The EVIL Eye: Waxing On The Cheap

FSM · 21st November 2009, 07:58 AM

Yesterday one of my employees said, almost as an aside, "You know, that's really just to get rid of the evil eye."

A group of us were discussing children and how it always felt weird when complete strangers came up and touched our children and babies on the head. It happens often here in the southern United States, particularly by Hispanic people.

Apparently, this happens because they have looked at the child with envy, covetousness or admiration and the only "cure" is a touch to pull back the evil spirit.

If the touch is not conveyed, then it jumps into the child's soul and makes them whither and get sick... or even worse, it makes something fall off of them, like an arm or leg or something.

Adults can cure the evil eye by doing one of two intricate medical procedures:

1. Take a raw egg and use it almost in a Star Trek gadget sort of way by waving it over the child everywhere to absorb the evil.

2. Take a broom and sweep the spirit out of the child by waving it over them.

The young lady who works for me told me that when she was a young child, if an adult would complement her she would begin to feel sick. Her grandmother would rush her home if and pull a sheet over her, including over her head and would begin the medical procedures as listed above.

She's certain that she just got sick unexpectedly and without cause (not because it had been suggested to her by all the adults in her life as she was growing up) and she is certain that she felt better after the egg was disposed of...

After I stopped laughing, because I thought she was joking the whole time, I realized I was the only A-hole in the room giggling and that everyone was really taking this very seriously. The group included several very smart women, including nurses and paramedics.

So, yeah.

They all then begin to tell stories about children sickened and people wounded by the evil eye, "in real life! For real!"

I said, I propose an experiment.

I asked one lady to admire something on me. She at first said that was impossible. I then kicked her in the ass as everyone enjoyed a laugh at my expense (true scientists are always mocked, I know) and then she said, "Well, your eyebrows are nice." My eyebrows are actually quite hideous. I am Armenian and genetically boast of this heritage with every single bushy, overgrown, conflagration of browiness that commits a nuisance on my forehead. I would pluck hourly if given the time and privacy. I believe I can actually SEE my eyebrows grow.

But she said she did truly admire them and thought they were nice. I made sure everyone saw that she did not touch them. I told them I would let them know in a few days the results.

Now, I AM tempted, because I am me, to completely pluck all my eyebrows off and go to work on Monday. Tempted, tempted. "AH oho malo! (or whatever it is in Spanish) Look what you did to me! Witch! ACK!"

But I plan to take pics of my still unruly eyebrows and send them out on Monday.

However....

If my eyebrows DO actually fall out tonight....

Think about what could follow! I HATE waxing! I hate plucking! This could be the business idea I've always been waiting for...

I will keep you all posted for investment opportunities.

Eyeron · 21st November 2009, 01:21 PM

You might want to try something easier:

YouTube Video This video is not hosted by the JREF. The JREF can not be held responsible for the suitability or legality of this material. By clicking the link below you agree to view content from an external website.

I AGREE

Moochie · 22nd November 2009, 07:33 AM

Originally Posted by Eyeron

You might want to try something easier:

YouTube Video This video is not hosted by the JREF. The JREF can not be held responsible for the suitability or legality of this material. By clicking the link below you agree to view content from an external website.

I AGREE

Very edifying. (Cough!)

M.

Foolmewunz · 22nd November 2009, 09:35 PM

Bump!

So? How bald is your brow?

FSM · 23rd November 2009, 09:10 AM

Originally Posted by Eyeron

You might want to try something easier:

YouTube Video This video is not hosted by the JREF. The JREF can not be held responsible for the suitability or legality of this material. By clicking the link below you agree to view content from an external website.

I AGREE

I love this. If I had an extra hour to get ready in the mornings, my eyebrows would be prettier than even the prettiest drag queen's...

FSM · 23rd November 2009, 09:12 AM

Originally Posted by Foolmewunz

Bump!

So? How bald is your brow?

Sadly, sadly, my brows are as bushy and Armenian as ever.

Damn.

Gord_in_Toronto · 23rd November 2009, 01:16 PM

How do the people who believe this to be true explain why children in non-believing countries are not dying in the millions? My kids were incredibly cute (

) and yet have survived for decades.

FSM · 23rd November 2009, 03:55 PM

Originally Posted by Gord_in_Toronto

How do the people who believe this to be true explain why children in non-believing countries are not dying in the millions? My kids were incredibly cute (

) and yet have survived for decades.

I don't know. To me, this was one of the weirdest woos I've ever heard of... mostly because it IS so very easy to disprove and it IS so very very strange with the eggs and the broom. I really thought it was a joke, or maybe something that people really do out of habit and tongue in cheek compliance with an old wives tale, like tossing salt or not walking under a ladder. But NON! "This is REAL, FSM. I knew a kid..." blehdy bleh.

Gord_in_Toronto · 23rd November 2009, 06:43 PM

Originally Posted by FSM

I don't know. To me, this was one of the weirdest woos I've ever heard of... mostly because it IS so very easy to disprove and it IS so very very strange with the eggs and the broom. I really thought it was a joke, or maybe something that people really do out of habit and tongue in cheek compliance with an old wives tale, like tossing salt or not walking under a ladder. But NON! "This is REAL, FSM. I knew a kid..." blehdy bleh.

My mother was a smart woman who had obviously been exposed to all these myths as a child and used to spout them off all the time -- "Don't look at a New Moon through glass. It's bad luck." But did not believe them at -- least as an adult. One of her stories from her childhood (age not specified but I would guess she was about ten or so) was an experiment she and her friends conducted by letting a black cat cross their path on the way to school. Her comment was, "but nothing happened". This would have been in the mid 1920s in rural England.

It is scary to think how short a time ago how all but a very few believed these things. The up side is that it does represent some progress in rational thinking but we still have a long way to go.

Ron_Tomkins · 23rd November 2009, 06:51 PM

FSM · 23rd November 2009, 06:53 PM

I hope that's an eye... if it isn't that is a WHOLE different kind of evil. ('hole' different

)

blobru · 25th November 2009, 05:57 AM

Originally Posted by FSM

I don't know. To me, this was one of the weirdest woos I've ever heard of... mostly because it IS so very easy to disprove and it IS so very very strange with the eggs and the broom. I really thought it was a joke, or maybe something that people really do out of habit and tongue in cheek compliance with an old wives tale, like tossing salt or not walking under a ladder. But NON! "This is REAL, FSM. I knew a kid..." blehdy bleh.

Must be a fairly well-entrenched superstition. Here's an entry on "Evil Eye" beliefs local to the Texas-Mexico border. Mentions the eggs and broom cures, plus transferring water from the mouth of the evil eye caster to the mouth of the cursed (blechh -- which is why I've always been an eggs & broom guy when it comes to evil eyes). Note these accounts are from 1948-49; so the beliefs, at least, seem constant over six decades, probably a sign how seriously they're taken (I'd bet the details of the stories that corroborate the beliefs, however, haven't been quite as constant).

FSM · 25th November 2009, 07:49 AM

Originally Posted by Gord_in_Toronto

My mother was a smart woman who had obviously been exposed to all these myths as a child and used to spout them off all the time -- "Don't look at a New Moon through glass. It's bad luck." But did not believe them at -- least as an adult. One of her stories from her childhood (age not specified but I would guess she was about ten or so) was an experiment she and her friends conducted by letting a black cat cross their path on the way to school. Her comment was, "but nothing happened". This would have been in the mid 1920s in rural England.

It is scary to think how short a time ago how all but a very few believed these things. The up side is that it does represent some progress in rational thinking but we still have a long way to go.

I haven't talked to the ladies yet about my eyebrows... But I certainly need to let them know- and this goes quite some way in proving confirmation bias because you can bet THIS evil eye episode will completely be erased from memory unless I make a big deal about it... those "REAL" cases they know about will still be remembered and passed on.

I think this is why these silly things don't die out quicker. People forget to make a big deal about it when it is inconsistent with the superstition. But when anything, however tangential or reaching comes up that seems in any way related to the evil eye, it is probably exaggerated and passed on.

If your mother ever passed on her black cat story, I betcha no one would have re-told it (meme) and passed it on. Alternately, if your mother would have coincidentally sprained her ankle any time in any sort of proximity to the cat, THAT story would have been passed on. And on.

FSM · 25th November 2009, 08:14 AM

From Blobby's site mentioned above:

When Chita was small, I took her down town on one occasion. She was a pretty little girl, and people admired her. While I was standing at the counter of one of the de- partment stores, a little Mexican woman approached me and wanted to touch Chita. She said, "What a pretty baby! Won't you let me touch her hair and eyes?"
I didn't like for people to be touching the baby; so I said, "No, please don't touch her!"

The little woman left, and I didn't believe in the evil eye; so I thought no more about it.

The next day Chita became ill. She had a very high fever and was flushed and uneasy. I called the doctor. He came and looked at her. Two or three days went by, and Chita didn't improve. She just seemed to get worse. We went from one doctor to another, but it didn't do any good.

Finally one day my comadre Mrs. Ramos came over, and she looked at Chita and said, "This child is suffering from the evil eye. I can cure her if you will let me try."

I told her to go ahead; and she did. She asked for two eggs and a cup. One of the eggs she passed over Chita's whole face. Then she took the egg, broke it, put it in a cup stirred it, and made a cross with some of it on Chita's forehead. While doing this she pronounced several prayers. The other egg she placed on the mantelpiece in the living room and asked that no one touch it.

The next day Mrs. Ramos came back. Chita's fever was gone, and you could tell that she was better. Mrs. Ramos then took the egg from the mantelpiece and broke it. If I hadn't been there, I wouldn't believe it, but my husband and I both saw it. The egg looked as if it were hard-boiled. Mrs. Ramos said, "Chita will get well now. The evil eye has gone into the egg; that's why it looks like this."

Chita got well.

I looked up stories like this one on the wonderful What's the Harm site, but found nothing. I wonder if any children given the ol' egg treatment instead of medical treatment got sicker? ("Ah, the evil eye was TOO strong...")

OR, alternately, is this just a psychosomatic reaction in children who are responding to the actions/fears of adults? As in the case above, did poor Chita hear the lady say something about impending illness and THEN get sick? And wouldn't this be harmful in and of itself for children to be given this sort of suggestion?

patchbunny · 25th November 2009, 09:09 AM

Originally Posted by Ron_Tomkins

https://ryan.delariviere.net/photo/d..._Sauron_01.jpg

Would you like some Visine, sir? Your eye appears a little red.

rjh01 · 25th November 2009, 09:43 PM

FSM
I saw you today. Your eyebrows look a lot smaller. Did you wax them or something? If so you did a very poor job.

My real motives for saying that are invisible.

No I actually do not know you, however if I believed the superstition then I would say something like that to you.

JWideman · 25th November 2009, 11:49 PM

What about the cultures where touching a child you aren't related to is Very Wrong?

PrettyKitty · 26th November 2009, 01:09 PM

All these stories are making me laugh and remind me of something that happened to me a few years ago.

I'm Polish, and took my then boyfried to meet my family in Poland. One night, while staying at an aunt's, we went out and had a good time, which involved lots of vodka. The next morning my boyfriend was not feeling good. Although we knew it was a hangover, my aunt was convinced that too many people had been complimenting my boyfriend the night before (he was a hottie - I'll give him that) and that is what made him sick.

This is the best part. Her solution? The only way to get rid of this "charm", was to take a dirty pair of MY underwear and rub it on his head. When I translated this to him, we nearly died laughing. But my aunt was dead serious.

FSM · 27th November 2009, 12:53 AM

I do that all the time to men, but it always seems to make them sicker.

jhunter1163 · 27th November 2009, 05:10 AM

Originally Posted by FSM

I do that all the time to men, but it always seems to make them sicker.

If I wasn't already married, I would propose on the spot.

Beerina · 29th November 2009, 01:53 AM

Originally Posted by PrettyKitty

All these stories are making me laugh and remind me of something that happened to me a few years ago.

I'm Polish, and took my then boyfried to meet my family in Poland. One night, while staying at an aunt's, we went out and had a good time, which involved lots of vodka. The next morning my boyfriend was not feeling good. Although we knew it was a hangover, my aunt was convinced that too many people had been complimenting my boyfriend the night before (he was a hottie - I'll give him that) and that is what made him sick.

This is the best part. Her solution? The only way to get rid of this "charm", was to take a dirty pair of MY underwear and rub it on his head. When I translated this to him, we nearly died laughing. But my aunt was dead serious.

She gets the award for cluelessness about the nature of men.

Gord_in_Toronto · 29th November 2009, 03:41 PM

Originally Posted by FSM

<snip>

If your mother ever passed on her black cat story, I betcha no one would have re-told it (meme) and passed it on. Alternately, if your mother would have coincidentally sprained her ankle any time in any sort of proximity to the cat, THAT story would have been passed on. And on.

She somehow however did manage to escape from most folklorist foolishness in her life time. She still used to say them but there was little conviction there. I do accept that the evolution of society made this possible for her. There are very few Giordano Bruno's in the history of the World.

21st November 2009, 07:58 AM	#1
FSM god Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 1,713	The EVIL Eye: Waxing On The Cheap Yesterday one of my employees said, almost as an aside, "You know, that's really just to get rid of the evil eye." A group of us were discussing children and how it always felt weird when complete strangers came up and touched our children and babies on the head. It happens often here in the southern United States, particularly by Hispanic people. Apparently, this happens because they have looked at the child with envy, covetousness or admiration and the only "cure" is a touch to pull back the evil spirit. If the touch is not conveyed, then it jumps into the child's soul and makes them whither and get sick... or even worse, it makes something fall off of them, like an arm or leg or something. Adults can cure the evil eye by doing one of two intricate medical procedures: 1. Take a raw egg and use it almost in a Star Trek gadget sort of way by waving it over the child everywhere to absorb the evil. 2. Take a broom and sweep the spirit out of the child by waving it over them. The young lady who works for me told me that when she was a young child, if an adult would complement her she would begin to feel sick. Her grandmother would rush her home if and pull a sheet over her, including over her head and would begin the medical procedures as listed above. She's certain that she just got sick unexpectedly and without cause (not because it had been suggested to her by all the adults in her life as she was growing up) and she is certain that she felt better after the egg was disposed of... After I stopped laughing, because I thought she was joking the whole time, I realized I was the only A-hole in the room giggling and that everyone was really taking this very seriously. The group included several very smart women, including nurses and paramedics. So, yeah. They all then begin to tell stories about children sickened and people wounded by the evil eye, "in real life! For real!" I said, I propose an experiment. I asked one lady to admire something on me. She at first said that was impossible. I then kicked her in the ass as everyone enjoyed a laugh at my expense (true scientists are always mocked, I know) and then she said, "Well, your eyebrows are nice." My eyebrows are actually quite hideous. I am Armenian and genetically boast of this heritage with every single bushy, overgrown, conflagration of browiness that commits a nuisance on my forehead. I would pluck hourly if given the time and privacy. I believe I can actually SEE my eyebrows grow. But she said she did truly admire them and thought they were nice. I made sure everyone saw that she did not touch them. I told them I would let them know in a few days the results. Now, I AM tempted, because I am me, to completely pluck all my eyebrows off and go to work on Monday. Tempted, tempted. "AH oho malo! (or whatever it is in Spanish) Look what you did to me! Witch! ACK!" But I plan to take pics of my still unruly eyebrows and send them out on Monday. However.... If my eyebrows DO actually fall out tonight.... Think about what could follow! I HATE waxing! I hate plucking! This could be the business idea I've always been waiting for... I will keep you all posted for investment opportunities.
FSM god Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 1,713	__________________ "Say to them, 'Nobody is DAT!'" -- Bressisses to the Manning

22nd November 2009, 09:35 PM	#4
Foolmewunz Grammar Resistance Leader Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Hong Kong Posts: 10,131	Bump! So? How bald is your brow?
	__________________ Ha! Foolmewunz has just been added to the list of people who aren't complete idiots. Hokulele Microsoft is NOT the Borg Collective... the Borg have better tech support. Eleri

23rd November 2009, 09:12 AM	#6
FSM god Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 1,713	Originally Posted by Foolmewunz Bump! So? How bald is your brow? Sadly, sadly, my brows are as bushy and Armenian as ever. Damn.
FSM god Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 1,713	__________________ "Say to them, 'Nobody is DAT!'" -- Bressisses to the Manning

23rd November 2009, 01:16 PM	#7
Gord_in_Toronto Philosopher Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 8,168	How do the people who believe this to be true explain why children in non-believing countries are not dying in the millions? My kids were incredibly cute () and yet have survived for decades.
	__________________ "Reality is what's left when you cease to believe." Philip K. Dick Now completely free.

23rd November 2009, 03:55 PM	#8
FSM god Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 1,713	Originally Posted by Gord_in_Toronto How do the people who believe this to be true explain why children in non-believing countries are not dying in the millions? My kids were incredibly cute () and yet have survived for decades. I don't know. To me, this was one of the weirdest woos I've ever heard of... mostly because it IS so very easy to disprove and it IS so very very strange with the eggs and the broom. I really thought it was a joke, or maybe something that people really do out of habit and tongue in cheek compliance with an old wives tale, like tossing salt or not walking under a ladder. But NON! "This is REAL, FSM. I knew a kid..." blehdy bleh.
FSM god Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 1,713	__________________ "Say to them, 'Nobody is DAT!'" -- Bressisses to the Manning

23rd November 2009, 06:43 PM	#9
Gord_in_Toronto Philosopher Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 8,168	Originally Posted by FSM I don't know. To me, this was one of the weirdest woos I've ever heard of... mostly because it IS so very easy to disprove and it IS so very very strange with the eggs and the broom. I really thought it was a joke, or maybe something that people really do out of habit and tongue in cheek compliance with an old wives tale, like tossing salt or not walking under a ladder. But NON! "This is REAL, FSM. I knew a kid..." blehdy bleh. My mother was a smart woman who had obviously been exposed to all these myths as a child and used to spout them off all the time -- "Don't look at a New Moon through glass. It's bad luck." But did not believe them at -- least as an adult. One of her stories from her childhood (age not specified but I would guess she was about ten or so) was an experiment she and her friends conducted by letting a black cat cross their path on the way to school. Her comment was, "but nothing happened". This would have been in the mid 1920s in rural England. It is scary to think how short a time ago how all but a very few believed these things. The up side is that it does represent some progress in rational thinking but we still have a long way to go.
	__________________ "Reality is what's left when you cease to believe." Philip K. Dick Now completely free.

23rd November 2009, 06:51 PM	#10
Ron_Tomkins Satan's Helper Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: NYC Posts: 15,120
	__________________ "I am a collection of water, calcium and organic molecules called Carl Sagan" Carl Sagan

23rd November 2009, 06:53 PM	#11
FSM god Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 1,713	I hope that's an eye... if it isn't that is a WHOLE different kind of evil. ('hole' different )
FSM god Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 1,713	__________________ "Say to them, 'Nobody is DAT!'" -- Bressisses to the Manning

25th November 2009, 05:57 AM	#12
blobru Illuminator Join Date: May 2007 Posts: 3,281	Originally Posted by FSM I don't know. To me, this was one of the weirdest woos I've ever heard of... mostly because it IS so very easy to disprove and it IS so very very strange with the eggs and the broom. I really thought it was a joke, or maybe something that people really do out of habit and tongue in cheek compliance with an old wives tale, like tossing salt or not walking under a ladder. But NON! "This is REAL, FSM. I knew a kid..." blehdy bleh. Must be a fairly well-entrenched superstition. Here's an entry on "Evil Eye" beliefs local to the Texas-Mexico border. Mentions the eggs and broom cures, plus transferring water from the mouth of the evil eye caster to the mouth of the cursed (blechh -- which is why I've always been an eggs & broom guy when it comes to evil eyes). Note these accounts are from 1948-49; so the beliefs, at least, seem constant over six decades, probably a sign how seriously they're taken (I'd bet the details of the stories that corroborate the beliefs, however, haven't been quite as constant).
blobru Illuminator Join Date: May 2007 Posts: 3,281	__________________ "Say to them, 'I am Nobody!'" -- Ulysses to the Cyclops "Never mind. I can't read." -- Hokulele to the Easter Bunny Last edited by blobru; 25th November 2009 at 06:00 AM.

25th November 2009, 07:49 AM	#13
FSM god Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 1,713	Originally Posted by Gord_in_Toronto My mother was a smart woman who had obviously been exposed to all these myths as a child and used to spout them off all the time -- "Don't look at a New Moon through glass. It's bad luck." But did not believe them at -- least as an adult. One of her stories from her childhood (age not specified but I would guess she was about ten or so) was an experiment she and her friends conducted by letting a black cat cross their path on the way to school. Her comment was, "but nothing happened". This would have been in the mid 1920s in rural England. It is scary to think how short a time ago how all but a very few believed these things. The up side is that it does represent some progress in rational thinking but we still have a long way to go. I haven't talked to the ladies yet about my eyebrows... But I certainly need to let them know- and this goes quite some way in proving confirmation bias because you can bet THIS evil eye episode will completely be erased from memory unless I make a big deal about it... those "REAL" cases they know about will still be remembered and passed on. I think this is why these silly things don't die out quicker. People forget to make a big deal about it when it is inconsistent with the superstition. But when anything, however tangential or reaching comes up that seems in any way related to the evil eye, it is probably exaggerated and passed on. If your mother ever passed on her black cat story, I betcha no one would have re-told it (meme) and passed it on. Alternately, if your mother would have coincidentally sprained her ankle any time in any sort of proximity to the cat, THAT story would have been passed on. And on.
FSM god Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 1,713	__________________ "Say to them, 'Nobody is DAT!'" -- Bressisses to the Manning

25th November 2009, 08:14 AM	#14
FSM god Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 1,713	From Blobby's site mentioned above: When Chita was small, I took her down town on one occasion. She was a pretty little girl, and people admired her. While I was standing at the counter of one of the de- partment stores, a little Mexican woman approached me and wanted to touch Chita. She said, "What a pretty baby! Won't you let me touch her hair and eyes?" I didn't like for people to be touching the baby; so I said, "No, please don't touch her!" The little woman left, and I didn't believe in the evil eye; so I thought no more about it. The next day Chita became ill. She had a very high fever and was flushed and uneasy. I called the doctor. He came and looked at her. Two or three days went by, and Chita didn't improve. She just seemed to get worse. We went from one doctor to another, but it didn't do any good. Finally one day my comadre Mrs. Ramos came over, and she looked at Chita and said, "This child is suffering from the evil eye. I can cure her if you will let me try." I told her to go ahead; and she did. She asked for two eggs and a cup. One of the eggs she passed over Chita's whole face. Then she took the egg, broke it, put it in a cup stirred it, and made a cross with some of it on Chita's forehead. While doing this she pronounced several prayers. The other egg she placed on the mantelpiece in the living room and asked that no one touch it. The next day Mrs. Ramos came back. Chita's fever was gone, and you could tell that she was better. Mrs. Ramos then took the egg from the mantelpiece and broke it. If I hadn't been there, I wouldn't believe it, but my husband and I both saw it. The egg looked as if it were hard-boiled. Mrs. Ramos said, "Chita will get well now. The evil eye has gone into the egg; that's why it looks like this." Chita got well. I looked up stories like this one on the wonderful What's the Harm site, but found nothing. I wonder if any children given the ol' egg treatment instead of medical treatment got sicker? ("Ah, the evil eye was TOO strong...") OR, alternately, is this just a psychosomatic reaction in children who are responding to the actions/fears of adults? As in the case above, did poor Chita hear the lady say something about impending illness and THEN get sick? And wouldn't this be harmful in and of itself for children to be given this sort of suggestion?
FSM god Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 1,713	__________________ "Say to them, 'Nobody is DAT!'" -- Bressisses to the Manning

25th November 2009, 09:09 AM	#15
patchbunny Muse Join Date: May 2004 Location: Right about... here. Posts: 661	Originally Posted by Ron_Tomkins https://ryan.delariviere.net/photo/d..._Sauron_01.jpg Would you like some Visine, sir? Your eye appears a little red.
	__________________ "So, they laugh at my boner, will they? I'll show them! I'll show them how many boners the Joker can make!" -- The Joker, Batman #66

25th November 2009, 09:43 PM	#16
rjh01 Fire Warden Tagger Join Date: May 2005 Location: Planet Earth Posts: 9,811	FSM I saw you today. Your eyebrows look a lot smaller. Did you wax them or something? If so you did a very poor job. My real motives for saying that are invisible. No I actually do not know you, however if I believed the superstition then I would say something like that to you.

25th November 2009, 11:49 PM	#17
JWideman Muse Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 578	What about the cultures where touching a child you aren't related to is Very Wrong?
JWideman Muse Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 578

26th November 2009, 01:09 PM	#18
PrettyKitty New Blood Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: San Lorenzo, home of Bokononism Posts: 22	All these stories are making me laugh and remind me of something that happened to me a few years ago. I'm Polish, and took my then boyfried to meet my family in Poland. One night, while staying at an aunt's, we went out and had a good time, which involved lots of vodka. The next morning my boyfriend was not feeling good. Although we knew it was a hangover, my aunt was convinced that too many people had been complimenting my boyfriend the night before (he was a hottie - I'll give him that) and that is what made him sick. This is the best part. Her solution? The only way to get rid of this "charm", was to take a dirty pair of MY underwear and rub it on his head. When I translated this to him, we nearly died laughing. But my aunt was dead serious.
	Last edited by PrettyKitty; 26th November 2009 at 01:10 PM.

27th November 2009, 12:53 AM	#19
FSM god Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 1,713	I do that all the time to men, but it always seems to make them sicker.
FSM god Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 1,713	__________________ "Say to them, 'Nobody is DAT!'" -- Bressisses to the Manning

27th November 2009, 05:10 AM	#20
jhunter1163 Beer-Swilling Semiliterate Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Room 118, Bohemian Grove Marriott Posts: 5,813	Originally Posted by FSM I do that all the time to men, but it always seems to make them sicker. If I wasn't already married, I would propose on the spot.
	__________________ [Due to high ambient stupidity, I guess I need to spell it out: THIS IS A JOKE.] - JamesBlodgett The three essential components of being a "truther" are stupidity, dishonesty, and insanity. All are essential, but none is sufficient by itself. - FineWine

29th November 2009, 01:53 AM	#21
Beerina Sarcastic Conqueror of Notions Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: A floating island above the clouds Posts: 14,373	Originally Posted by PrettyKitty All these stories are making me laugh and remind me of something that happened to me a few years ago. I'm Polish, and took my then boyfried to meet my family in Poland. One night, while staying at an aunt's, we went out and had a good time, which involved lots of vodka. The next morning my boyfriend was not feeling good. Although we knew it was a hangover, my aunt was convinced that too many people had been complimenting my boyfriend the night before (he was a hottie - I'll give him that) and that is what made him sick. This is the best part. Her solution? The only way to get rid of this "charm", was to take a dirty pair of MY underwear and rub it on his head. When I translated this to him, we nearly died laughing. But my aunt was dead serious. She gets the award for cluelessness about the nature of men.
	__________________ Reid Fleming, World's Toughest Milkman, in *A Day Like Any Other* The government should nationalize it! Socialized, single-payer video game development and sales *now!* More, cheaper, better games, right? Right?

29th November 2009, 03:41 PM	#22
Gord_in_Toronto Philosopher Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 8,168	Originally Posted by FSM <snip> If your mother ever passed on her black cat story, I betcha no one would have re-told it (meme) and passed it on. Alternately, if your mother would have coincidentally sprained her ankle any time in any sort of proximity to the cat, THAT story would have been passed on. And on. She somehow however did manage to escape from most folklorist foolishness in her life time. She still used to say them but there was little conviction there. I do accept that the evolution of society made this possible for her. There are very few Giordano Bruno's in the history of the World.
	__________________ "Reality is what's left when you cease to believe." Philip K. Dick Now completely free.