OED: "monkey's wedding"

[Jonathan Lighter]

My grandmother told me about "sunshowers" ca1952.

I thought it was weird that it could rain while the sun was shining. IMO,
sunshowers are very brief.

I've read (but never heard) "The devil is beating his wife."  I've never
seen an explanation of it.

JL

On Sun, Dec 2, 2012 at 3:27 AM, Wilson Gray <hwgray at gmail.com> wrote:

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> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Wilson Gray <hwgray at GMAIL.COM>
> Subject:      OED: "monkey's wedding"
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> "en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
> Sunshower
>
> In the United States, particularly in the South, a sunshower is said
> to show that _'the devil is beating his wife'_, because he is angry
> that God has created a beautiful day."
>
> Word.
>
> OTOH, this is the first time that I've ever encountered either
> "sunshower" or "monkey's wedding." Somehow, I *am* familiar with
> "snowshower," for which, needless to say, I know of no Southern
> equivalent.
> --
> -Wilson
> -----
> 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.
> -Mark Twain
>
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