My husband went to Sweden and all I got was...
Actually, Hick DID bring me something from his world travels this time. He brought me a horse. He also brought me a story, but I'm not so sure of its authenticity.
It's a red wooden horse, perhaps four inches tall from hoof to back, not quite as tall as the Kurt Warner bobblehead that he also brought me, though it was of a more local origin, which he presented me at the time of the horse-giving. No pictures of Kurt today, but I should have gotten one of them side by side.
According to Hick, the Swedish people used to carve wooden horses as toys for their kids. Because they used a knife for carving, and knives are sharp (Hick is an expert on this subject, since he has made his living working with machines that make knives and saw blades out of huge bands of steel), the carvers often cut themselves. Because they didn't want the blood to scare the kids, they painted these wooden horse toys red.
I cannot find any information that lends credence to Hick's explanation of a whittlin' faux pas as the basis for the red color of these Swedish horses. Not even after my extensive research which consists of the first two Google links, and wikipedia. I'll let you check them out for yourself, lest you think I would deliberately show Hick in a bad light, or mock his knowledge of Swedish folklore. You know that Hick always get the benefit of the doubt and a stellar slant here at Val's cathouse.
http://legomenon.com/swedish-red-carved-wooden-dalecarlian-dala-horse-meaning.html
http://www.thelocal.se/20141010/the-story-of-a-swedish-symbol-tlccu
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dalecarlian_horse
Still, Hick did good. I wouldn't have been surprised if he had brought me nothing.
Or Swedish fish.
Alternate titles: "Giddy Yap!" and "Tally Hick!"
Or Swedish fish.
Alternate titles: "Giddy Yap!" and "Tally Hick!"
Val--What a delightful gift... You'd better watch out. He might take it back and build a shack for wooden horses.
ReplyDeleteOr he might build a giant wooden horse, and park it on Shackytown Row, and pretend it's a shed...
DeleteMakes sense, but now I have to wonder about ketchup!
ReplyDeleteYeah. Maybe the people peeling the tomatoes cut themselves a lot!
DeleteThe idea that these horses were painted red to hide blood sounds far-fetched to me. I think they just like the bright cheery color.
ReplyDeleteHick is known for telling me far-fetched "facts" concerning topics on which I am uninformed. Every now and then I catch him on one, and he says, "Oh, what I MEANT to say was..."
DeleteWhat a lovely surprise! Hick has a good eye for gifts.
ReplyDeleteYum. Swedish fish. Come to think of it, they're red too. Wonder if that means the people who make the Swedish fish bleed on them?
Yes. The Pony was excited about the big flat woman cut-out that Hick brought him from the company warehouse in France. Especially because the souvenir The Pony had requested was, "A French maid."
DeleteI don't know if I should ask Hick about the Swedish fish. He might tell me they are actual FISH soaked in blood from the fishermen's hooked fingers until they become rubbery and sweet!
I know nothing about Swedish carved horses but your commenters were funny!!
ReplyDeleteThey do have a way of tickling my funny bone!
DeleteI LOVE that red horse. Yes, Hick did good. This time.
ReplyDeleteDon't count Hick's chickens before they hatch! Even Val--I mean Even STEVEN--is on the case. And the next story will be about Hick's NEXT time. When he didn't do so good.
DeleteLike you, I am surprised that you did not get Swedish fish! The story, I don't know about. I am a big Carole King fan and I once wondered aloud why she never made another album after Tapestry (this was before she did actually make another album). She seemed to have vanished. HeWho very sincerely told me that she had died. I REPEATED this announcement to someone else, thinking it was true. That same person did a little fact checking and called me to tell me that Carole King was alive and well. I learned my lesson to always, ALWAYS do a little digging before repeating anything he told me.
ReplyDeleteWas HeWho being spiteful, or pranking you, or did he actually think she had died?
DeleteI think he really thought she was dead. He has had hearing loss issues since I have known him and he will hear what he thinks he hears and repeat it like an idiot. He is not spiteful and could never pull off a prank .....
ReplyDeleteGood to know that HeWho is not spiteful, and that you are safe from pranks!
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