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Ramblings of an unkempt man
Month: March 2018

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Month: March 2018

King of the colons…..

King of the colons…..

March 29, 2018 eccentrics / History

Apologies for the lack of recent posts. I have been finishing off my new book on Irish eccentrics which will be out sometime in September. On the subject of eccentrics, I would like to point you in the direction of a Sir William Arbuthnot Lane (1856 – 1943) There have been …

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A very short history of St Patrick…….

A very short history of St Patrick…….

March 20, 2018 History

Saint Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, was born in either Scotland, England, Wales, or France, but definitely not in Ireland. His given name was not Patrick but Maewyn. Or Succat. He barely became bishop of Ireland, because his superiors felt he lacked the finesse and scholarship the position called …

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To catch a Tartar……

To catch a Tartar……

March 18, 2018 History / Odd / Uncategorized / Words

While opinions vary about the origin of the word “Tartar,” all agree that 13th-century western Europeans used the term to refer to invading Mongol tribes. The word was actually a derivative of the name the ancient Romans used to refer to Tartarus, the area in the underworld where evil people …

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The flip of a coin……

The flip of a coin……

March 14, 2018 History / Odd

In ancient times, people believed that major life decisions should be made by the gods. And they devised ingenious forms of divination to coax gods to answer important questions with an unequivocal “yes” or “no.” Although coins—ideally suited for yes/no responses—were first minted by the Lydians in the tenth century …

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Why spilling salt is bad luck….

Why spilling salt is bad luck….

March 13, 2018 History / Odd / Words

  Salt was man’s first food seasoning, and it so dramatically altered his eating habits that it is not at all surprising that the action of spilling the precious ingredient became tantamount to bad luck. Following an accidental spilling of salt, a superstitious nullifying gesture such as throwing a pinch …

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Caligula and foreplay……

Caligula and foreplay……

March 11, 2018 History / Odd / sex

The appalling Roman emperor Caligula (12 – 41 AD) had a somewhat novel approach to foreplay according to the historian Suetonius in his De Vita Caesarum which was written in about 121 AD. Caligula was in the habit of inviting attractive aristocratic couples to dine with him. Then during a …

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American football, mascara and the Evil eye…….

American football, mascara and the Evil eye…….

March 11, 2018 History / Odd

A “dirty look,” a “withering glance,” “if looks could kill,” and “to stare with daggers” are a few common expressions that derive from one of the most universal of fears, the evil eye. It has been found in virtually all cultures. In ancient Rome, professional sorcerers with the evil eye …

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Danger, yawning ahead……..!

Danger, yawning ahead……..!

March 10, 2018 History / Odd

  Today, covering the mouth when yawning is considered an essential of good manners. But the original custom stemmed not from politeness but from fear—a fear that in one giant exhalation the soul, and life itself, might depart the body. A hand to the lips held back the life force. …

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The Independent Soviet Republic of Limerick…….

The Independent Soviet Republic of Limerick…….

March 9, 2018 History / Odd

    You probably didn’t know, and it also came as a surprise to me, that for 12 days, the city of Limerick in Ireland and its surrounding area was a self-declared Soviet Republic. This came about at the start of the Irish war of Independence as a protest against …

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The worst novelist in history….

The worst novelist in history….

March 7, 2018 History / Odd

Who was the worst novelist in history? A worthy candidate would be a schoolmistress from Northern Ireland whose novels were so uniquely and thrillingly terrible that, in the early years of the last century, she became an ironic cause célèbre among the cultural luminaries of her time. Step forward, Amanda …

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