dailyeatings

My 7th grade geography teacher Mr. Cafazzo– he of the constant smoke-reekage and none-too-critically examined belief in conspiracy theories, theories he would liberally share– once held the entire class’ attention for the full period by telling us the ‘Real Stories’ that informed the nursery rhymes we recited as kids. You know, the whole ‘Ring Around the Rosie is actually about the bubonic plague’ kind of thing. We spent weeks afterwards trying to come up with historical events that could have inspired every nursery rhyme we could think of, with some explanations more plausible than others. 15 years later, I still wonder what kind of horrific massacre must have taken place as to be remembered even now in the lament encouraging everybody to wail for frozen milk precipitate.