Are we brainwashed, ever since we learn how to read, to sneeze the way
we spell the sound of sneezing?
And now my question to the immigrants of the AUE community:
now that you move to a new country, do you sneeze differently than you
did in your mother's tongue?
Nick Spalding
<1146925219.4...@u72g2000cwu.googlegroups.com>
on 6 May 2006 07:20:19 -0700:
I have lived in four different countries for periods ranging from 15 months
to 40 years and have never changed my sneeze.
--
Nick Spalding
Arcadian Rises
Nick Spalding wrote:
>
> I have lived in four different countries for periods ranging from 15 months
> to 40 years and have never changed my sneeze.
> --
Does this mean that you are less adjusted to the new environment/s? or
you have a very strong character? It's not either/or.
Troy Steadman
> Nick Spalding wrote:
> >
> > I have lived in four different countries for periods ranging from 15 months
> > to 40 years and have never changed my sneeze.
>
> you have a very strong character? It's not either/or.
Is this an example of "immigrant" or are you an Oxford United
supporter?
Arcadian Rises
I don't know what is a supporter of Oxford United, but I can sneeze in
15 different languages, simultaneously.
Nick Spalding
<1146928615.1...@y43g2000cwc.googlegroups.com>
on 6 May 2006 08:16:55 -0700:
It means that I don't think the way I sneeze has been affected by the
various environments in which I have lived. I rather doubt if anyone else's
has either but nobody else has responded to you yet.
--
Nick Spalding
Snide...@gmail.com
Nick Spalding wrote:
> [...]
> It means that I don't think the way I sneeze has been affected by the
> various environments in which I have lived. I rather doubt if anyone else's
> has either but nobody else has responded to you yet.
Nick, you are always sneezing in English ;-) What about your
observations of native speakers describing sneezes in the lands of your
exile?
Hmmm, when I sneeze, its "aaaaaa-----chooooooo" for a slow building,
firm but not explosive sneeze, "h-choo" (that is, the "aaaa" becomes
very short" for a quick sneeze, and "aCHOO-OO-ooo" for one of those
monsters that hurts because your brain keeps bouncing. There is also
"tschew" for that real little quick sneeze.
I've only lived in a language zone, but the little impression I've
gotten is that the sound that script readers (actors) use when they say
a sneeze -- oops, now that's gotten my sentence tangled -- er, well,
that Japanese (and perhaps other Asian actors) make it sound the same
as would. Caveat: I could have gained this impresssion from the
English dubbings, rather than from the original actors. I usually
don't last long when clicking through Asian channels.
Oh, and "Hary Janos" begins with a musical representation of a sneeze
that is very recongizable, even though I haven't a clue how to properly
write Hungarian names.
/dps
Mike Lyle
I wish I could contribute data to the discussion, but I just want to
say that I think Ariadne's onto something here. Think of the different
ways in which languages represent the whole range of non-verbal sounds:
laughter, yawning, cries of pain or surprise, etc -- and that doesn't
take in animal sounds. I think we _do_ make non-language sounds
according to rules of our language: I say "Ow!", another says "Aii!"
When uncertain what to verbalise, Englishmen say "er...", Frenchmen
"heu...", and Russians "mm..." I have no difficulty in principle with
the idea that even something as apparently spontaneous as a sneeze may
have a linguistically-determined component.
--
MIke.
Wood Avens
wrote:
>I wish I could contribute data to the discussion, but I just want to
>say that I think Ariadne's onto something here. Think of the different
>ways in which languages represent the whole range of non-verbal sounds:
>laughter, yawning, cries of pain or surprise, etc -- and that doesn't
>take in animal sounds. I think we _do_ make non-language sounds
>according to rules of our language: I say "Ow!", another says "Aii!"
>When uncertain what to verbalise, Englishmen say "er...", Frenchmen
>"heu...", and Russians "mm..." I have no difficulty in principle with
>the idea that even something as apparently spontaneous as a sneeze may
>have a linguistically-determined component.
Is this about words, like the different ways different languages
represent a mew or a bark? The English representations I know are
"atishoo!" and "atchoo!" I don't know what other languages do to
this, and babelfish seems to be convinced that all the languages it
knows use the same word, which I doubt.
Or do you mean that the sound I make when I sneeze is different from
the sound a German speaker (for instance) makes, and/or that the sound
I hear when someone else sneezes will depend on the language I speak?
--
Katy Jennison
spamtrap: remove the first two letters after the @
Mike Lyle
> >"heu...", and Russians "mm..." I have no difficulty in principle with
> >the idea that even something as apparently spontaneous as a sneeze may
> >have a linguistically-determined component.
>
> Is this about words, like the different ways different languages
> represent a mew or a bark? The English representations I know are
> "atishoo!" and "atchoo!" I don't know what other languages do to
> this, and babelfish seems to be convinced that all the languages it
> knows use the same word, which I doubt.
>
> Or do you mean that the sound I make when I sneeze is different from
> the sound a German speaker (for instance) makes, and/or that the sound
> I hear when someone else sneezes will depend on the language I speak?
>
make when we sneeze may perhaps differ from language to language. I
don't mean that I know: just that it seems to be a question worth
asking. We are, after all, culturally conditioned to control sneezes,
so it's easy to imagine we might do so in different ways.
(OT: Of course we're all trained never to sneeze when at a meal, etc.
At Q Victoria's Court, though, it was understood that one did not
sneeze under any circumstances when she was in the room: "...if
necessary, one must burst a blood-vessel." I believe it was the late
great Ethel Smyth who cheerfully broke not only this rule, but another
one forbidding anybody but the Queen to stand directly in front of the
drawing-room fire. Wonderful woman: I don't know if she was made a Dame
in spite of, because of, regardless of, before, or after these
infractions.)
--
Mike.
Robin Bignall
wrote:
Your claim of having a multilingual nose smells fishy to me.
--
Robin
Hertfordshire, England
Arcadian Rises
Mike Lyle wrote:
> I do mean -- and I think Arachne meant --
Where does "h" come from? I prefer Ariadne and I'm sorry I didn't think
to concoct it mysel.
>that the sound we actually
> make when we sneeze may perhaps differ from language to language.
Not necessarily the sound, but the spelling. In some languages stsrts
with an "h", the one you so generously added to my name. Other
languages contain a "k" just before the "tch" sound.
I
> We are, after all, culturally conditioned to control sneezes,
> so it's easy to imagine we might do so in different ways.
Absolutely. An Egyptian lady advised me to look at the sky while the
Bulgarian grocer told me to grasp my nose. I don't know if those
remedies work because I tend to believe my Nepalese aunt (who married a
gent from l'Afrique Centrale) and told me never to repress a sneeze
because I can burst like a suicide bomber, or even worse, like a
pumpkin dropped from Crysler Building.
Robert Flossmann
wood...@askjennison.com says...
Haaaaa--tschi! (note the i instead of the o)
Robert
--
Wartna dir hilfi...
Peter Moylan
> German sneeze coming up:
> Haaaaa--tschi! (note the i instead of the o)
French sneeze: Atchung! (which sounds German, but isn't)
--
Peter Moylan http://www.pmoylan.org
Please note the changed e-mail and web addresses. The domain
eepjm.newcastle.edu.au no longer exists, and I can no longer
reliably receive mail at my newcastle.edu.au addresses.
The optusnet address still has about 3 months of life left.
THE Entity
<pe...@DIESPAMMERSozebelg.org> wrought:
>Robert Flossmann wrote:
>
>> German sneeze coming up:
>> Haaaaa--tschi! (note the i instead of the o)
>
>French sneeze: Atchung! (which sounds German, but isn't)
Spanish (Inquisition-friendly) sneeze: "Jesús!"
--
THE Entity
izzy
> Mike Lyle wrote:
>> I do mean -- and I think Arachne meant -- ...
> Where does "h" come from?
> I prefer Ariadne and I'm sorry I didn't think to concoct it mysel[f].
Arachne is Greek for spider. But Izzy doesn't know if Mike's usage
was intentional, an honest typo, or a very Freudian mistake. :-)
The modern Hebrew word for spider is 3aKaViSH, a meld of
3aKaV = lie in wait + KaVaSH = capture, subdue
Compare English "put the kibosh on" = squelch; stop, halt.
Compare OE coppe = spider, as in cobweb.
> like a pumpkin dropped from Crysler Building
Here, the H has been left out of Chrysler. Again, Izzy doesn't know
...:-)
ciao,
izzy
izzy
is 3iTooSH
(using 3 for the letter aiyin which once had a velar G-sound as in 3aZa
= Gaza).
But everyone says @aPCHee. [@aF = nose.]
izzy
Isabelle Cecchini
> Robert Flossmann wrote:
>
>> German sneeze coming up:
>> Haaaaa--tschi! (note the i instead of the o)
>
> French sneeze: Atchung! (which sounds German, but isn't)
I love your German-looking "Atchung" but I'd nevertheless like to point
out that the usual French spelling is "atchoum".
Obpieceoftrivia: "Atchoum" is the name given in French to one of
Disney's seven dwarfs.
--
Isabelle Cecchini
Heigh ho heigh ho on rentre du boulot...
Wayne Brown
[...]
> Or do you mean that the sound I make when I sneeze is
> different from
> the sound a German speaker (for instance) makes, and/or that
> the sound
> I hear when someone else sneezes will depend on the language I
> speak?
I believe it boils down to how different nationalities describe
the sound. Their descriptions vary widely. It goes beyond the
sneeze; familiar English interjections are also quite different
in foreign languages. Take a common English interjection like
"ouch" (in pain). For "'ouch," a Russian would say "ai!,"
"ai-ai!" or "oi!," even 'oi-oi!' Someone who is tired might say
in English, "Phew! I'm tired!" In Russian, "phew" becomes "uf."
If "phew" is used in English to express disgust at a bad smell
(sometimes pronounced "pyu" in American English), a Russian
might say in the same situation "fu." Finally, the Russian
description of a sneeze is "chkhi" or "ap-chkhi."
Regards, ----- WB.
Wayne Brown
[...]
> And now my question to the immigrants of the AUE community:
> now that you move to a new country, do you sneeze differently
> than you
> did in your mother's tongue?
The sneeze itself isn't any different, but the words used in a
different environment to describe the sound of a sneeze change.
Regards, ----- WB.
Mike Lyle
Arcadian Rises wrote:
> Mike Lyle wrote:
>
>
> > I do mean -- and I think Arachne meant --
>
> Where does "h" come from? I prefer Ariadne and I'm sorry I didn't think
> to concoct it mysel.
As I think Izzy suspected, I took the liberty of inserting the "h" in
honour of the sternutatory context.
> pumpkin dropped from Crysler Building.
The normative punkin-drop in my consciousness is from the Engineering
Faculty building of WVU. In that case, of course, the object is to
avoid any hint of disintegration of the cucurbit.
--
Mike.
R H Draney
>
>Robert Flossmann wrote:
>
>> German sneeze coming up:
>> Haaaaa--tschi! (note the i instead of the o)
>
>French sneeze: Atchung! (which sounds German, but isn't)
Back in high school, a friend of mine managed to train himself to sneeze "ah,
SHIT!"...he thought it was funny, and said he could get away with it even around
easily-offended types because a sneeze is, after all, an involuntary action....r
--
I may not know much about art, but I know
what they tell me I'm supposed to like.
Robert Bannister
I often wonder how many almost bilingual spies were caught because they
came out with the wrong thing when they stubbed their toe.
--
Rob Bannister
Frank ess
> Robert Flossmann wrote:
>
>> German sneeze coming up:
>> Haaaaa--tschi! (note the i instead of the o)
>
> French sneeze: Atchung! (which sounds German, but isn't)
My Colorado-raised mother: Who-ISS-she!
--
Frank ess
LFS
> x-no-archive: yes
>
> Mike Lyle wrote:
>
>
>>(OT: Of course we're all trained never to sneeze when at a meal, etc.
>>At Q Victoria's Court, though, it was understood that one did not
>>sneeze under any circumstances when she was in the room: "...if
>>necessary, one must burst a blood-vessel." I believe it was the late
>>great Ethel Smyth who cheerfully broke not only this rule, but another
>>one forbidding anybody but the Queen to stand directly in front of the
>>drawing-room fire.
>>
>
>
> All these "rules" about meeting royalty. Apparently many still exist.
> Heard one on the radio the other day - if you're sharing a dining table
> with the Queen, you're not supposed to eat more than her - if she takes
> two potatoes, you must not take more than two, etc. Bloody silly.
Who keeps count? I'm sure she doesn't.
>
> Anybody ever here ever met one of these odd people? In a strange sort
> of way, I'd quite like to; but if I was told I had to behave in a
> certain way - bowing, calling them "your majesty" or "m'am" or whatever
> - I just wouldn't be able to do it.
Yes, I have. I managed to curtsey and walk backwards and I was allowed
to watch Brenda eat her tea. I can report that she ate an eclair and
licked her fingers. It was a very long time ago.
--
Laura
(emulate St. George for email)
the Omrud
> x-no-archive: yes
>
> Mike Lyle wrote:
>
> > (OT: Of course we're all trained never to sneeze when at a meal, etc.
> > At Q Victoria's Court, though, it was understood that one did not
> > sneeze under any circumstances when she was in the room: "...if
> > necessary, one must burst a blood-vessel." I believe it was the late
> > great Ethel Smyth who cheerfully broke not only this rule, but another
> > one forbidding anybody but the Queen to stand directly in front of the
> > drawing-room fire.
>
> All these "rules" about meeting royalty. Apparently many still exist.
> Heard one on the radio the other day - if you're sharing a dining table
> with the Queen, you're not supposed to eat more than her - if she takes
> two potatoes, you must not take more than two, etc. Bloody silly.
This would be very difficult. It is reported that the Queen eats
very little, at least in company.
> Anybody ever here ever met one of these odd people? In a strange sort
> of way, I'd quite like to; but if I was told I had to behave in a
> certain way - bowing, calling them "your majesty" or "m'am" or whatever
> - I just wouldn't be able to do it.
I met the Duke of Kent at the opening of Bletchley Park. I obeyed no
rules of royal protocol, other than my innate middle-class English
politeness, but he didn't pick me up on my behaviour. I was a bit
nervous of the men in black suits with their backs to him.
--
David
=====
replace usenet with the
Mike Lyle
> > At Q Victoria's Court, though, it was understood that one did not
> > sneeze under any circumstances when she was in the room: "...if
> > necessary, one must burst a blood-vessel." I believe it was the late
> > great Ethel Smyth who cheerfully broke not only this rule, but another
> > one forbidding anybody but the Queen to stand directly in front of the
> > drawing-room fire.
> >
>
> Heard one on the radio the other day - if you're sharing a dining table
> with the Queen, you're not supposed to eat more than her - if she takes
> two potatoes, you must not take more than two, etc. Bloody silly.
>
> of way, I'd quite like to; but if I was told I had to behave in a
> certain way - bowing, calling them "your majesty" or "m'am" or whatever
> - I just wouldn't be able to do it.
>
took the form of my gently colliding with one of them during a dance:
the usual British-type mutual apologies were exchanged, and nobody took
me out and shot me. Later, there was a slight confusion about
simultaneously aiming for the same door, also handled with aplomb by
the Princess: it seems they know how to take charge of situations in
ways that don't leave one feeling a klutz. But there are different
rules for stage-managed formal occasions, like receiving a gong, and
less formal ones. When you're invited to one of the former, you'll be
told what to do by the authorities, and when you're at one of the
latter, you just act naturally: no different from meeting the
President. As a well-brought-up American, you probably call senior
ladies "Ma'am" anyway.
--
Mike.
the Omrud
> As a well-brought-up American, you probably call senior
> ladies "Ma'am" anyway.
Although they'd pronounce it wrong.
Father Ignatius
the Omrud <usenet...@gmail.com> typed:
> I met the Duke of Kent at the opening of Bletchley Park.
<startled>
"Fifty miles (80km) north-west of London lies Bletchley Park. In 1883, it
became home to the Leon family, whose patriach was a wealthy City of London
financier. Herbert Samuel Leon bought over 300 acres of land beside the
London and North-Western Railway line that passed through Bletchley,
Buckinghamshire, developing sixty of those acres into his country estate. At
the heart of the estate, he built a mansion in a curious mixture of
architectural styles."
http://www.bletchleypark.org.uk/content/hist/early.rhtm
--
Nat
"...you are most likely to be murdered by a member of your own family
on Christmas Day. This is a fact."
--The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Donna Richoux
> So if I were ever invited to Buck House (very unlikely, it must be
> said), and given a list of instructions, I'd have a dilemma - would I
> say (a) "I'm sorry, I can't comply with these ridiculous requests, so
> I'd better not go", or (b) "Oh, OK then" - and then proceed to ignore
> the silly rules and behave normally?
That is what John Holt used to call a "hippopotamus question." If
hippopotamuses learn to fly, how will we stop them from breaking off all
the branches of the trees? It will be a real problem.
--
Best -- Donna Richoux
Mike Lyle
the Omrud wrote:
> Mike Lyle <mike_l...@yahoo.co.uk> had it:
>
> > As a well-brought-up American, you probably call senior
> > ladies "Ma'am" anyway.
>
> Although they'd pronounce it wrong.
>
--
Mike.
Lars Eighner
talented LFS broadcast on alt.usage.english:
> m.j.m...@bradford.ac.uk wrote:
>> x-no-archive: yes
>>
>> Mike Lyle wrote:
>>
>>
>>>(OT: Of course we're all trained never to sneeze when at a meal, etc.
>>>At Q Victoria's Court, though, it was understood that one did not
>>>sneeze under any circumstances when she was in the room: "...if
>>>necessary, one must burst a blood-vessel." I believe it was the late
>>>great Ethel Smyth who cheerfully broke not only this rule, but another
>>>one forbidding anybody but the Queen to stand directly in front of the
>>>drawing-room fire.
>>>
>>
>>
>> All these "rules" about meeting royalty. Apparently many still exist.
>> Heard one on the radio the other day - if you're sharing a dining table
>> with the Queen, you're not supposed to eat more than her - if she takes
>> two potatoes, you must not take more than two, etc. Bloody silly.
> Who keeps count? I'm sure she doesn't.
What is more, I have seen a video program including scenes of the Garter day
luncheon at Windsor and it appeared to me that HM could have been served
four possums and a swede* for all that most of the knights and ladies could
tell from their places. "If she takes two potatoes" indeed! I do not
suppose most folk will be dining family style with the Queen, but anyone
who is will be busy trying to think how to ask her to pass the gravy,
never mind counting potatoes.
I do not doubt that royalty has considerably more experience with people who
do not quite know how to behave around royalty than people who do not quite
know how to behave around royalty have with royalty. If she could put up
with Nancy Reagan, she can put up with you - mind you, don't tread on the
corgis.
* although the program explained she does like the luncheon to be light on
Garter day. Perhaps because the day is very taxing on the knights military,
or perhaps they don't dine with the KGs - the program wasn't clear on that
point.
--
Lars Eighner use...@larseighner.com http://www.larseighner.com/
Man's real life is happy, chiefly because he is ever expecting that it
soon will be so. --Edgar Allan Poe
the Omrud
> In news:MPG.1ec93c888...@news.ntlworld.com,
> the Omrud <usenet...@gmail.com> typed:
>
> > I met the Duke of Kent at the opening of Bletchley Park.
>
> <startled>
>
> "Fifty miles (80km) north-west of London lies Bletchley Park. In 1883, it
> became home to the Leon family, whose patriach was a wealthy City of London
> financier. Herbert Samuel Leon bought over 300 acres of land beside the
> London and North-Western Railway line that passed through Bletchley,
> Buckinghamshire, developing sixty of those acres into his country estate. At
> the heart of the estate, he built a mansion in a curious mixture of
> architectural styles."
Oh, well, OK, it was at the opening of Bletchley Park as a public
attraction. I got invited 'cos of my exalted position in the UK IT
industry.
Matthew Huntbach
> Walking backwards, eh? Sheesh. This is exactly what I was referring to.
> I have nothing against them as people, but that's all they are -
> people. I'm a great believer in politeness, manners, respect - but I
> show everyone the same respect, whether they're a queen or a cleaner.
> This kowtowing stuff belongs in the middle ages.
>
> So if I were ever invited to Buck House (very unlikely, it must be
> said), and given a list of instructions, I'd have a dilemma - would I
> say (a) "I'm sorry, I can't comply with these ridiculous requests, so
> I'd better not go", or (b) "Oh, OK then" - and then proceed to ignore
> the silly rules and behave normally?
Think of it as either a game, or an art-form. if you don't want to play
by the rules or be part of the performance, don't go along and ruin it
for everyone else who does.
A head of state who has no powers is a useful thing to have. We kowtow
to HM because we don't kowtow to Tony Blair. Americans kowtow to a bit
of stripy cloth with a starry bit in the corner.
Matthew Huntbach
LFS
As a well-brought-up American, you probably call senior
> ladies "Ma'am" anyway.
>
The OP's a Brit, isn't he?
HVS
> But there are different rules for stage-managed formal
> occasions, like receiving a gong, and less formal ones. When
> you're invited to one of the former, you'll be told what to do
> by the authorities, and when you're at one of the latter, you
> just act naturally: no different from meeting the President.
I think that about sums it up. I've met two of them -- HM at a
fairly formal event -- centenary celebrations of the RICS, where
I'd done some exhibition boards on the history of the building;
I think she was bored to tears with that bit -- and at a
Household event where the PoW turned up (which presumably counted
as informal for him).
Instructions for the first one were more-or-less timed to the
minute and carefully stage-managed; the second was along the
lines of "stand here; we'll introduce your group (we'd been
marshalled into groups of 5 or 6); speak when you're spoken to".
There wasn't any overt bowing/scraping/walking-backwards-till-
Christmas that I was aware of.
--
Cheers, Harvey
Canadian and British English, indiscriminately mixed
For e-mail, change harvey.news to harvey.van
Lars Eighner
<MPG.1ec943b18...@news.ntlworld.com>,
the lovely and talented the Omrud
broadcast on alt.usage.english:
Well, you see that's it. In the UK, if you're born common, that's about it,
isn't it? Oh, sure, you can get an OBE, even in exceptional cases, a life
peerage. But that's not really like being ennobled or anything.
Only in America can a kid pick up the accent from Monty Python and grow up
to be Lord Buckingham!
--
Lars Eighner use...@larseighner.com http://www.larseighner.com/
Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try Again. Fail again. Fail
better. --Samuel Beckett
Mike Lyle
LFS wrote:
> Mike Lyle wrote:
> As a well-brought-up American, you probably call senior
> > ladies "Ma'am" anyway.
> >
>
> The OP's a Brit, isn't he?
>
rather lost the "sir-ma'am" habit which is such a nice feature of a lot
of American intercourse. I follow it when nothing else seems available,
but it often feels awkward here.
--
Mike.
Linz
> All these "rules" about meeting royalty. Apparently many still exist.
> Heard one on the radio the other day - if you're sharing a dining
> table with the Queen, you're not supposed to eat more than her - if
> she takes two potatoes, you must not take more than two, etc. Bloody
> silly.
Take? I thought at the Queen's table you were served?
John Dean
> In our last episode,
> <MPG.1ec943b18...@news.ntlworld.com>,
> the lovely and talented the Omrud
> broadcast on alt.usage.english:
>
>> Father Ignatius <FatherI...@ANTISPAMananzi.co.za> had it:
>
>>> In news:MPG.1ec93c888...@news.ntlworld.com,
>>> the Omrud <usenet...@gmail.com> typed:
>>>
>>>> I met the Duke of Kent at the opening of Bletchley Park.
>>>
>>> <startled>
>>>
>
>> attraction. I got invited 'cos of my exalted position in the UK IT
>> industry.
>
> Well, you see that's it. In the UK, if you're born common, that's
> about it, isn't it? Oh, sure, you can get an OBE, even in
> exceptional cases, a life peerage. But that's not really like being
> ennobled or anything.
>
I may be missing irony here, but I thought getting a life peerage was
*exactly* like being ennobled.
--
John Dean
Oxford
Tony Cooper
<m.j.m...@bradford.ac.uk> wrote:
>x-no-archive: yes
>
>LFS wrote:
>
>>
>> Yes, I have. I managed to curtsey and walk backwards and I was allowed
>> to watch Brenda eat her tea. I can report that she ate an eclair and
>> licked her fingers. It was a very long time ago.
>>
>
>Walking backwards, eh? Sheesh. This is exactly what I was referring to.
>I have nothing against them as people, but that's all they are -
>people. I'm a great believer in politeness, manners, respect - but I
>show everyone the same respect, whether they're a queen or a cleaner.
>This kowtowing stuff belongs in the middle ages.
>
>So if I were ever invited to Buck House (very unlikely, it must be
>said), and given a list of instructions, I'd have a dilemma - would I
>say (a) "I'm sorry, I can't comply with these ridiculous requests, so
>I'd better not go", or (b) "Oh, OK then" - and then proceed to ignore
>the silly rules and behave normally?
>
I don't know all that much about the Queen, but I have the impression
that she's gracious enough to not be offended if you decline her
invitation to dinner. I think that her social circle is wide enough
that she could come up with someone else to fill your vacant place at
the table.
Do let us know if you ever receive an invitation to Buck House,
decline it, and receive a snotty note from HRH.
--
Tony Cooper
Orlando, FL
the Omrud
> Do let us know if you ever receive an invitation to Buck House,
> decline it, and receive a snotty note from HRH.
There it is again! The Queen is not a RH, she's an M. HM, not HRH.
This is so deeply ingrained in the US brain that it must be being
enforced by something. Does Fox News report on the daily activities
of "HRH The Queen"?
THE Entity
wrought:
Except that they don't have the required vowel, by all reports.
Perhaps we could lend them one.
--
THE Entity
THE Entity
<m.j.m...@bradford.ac.uk> wrought:
>The late Princess Margaret one visited my wife's workplace; before her
>visit, rose petals were scattered in all the ladies' toilet bowls - I
>kid you not - in case she needed to "go".
She'd most likely have assumed it was a particularly exotic kind of
Caribbean cocktail.
--
THE Entity
Tony Cooper
wrote:
My excuse, Sir, is that I am rarely called on to identify royal
personages by shortcut abbreviations. I assure you that if I am ever
invited to dinner at Buck House that I will buy a guide book and bone
up on proper terms.
I am woefully ignorant of the ins and outs of Queen-addressing. I
have no idea, for example, why some of you people keep referring to
"Brenda".
the Omrud
> On Mon, 08 May 2006 15:48:46 GMT, the Omrud <usenet...@gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> >Tony Cooper <tony_co...@earthlink.net> had it:
> >
> >> Do let us know if you ever receive an invitation to Buck House,
> >> decline it, and receive a snotty note from HRH.
> >
> >There it is again! The Queen is not a RH, she's an M. HM, not HRH.
> >This is so deeply ingrained in the US brain that it must be being
> >enforced by something. Does Fox News report on the daily activities
> >of "HRH The Queen"?
>
> My excuse, Sir, is that I am rarely called on to identify royal
> personages by shortcut abbreviations. I assure you that if I am ever
> invited to dinner at Buck House that I will buy a guide book and bone
> up on proper terms.
>
> I am woefully ignorant of the ins and outs of Queen-addressing. I
> have no idea, for example, why some of you people keep referring to
> "Brenda".
HMQ loves a joke, preferring to be addressed thus: "Brenda, you old
slag, how's it hanging?", followed by a fond pat on the royal bottom.
She's very short and, like a child of a similar height, she also
enjoys being swung around and around and around until she's dizzy and
can't stand up straight. Water pistols are an especial favourite at
the palace.
LFS
> Tony Cooper <tony_co...@earthlink.net> had it:
>
>
>>On Mon, 08 May 2006 15:48:46 GMT, the Omrud <usenet...@gmail.com>
>>wrote:
>>
>>
>>>Tony Cooper <tony_co...@earthlink.net> had it:
>>>
>>>
>>>>Do let us know if you ever receive an invitation to Buck House,
>>>>decline it, and receive a snotty note from HRH.
>>>
>>>There it is again! The Queen is not a RH, she's an M. HM, not HRH.
>>>This is so deeply ingrained in the US brain that it must be being
>>>enforced by something. Does Fox News report on the daily activities
>>>of "HRH The Queen"?
>>
>>My excuse, Sir, is that I am rarely called on to identify royal
>>personages by shortcut abbreviations. I assure you that if I am ever
>>invited to dinner at Buck House that I will buy a guide book and bone
>>up on proper terms.
>>
>>I am woefully ignorant of the ins and outs of Queen-addressing. I
>>have no idea, for example, why some of you people keep referring to
>>"Brenda".
>
>
> HMQ loves a joke, preferring to be addressed thus: "Brenda, you old
> slag, how's it hanging?", followed by a fond pat on the royal bottom.
> She's very short and, like a child of a similar height, she also
> enjoys being swung around and around and around until she's dizzy and
> can't stand up straight. Water pistols are an especial favourite at
> the palace.
>
There's wicked.
HVS
-snip-
> HMQ loves a joke, preferring to be addressed thus: "Brenda,
> you old slag, how's it hanging?", followed by a fond pat on
> the royal bottom. She's very short and, like a child of a
> similar height, she also enjoys being swung around and around
> and around until she's dizzy and can't stand up straight.
> Water pistols are an especial favourite at the palace.
And I understand that if the conversation flags, she's always open
to having a long chat about her late daughter-in-law.
R H Draney
>
>the Omrud wrote:
>
>> HMQ loves a joke, preferring to be addressed thus: "Brenda, you old
>> slag, how's it hanging?", followed by a fond pat on the royal bottom.
>> She's very short and, like a child of a similar height, she also
>> enjoys being swung around and around and around until she's dizzy and
>> can't stand up straight. Water pistols are an especial favourite at
>> the palace.
>
>There's wicked.
It would be, if anyone believed it for even half a second...sounds like
something Rowan Atkinson could turn into a sketch, though....r
--
I may not know much about art, but I know
what they tell me I'm supposed to like.
jerry_f...@yahoo.com
> Arcadian Rises wrote:
> [...]
>
> > And now my question to the immigrants of the AUE community:
> > now that you move to a new country, do you sneeze differently
> > than you
> > did in your mother's tongue?
>
> The sneeze itself isn't any different, but the words used in a
> different environment to describe the sound of a sneeze change.
I wonder about that. Some people have voiced sneezes and some have
unvoiced. This could be cultural. I also hear people use very
distinct /u:/ vowels at the end of their sneeze, which must be
cultural.
Voicing sneezes is bad for your singing voice and annoying to anyone
around, by the way.
--
Jerry Friedman
Sara Lorimer
> LFS filted:
> >
> >the Omrud wrote:
> >
> >> HMQ loves a joke, preferring to be addressed thus: "Brenda, you old
> >> slag, how's it hanging?", followed by a fond pat on the royal bottom.
> >> She's very short and, like a child of a similar height, she also
> >> enjoys being swung around and around and around until she's dizzy and
> >> can't stand up straight. Water pistols are an especial favourite at
> >> the palace.
> >
> >There's wicked.
>
> It would be, if anyone believed it for even half a second...
...or if there was a chance Tony would have the opportunity to follow
through on the Omrud's advice.
Speaking of royalty, in this month's Atlantic Caitlin Flanagan mentions
a book -- "The Little Princesses," by Marion Crawford -- that sounds
like it might be interesting. Or awful. She says it was "an
international best seller." I've never heard of it, but maybe it hasn't
had one of its periodic best-selling sprees lately.
<http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/prem/200606/caitlin-flanagan>
--
SML
Skitt
> All these "rules" about meeting royalty. Apparently many still exist.
> Heard one on the radio the other day - if you're sharing a dining
No worries -- I doubt that I could finish just her alone.
--
Skitt (in Hayward, California)
http://www.geocities.com/opus731/
Frank ess
HM visited San Diego a few years back. I had opportunity to attend a
press conference as photographer, but passed the credential to my
then-18-year-old daughter. She managed to capture an image of an
incident that made international news: a respected City Councilman,
ushering Her Majesty along the reception line or off the stage,
touched her:
http://www.fototime.com/inv/96B8D9CE8A48347
Among other persons in the photos are:
A Mayor of San Diego whose husband was convicted in a corporate theft
case;
A future Mayor of San Diego recalled from his post last year to be
replaced by a former San Diego Police Chief;
A City Councilman soon to be convicted and imprisoned as a result of
"debauchery" charged on City credit cards;
An executive assistant to a Councilman who soon went to Harvard on a
City-subsidized scholarship, achieved his degree, and took it and his
talent elsewhere.
--
Frank ess
Nick Spalding
on Mon, 8 May 2006 15:56:55 +0100:
Not at all. Life peers are just imitations of the real thing.
--
Nick Spalding
Lars Eighner
<f57v52pi851pifv48...@4ax.com>,
the lovely and talented Nick Spalding
broadcast on alt.usage.english:
Besides which, it was necessary to set up the line about the Earl of
Buckingham.
--
Lars Eighner use...@larseighner.com http://www.larseighner.com/
My books are water; those of the great geniuses are wine -- everybody
drinks water. --Mark Twain
Don Aitken
wrote:
>X-No-Archive: yes
>
>In message <emru52d1budg5le9g...@4ax.com>, Tony Cooper
><tony_co...@earthlink.net> writes
>
>>I am woefully ignorant of the ins and outs of Queen-addressing. I
>>have no idea, for example, why some of you people keep referring to
>>"Brenda".
>
>It's her staff's affectionate nickname for her which, like so many
>nicknames, fits admirably. A satirical fortnightly magazine, 'Private
>Eye' picked up the info from an insider and used it.
I suspect it's the other way round - PE invented it, and the staff
picked it up from there. I'm not sure when it first appeared in the
Eye, but it must have been at least thirty years ago.
--
Don Aitken
Mail to the From: address is not read.
To email me, substitute "clara.co.uk" for "freeuk.com"
THE Entity
wrought:
>Matthew Huntbach wrote:
>> On Mon, 8 May 2006, m.j.m...@bradford.ac.uk wrote:
>>
>HM visited San Diego a few years back. I had opportunity to attend a
>press conference as photographer, but passed the credential to my
>then-18-year-old daughter. She managed to capture an image of an
>incident that made international news: a respected City Councilman,
>ushering Her Majesty along the reception line or off the stage,
>touched her:
>http://www.fototime.com/inv/96B8D9CE8A48347
It's HM the Pearly Queen!
(And one of the arguments -- okay, the only one, really -- for a
hereditary head of state is that they have a more *prestigious image*
than elected ones?)
--
THE Entity
Tony Cooper
<use...@larseighner.com> wrote:
>Besides which, it was necessary to set up the line about the Earl of
>Buckingham.
He is, allegedly, from Orlando. Not that I know him.
Nick Spalding
on Mon, 08 May 2006 20:52:42 +0100:
> On Mon, 8 May 2006 18:38:19 +0100, JF <j...@NOSPAMmarage.demon.co.uk>
> wrote:
>
> >X-No-Archive: yes
> >
> >In message <emru52d1budg5le9g...@4ax.com>, Tony Cooper
> ><tony_co...@earthlink.net> writes
> >
> >>I am woefully ignorant of the ins and outs of Queen-addressing. I
> >>have no idea, for example, why some of you people keep referring to
> >>"Brenda".
> >
> >It's her staff's affectionate nickname for her which, like so many
> >nicknames, fits admirably. A satirical fortnightly magazine, 'Private
> >Eye' picked up the info from an insider and used it.
>
> I suspect it's the other way round - PE invented it, and the staff
> picked it up from there. I'm not sure when it first appeared in the
> Eye, but it must have been at least thirty years ago.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Private_Eye>
'Queen Elizabeth II is always referred to as "Brenda", and the Prince of
Wales as "Brian". This is a result of the 1969 BBC documentary Royal Family,
after which the magazine gave each member of the Royal Family working class
nicknames, as though they were characters in a soap opera. The Duke of
Edinburgh is "Keith", the late Princess Margaret was "Yvonne", and the late
Diana, Princess of Wales was dubbed "Cheryl". '
--
Nick Spalding
Mike Barnes
>x-no-archive: yes
>
>Tony Cooper wrote:
>
>> Do let us know if you ever receive an invitation to Buck House,
>> decline it, and receive a snotty note from HRH.
>
>invited to the -- quite frequent -- BH summer garden parties, usually
>for some local achievement in charity work, sport, etc.
If proof were needed, I'm in line for an invitation this summer. I
probably shan't go. I would need to express an interest in order to
receive an invitation, so there's no question of declining it.
--
Mike Barnes
Cheshire, England
Salvatore Volatile
><http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Private_Eye>
>
> 'Queen Elizabeth II is always referred to as "Brenda", and the Prince of
> Wales as "Brian". This is a result of the 1969 BBC documentary Royal Family,
> after which the magazine gave each member of the Royal Family working class
> nicknames, as though they were characters in a soap opera. The Duke of
> Edinburgh is "Keith", the late Princess Margaret was "Yvonne", and the late
> Diana, Princess of Wales was dubbed "Cheryl". '
This seems again to suggest that the BrE notion of "soap opera" or "soap"
is different from (= BrE "to") the American one. Part of the novelty of
_EastEnders_, in addition to the incomprehensible London accents, was
that it was a soap opera about working-class people instead of the posh
characters who dominate traditional American soap operas.
--
Salvatore Volatile
HVS
Interesting.
"Soap opera" in BrEng refers entirely to typical plots and
broadly-drawn characters, not the class of those characters.
The idea of a "soap opera" with "posh characters" seems
fundamentally oxymoronic. (Which is the whole point of referring
to the royals as a "soap opera".)
Mike Lyle
> >press conference as photographer, but passed the credential to my
> >then-18-year-old daughter. She managed to capture an image of an
> >incident that made international news: a respected City Councilman,
> >ushering Her Majesty along the reception line or off the stage,
> >touched her:
> >http://www.fototime.com/inv/96B8D9CE8A48347
>
> It's HM the Pearly Queen!
>
> (And one of the arguments -- okay, the only one, really -- for a
> hereditary head of state is that they have a more *prestigious image*
> than elected ones?)
>
perhaps San Diego had laid on an Old Tyme Music Hall do to make her
feel at home. Any time you're Lambeff way...
--
Mike.
HVS
> Your sarcasm is misplaced. In fact lots of "ordinary" people
> get invited to the -- quite frequent -- BH summer garden
> parties,
FWIW, it's "BP" -- pronounced as in the petrol company -- if you
want to adopt the denizens' shorthand.
(That one's as good an example of a shibboleth as you're likely to
find.)
Mike Lyle
Tony Cooper wrote:
> On Mon, 08 May 2006 14:38:54 -0500, Lars Eighner
> <use...@larseighner.com> wrote:
>
> >Besides which, it was necessary to set up the line about the Earl of
> >Buckingham.
>
> He is, allegedly, from Orlando. Not that I know him.
>
is unquestionably elegant.
--
Mike.
Paul Wolff
<use...@larseighner.com> writes
>
>What is more, I have seen a video program including scenes of the Garter day
>luncheon at Windsor and it appeared to me that HM could have been served
>four possums and a swede* for all that most of the knights and ladies could
>tell from their places. "If she takes two potatoes" indeed! I do not
>suppose most folk will be dining family style with the Queen, but anyone
>who is will be busy trying to think how to ask her to pass the gravy,
>never mind counting potatoes.
>
[snip]
>
>* although the program explained she does like the luncheon to be light on
>Garter day. Perhaps because the day is very taxing on the knights military,
>or perhaps they don't dine with the KGs - the program wasn't clear on that
>point.
>
The KGs tend to be even older than the average senior echelon aue
poster. The traditional royal luncheon of roast swan with Yorkshire pud
and two veg, followed by plum duff, would knock them all out for the
rest of the afternoon.
--
Paul
In bocca al Lupo!
Robin Bignall
>x-no-archive: yes
>
>Tony Cooper wrote:
>
>> >
>> I don't know all that much about the Queen, but I have the impression
>> that she's gracious enough to not be offended if you decline her
>> invitation to dinner. I think that her social circle is wide enough
>> that she could come up with someone else to fill your vacant place at
>> the table.
>>
>> Do let us know if you ever receive an invitation to Buck House,
>> decline it, and receive a snotty note from HRH.
>>
>
>Your sarcasm is misplaced. In fact lots of "ordinary" people get
>invited to the -- quite frequent -- BH summer garden parties, usually
>for some local achievement in charity work, sport, etc.
>
>As it happens, I don't go in for that sort of stuff, but it's certainly
>not out of the question.
>
>Plus, the Queen and other royals are pretty constantly "on the road"
>for local civic receptions, opening new buildings, etc.
>
>The late Princess Margaret one visited my wife's workplace; before her
>visit, rose petals were scattered in all the ladies' toilet bowls - I
>kid you not - in case she needed to "go". The staff were told not to
>use them until the visit was over.
>
>This is the sort of nonsense I'm talking about.
>
>Forelock-tugging is alive and well, sadly
>
I agree with you, but it's unfortunate but true that a future visit
from some royal is often the only way to get a public building cleaned
up and repaired.
--
Robin
Hertfordshire, England
Robert Bannister
> Anybody ever here ever met one of these odd people? In a strange sort
> of way, I'd quite like to; but if I was told I had to behave in a
> certain way - bowing, calling them "your majesty" or "m'am" or whatever
> - I just wouldn't be able to do it.
Back in the 30s, my mother ran a dog shop in or near Baker Street, which
was nominally owned by Lady Herbert Scott. Among the customers, were the
Duchess of Gloucester plus sundry minor aristocrats. My mother never
bobbed or used their titles and just treated them like anyone else and
there were no complaints. I imagine only the insecure would expect to be
fawned on.
--
Rob Bannister
Robert Bannister
> Walking backwards, eh? Sheesh. This is exactly what I was referring to.
> I have nothing against them as people, but that's all they are -
> people. I'm a great believer in politeness, manners, respect - but I
> show everyone the same respect, whether they're a queen or a cleaner.
> This kowtowing stuff belongs in the middle ages.
I suspect kowtowing was most prevalent in the late 19th century and up
to 1914.
--
Rob Bannister
Robert Bannister
ongs in the middle ages.
>
> So if I were ever invited to Buck House (very unlikely, it must be
> said), and given a list of instructions, I'd have a dilemma - would I
> say (a) "I'm sorry, I can't comply with these ridiculous requests, so
> I'd better not go", or (b) "Oh, OK then" - and then proceed to ignore
> the silly rules and behave normally?
>
Of course, it's not so long ago when a woman had to approach the
President of the US on her knees.
--
Rob Bannister
Robert Bannister
> "Soap opera" in BrEng refers entirely to typical plots and
> broadly-drawn characters, not the class of those characters.
>
I thought the essence of soap opera was its never-endingness. One of the
problems I have with modern TV is that so many programmes, that start
out as drama, quickly decline into soap at the slightest whiff of
popularity.
--
Rob Bannister
Robert Bannister
> The late Princess Margaret one visited my wife's workplace; before her
> visit, rose petals were scattered in all the ladies' toilet bowls - I
> kid you not - in case she needed to "go". The staff were told not to
> use them until the visit was over.
>
> This is the sort of nonsense I'm talking about.
>
Is this so very different from the kind of nonsense that happens on
military bases when anyone over the rank of colonel deigns to visit?
--
Rob Bannister
Peter Moylan
> The late Princess Margaret one visited my wife's workplace; before her
> visit, rose petals were scattered in all the ladies' toilet bowls - I
> kid you not - in case she needed to "go". The staff were told not to
> use them until the visit was over.
Men have a reputation for aiming at flies. Do women have a special thing
about squirting at rose petals?
--
Peter Moylan http://www.pmoylan.org
Please note the changed e-mail and web addresses. The domain
eepjm.newcastle.edu.au no longer exists, and I can no longer
reliably receive mail at my newcastle.edu.au addresses.
The optusnet address still has about 3 months of life left.
Peter Moylan
> I imagine only the insecure would expect to be fawned on.
Don't try saying that in any of the religious groups.
Mike Barnes
>Men have a reputation for aiming at flies.
Yes, and bees are also quite common.
http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/hoax/weblog/comments/3594/P20/
THE Entity
<rob...@it.net.au> wrought:
Prince Andrew (full title: HRH The Rind of Golf) is said to be a
right royal stickler for all the fawning business, as is only
appropriate for a man who is widely revered as the nation's foremost
utter waste of time.
--
THE Entity
Linz
> HMQ loves a joke, preferring to be addressed thus: "Brenda, you old
> slag, how's it hanging?", followed by a fond pat on the royal bottom.
> She's very short and, like a child of a similar height, she also
> enjoys being swung around and around and around until she's dizzy and
> can't stand up straight. Water pistols are an especial favourite at
> the palace.
Scuse me, she's not very short. She's the perfect height. And she has the
best birth date around, too.
The bit about being swung around is accurate.
HVS
-snip-
> Prince Andrew (full title: HRH The Rind of Golf) is said to
> be a right royal stickler for all the fawning business, as is
> only appropriate for a man who is widely revered as the
> nation's foremost utter waste of time.
Presumably a spare-heir trait: didn't Princess Margaret have the
same reputation?
Linz
> The late Princess Margaret one visited my wife's workplace; before her
> visit, rose petals were scattered in all the ladies' toilet bowls - I
> kid you not - in case she needed to "go". The staff were told not to
> use them until the visit was over.
Did they not paint the toilets? The loos next to my office were redecorated
when a royal came to visit. Can't remember which royal but I do remember we
nearly lost a sniffer dog and handler in the theatre auditorium when someone
thought they'd left and started to push the seating tiers away...
HVS
> m.j.m...@bradford.ac.uk wrote:
>
>> The late Princess Margaret one visited my wife's workplace;
>> before her visit, rose petals were scattered in all the
>> ladies' toilet bowls - I kid you not - in case she needed to
>> "go". The staff were told not to use them until the visit was
>> over.
>
> Did they not paint the toilets? The loos next to my office
> were redecorated when a royal came to visit.
One of the current standard requests for royal visits is that the
area *not* be freshly decorated for the visit, as it gets to the
point that they're faced with the smell of paint and carpet
sizing all day long.
It must be so much fun: go anywhere in the UK and you get to
smell paint and new carpet; go to another country, and they put
on native costumes and dance at you.
Vinny Burgoo
>Tony Cooper wrote:
>> Do let us know if you ever receive an invitation to Buck House,
>> decline it, and receive a snotty note from HRH.
>
>Your sarcasm is misplaced. In fact lots of "ordinary" people get
>invited to the -- quite frequent -- BH summer garden parties, usually
>for some local achievement in charity work, sport, etc.
My grandma won a ticket to Buck House in a raffle. I don't remember the
details but I imagine it was one of these summer garden party affairs
and that the local Women's Institute had been awarded a few places and
that as everyone had baked the same number of cakes the WI decided to
hold a raffle. All very democratic.
>As it happens, I don't go in for that sort of stuff, but it's certainly
>not out of the question.
>
>Plus, the Queen and other royals are pretty constantly "on the road"
>for local civic receptions, opening new buildings, etc.
>
>The late Princess Margaret one visited my wife's workplace; before her
>visit, rose petals were scattered in all the ladies' toilet bowls - I
>kid you not - in case she needed to "go". The staff were told not to
>use them until the visit was over.
Petals in the bowl? A mirror on the cistern would have been more
welcome, I suspect.
>This is the sort of nonsense I'm talking about.
>
>Forelock-tugging is alive and well, sadly
It's healthier than happy-slapping, citizen.
--
V
Vinny Burgoo
>On 09 May 2006, THE Entity wrote
>> Prince Andrew (full title: HRH The Rind of Golf) is said to
>> be a right royal stickler for all the fawning business, as is
>> only appropriate for a man who is widely revered as the
>> nation's foremost utter waste of time.
>
>Presumably a spare-heir trait: didn't Princess Margaret have the
>same reputation?
Yep. She is said to have insisted on "Your Royal Highness" (?) and so on
even when sitting half naked and half drunk on the beach.
And it's said that if she couldn't find an ashtray she would instruct
one of her drinking buddies to lend a hand - literally. The hand would
be expected to hover, palm upwards, within range of the royal tab so
that it could receive the royal ash. Did she then stub it out on the
palm? Who knows?
But by 'eck she were gorgeous when she were young. Ditto Brenda.
(Someone here said recently that the Queen Mum was gorgeous when she
were young. I can't see that at all. To me, she looked like a hairy
dwarf.)
--
V
Linz
> On 09 May 2006, Linz wrote
>
>> m.j.m...@bradford.ac.uk wrote:
>>
>>> The late Princess Margaret one visited my wife's workplace;
>>> before her visit, rose petals were scattered in all the
>>> ladies' toilet bowls - I kid you not - in case she needed to
>>> "go". The staff were told not to use them until the visit was
>>> over.
>>
>> Did they not paint the toilets? The loos next to my office
>> were redecorated when a royal came to visit.
>
> One of the current standard requests for royal visits is that the
> area *not* be freshly decorated for the visit, as it gets to the
> point that they're faced with the smell of paint and carpet
> sizing all day long.
>
> It must be so much fun: go anywhere in the UK and you get to
> smell paint and new carpet; go to another country, and they put
> on native costumes and dance at you.
See, putting up with that's worth 60p a year of my money!
Peter Moylan
> In alt.usage.english, Peter Moylan wrote:
>> Men have a reputation for aiming at flies.
>
> Yes, and bees are also quite common.
>
> http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/hoax/weblog/comments/3594/P20/
The title of the web site seems to suggest that this might be an urban
legend. I can confirm that the urinals at Schiphol airport are exactly
as described. I've tried them out myself.
Tony Cooper
wrote:
>On 09 May 2006, Linz wrote
>
>> m.j.m...@bradford.ac.uk wrote:
>>
>>> The late Princess Margaret one visited my wife's workplace;
>>> before her visit, rose petals were scattered in all the
>>> ladies' toilet bowls - I kid you not - in case she needed to
>>> "go". The staff were told not to use them until the visit was
>>> over.
>>
>> Did they not paint the toilets? The loos next to my office
>> were redecorated when a royal came to visit.
>
>One of the current standard requests for royal visits is that the
>area *not* be freshly decorated for the visit, as it gets to the
>point that they're faced with the smell of paint and carpet
>sizing all day long.
>
>It must be so much fun: go anywhere in the UK and you get to
>smell paint and new carpet; go to another country, and they put
>on native costumes and dance at you.
Certainly more fun than being a Prime Minister and having a visiting
Head of State vomit on you.
--
Tony Cooper
Orlando, FL
Mike Lyle
Vinny Burgoo wrote:
> In alt.usage.english, HVS wrote:
[...]
> >Presumably a spare-heir trait: didn't Princess Margaret have the
> >same reputation?
>
> Yep. She is said to have insisted on "Your Royal Highness" (?) and so on
> even when sitting half naked and half drunk on the beach.
>
> And it's said that if she couldn't find an ashtray she would instruct
> one of her drinking buddies to lend a hand - literally. The hand would
> be expected to hover, palm upwards, within range of the royal tab so
> that it could receive the royal ash. Did she then stub it out on the
> palm? Who knows?
An interesting etiquette problem, solved with consummate royal tact.
After no doubt deep and serious weighing of alternatives, she must have
decided that the hanger-on's hand merited, on balance, less
consideration than did the carpet in the boozer.
--
Mike.
Mike Barnes
>Mike Barnes wrote:
>> In alt.usage.english, Peter Moylan wrote:
>>> Men have a reputation for aiming at flies.
>> Yes, and bees are also quite common.
>> http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/hoax/weblog/comments/3594/P20/
>
>The title of the web site seems to suggest that this might be an urban
>legend.
Aye, but it says at the top of the page:
"Status: Strange, but apparently true".
> I can confirm that the urinals at Schiphol airport are exactly
>as described. I've tried them out myself.
And did they work?
Graeme Thomas
<sp...@lindsayendell.org.uk> writes
I have twice had an opportunity to see HM, on each occasion when she
came to visit my place of work. On the first occasion I would have had
to have visited another building on the site; I didn't, so I didn't see
her. On the second occasion I found I would be, on that day, be the
Tournament Director of the National Scrabble Championships, so I missed
her again.
At the time of the second visit I was working in a 3-story building,
with my employers occupying the lower two floors, with the third empty.
It was a new building, and the top floor had never been used. A small
army of cleaners was sent to the Ladies on that floor a few days before
The Visit; when they'd mopped and dusted, a handyman was sent in with a
brand new loo seat, which he affixed to the one of the toilets. The
army (or, at least, a detachment of it) cleaned up after him. After the
Visit the handyman came and removed the (unused) seat.
Rose petals were not involved.
<begin rambling anecdote>
A few months before The Visit the building had been subject to a seried
of burglaries, culminating in some of the staff being threatened with
baseball bats. As part of the security upgrade resulting from that
visit, silent alarms had been fitted. These, when activated, rang an
alarm in the local police station.
On the morning of The Visit a group of senior policemen came to inspect
the building. One of them, puzzled by a strange box on the wall,
activated the switch contained therein. The alarm went off at the
police station; they noticed that the building was expected to receive a
Royal Visit that morning, and they panicked. About five minutes after
the alarm went off a helocipter SWAT team arrived, and five minutes
after that a few vanloads of heavies turned up.
Sadly, no one was shot during the fuss.
<end rambling anecdote>
--
Graeme Thomas
Graeme Thomas
<ggu...@yahoo.com> writes
>Prince Andrew (full title: HRH The Rind of Golf) is said to be a
>right royal stickler for all the fawning business, as is only
>appropriate for a man who is widely revered as the nation's foremost
>utter waste of time.
Surely Prince Andrew cannot be considered at the nation's foremost utter
waste of time as long as Prince Edward is around. After all, the Grand
Old Duke of York had a reasonable career in the navy, as a helicopter(?)
pilot. The Earl of Wessex, by contrast, did something with his degree
in Media Studies.
--
Graeme Thomas
Robert Bannister
> x-no-archive: yes
>
> Robert Bannister wrote:
>
>
>>Is this so very different from the kind of nonsense that happens on
>>military bases when anyone over the rank of colonel deigns to visit?
>>
>
>
>
> Military protocol is probably equally ludicrous
> (IM-never-been-in-the-military-HO), but at least you know what you're
> getting when you sign up to be in the army.
>
> I don't recall ever signing up to be a "loyal subject" of her madge,
> gawd bless 'er.
One of the advantages of becoming a citizen of Australia is that,
following the lead of my mainly Italian co-swearers, I pledged my
allegiance to the "Queen and her hairs", something I never had to do
when being born in England.
--
Rob Bannister
Peter Moylan
> In alt.usage.english, Peter Moylan wrote:
>> I can confirm that the urinals at Schiphol airport are exactly as
>> described. I've tried them out myself.
>
> And did they work?
I missed the floor, which is apparently the intended result. I read
somewhere that cleaning costs for the airport toilets dropped
significantly after the flies were installed.