Bizarre Rules | Imamother

amother

Seashell

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 9:37 am

cnc wrote:

Also separate ketchup bottles.I don't think is a bizarre rule at all. I learned that it's preferable because you'll be transferring your macaroni and cheese oil/ crumbs to your meatballs and vice versa etc...

same. I also keep two bottles of ketchup clearly marked. dH came up with it. not my parents or his do this. it's not bizzare, imo.
I don't remember growing up with any specific rules but if this thread keeps going, I'll for sure remember some.

MiracleMama

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 9:50 am

amother wrote:

No walking around the house in socks. You had to either wear shoes/ slippers or take your socks off.

We had this too. My mother said walking around in socks was for mourners.

I also was not allowed to wear black until I was like 16. My mother said it was "too grown up looking" which I took to mean too s-xy.

Ketchup and other condiments were served in a bowl with a spoon to avoid making the bottles either milchigs or fleishig.

amother

Oak

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 10:19 am

Many bizarre rules that I'm sure are based on some kind of obscure mekor but who knows what's valid and what not:

~ Olives can only be eaten in olive oil (there was a thread on this already because of kashe l'shikcha)

~ At shabbas meal, only grape juice until after the fish. Then you gotta eat something and drink grape juice (Kinu'ach v'hadacha) and then you can continue with chicken soup. Whenever I asked about the no water during fish rule I was told cuz the fish will swim in your stomach. Later on I heard but haven't seen a source that it's one of the things the rambam says is a sakana.

~ We can only drink orange juice once a day.

~ No dips at the shabbas table. Later on this became only home-made dips at the shabbas table.

~ No lunch on friday. if you're hungry you eat potato kugel and ferfel.

~ No cutting nails on thursday because they start growing on the third day and by cutting on thursday you're causing them to start growing on shabbas.

~ After cutting fingernails (and not toenails) into a tissue, my mother would rip off two ends of the tissue and roll it up together with the nails. She did this because her grandmother did it so that the two pieces of tissues should serve as eidim (witnesses) that the hands of these nails never stole anything.

~ The white shabbas tablecloth stays on the table until sunday morning because it's a segula for parnassa.

~ Another segula for parnassah: my father would scoop up all the challah crumbs from the table (after cuttting the challa) with a spoon and eat it.

~ after washing negel vasser we had to dip our fingers into the washing cup and use that water to wipe our eyes.

I'm sure I'll think of many more as the thread continues.

amother

Floralwhite

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 10:22 am

pause wrote:

Walking with socks is a siman aveilus, so one should avoid doing so when s/he is not an avel. We had that rule too.

My dad was extremely sensitive to it because his mother passed away when he was still a kid. I guess seeing us without shoes triggered him?

But don't most kids walk around the house without shoes? My kids shoes are off pretty much as soon as they get home. And I never asked them to do that. My floors are always clean so I don't mind. But it took me time to learn not to say anything. It was so ingrained in me not to take my shoes off.

Chayalle

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 10:23 am

My sis once had a friend over, and the two of them were plopped on the floor playing a game. I was probably around 4. I stepped over her friend, and she got hysterical and insisted that I step back over her, otherwise she will stop growing. She said you never step over a person, and if you do you have to step back.

My grandfather A"H was very fond of bananas, so there was a rule in my mother's house, growing up, that no one could take the last banana (so that there would be one available for my grandfather....) My mother's cousin came to the US to learn in yeshiva, and he used to stay at my grandparents alot. He had a great sense of humor. One Pesach, for Afikomen, he asked for rights to the last banana....

MiracleMama

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 10:42 am

Chayalle wrote:

Had that one too!

gp2.0

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 10:53 am

Check these out from Russia:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wik.....tions

Quote:

Things bought for a newborn baby (such as clothes, toys, furniture, etc.) should only be purchased after the baby is born. This is usually done in a big hurry.
It is often considered taboo to step over people, or parts of their body, who are on the ground. It is often said that it will prevent the person from growing (if they are not fully grown already). It is better to politely ask the person to move or to find a way around them. If one accidentally steps over a person (or people), it is sometimes standard to step backwards over them.

If you have the hiccups, someone is remembering you at this moment.

Accidentally breaking a glass is considered good luck.
.

From Romania:
https://europeisnotdead.com/di.....ions/

Quote:

A red string or a red bracelet is usually placed on a newborns wrist in order to protect them from being cursed.

cnc

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 11:00 am

amother wrote:

Many bizarre rules that I'm sure are based on some kind of obscure mekor but who knows what's valid and what not:

~ Olives can only be eaten in olive oil (there was a thread on this already because of kashe l'shikcha)

~ At shabbas meal, only grape juice until after the fish. Then you gotta eat something and drink grape juice (Kinu'ach v'hadacha) and then you can continue with chicken soup. Whenever I asked about the no water during fish rule I was told cuz the fish will swim in your stomach. Later on I heard but haven't seen a source that it's one of the things the rambam says is a sakana.

~ We can only drink orange juice once a day.

~ No dips at the shabbas table. Later on this became only home-made dips at the shabbas table.

~ No lunch on friday. if you're hungry you eat potato kugel and ferfel.

I know that you're not supposed to wash on erev shabbos so that you shouldn't come to the seudah with a full stomach. Is this maybe why?

~ No cutting nails on thursday because they start growing on the third day and by cutting on thursday you're causing them to start growing on shabbas.

I learned this in school as well.

~ After cutting fingernails (and not toenails) into a tissue, my mother would rip off two ends of the tissue and roll it up together with the nails. She did this because her grandmother did it so that the two pieces of tissues should serve as eidim (witnesses) that the hands of these nails never stole anything.

~ The white shabbas tablecloth stays on the table until sunday morning because it's a segula for parnassa.

~ Another segula for parnassah: my father would scoop up all the challah crumbs from the table (after cuttting the challa) with a spoon and eat it.

~ after washing negel vasser we had to dip our fingers into the washing cup and use that water to wipe our eyes.

I'm sure I'll think of many more as the thread continues.

JoyInTheMorning

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 11:04 am

Chayalle wrote:

Yes. My grandmother A"H did this!

My mother did this too. She said it was to distinguish this action from that of sewing the garment (shroud) around the niftar. (I always said, "So why can't I just talk? Dead people don't talk. I'd much rather talk than chew thread." I was not always the easiest child.)

(ETA: I see amother seashell already said this.)

amother

Seashell

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 11:10 am

JoyInTheMorning wrote:

lol. I did this too.

amother

Green

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 11:11 am

I find this post FASCINATING since I grew up with many of these or have them in my own house and don't think they are bizarre in the least!!!!
-OJ is for breakfast only! Otherwise my kids drink tons of it and then don't eat food
-soda is only after fish course - so they eat something at least before filling up. With one of my children, I don't let him drink anything til he eats something because he really loves to fill up on liquids and hardly eats. Doctor's orders.
-separate ketchups. I grew up with and understand. When my kids get old enough to pour ketchup, I will likely do the same!
-I grew up with no shoes in the house. Its a European/Canadian norm. So as not to track dirt in. My husband grew up with always wearing shoes (siman aveilus). Some of my friends growing up had the slippers at the door so that the two ideas were merged.
-No sleepovers - my mother did that to me cuz she is super overprotective. I don't do this to my kids
-Red braclet for ayin hara. I grew up with but learned in sem not to do it
-stepping over someone and then stepping back to take it away. grew up with that too!
-No one leaves the table til everyone is done : otherwise my kids would take one bite and leave. and once one leaves, everyone follows.
-no cutting nails on thursday - see the kitzur shulchan aruch.
-my parents didn't like us in black simply because they like bright colors. My mom never wears black.
- the red food coloring was probably for health reasons.

What I grew up with: my parents had a white couch in the living room which was reserved for dates. Since we were all little. They were probably used 20 times in 20 years.

My mom starts Pesach cleaning in October. Some closets/rooms are always "pesachdik"

We had to eat carbs with everything. Yogurt was spread on bread. Compote had pasta in it. Eggs came with bread.... now my father is on a carb-free diet and we laugh

SixOfWands

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 11:22 am

gp2.0 wrote:

Check these out from Russia:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wik.....tions

Quote:

From Romania:
https://europeisnotdead.com/di.....ions/

Quote:

A red string or a red bracelet is usually placed on a newborns wrist in order to protect them from being cursed.

We did all of these (except the red bracelet). Indeed, most baby stores in my area allow you to select baby things, which they will then deliver after the baby is born. Also no whistling. And dozens more, I'm sure. Its all superstition. And yes, I did most of these in my home as well. Old habits die hard. But given the amount of teasing I get about it from my kids, I doubt it will survive the next generation.