Freezing balls off

[hook682]

Its the first real cold of the season here in Jersey. Won't be taking the Pcar out for awhile. This makes me want to move to warmer/sunnier climes. Been stoking the fireplace all day and now I am getting ready to go into work. With my luck I'll get an outside job.

[kach22i]

My feet have been cold for three days, I'm sick of this.

When is spring?

[stomachmonkey]

For gods sake man put on some pants.

[911boost]

Sunny and almost 50 here today. Drove the Turbo to work for the first time in a month in a half. Of course, its going to snow again tomorrow, so it is short lived.

Bill

[BertBeagle]

Speaking of freezing does anyone know the origin of "cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey"? Answer posted later tonight after I get home from work. (most probably already know)

[M.D. Holloway]

I think I comes from the fact that in some parts of the world it gets real cold and they make brass stuff and even mokeys are made of brass and well metal gets real brittle when it gets cold and maybe if it was really cold the brass monkey would shatter and becuase its balls are hanging then they might like fall off?

[therotman]

It's freezing here too- drops below 50 at night!

[304065]

Pile those cannonballs up again.

[dd74]

Brass Monkey: one part
Plus one part

= Brass Monkey.

A high school favorite.

[daepp]

Sorry - 71 here today.

Brass monkeys has to do with cannon balls IIRC.

[notfarnow]

-11 F

I have the heat on , and the wood stove crankin'. Floors are freezing!

[BertBeagle]

Originally posted by john_cramer
Pile those cannonballs up again.

From the web
(I think it is a good story but not true)

In the heyday of sailing ships, all war ships and many freighters
carried iron cannons. Those cannon fired round iron cannon balls. It was
necessary to keep a good supply near the cannon. But how to prevent them
from rolling about the deck?
The best storage method devised was a square based pyramid with one
ball on top, resting on four resting on nine which rested on sixteen.
Thus, a supply of thirty cannon balls could be stacked in a small area
right next to the cannon.
There was only one problem -- how to prevent the bottom layer from
sliding/rolling from under the others. The solution was a metal plate
called a "Monkey" with sixteen round indentations. But, if this plate
was made of iron, the iron balls would quickly rust to it. The solution
to the rusting problem was to make "Brass Monkeys."
Few landlubbers realize that brass contracts much more and much
faster than iron when chilled. Consequently, when the temperature dropped
too far, the brass indentations would shrink so much that the iron cannon
balls would come right off the monkey. Thus, it was quite literally,
"Cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey!"

[dd74]

Originally posted by notfarnow
Floors are freezing!

Whoa! The floors inside your house? What are they made of?

[JeremyD]

Yep cold here to today..

High of 59 means I have the fleece on

[notfarnow]

Originally posted by dd74
Whoa! The floors inside your house? What are they made of?

hardwood/softwood

to clarify:
Not freezing as in "water will freeze on the floors", but as in "my feet are f#$#ing freezing, even with slippers, 2 pairs of socks, and a belly full of liquor"

[dd74]

Yes, I was wondering. It sounded like you were describing a scene from "The Shipping News."

[notfarnow]

lol, no nothing like that.

My mother spent two years in the Northwest territories. Real, honest -40F... no wuss-ass windchill factored in. THAT is cold.

[Joeaksa]

Was just in White Plains NY and then Vancouver. Colder in NY than in Canada! Glad to be out of that area and hope I do not go back until spring!

[slakjaw]

A brass monkey is a kind of pipe that people smoke weed out of.

Anyways, its cold here too.