So This Is Why We Stare At Dead People?

+------------- Bizarre Facts About the 1500s --------------+

Most people got married in June because they took their
yearly bath in May and still smelled pretty good. However,
they were starting to smell, which is why brides carried a
bouquet of flowers to hide the body odor.

Baths consisted of a big tub of hot water. The man of the
house had the nice clean water, then, all the other sons and
men, then the women and, finally, the children. By then, the
water was so dirty you could actually lose someone in it -
hence the saying, "Don't throw the baby out with the bath-
water."

Houses had thatched roofs - thick straw, piled high, with no
wood underneath. It was the only place for animals to get
warm, so all the dogs, cats, and other small animals lived
in the roof. When it rained, it became slippery and sometimes
the animals would slide off the roof. Hence the saying, "It's
raining cats and dogs."

There was nothing to stop things from falling into the house.
Bugs and other droppings could really mess up your clean bed.
Hence, a bed with big posts and a sheet hung over the top
afforded some protection. That's how canopy beds came into
existence.

Sometimes folks could obtain pork, which made them feel
quite special. When visitors came over, they would hang up
their bacon to show off. It was a sign of wealth that a man
could "bring home the bacon."

Those with money had plates made of pewter. Food with a high
acid content caused some of the lead to leach onto the food,
causing lead poisoning and death. This happened most often
with tomatoes, so for the next 400 years or so, tomatoes
were considered poisonous.

Bread was divided according to status. Workers got the burnt
bottom of the loaf, the family got the middle, and guests
got the top, or "upper crust."

Lead cups were used to drink ale or whiskey. The combination
would sometimes knock people out for a couple of days. Some-
one walking along the road would take them for dead and
prepare them for burial. The person would be laid out on the
kitchen table for a couple of days and the family would
gather around and wait to see if he or she would wake up -
hence the custom of holding a "wake."


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