the world

I used to think the world was a big hollow place and we all lived inside the world. I had heard people say "how in the world" what in the world and the man in the moon

As a child, I was often subjected to accounts of my mother's eploits in some place she referred to as " My Amee". I supposed this was some place only she had anything to do with- by ownership, or membership, whatever it was, I had no idea- and I guessed everyone might have such a thing or place, of their own.
Not until years later did I learn that there was an art scool in Miami, Florida, and understand that, as an art student aiming at a career in commercial art, this was just the place she might have had quite a few significant experiences.

As a small child I would sit with my mother to watch the afternoon horse racing on our T.V. She did not bet but took a very keen interest in form. Mother was nonplussed when I asked her why they made the poor horse named "Bar" run in every race. I felt it was no wonder his odds were so poor- the poor thing must have been exhausted. Not only was he in every race but he was at every meeting.
Mother obviously thought the joke too good to waste so did not explain that 20 to 1 bar is betting shorthand. I am embarrassed to say I was in my twenties before the penny dropped.

When i was young, i used to think that the borders of countries were actually thick concrete fences with barbed wire on top the stretched high into the sky. They would be guarded by men with guns and any thing or anyone entering or exiting, even planes!, had to be run by them and they would decide whether to open the gate for you.

I used to believe the end of the road where my Grandma lived was the end of the world. It was a dead-end and disappeared into sand dunes and stunted bushes adjacent to the sea; at night in bed I fancied I could hear the wailing of unfortunates who ventured there. It`s all built up now, of course, but I still have an uneasy feeling .....!!!!

My (French) mother told me that every third child born into the world was Chinese. Being a third child of entirely Caucasian appearance, I naturally assumed that I was in some way Chinese, and that this would begin to show when I was a bit older. This led to many hours at the local library researching my "heritage", and a lifelong love-affair with Chinese food. I even had a Teach Yourself Mandarin record (45 rpm) with a little booklet containing realistic interactions from Chinese households for me to repeat. Most of these seemed to involve Mrs Wu scolding Mr Wu for not helping more around the house. I was about nine years old before I realised that however hard I studied I would never actually be Chinese. Now in my mid-40s, I'm still coming to terms with the disappointment.

I used to believe that the ground in each state was the same color as it appeared on the map of the U.S.(pink, green, blue, etc..)

I wnted to get money out of a savingts account my great grand mother had set up for me, my mom told me if I took the money out it would stop growing meaning growing in intrest. I thought my money was actually growing. I would hold dollar bills up next to each other to see if it had been in a bank to "grow". One day I asked if I could go to the bank to see how much my money had grown she showed me my bank statment, and explaned it to me. To say the lest I was disappointed.

My younger sister believed until she was 15 that New England was in England... which I'm sure confused her when I refered to friends in New Jeresy and in New England in the same breath. lol

When my family went to visit my Father's side of the family in Ireland from Canada I was expecting things to be so much different that the air would be a different colour (I was envisioning pink) and was surprised and disappointed that most things (including the air) were much the same.

I grew up in a small (pop. 369) village in central Illinois. My parents and I often took Sunday rides in the country. Every once in awhile my dad would say, "Today we'll go to Podunk; if we can find it." We never did find Podunck because Podunk did not exist (kinda like Kilroy). Dad said he had two friends who lived there; John Harvey D. C. V. Morecroppy and The Haythackers. Well, once in a while I still look for Podunk, and one day I think I saw the water tower!

When I was a kid, the Pittsburgh Steelers were in their "dynasty" years. We also collected food labels for the school library - Campbell's, Swanson, Franco-American. I always assumed that Franco-American was owned by Franco Harris and Swanson by Lynn Swann. Why not? When you're 7, the world doesn't extend very far from your hometown...

I used to believe that the lower level of the George Washington Bridge in NYC was named Martha Washington

I used to believe the 'autographs' of famous athletes on baseball bats and basketballs were real. I thought they must be very valuable and so you shouldn't use them.

When I was at school, my teacher told me that Rugby Union was more demanding than Rugby League. How embarrassing to play my first Rugby League game and find out - the painful way - that I wasn't as strong, as skilful or as talented as I thought I was, Ouch!

In the early sixties, as a 3 year-old I was taken to England for a 2-week visit. I have no memory of the trip. I did however grow up with the knowledge that the English were tiny people that lived in flower pots. When I grew old enough to question the idea, I couldn't understand where such a deep seated impression was from. As an adult, I finally mentioned it to my mother and she laughed saying that while we were in England I used to watch a tv show called the "Flower Pot Men". Mystery solved, although I did visit again as an adult just to be sure.