I was copied on an “email war” recently between various business units of my company. (Note: I am copied on EVERYTHING that goes on around here).
At the apex of the “war”, somebody wrote, “I’m sorry if you guys feel that I am putting legs on snake, but I personally think …..”
I got a phone call immediately from one of the recipients of that email, Ben, the beefcake gay boy from Marketing.
Beefcake Ben: Wah lao! What is she talking about?
Frou: (blur as usual) Huh?
Beefcake Ben: “Legs on snakes”?? That one not snake anymore leh. That one is dragon!
I love Beefcake Ben, the super chao ah beng. (And secretly, I love being copied on everything.)
Anyway, later that night, I told The Man about that conversation and he (cleverly) explain to me that “putting legs on snake” is actually a famous Chinese proverb. The story goes, once upon a time in ancient China, there was a famous painter who was very good at drawing snakes. He entered into a painting competition where the contestant who can draw a snake the fastest wins. This famous painter (of course) finished way ahead of everyone and because he was bored and cheeky and slightly obnoxious, he decided to draw legs on his snake ~ just to show how much faster he finished ahead of everyone else. In the end, he was disqualified by the judges because the competition is about drawing snakes, and he didn't draw a snake. Because snakes don’t have legs.
So, the proverb “putting legs on snake” means doing something redundant or, in Hokkein, being “boh liao” (i.e. has nothing better to do)
I learn something new every day…
At the apex of the “war”, somebody wrote, “I’m sorry if you guys feel that I am putting legs on snake, but I personally think …..”
I got a phone call immediately from one of the recipients of that email, Ben, the beefcake gay boy from Marketing.
Beefcake Ben: Wah lao! What is she talking about?
Frou: (blur as usual) Huh?
Beefcake Ben: “Legs on snakes”?? That one not snake anymore leh. That one is dragon!
I love Beefcake Ben, the super chao ah beng. (And secretly, I love being copied on everything.)
Anyway, later that night, I told The Man about that conversation and he (cleverly) explain to me that “putting legs on snake” is actually a famous Chinese proverb. The story goes, once upon a time in ancient China, there was a famous painter who was very good at drawing snakes. He entered into a painting competition where the contestant who can draw a snake the fastest wins. This famous painter (of course) finished way ahead of everyone and because he was bored and cheeky and slightly obnoxious, he decided to draw legs on his snake ~ just to show how much faster he finished ahead of everyone else. In the end, he was disqualified by the judges because the competition is about drawing snakes, and he didn't draw a snake. Because snakes don’t have legs.
So, the proverb “putting legs on snake” means doing something redundant or, in Hokkein, being “boh liao” (i.e. has nothing better to do)
I learn something new every day…
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| Fun fact: Archaeologists have found a 90-million-year-old fossil of a two-legged snake in Argentina which may prove the theory that snakes evolved on land. Looks like our famous painter friend may have been wrongfully disqualified? |
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