Picasso moments
Comments(16)
Photo: Bull and unicorn
I started to make wooden toys in my late twenties. I had never previously worked with wood but, with the arrogance of the inexperienced, I reckoned that it couldn’t be rocket science.
After a bit of a hiccupy start the business was reasonably successful. Ten years later I sold it to a giftware company for a very good price. That was just before the 1990 recession but that‘s another story.
As a toymaker I belonged to The British Toymakers Guild. Each year I exhibited at their fair. One year I bought two wooden toys made by a fellow artist turned toymaker. A beautiful cubist style bull and unicorn. These were adult toys but not destined for the bedroom.
They lived in my kitchen, on a shelf above the cooker. Beautiful objects that gave me great pleasure.
The first weekend that Danny came to stay at the cottage he was keen to make a good impression. He examined my eclectic collection of trifles. Eventually he picked up the bull and pronounced.
“This bull has a big arsehole.”
I was stunned. I had never looked under its tail. So I picked up the small wooden beast and examined him carefully. Beneath the tail were just a couple of purple blue abstract legs and shanks.
Photo: Bull and unicorn rear view
“It has no arsehole. What exactly do you mean?”
“No”, exclaimed Danny.
“I said ‘this bull is a Picasso’.”
Living with a southern Irishman, I often mishear what he is saying and vice versa. Generally we replay the tape in our heads and double check if the comments seem too outrageous.
With relief we have christened these events “Picasso moments”.
But the unchecked comments can often add unforseen interest and spice to the relationship.
When you (or a smoker you know) decides to kick the habit it makes sense get the best aids to help you succeed. Nobacc gives you two big advantages. It is something to hold and handle instead of a cigarette and the menthol hit kills the pangs. Click here to stop smoking
Thank you for your comments. And a bit of silly bath time fun with the Frothing Sea Monster trick!
Cutting energy costs
Recipe for sausages baked with herby garlic infused beans, bacon and tomato
Tracing some of my ancestors has taken me on a long journey
Recipe for lamb shanks braised in red wine with shallots: slow cooker/crockpot
The cupboard was bare – so what was The Contessa going to eat last night?
HG
I’ve just returned from a girlie night on the town and saw you’d posted – now I can’t stop laughing!
So often those mis-heard comments are the funniest and can be relied upon to raise a private giggle whenever you think back to them! My favourite mis-heard comment came from my now 15 year old nephew G who was about 8 at the time. He was delighted to present me with an electric blanket for Christmas following a conversation with my sister about having cold feet in bed and needing socks. He announced to me, so I thought, “… you won’t need to have sex in bed now” My head spun in that cartoon double-take way in the split second it took to realise he had actually said socks not sex and I tried desperately to stiffle the giggles so I wouldn’t have to explain what was so funny. Living, as I do, in a multi-lingual world leads to many Picasso moments, although generally my family specialise in Malapropisms.
heeheeheeheeheeee!!! that made me giggle lots, which is a nice start to my day as i set out for work! thank you!
Oh how I laughed this morning on reading about your “Picasso moments”!.
Thanks Fiona, I really needed a laugh this morning as I have not had the best week.
oh Fiona, thanks again for a morning giggle!
T is dyslexic and has mis-read some things which made us laugh. His best one was misreading the name of ‘The Pandanus Hotel’ (pandanus being a type of tropical palm) as ‘The Panda’s Anus Hotel’.
What a lovely accent to have about the house! My husband is a ‘souff’ Londoner, so I know exactly what you mean.
I once misread a sign on the back of a coach as “Sausage Tours”. I was convinced I was correct in my misreading so commented on it to my husband, the driver, saying “isn’t that an odd name for a tour company?”. He still laughs about this one over twenty years later.
Oh what fun! We have “Picasso moments” too as you can probably imagine (English/Italian). My sisters and I also had many of them when growing up in a Ukranian/Welsh household. We girls had twigged both accents and changes in syntax/word order, but our parents’ misunderstandings between themselves were a constant source of amusement to us – they still are actually.
I’ve put my foot in it many a time here. The most recent one being to suggest to a retired chief of police that he opened a brothel in his cellar. I was so surpised to see his jaw drop and later learnt that I’d got the word right, but with one change in stress it took on this new meaning.
Picasso moments – oh, that is too funny!
Oh, and I meant to say that you should post a picture of some of your toys. I’m sure many of us would love to see them.
yep we have them too, although ours is mostly because of my deafness and his dutch accent… sometimes though i say the wrong thing.. once i was talking to mom and meant to say “contraption”.. ended up saying “contraception”.
sometimes he says the wrong thing – he gets “woe” and “woo” mixed up, and now, whenever he wants to say “woe is me”, he’ll put a hand to his forehead, all overdramatic, eyes closed, then frank open an eye to look at me to check which one it is. which i supply. and we laugh.
i like this. piccasso moments indeed!!!
keth
xx
errrrr frank open? i meant crank open. ‘onest i did..
Oh that was a lovely story Fiona – I had to interrupt hubby from his reading to read it to him. I’m more inclined to open my mouth and put my foot in it – Our son & his girlfriend were amused when the other night I told hubby I was off to bed & if he didn’t come soon he’d have to fumble in the dark! I quickly added “for your pyjamas” but I think it was too late.
KarenO LOL.. this happens to me too.
Im a wee bit deaf & my OH is a terrible mumbler, with kids, music & tv thrown into the mix I often cant understand anything he says. For some reason he finds it frustrating. LOL.
Hi Amanda
The picasso moments usually make us giggle too
Hi Pamela
Socks, sox, sex so easy to mishear! I love Malapropisms. I find that a hottie means that I need no socks.
Hello nà
Thanks for dropping by.
Hello Heidi
I do hope that this week is better than last. Glad that you enjoyed the post.
Hi Veronica
I smile each time that I look at the little bull on the shelf…
Hello Moonroot
We roared with laughter over this. Thank you.
Hi Linda
Yes it’s a beautifull accent when it’s calm!
Hello Kate(uk)
I was tickled by this! What did you imagine – tours for sausage lovers?
Hi Casalba
This takes the ticket! Wonderful. I can just imagine his face.
And your home. Ukranian and Welsh is such an unusual combination. Guaranteed to make your horizons very broad.
Hi ICQB
Great that you enjoyed the post. Maybe one day I’ll post some pictures of my toys.
I enjoyed your comment, Kethry. Can just imagine the scene and the cranking of an eye open.
Hello KarenO
Danny goes to bed much earlier than me so there’s lots of fumbling in the dark!