Old Wives Tales

[Ghostrider]

I never heard of the 'borrowing days' (no sure if the spelling is right) before I lived here. Is it just a Shetland thing?

 

Don't know if it just a Shetland thing or not, but just to confuse you further there are "old" borrowing days, and "new" borrowing days. The reason is the change from one calendar to another, the same as why Foula have Christmas etc later because they still observe the "old" one.

 

I forget the dates either lot are on, but they supposedly coincide with dates which allegely most years that have unseasonally poor weather, and because of that are said to have been "borrowed" from the previous month.

 

I don't know if they coincide with any of the following, but more often than not April 26th - 29th will be colder and/or stormier than the period preceding it. Likewise, more often than not May 13th is the first day in a year that is suitable to turn cattle out of the byre after winter and on to grass, and equally November 21st is very likely to be the day that the weather deteriorates far enough that you have no option but put them back in.

[Ghostrider]

Don't know if they're Shetland specific or not, but:

 

Accidentally drop a knife on the floor = expect a male visitor.

 

Accidentally drop a fork on the floor = expect a female visitor.

 

Accidentally drop a teaspoon on the floor = expect a fool to visit.

 

To which sometimes got added if a ladle was accidentally dropped on the floor: "Expect a monster of a fool to visit".

[GypsyScy]

^^ I've heard them manys a time beofre, 'Knife to the floor -man to the door' and so on....

 

I thought the borrowing days were 3 consecutive days in March.....

 

We also have a friend at home who used to take us out to turn a coin on the full moon, other full moon ones -it's bad luck to see the full moon for the first time through glass or through the branches of a tree. And never move on a full moon or a Saturday for that matter!!! Bad luck....Saturdays flitting is a short sitting!!

 

Never burn elder, bad luck it's the witches wood, has some sceintific truth as the fumes from elder smoke are slightly toxic and can cause nausea

[Ghostrider]

The Borrowing days are, as far as I can find out at short notice, March 29th, 30th, 31st.

 

Those I'm thinking are the "new" borrowing days though, if so the "old" ones will be around 12 days later.

[Ghostrider]

Bad luck....Saturdays flitting is a short sitting!!

 

Someone should have told my ex-neighbour this three days ago.

[GypsyScy]

Another one which. when I first came up here many moons ago and one of my mam in laws foals had just been born I relayed to her, to a very raised eyebrow and a sceptical look is the foals second tongue....just after a foal is born it coughs up the second tongue - a piece of membrane which had been settled in the throat to prevent the foal in the womb from swallowing fluid. If you find this tongue, dry it out and feed it back to the foal, then the foal willl be easy to handle by the person who feeds it to them forevermore, I have heard another variation tonight that when left to dry it becomes hard as flint and was used by stablehands for sharpening tools etc. Eitherway it's supposed to be a lucky thing to find!!

[MJ]

One I learnt last winter was the number of stars with in a moon's halo is the number of days before bad weather is due.

[Seaflech]

I've never seen these being practiced in Shetland, but a few more are:

 

Never pass the salt from one person to the other, it must be put down on the table first.

 

If you go in the front door of a house, you can't walk right through and go out the back door, you have to stay in for a (undetermined) period of time.

 

One I've heard quite a few times in Shetland, if there are 5 moon phases in the month, that month will have lots of bad weather (although living in Shetland you have a better than 70% chance of being right with this one).

 

Not so much Old Wives' Tales as old nautical superstition, if it isn't a thread creep:

 

Never launch a boat on a Friday, or Sunday

 

Never rename a boat

 

If you meet a minister, or a cat (I don't know if a minister holding a cat would double the risk or cancel it out) on the way to the boat then turn round and go home.

 

Always turn 'sungaets' (clockwise), never 'waddergaets' (anti-clockwise.) If you do turn the 'wrong' way then put in a turn the opposite way to 'tak oot da sneud.'

 

There are many, many more I'm sure.

[Far Haaf]

^^Re: Tatties. Is it not more about avoiding the chance of eating a green bit by mistake?

I think you're right about the green tatties being the only poison threat.

A green bit on a tattie was something I was told to avoid, ever since I was a child, and I remember watching a TV program where a woman had become violently sick, or went into some kind of toxic shock, from eating a green tattie.

Best to stick with Kerrs Pinks

[crofter]

The Borrowing days are, as far as I can find out at short notice, March 29th, 30th, 31st.

 

Those I'm thinking are the "new" borrowing days though, if so the "old" ones will be around 12 days later.

 

Yes. I found this, (Irish folklore) - March borrowed 3 days from april to kill an old cow - http://www.jstor.org/pss/1252699

 

The weather on each of the borrowing days is supposed to give an indication of the weather for the three months of May, June and July.

[Kephas4]

Don't know if they're Shetland specific or not, but:

 

Accidentally drop a knife on the floor = expect a male visitor.

 

Accidentally drop a fork on the floor = expect a female visitor.

 

Accidentally drop a teaspoon on the floor = expect a fool to visit.

 

To which sometimes got added if a ladle was accidentally dropped on the floor: "Expect a monster of a fool to visit".

 

May have local variations. In Burra I grew up with the idea that if you dropped cutlery, "A knife's a man, a spoon's a wife, a fork's a fool". The size of the utensil gave you an idea of the age of the person - a teaspoon a young lass, a carving knife an old man and so on.

 

One I learnt last winter was the number of stars with in a moon's halo is the number of days before bad weather is due.

 

I recall hearing that a distinct ring (or 'broch') around the moon was indicative of bad weather on its way - the bigger the broch, the worse the weather. Mind you, given that it would be best seen in a winter sky, bad weather is a fairly safe bet. Somewhat like the old Lerwick man's way of predicting the forecast - "If you can see Whalsa, he's goin ta rain. If you canna see Whalsa, he's rainin aaready."

[owre-weel]

Don't know if they're Shetland specific or not, but:

 

Accidentally drop a knife on the floor = expect a male visitor.

 

Accidentally drop a fork on the floor = expect a female visitor.

 

Accidentally drop a teaspoon on the floor = expect a fool to visit.

 

To which sometimes got added if a ladle was accidentally dropped on the floor: "Expect a monster of a fool to visit".

 

I doot I must drap a lot o spoons

[GypsyScy]

A baby born breech will have the cure for a bad back

 

 

 

A baby born with the caul over it's face will never drown - which bode well for my Nana's family when they returned to Ireland from the States in the 1920's. Her family were treated to first class treatment on the boat as she had been born with the caul over her face and her mother had kept it which was extremely lucky to have on board!!

[Ghostrider]

A snaw afore Yule is wirt twa eftir.

 

It damn well better be be da laekly o' furt eenoo. Cauld weet sharn hit is!

 

If a spell of weather which has already lasted for some days is going to change, it'll do so with the change of the moon. If it doesn't change with a change in the moon, it'll last for several days more.

 

Dogs with webs between the toes of their feet naturally enjoy playing with and being in water.

 

The more twisted and un-matching of each other a Shetland cow's horns were, the better a milker she'd be.

[Njugle]

If a spell of weather which has already lasted for some days is going to change, it'll do so with the change of the moon. If it doesn't change with a change in the moon, it'll last for several days more.

 

Whit? Yun's the vaguest, base covering cracker of a meteorological saying I think I've ever seen.

 

I'm finding it hard to see the scenario that might arise that couldn't be answered with "See, telt dee."

 

ps: Newfoundlands have webbed feet, if I recall correctly.