Donna Speaks: And the Answer is....

 And the Answer Is!

Who wins when a cotton mouth water moccasin swallows a catfish?                                                   

It is a "no win" situation. The catfish has sharp, bony protrusions on both sides of his head that spear the snake.  The catfish cannot get out of the snake's mouth, and the snake cannot make the catfish go further down.  I know this 'cause I saw it happen.

Why is the acorn the name of the oak tree nut when other nuts have the same name as the tree? 

  

I haven't really ever found the answer.  Jan admits to the same.  What "experts" say is that the name of the oak tree's fruit, the acorn, is derived from a Gothic word, "akran" meaning "the fruit of the closed hand".  They blame Chaucer for first calling  the fruit "achornes", which was, by degrees bastardized to "acorn".  To mean that explains nothing.

Was a man or a woman responsible for invention of the bra?  

The actual "inventor" is not known, but women had more to do with its design and development than men.  How could we do this to ourselves?!

Is it "cat-ee corner" or "kitty-corner"?                         

It is actually cater-corner.  Go figure.  But no one really uses that.  Katty (or caddy) is as common as kitty.

Do you plug it in or plug it up?                                     

Well, if it's a cord, you plug it in.  If it's a hole, you plug it up. I grew up plugging up the lamp cord, etc.  Every time I use plug-up in this context, Jan growls and says, "It's plug-in?"  Hmmmm... Am I being a bit passive-aggressive?  

How do you spell that red sauce in which you dip your french fries? 

Evidently, the answer to this question could be the cause of another civil war in the good ole USA. Ketchup is the "preferred" spelling; the one used by most of the red sauce makers.  But there are parts of the USA where folks insist that the only correct spelling is "catsup".

In what do Germans dip their fries?

Those Germans!  In the early days of our time in Berlin, Germany, we realized there were almost as many MacDonald's in Germany as in the US - a life saver for parents of three boys in a brand new culture.  What we couldn't figure out was why German folks looked at us strangely when we asked for ketchup with our fries.  Germans squirted white stuff all over their fries.  And the fact that potato in German is kartofel, and kartofel was not on the MacDonald's menu further confused our simple minds.  We soon discovered that if you wanted "french fries", you looked for "pomme frites", when is French!  And if you didn't want strange looks you asked for "mayo":  pomme frites mit mayo.   The white stuff was mayo!  Yep, good old mayonnaise, an English word.  So the Germans combined the french word for potatoes - pomme, the German word for with - mit, and the English word for that white stuff - mayo to come up with french fries with mayo. We'd take their mayo and then we'd sneak and grab some ketchup...

How did golf get its name?                                         

I think the world knows that the Scots invented golf and play it all the time.  Jan and I confirmed that when we were in Edinburg in mid-November (freezing cold and very windy) and the Scots were on the St. Andrew's green hitting the ball.

A form of the game has been around since the 1400's.  Soon after the Scots decided that hitting a pebble around a course of holes with a stick was a grand idea, they also decided that only Scotsmen could play.  No Women Allowed.  As the men of the country stated: Gentlemen Only - Ladies Forbidden = GOLF.  

What is the only animal that cannot jump?               

Elephants are wonderful animals but they cannot jump.

What was the original color of coca-cola?                   

GREEN.  Yuck!  Green coca-cola.

After what city is Winnie the Pooh named?             

After Winnipeg, Manitoba in Canada.

What is the only food that doesn't spoil?                     

Honey, honey. If you keep it long enough, it will develop crystals. But it is still good.  Just warm it up and the crystals will disappear.  And, if you really want honey, buy local.  Some of the honey in stores are mixed with other syrups.  And honey is better for you than sugar because honey takes more of your body's energy to break down. And, depending on what your local bees eat, honey has addition helpful minerals.

What is the only planet that rotates clockwise?            

Venus, of course.  I guess that's why the Goddess of Love can knock us all for a loop at times.  Then there's the Uranus.  This planet doesn't really rotate clockwise, it's just a tad this side of rotating on its side around our sun: neither counterclockwise or clockwise.

After whom are Sesame Street's Bert and Ernie named?

After no one in particular, according to people who knew Jim Henson and other people responsible for Bert and Ernie's name.  Not true is the rumor that the characters were named after two cab drivers from the classic Christmas tale, It's a Wonderful Life.

What is the only animal that can breathe through its butt?                                                                     

The Turtle.  The Fitzroy Turtle from Australia to be exact.  Other animals try to "fake it", but Mr or Mrs Fitz Roy are the only ones who actually do it.

What is the strongest muscle in a human's body?   

Many people say it is our tongue!  And that's in both men and women.  No differentiation is made for lesbians or people of the Pentecostal faith. And certain exercises (not to be discussed) can strengthen  your tongue.  OK. Strongest - NOT TRUE; exercises - TRUE.  This is kinda like the "Bert and Ernie" myth.  Lotsa people believe and spread this untruth.  Muscle strength is measured in many different ways and it depends on what kind of muscle, where it is, etc.  The tongue will become the strongest muscle the day someone can do a tongue push up, i.e., both arms behind your back, using only the tongue to push up your torso.

No one got all the answers but there were some really good tries.  Keep them cards and letters coming.

And, Miss Althea, have a great weekend.

Don't Call Me Honey

Don’t call me honey.  Don’t call me dear. And fergawd’s sake, don’t excuse your behavior by saying, “I do that all the time and nobody else minds.” We do mind.  

We were taught as young girls to be ‘nice’ and subservient to males. Always let them think they were smarter, faster, better than we were. Make sure our grades were not too high so they would know they were 'superior.' They were allowed to call us sweetie, honey, dear or what’s worse, girlie. Many of us think it’s just fine for men to talk that way. Most women think it’s cute. When we stop and think about it, do you really want to be thought of as a second class citizen, to be called any ‘endearment’ men can think of.  

This is not just an ordinary action of those awful men who whistle at women who are walking by their construction sites or for that matter, just sitting on a bench in the park. Men think it is is their right; they even think that it’s called for and we expect it. They think it’s a compliment. 

And when we become disabled, the comments worsen. We are called honey or dear by everyone, not just men. Somehow we become children again unable to care for ourselves.  Women finally have somebody to be better than.  So all of our lives we have had to live with catcalls and diminishing remarks from men of all ages, and now we have to hear it from women too.

I was visiting my dentist and we were talking about how we dealt with men who persisted in those habits. I told her that I always said to men, “Did we sleep together? Those are the only people who call me honey.” The dentist said she always says, “Are you aware of who I am?”

Love her response and may steal it from her. She may vary her answers as well.  

Disability does not make these discriminating comments go away, it magnifies them and makes most of the population feel as if we need to be treated as if we are under the age of 12.