Appropriate or inappropriate old sayings

[Sinann]

'Well I'll go to foot of r stairs'.

I know that one well.
I worked with a girl from Blackburn for years and had to learnt new expressions and words like ginnel and having a camp (gossip).
My grandmother had a word I've never heard anywhere else.
Devarting, not sure if that's how it sould be spelt, she used it when we were young women going out at the weekends to disco's etc. Off out devarting. Anyone know it?

[heywood]

Corruption of ‘cavorting’ perhaps?

[gaffy]

My late mother had a thing about bird droppings falling on you being lucky.  When I was young and happened to be splattered from on high with a large dollop of bird poop, I remember her gleefully announcing something like, 'That's good luck for the rest of the year'.

In retrospect, I cannot recollect any unusual abundance of good luck following such an incident.

[..claire..]

My Grandmother used the phrase "Muck for Luck" if a bird happened to poop on some unfortunate soul.

If anyone ever asked her - Are you alright ?

She would always answer with "I'm all right down one side and left down the other"

And it's still beautiful weather in lovely Lancashire 

[Pennines]

Sinann -- you are an Irish expert, so I am amazed at you knowing ginnel and camp (gossip). Both are still in common usage.

By coincidence, like your friend --- I'm also from Blackburn, -- but I've never heard of going out 'devarting'  (or is that an Irish saying?)--- what I've missed! Sheltered upbringing of course.

Yes --- 'muck for luck' and 'where there's muck there's brass'. (Brass meaning money) ----but why is there brass where there's muck? That's a saying which doesn't necessarily make sense either.

Claire -- yes I agree 'right down one side and left down t'other'. Whoever it was who said it always thought they had come out with a great witticism didn't they.

I just love accents - i can remember a time when you could tell whether a person was from my town -- or one only 5 miles distant by the way they pronounced certain words. That difference seems to be dying out a bit now.

[Viktoria]

I`ll go to the foot of" r" stairs is where I live, the pronunciation of" our"it is not a minimalisation of our just the way we say our.
It sounds like are--"-are `ouse"=  our house.
                                                        Viktoria.

[Sinann]

The devarting was my grandmother from Westmeath.
Are you another Vimto fan, my friend used to bring the full 12 big bottles still in the plastic wrapper as it is delivered to a shop over to Ireland each time she made a visit home. She had it all to herself none of us liked it.

[pharmaT]

We didn’t refer to clothing though - it was more of a thump  or a slap ‘get a clout from your mam when she finds out ...’ 

Yep, I've had a few clouts in my time (in the days when it was not a crime to give them, I hasten to add.).
[/quote]


In the saying "ne'er cast a clout" it rhymes with toot rather than out and can also be spelt cloot depending on the area of Scotland.

[Sinann]

On the subject of May
A wet and windy May fills the barn with corn and hay.
Most people probably don't care any more.