BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: Micca
Date: 30 Sep 06 - 01:22 PM

When I was at Sea a messmate(the AB on the other watch actually)had this rather nasty habit of having 3 raw eggs for breakfast, which he would puncture and noisily suck in the messroom in front of the rest of us ,his, sometimes hungover, breakfasting shipmates. We got a bit fed up with this so, on a trip home for a weekends leave I picked up a small hypodermic syringe and a fine needle. A few days later, when the opportunity arose, into the little airsack cavity at the end of the egg we introduced nearly a cc of Tabasco sauce, The expression on his face when it hit the back of his throat was Classic. For some reason this little habit of his ceased.

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: Barry Finn
Date: 29 Sep 06 - 04:31 PM

Mrrzy
You're right. Being an American I have heard this expresion, not much though but I didn't know it's meaning. This past summer I stopped off at the home of a friend of Charlie Noble's, the Paulson's with Charlie in tow of course. His childhood friend, whom along with her husband are both adventures & naturalists, that live on a farm along the Long Island Sound, so they live off the land & sea. Each morning for breakfast we had goose eggs, gathered from her flock, along with whatever else. She saved the eggs for painting as she had alot of very large beautiful painted eggs all around the home. I didn't think much about it at the time, thinking that this was a creative pasttime for her & a useful use of the shells. I never thought that it was a common thing that was done in the past nor an expression as told.
Thanks all
Barry

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 29 Sep 06 - 04:05 PM

When you are young you can assume that old people are ignorant about all the clever things you can do as a young person, and have no idea what its like to be young. This saying is a reminder that they used to be as young as you, and were up to the kind of clever things you think you invented last week. Getting the contents out of an egg without cracking the shell is one of those things.

Of course it comes from a time when there weren't so many novelties around, like iPods and electronic games and skateboards. But the truth is still there - your elders have learnt just as many tricks of the trade as you have, and any wise young person is going to appreciate that, and not try to patronise them.

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: patriot1314
Date: 29 Sep 06 - 03:12 PM

back in the days of innocent youth, it was a popular pastime for children (especially boys) to collect birds eggs. Some boys would have vast collections from the various species of birds which inhabited their particular locale.
Once collected, only the shells were kept, these were labelled and placed in their collection box and so the process of extracting the contents of the egg began.

A small hole was punched in each end of the egg usually with the point of their compasses (remember them?) and you then had to suck one end briefly to get it started. the egg was then turned round and blown from the other end. Voila! one empty shell.

A lot of novices who had recently started egg collecting were unaware of the sucking process required and frequently had to ask for help from someone more experienced. Hence the phrase.

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: beardedbruce
Date: 29 Sep 06 - 02:48 PM

http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-tea1.htm

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: GUEST,Anthony Cowen of Kingston=upon= Thames, Engl
Date: 29 Sep 06 - 12:19 PM

The best explanation is that in olden times sucking eggs would be an impotant thing for an old lady to be able to do because, havung lost her teeth it was one of the few nourishments she would be able to take.

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: Cluin
Date: 28 Feb 06 - 11:48 PM

I would think such a statement to most people I know today would result in a punch in the nose. It sounds much ruder than it's meant.

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: Mrrzy
Date: 28 Feb 06 - 11:03 PM

I'm so glad to see this thread. I have used this expression all my life, it seems, and I found out lately that nobody in the US knows what it means. It is used in British books as the equivalent of the American Tell me something I don't know or No shit, Sherlock, or something of that nature. person A says something obvious or gives unnecessary advice, and the rejoinder is Teach your grandmother to suck eggs, or don't try to teach your grandmother to suck eggs, or something.

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: Ella who is Sooze
Date: 28 Feb 06 - 02:25 AM

Thanks guys, some interesting ideas. We've been wondering about the origins of this at work. I'll put some of your ideas 'into the pot'

EWIS

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: Cluin
Date: 27 Feb 06 - 08:09 PM

I first heard the expression in that great western movie The Big Country (great soundtrack, BTW), coming from the Burl Ives character.... "Go teach your grandmother to suck eggs! I've been handling guns like this, flintlock and caplock, since before you were born."

Other great lines from Burl Ives in that movie:

- "Sweet on you, is she? If you ain't the mother and father of all liars!"

- "You don't shoot an unarmed man...       not while I'm around."

- "I'm a law-abiding man. That is, if there's any law to abide by."

- "You want me, Pa?" "Before you was born, I did."

- "He's gonna be the most surprised dead man you ever saw."

- "Treat her right. Take a bath sometime."

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 27 Feb 06 - 06:29 PM

If your grandmother were to lose all her teeth, she would have to relearn this skill - you may be able to help.

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: TheBigPinkLad
Date: 27 Feb 06 - 05:20 PM

From Word Wide Words:

It was first recorded in 1707 in a translation by John Stevens of the collected comedies of the Spanish playwright Quevedo: "You would have me teach my Grandame to suck Eggs".

The (much) ruder version of my youth was 'You can't teach your father to fuck'

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: Inukshuk
Date: 27 Feb 06 - 05:17 PM

My Grandmother from the Victorian Era was often heard to say, "If at first you don't succeed - suck eggs!"

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 27 Feb 06 - 05:09 PM

Here are my thoughts (not knowledge, just thoughts):

If you wanted to suck an egg directly from the shell, that would imply (1) you were hungry (2) you didn't have a dish to put it in or a spoon to eat it with, and (3) you didn't have a fire to cook it on, or a pan to cook it in.

I would imagine the people most likely to suck an egg would be (a) a fugitive hiding in the woods, for example, an escaped prisoner or slave; (b) a soldier in the field; (c) a refugee from either a war or natural disaster. The egg, I imagine, would be either "found", confiscated, or stolen.

I have a hunch this expression goes back to the time when many survivors of the Civil War were still alive--people who remembered what it was like to suck eggs.

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: Metchosin
Date: 27 Feb 06 - 11:22 AM

I always thought my old grandmother blew the stuff out of eggs before decorating them. Perhaps those egg sucking hounds taught her a thing or two about a thing or two.

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: gnomad
Date: 27 Feb 06 - 10:32 AM

Coach not thy parent's mother to extract
The embryonic juices of the fowl by suction.
That lady can the deed perform,
Quite independent of thy kind instruction

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: Amos
Date: 27 Feb 06 - 10:16 AM

Thing is, folks don't suck eggs much any more; but back in the day, it was a great discovery that you good get good stuff out of an egg just making a little hole in it at either end without breaking it.
If you were real good you could slip the enmpty shell back into the row, and mystify the cook.

So kids would just nacherly get excited about this new skill and try to show off by showing Granma how to do it.

'COurse she learned about it 60 good years earlier. Hence the expression.

A

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: Paul Burke
Date: 27 Feb 06 - 09:55 AM

Your maternal grandparent is not necessarily your grandmother though. And the sucking could be to empty the shell, not for food. And...

The Don' which inhales the egg; The grandma of professor of the attempt!

The grandmother it sucks the egg, it taught, it does not try to dry,!

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: Flash Company
Date: 27 Feb 06 - 09:40 AM

A rather good take on this was in a cowboy book I read years ago, I think the author was Oliver Strange. He had a character say 'Bet when you was a kid you attempted to teach your maternal grandparent to extract nutriment from eggs by means o' suction!' Always stuck in my mind, quite useful for putting down smart-alec graduates at the office.

FC

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: Rapparee
Date: 27 Feb 06 - 09:02 AM

I never had to teach either of my grandmas to suck eggs. I think that if they'd wanted to suck eggs they wouold have figured out how to do it without being taught, but I really can't imagine why they would want to do this.

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: mack/misophist
Date: 27 Feb 06 - 08:59 AM

What it means is 'don't lecture to people who have more knowlege and experience of the topic than you do'. As for where it comes from...

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: Rapparee
Date: 27 Feb 06 - 08:59 AM

By Wednesday it will all be over. Or maybe Thursday week.

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: Ella who is Sooze
Date: 27 Feb 06 - 08:54 AM

yeah DOH! of course it does, but over here it is taking forever to go...

smarty pants

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: Paul Burke
Date: 27 Feb 06 - 08:53 AM

When will Monday end...

On Tuesday?

Subject: RE: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: Ella who is Sooze
Date: 27 Feb 06 - 08:10 AM

I meant... I know what it is on about, but where does the phrase come from, is rather more what I'm trying to find out about.

Cheers...

E>W>I>S

When will Monday end... sigh!

Subject: BS: teaching grandmother to suck eggs
From: Ella who is Sooze
Date: 27 Feb 06 - 08:08 AM

Hi...

----Don't try Teaching grandma to suck eggs -------

Can anyone out there explain this phrase... had some idea it might be something to do with old ladies and lack of false teeth in the 1800's - and the fact they had to literally suck eggs to eat them... but it this true... does anyone have a 'bulls notion' as to what the phrase is on about...

Will help to settle a debate if there is anyone who knows.

Cheers

Ella who is Sooze