My dad's take on the singing things was, "Sing at the table, die in the workhouse," the old misery-guts Calvinistic Methodist that he was.

Does 'misery-guts' count?

Dirt behind neck or ears (and in ears) would generate the accusation from mum, "Whatcha tryin' t' do? Grow putatuhs?"

She also dismissed any illogical argument with, "Ah - yer father's moustache!"

The face which usually accompanied hissy-fits was, "Better stop. Yer face may stick like that."

I seem to recall, "Faint heart never won fair lady" when we were flagging in any project. And 'sooner started, sooner mended'. And 'there's two ends to every stick' for both sides of an argument.

And I, too, could never figure out the sense in 'stop crying or I'll give you something to cry about'.

sian