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Monday, April 21, 2014

Right Church, Wrong Pew

My theme for A- Z is the year my book takes place: 1881. I"ll be posting about people, places, and random facts about the year as it relates - however distantly - to my book, West of Paradise.

Today's letter is R for 'Right Church, Wrong Pew,' one of the many curious expressions I discovered while researching my book and also the title of one of the chapters. Sort of like 'close but no cigar.'

Here are a few more you might find amusing:

Huckleberry above a persimmon: a cut above.

"She's a great gal that...a huckleberry above most people's persimmons."

Pucker: in a state of irritation or anger.

"My wife will be in a fine pucker when she finds this sum exhausted."

Not one's funeral: not one's business.

"Wanted: a nice, plump, healthy, good-natured, good-looking domestic and affectionate lady to correspond with, object - Matrimony. She must be between 22 and 35 years of age. She must be a believer in God and immortality, but no sectarian. She must be not a gad-about or given to scandal...Such a lady can find correspondent by addressing...Post Office Box 9, Yuma, A. T. Photographs exchanged! If anybody don't like our way of going about this...business, we don't care. It's none of their funeral."*






 *The above referenced material comes from Everyday Life in the 1800s by Mare McCutcheon.

16 comments:

  1. "A huckleberry above most people's persimmons" - what a mouthful for what the meaning actually is! LOL!

    Oh but that lonely hearts ad!! I love that!! Wonder how many replied!? Wonder how many fit the bill!? Yay! Hope you had a great Easter! Take care
    x

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  2. what a wonderful collection of period slang!

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  3. I like the pucker explanation, over here it can mean to pucker up/to receive a kiss.

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  4. What a way to describe a woman. And the ad is interesting too.

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  5. I have one I like "Nice house, nobody's home." Love, love, love the ad at the bottom and the not your funeral not your business take.

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  6. Love the "wanted" ad. ;) Fun times.

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  7. LOL. I love those old sayings. Colorful. :)

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  8. So funny to see how people spoke in those days.... It's cool to see history's progression of our slang...

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  9. How fun! Love the funeral saying LOL.

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  10. Hahaha! The ad:) I like the saying "right church, wrong pew" as a chapter title. I love to title my chapters as well.

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  11. I've heard that saying before.

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  12. Cool period expressions! I always enjoy learning about new (or I guess I should say "old") phrases and expressions. That ad is too funny! :)

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  13. Oh, those are fun. I wonder why they fell out of usage...;)

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  14. What a great idea for your theme! Since this is my first visit to your blog, I'll have to go back and read through the other 17 or so letters. Interesting sayings too-- makes me wonder which sayings we have today will fade away in the next century.
    Thanks for visiting my blog the other day. Come back and visit.
    Mary @ The View from my World

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