Booth's Mental health

[L Verge]

Just like Gene is reminded of an appropriate song, I'm reminded of an experience that I had in England by using the past tense of the verb "to stuff" -- "stuffed." Back in 1971, a friend and I spent the summer traveling in Europe, and one of our first stops was London. We made contact with a family that a mutual, American friend had suggested; and they invited us to their suburban home for dinner.

I was offered second helpings, and I declined and added "I'm stuffed." The family literally dropped their knives and forks. It seems that the term "stuffed" was slang for "pregnant." Since abortion was then illegal in the U.S., the family automatically assumed that I was another American who had come to England for a legal abortion. We quickly cleared that situation up!

For good measure, you should have told the family that you loved to shag.

Susan, what does that mean (in AE)? Thanks!

The "shag" is a dance that is popular in the American South. In England, it has a very different meaning--sexual intercourse. I used to have a photograph of a roadside sign offering "shag lessons" that I liked to show my English friends on Facebook.

I knew about the dance, but not about the slang. Thanks for another edumacation, Susan.