"I ate so much okra I slid out of bed!" (1930s? East Texas?)
Wilson Gray
hwgray at GMAIL.COM
Sat Oct 20 05:03:51 UTC 2007
Larry, do you really go for food like sea urchins and such or are you
simply rising to the challenge?
FWIW, I prefer candied yams and mustard greens with salt pork,
sprinkled with what was known in my part of Down Home as "peppa
salts": Scotch bonnet peppers marinated in vinegar. If the truth be
told, I was never really down with things like mustard, turnip,
collard, and beet greens or turnips and rutabaga. But you know how
parents are. I had no say in the matter. And I never got ready for
drinking pot liquor by the glass. Ugh!
-Wilson
On 10/18/07, Laurence Horn <laurence.horn at yale.edu> wrote:
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
> Sender: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster: Laurence Horn <laurence.horn at YALE.EDU>
> Subject: Re: "I ate so much okra I slid out of bed!" (1930s? East Texas?)
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> At 10:48 PM -0400 10/18/07, Wilson Gray wrote:
> >Quite impressive! Have you tried chitterlings with Frank's hot sauce,
> >yet? Now, there's a taste treat for the ages!
> >
> >-Wilson
>
> The local "soul food" place near campus here, Sandra's
> (http://www.sandrasplace.com), cooks up an impressive mess o'
> chitlins on Fridays, and I always go for plenty of hot sauce,
> although I don't think it's Frank's per se. And the nice thing is
> that you can choose two sides, one of which of course must be fried
> okra. (The tough decision is sweet potato fries vs. collards.)
>
> LH
>
> >
> >On 10/18/07, Laurence Horn <laurence.horn at yale.edu> wrote:
> >> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> >>-----------------------
> >> Sender: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> >> Poster: Laurence Horn <laurence.horn at YALE.EDU>
> >> Subject: Re: "I ate so much okra I slid out of bed!" (1930s?
> >>East Texas?)
> >>
> >>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >>
> >> At 7:36 PM -0400 10/18/07, Wilson Gray wrote:
> >> >Stewed okry vaguely resembles red peppers, except that it's green and
> >> >appears to be covered in a colorless mucilage trivially distinct from
> >> >nasal mucus. It takes some getting used to, even if the eater is a
> >> >native of East texas whose been fed it since becoming old enough to
> >> >eat solid food, especially after the mucilaginous substance has ceased
> >> >to be unique in the eater's experience.
> >> >
> >> >I don't know why, but, IMO, the stuff is as sticky as mucilage or the
> >> >grease from pig tails, swine neckbones, pig ears, pigs' feet, or pig
> >> >snoots and not very slick at all. Our okry was home-grown, so that may
> >> >have had something to do with it. Different subspecies or some such.
> >> >Who knows?
> >> >
> >> >-Wilson
> >>
> >> Much ado about nothing. I'm from New York and
> >> I've loved okra, stewed and fried and Indian,
> >> since I first tried 'em lo these 40 or years ago.
> >> Took me no getting used to, any more than squid.
> >> Now jellyfish and sea cucumber, *they* took
> >> getting used to, and I'm not sure I'm there yet.
> >> (Given the popularity of gumbo, I'm pretty sure
> >> I'm not alone in my okraphilia, although I may be
> >> a bit extreme in this--not everyone s(l)ips into
> >> a dry okratini every night...)
> >>
> >> LH
> >>
> >> >
> >> >On 10/18/07, Barry Popik <bapopik at gmail.com> wrote:
> >> >> ---------------------- Information from the
> >> >>mail header -----------------------
> >> >> Sender: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> >> >> Poster: Barry Popik <bapopik at GMAIL.COM>
> >> >> Subject: "I ate so much okra I slid out of bed!" (1930s?
> >>East Texas?)
> >> >>
> >> >>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >> >>
> >> >> Anyone remember this?
> >> >> ...
> >> >> ...
> >> >> ...
> >> >>
> >> >>http://www.barrypopik.com/index.php/texas/entry/i_ate_so_much_okra_i_slid_out_of_bed_or_i_couldnt_keep_my_socks_up/
> >> >> ...
> >> >> Entry from October 18, 2007
> >> >> "I ate so much okra I slid out of bed!" or "I couldn't keep my
> >>socks up!"
> >> >> Boiled okra has a reputation for being slimy. Many people survived on
> >> >> okra in the depression years of the 1930s, and the phrase arose: "I
> >> >> ate so much okra I slid out of bed!" Some people prefer the less slimy
> >> >> fried okra instead.
> >> >>
> >> >> Roy Blount Jr.'s ode "To Okra" in the July 1976 Atlantic Monthly hints
> >> >> that if you eat too much okra, you'll have trouble keeping your socks
> >> >> up.
> >> >>
> >> >>
> >> >> Food Tale: Okra
> >> >> Okra
> >> >> (Abelmoschus esculentus)
> >> >> Okra, related to the hibiscus and a member of the mallow family, is
> > > >> native to tropical Africa or Asia--and was cultivated by the Egyptians
> >> >> in the 12 century AD. It slowly traveled south into the central lands
> >> >> of Africa; north and west to Mediterranean lands and ultimately to the
> >> >> Balkans; and east to the subcontinent of India.
> >> >>
> >> >> It arrived in the United States in the 18th century with the slave
> > > >> trade, on a ship filled with Bantu tribes people. In no time at all it
> >> >> became a cornerstone in southern cooking, Texan cuisine, and perhaps
> >> >> most especially the distinctive Cajun cooking of Louisiana.
> >> >>
> >> >> It still grows wild in Ethiopia and Sudan, just as it did in
> >> >> prehistoric times. Its plants, related to cotton, were carried to
> >> >> India and Egypt where they are still used in cooking oil and as a
> >> >> coffee substitute.
> >> >>
> >> >> Today okra is used commercially as a hidden ingredient: it is the
> >> >> mucilage in catsup that makes it so hard to get out of the bottle.
> >> >>
> >> >> Okay, here's the whole stupid "Song to Okra" by Roy Blount, Jr.:
> >> >> (...)
> >> >> Old Homer Ogletree's so high
> >> >> On okra he keeps lots laid by.
> >> >> He keeps it in a safe he locks up,
> >> >> He eats so much, can't keep his socks up.
> >> >> (Which goes to show it's no misnomer
> >> >> When people call him Okra Homer.
> >> > > Okra!
> >> >>
> >> >> Texas Cooking - Grandma's Cookbook
> >> >> Stewed Okra and Tomatoes
> >> >> Okra is not well-known outside the southern states, which is
> >> >> understandable in that it's a hot-weather crop. Fried okra, of course,
> >> >> is immensely popular and has gained fame even in northern climes, but
> >> >> real okra lovers appreciate its flavor when it is stewed-that is,
> >> > > cooked slowly with a little liquid. Okra can be stewed alone or with
> >> >> other vegetables, most notably tomatoes. Ideally, you should have
> >> >> small pods of fresh okra and big, juicy tomatoes for this recipe to be
> >> >> at its best.
> >> >> (...)
> >> >> People try to be kind to okra by describing its texture as "silky," a
> >> >> euphemism, to be sure. There's no getting around it: okra, especially
> >> >> stewed okra is slimey. There should be another word that does it
> >> >> justice, but I'm afraid the English language is lacking. But I refuse
> >> >> to defend okra. It's delicious-so much so that I enjoy that slimey
> >> >> texture. There's an old one-liner about okra that goes like this: When
> >> >> I was a kid, I ate so much okra I couldn't keep my socks up.
> >> >>
> >> >> Google Books
> >> >> 1981 (?), Atlantic Monthly, pg. 586:
> >> >> 'I never had nary a cent in 1932,' a cropper told me, 'and I et so
> >> >> much okra I slid out of bed.
> >> >>
> >> >> 13 November 1966, Dallas (TX) Morning News, "Tolbert's Texas" by Frank
> >> >> X. Tolbert, section A, pg. 29:
> >> >> IN OKRA, ON Sabana Creek, I was told that the village was so labeled
> >> >> because an early settler and postmaster named Levi McCulloch found the
> >> >> soil was well suited for raising the slippery vegetable, "and in the
> >> >> old days they ate so much okra they nearly slid out of bed."
> >> >>
> >> >> 20 November 1967, Dallas (TX) Morning News, "Tolbert's Texas" by Frank
> >> >> X. Tolbert, section D, pg. 1:
> >> >> But when they pass the stewed okra I say no. Slimy, slick stuff. A
> >> >> popular saying during the early 1930's business depression was: "I ate
> >> >> so much okra I nearly slid out of bed."
> >> >>
> >> >> 13 April 1972, Dallas (TX) Morning News, "On an Okra Recipe and
> >> >> Florida Road Rally" by Frank X. Tolbert, section A, pg. 17:
> >> >> Most cooks don't know how to prepare okra. And it comes out slimy for
> >> >> them. Slimy and slick. In fact there was an old East Texas saying
> >> >> popular during The Great Depression: "I ate so much okra I nearly slid
> >> >> out of bed."
> >> >>
> >> >> 28 June 1977, Dallas (TX) Morning News, "Tolbert's Texas" by Frank X.
> >> >> Tolbert, section D, pg. 3:
> >> >> "I ate so much okra I slid out of bed"
> >> >>
> >> >> 9 July 1977, Dallas (TX) Morning News "Okra Town and Some Poems
> >> >> Praising Okra" by Frank X. Tolbert, section D, pg. 3:
> >> >> MRS. HELEN ROGERS of Arlington sent me a poem about okra by Roy
> > > >> Blount, Jr., published in the July 1976 issue of the august Atlantic
> >> >> Monthly.
> >> >>
> >> >> "I don't even like the stuff-okra that is," Mrs. Rogers wrote. "But in
> >> >> my opinion the poem on okra by Roy Blount Jr. in the Atlantic Monthly
> >> >> is a dilly."
> >> >>
> >> >> I hope that Mr. Blount and the Atlantic Monthly don't mind if I print
> >> >> a few sample verses from the poem called "To Okra":
> > > >>
> >> >> "Old Homer Ogletree's so high on okra he keeps lots laid by...He keeps
> >> >> it in a safe he locks up, he eats so much, can't keep his socks up
> >> >> (Which goes to show it's no misnomer when people call him Okra
> >> >> Homer.)"
> >> >>
> >> >> 17 March 1987, The Advocate (Baton Rouge, LA):
> >> >> "I've eaten so much okra I have to put sand in my bed to keep from
> >> >> slipping out."
> >> >>
> >> >> Google Groups: soc.motss
> >> >> Newsgroups: soc.motss
> >> >> From: szrma... at chip.ucdavis.edu ()
> >> >> Date: Tue, 1 Feb 1994 21:47:16 GMT
> >> >> Local: Tues, Feb 1 1994 5:47 pm
> >> >> Subject: Re: Okra Winfrey (was: I *hate* beets (was Re: Glory Holes))
> >> >>
> >> >> "County Comic" Jerry Clower said he ate so much "slick, slimy boiled
> >> >> okra" as a child that he couldn't keep his socks up.... How
> >> >> appetizing!
> >> >>
> >> >> Google Groups: alt.2eggs.sausage.beans.tomatoes.2toast...
> >> >> Newsgroups: alt.2eggs.sausage.beans.tomatoes.2toast.largetea.cheerslove
> >> >> From: "Nancy"
> >> >> Date: 1998/10/03
> >> >> Subject: Re: WHO LOVES A FULL ENGLISH BREAKFAST???
> >> >>
> >> >> BTW, have you heard the southern comedian who claims to have eaten so
> >> >> much okra as a child that he can't keep his socks up?
> >> >>
> >> >> 17 November 2003, The Advocate (Baton Rouge, LA):
> >> > > John A. Rooney III of Portland, Texas, says, "When I was a kid, my
> >> >> mother fed us so much okra that she had to throw sand in our beds to
> >> >> keep us from sliding out."
> >> >>
> >> >> Johnny Caker's Journal
> >> >> 2005-08-04 - 9:23 p.m.
> >> >> (...)
> >> >> At supper Mom told a joke that her grandfather loved. Did you hear
> >> >> about the fella who loved boiled okra so much that he ate it every
> >> > > day? Well, he couldn't keep his socks up! Get it? Boiled okra is
> >> >> slimey!
> >> >>
> >> >> 30 March 2006, The Advocate (Baton Rouge, LA), pg. B1:
> >> >> T. G. Gaylor offers this from Jerry Clower: "My mama and grandma fed
> >> >> me so much boiled okra that I couldn't keep my socks up."
> >> >>
> >> >> Leon Hale (Houston Chronicle blog)
> >> >> October 03, 2006
> >> >> It's better if you fry it
> >> >> Finicky. There's a curious adjective, but I've been familiar with it a
> >> >> long time because when I was a kid I was often called a finicky eater.
> >> >>
> >> >> I wouldn't eat boiled okra, for instance. It was slick and looked
> >> >> slimy and the sight of people eating the stuff gave me the fantods. Do
> >> >> you really like boiled okra? Ugh.
> >> >> (...)
> >> >> Comments
> >> >> you know what Jerry Clower said about boiled okra? "I ate so much as a
> >> >> kid my socks would not stay up."
> >> >> Posted by: barbara at October 4, 2006 05:58 AM
> >> >>
> >> >> Food Network Forums
> >> >> Re: Really Nice, Easy Chicken and Rice
> >> >> Wed, 25 October 2006 13:43
> >> >>
> >> >> I know I must have already brought this up, but have you heard the
> >> >> comedian (his name escapes me) say, "I ate so much okra as a child I
> >> >> couldn't keep my socks up?" Hahaha! Fried okra that I have had is just
> >> >> breading with a little seedy slime in it!
> >> >>
> >> >> ------------------------------------------------------------
> >> >> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> >> >>
> >> >
> >> >
> >> >--
> >> >All say, "How hard it is that we have to die"---a strange complaint to
> >> >come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
> >> >-----
> >> > -Sam'l Clemens
> >> >
> >> >------------------------------------------------------------
> >> >The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> >>
> >> ------------------------------------------------------------
> >> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> >>
> >
> >
> >--
> >All say, "How hard it is that we have to die"---a strange complaint to
> >come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
> >-----
> > -Sam'l Clemens
> >
> >------------------------------------------------------------
> >The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>
--
All say, "How hard it is that we have to die"---a strange complaint to
come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
-----
-Sam'l Clemens
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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
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