The world is random. At The Nest, we strive to make your Wednesdays even more unpredictable with a little feature we call Random Image Inspiration. Let’s pick a few numbers and see what glorious picture will guide us to salvation this week…
34, 14, 67, 11
The 34th post in my Reader this morning was this one by Juliette
The 14th word in that post is “I”
The 67th word in that post is “of”
Well geez, this could go anywhere it would seem. Typing “I of” into Google Images brought this up as the 11th result…
It’s….. uh, Robert Dudley… Earl of Leicester during the reign of Elizabeth I. The two apparently had the hots for each other as well…. no doubt due to their fondness for each other’s neck ruffles. What in the name of Billy Shakespeare was up with those stupid looking things anyway? Those had to be uncomfortable to wear…
So this picture got me looking up just what exactly an “earl” is. About all I could grasp was the fact that they’re apparently somewhere between a marquis and a viscount on the made-up fancypants title pecking order. Oh, and there is no feminine title for an earl. A lady can be a baroness, a countess or a duchess… but not an earless apparently.
I guess it looks too much like a title that should go to this guy.
Here in America, we may have Count Chocula and the Dukes of Hazzard… but absolutely no earls. And the only British earl we know is the guy who is credited with inventing the culinary version of the wheel…
A meal truly fit for nobility.
That would be the most famous earl who ever earled early in the morning… John Montagu (1718-1792), aka the fourth Earl of Sandwich. According to legend, the good Earl got so involved in his hot poker games with assorted archdukes and lords that he requested his servants to put some meat in between two slices of bread so that he wouldn’t die of starvation while he was losing his breeches at cards. The concoction was popular enough with his gambling buddies, that they requested to be made “sandwiches” as well. The next time you whip up some grilled cheese, be sure to thank the food gods that the Earl of Sandwich didn’t know when to fold ’em…
Would you be interested in, like, a furburger early wearly?
Besides inventing a modern culinary staple and having some islands somewhere in the world named after him, the Earl of Sandwich was also into what he termed “ancient music”… or music that was “at least two decades old.” If the Earl were alive today, he would probably enjoy my Dusty Vinyl Archive. He would probably also turn up this “ancient” song that, if you weren’t humming it at some point while reading this post, there’s either something wrong with you, or you’re too damned young!
Evil Earl’s Nest will have another post inspired by a random picture next Wednesday!
Just be careful not to choke on your ham sandwich…
Evil Squirrel's Nest 
Those neck ruffles are actually steel-reinforced neck protectors. Not many people know this, but they had a massive vampire problem back in the day.
Well, I guess that would be a fitting explanation given whose post made this all come about…
Oh man…they just don’t make songs like that anymore! I always thought the wife of an earl was a countess. Hmm. Interesting. Happy mid-week.
You are correct about the countess… but I don’t know what’s wrong with just plain earless.
Think only Mrs. Van Gogh could have qualified on that moniker..had there been a Mrs. VG.
Had there been a Mrs. VG, then Mr. VG might have not gone earless…
Perhaps, you never can tell with those artist guys.
I know the ‘why’ of those neck ruffles. I majored in English Lit remember.
People bathed infrequently back then, so those ruffles were to stop any bugs from your body attempting to climb into your hair or lice from your hair attempting to get to your body. The ruffles could be removed and laundered while your clothes, made of wool, were washed much less frequently.
And there you have it, a liberal arts education put to good use.
Thank you very much for that insight! I think there are still some people today who should be wearing those ruffles… at least, judging by some of the customers we get late at night.
No doubt you’re right about that.
Ewwwwww on the neck ruffles…..but I agree with you ES – there are some people who ought to go back to the days of ruffles for their shirts or use bug spray instead of deodorant……either way works!
Pam
I like that song! A bit of trivia…I think it was Bob Greene (author) in one of his books, said that song’s beat fit exactly when you pass the strips of road line dividers, when you’re driving a certain speed, maybe 55mph? Can’t remember, but I think of that when I hear this song.
I am about to pay homage to the Earl of Sandwich with egg mayonnaise sandwiches for supper.
We do sell Earl Gray tea. Not that I drink it, but it’s on the shelves. That’s got to count for SOMETHING.
I can’t believe I didn’t think of Earl Grey! I’m not a tea drinker either, but I know it well. I guess he’d be our #2 earl after Sandwich…
was it that dudley earl whose wife had that stairs accident? very suspicious that guy…
Yes it was! And it does sound like it was just an “accident” to try and become available for the Queen. Nobody would marry him for years after it happened…
an italian divorce is always no good reputation… even when it happens in england…