Braille Letter "W'

I'm learning braille and noticed the the letter 'w' doesn't have a logical dot position in relation to the other letters. Apparently the letter was added later in 1914 by Americans. Louis Braille didn't encode the letter when devising his ingenious tangible alphabet in 1821 because the letter didn't exist yet in French dictionaries!

Canary Island HIstory

Twittering little canary birds are obviously named after the Canary Islands. But the island's name came from the Latin canariae insulae which means 'islands of dogs.' Apparently the island's inhabitants all owned ginormous tail - waggers! It was originally an island famous for being full of fidos and not birds!

The Cat's Out of the Bag

 

  

In medieval England, piglets were sold in the open marketplace. The seller usually kept the pig in a bag, so it would be easier for the buyer to take it home. But shady sellers often tried to trick their buyers by putting a large cat in the bag. If a shrewd shopper looked in the bag - then the cat was literally out of the bag. That is where the expression came from!

Dog Tired

 

  

Dog tired is an old English phrase. It derives from an old tale of Alfred the Great who used to send his sons out with his extensive kennels of hunting dogs. Whichever of his sons, be it Athelbrod or Edwin, were able to catch more of the hounds would gain their father's right hand side at the dinner table that evening. These chases would leave them 'dog-tired' yet merry at their victory!

Jour des Crêpes

The Catholic holiday of Candlemas, on 2 February, is a feast to commemorate the purification of the Virgin Mary and the presentation of baby Jesus. In France, this holiday is called la Chandeleur, Fête de la Lumière, or jour des crêpes.

Not only do the French eat a lot of crêpes on Chandeleur, but they also do a bit of fortune telling while making them. It is traditional to hold a coin in your writing hand and a crêpe pan in the other, and flip the crêpe into the air. If you manage to catch the crêpe in the pan, your family will be prosperous for the rest of the year!
french vintage postcard