Read on!
Today being April 1, it is April Fools Day! The day when everybody tries to make everyone else believe something that is completely unbelievable and then shout 'April Fool' with great gusto!
I did my usual googling to try to find out the origin of April Fools Day and the general idea is that no one really knows! However several sites hinted that it goes back to the 1500's in France. Apparently the French began using the Gregorian Calendar but not everybody was aware that the new year date had changed. Some people kept celebrating around the vernal equinox, so that is possibly the origin. Another possibility is from Chaucer's 'Canterbury Tales' from 1392.
The whole idea of fooling people and playing pranks on friends and family, seems to be most popular with European countries. In France children cut out paper fish (poisson) and stick them on peoples backs before running away.
Portuguese children throw flour on each other and in Scotland people send their friends off on pointless errands! (I like that idea!) Scotland is also famous for having created the famous 'Kick Me' sign! Irish people hand someone a letter to hand on to a friend who then hands it on to someone else to give to someone else, until finally the letter is opened and the 'message' reads something like 'Send the Fool on'.
 |
| Pics thanks to Google. |
But corporations also join in the fun! The BBC showed a video in 1957 showing people picking spaghetti from spaghetti trees and the switchboard was jammed with people wanting to know where they could buy the trees! And in 2008 the BBC aired the now famous 'Flying Penguins' prank. Several newspapers have an April 1 edition with feasible but false headlines and stories. I remember 'The Star' several years ago publishing plans for flooding the streets of central Johannesburg and turning it into a sort of African Venice! Sadly these days, most of our headlines could be April Fool jokes!
 |
| I love this, so clever! (Thanks to Google) |
This April Fool hoax marked the beginning of the construction of the Copenhagen Metro in 2001.
And every year New York advertises a fake April Fool Parade. This is the one for 2016:
“The Grand Marshall will be North Korean President Kim Jong Un dressed as the Pied Piper straddling his Ballistic Missile Float. He will be leading his faithful comrades, who will be goose-stepping and singing Ray Whitley and The Tams’ 1963 hit ‘What Kind of Fool Do You Think I Am?’ Color commentary will be provided by Kanye West, who will be live-tweeting the parade from his Infinity Mirror Float.”
I wonder how many people take part?
My dad was the expert April Fooler! Although we knew what was coming, that didn't prevent us from falling for every 'Aargh, there's a spider on your shoulder!' Or 'Your buttons are undone.' Or 'What is that behind you?'
And we carry on the tradition!
This morning I woke up determined to catch Rob before he caught me! He does every year, so this year I lay and thought about something that would 'get him'.
And inspiration struck!
I went downstairs to open up and start the morning routine. As I opened the front door I called him to come quickly!
'The fish have all gone!' I shouted, 'the pond is empty!'
He came at the trot. By then I had my back towards him so he couldn't see my face!
Then I turned round
'April Fool!' I shouted.....................
1 comment:
Oh it does the old psyche good to make a fool of someone!I heard this morning that malema has been awarded a degree......hmmm yes!
Post a Comment