HAMMIN' IT UP WITH BLOG HOG HAMILTON

I've got a "dandy" post for you today!  Have you ever heard of a "macaroni wig"?  You're probably scratching your "noodle" right now, aren't you?  Check out the macaroni wigs below.  The thing on the top is called a chapeau bra, which could only be taken off by that long stick! 

I've got some "splaining to do, don't I?  To understand the song, Yankee Doodle Dandy, you have to know what some of the words meant (see below).  The song was written by a British army surgeon, Dr. Richard Shuckburgh, who wrote the lyrics after seeing the appearance of Colonial troops.  The British were very polished in their red uniforms, while the Americans wore everyday work clothes and handkerchiefs or coonskin caps on their heads.  The words were changed, of course, from the original British version, and this is the most popular version:

  Yankee Doodle

Yankee Doodle went to town

A-riding on a pony,

Stuck a feather in his cap

And called it macaroni

Chorus:

Yankee Doodle keep it up,

Yankee Doodle dandy,

Mind the music and the step,

And with the girls be handy 

"Doodle" means a fool or simpleton, "dandy" refers to a gentleman with manners, nice clothes and hairstyle, and "macaroni" was the fancy style of Italian dress imitated in England at that time.  This would imply that the Yankees were so unsophisticated, that they thought they could stick a feather in their caps and it would be fashionable.  Although it made fun of them, the colonials adopted the song as their own.  When the British surrendered their forces at Yorktown to end the war, their band played "The World Turned Upside Down," and the Americans played "Yankee Doodle Dandy."  There are said to be as many as 190 versions of Yankee Doodle!

 

Let's watch Yankee Doodle Daffy:

 
Q: Did you hear the one about the Liberty Bell?

A: Yeah, it cracked me up!

Q: What did one flag say to the other flag?

A: Nothing, it just waved!

Q: Why did the duck say bang?

A: Because he was a firequacker!

Q: What’s the difference between a duck and George Washington?

A: One has a bill on his face, and the other has his face on a bill!

Caesar and Charlotte were trying on a wig to see how they liked it:

Has Charlotte "wigged out" or just sick of the wig?
Look at Tom in the back thinking she's a bird!

Click the link to read "Pig with a Wig" and learn words with the short vowel "i."
 http://www.helpme2learn.com/demos/phonics1a/html/Pig%20With%20a%20Wig.html

I HOGGED ALL OF WEDNESDAY'S BLOG 

SORRY, HAIRY TROTTER!