A question for yu'

[White Fox]

OK folks. Not many rules here. The only one really is that you do not use Google or other search as that just spoils the fun for yourself and for others here. Besides, probably no search engine will come up with the proper answer on this one anyhow. It is "Out there". But you can't cheat on this one. You need to do some good old research to find the answer if you don't already know it.

The only prize here is the satisfaction of knowing the answer when many others maybe didn't. But I really think that there is something to that. So here goes.

 

Worker 11811 pointed to an old expression of "Stir up the Pot" in another thread. This may in fact have come from an older expression "Stirring up shit". So. Here is your question. Where did that older expression of "Stirring up the shit" come from, and what sort of people did it involve, etc. (for instance, adults, doctors, etc.) What is the origin of the expression? And in turn then, why the expression "Stir up the Pot"?

 

So, there you go. Anyone know?

 

W

[White Fox]

I am really surprised that no one knows the origin of this one. It all goes back to the expression "Stirring up Shit".

 

Here is the only hint I can give. Giving anything more gives it away completely. It involves kids of olde times.

 

W

[neoJaguar]

I'm pushing 30, but I don't even know this one.

[AKcoyote]

neoJaguar,

Don't feel bad, I'm over 60 and I don't have a clue.

[White Fox]

Ok. As mentioned. I really thought someone would know this one, but it would be hard to find via search.

 

First off. "Stirring up shit". Was an old pastime of kids while playing. You are playing in your yard where the cattle pasture. There is certain stuff that comes out of the South end of a North Bound cow. It comes out in a very loose form and lays on the ground in what essentially looks like a "Pie". Not a very attractive one mind you. But it does look like a pie, and is often called a "cow pie". Well, after sitting for awhile it gets a sort of "scale" on top of it that kind of makes it not stink as much. But if you come along with a stick and "Stir it up", then it highly stinks again. And quite probably after kids would stir up the shit in the cow pie, they might wipe the end of that stick on a friend's, or enemy's, clothes. So, there you go. Stirring up shit. I tried to find a drawing of it on the net. one does exist. But I just could not find it quickly today. This is a game that certainly goes back to the so called middle ages or Dark ages. WAs known to be around in and around the 1500's or so in Europe. Again, cows would be roaming the "Lawns" at that time, and there was no idea as to cleanliness re diseases, etc. But they DID know that the more you bathed, the more mosquitoes and such creatures came along.

 

Now then, that came to be translated kind of into some other expressions somewhat. One being stirring the pot. While making soup the good vegetables and meats would go to the bottom so you would stir it up. So, the expression came to be used for it as well.

 

So there you go. You never know how much extremely usable information that you can come up with in a place like this. Bet you didn't think you would learn about that today!

 

White Fox