"I ate so much okra I slid out of bed!" (1930s? East Texas?)
Laurence Horn
laurence.horn at YALE.EDU
Sun Oct 21 04:14:13 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
I'd go for any of the above except the candied yams, which are too
sweet for me. Oursins, asa I like to think of them, are fine little
critters, but not necessarily worth the effort, and those greens and
roots are great. If I could have a bit of those scotch bonnets to
squeeze into the pot likker or corn bread to sop in it, I'd be down
with that too. (If I had my druthers, though, I'd opt for the
"broth" made when you dip a mess o' steamer clams into hot water to
wash off the sand. Is there a name for that? Clam likker?)
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 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
>
>------------------------------------------------------------
>The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
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