Ming and I did a 39 mile bike ride after work. I'm actually a little sore, although most of it is upper body, not legs, because I did some barbell and stomach work yesterday for the first time in about six months.
During the ride, Ming posed a question. "Scooter," said Ming. "Scooter...what is the difference between a merry-go-round and a carousel?" I took my best stab and said, "animals versus no animals?" Nope. "Motor powered versus manually powered?" Nope.
Ming said, "Carousels go counter-clockwise. Merry-go-rounds go clockwise." Or maybe he said the opposite. It doesn't matter. Because I said, "You made that up."
Ming assured me it was trivia he had on good faith, from like a barista or some other wise woman knowledgeable of fair-lore and carnies. I told him I still didn't believe him and said if he hadn't looked it up and had only accepted it on good faith, he could be sure I was going to look it up and blog about it because, while coffee-babes may seem wise with their chalkboard trivia, it does not translate into wicked-trivia abilities beyond the chalkboard.
So what is the difference? There is none. They're synonyms, despite the wisdom of baristas and the writers of Charmed (alternate source, directly from the site for Casfejian's Carousel at the Como Zoo in Minnesota). However, it is possible that she was mistaken in her focus on nomenclature and meant to imply there was a geographical difference, as "In the United States, a carousel goes counter-clockwise. In many EU-states (the UK, the Netherlands, etc.), the carousel goes the other way around; clockwise. The reason for this is subject of much speculation." But it's still just a carousel, or merry-go-round, in both places even though rotating in different directions.
Also: Galloper, Roundabout, and Flying Horses are appropriate, though I imagine most people who heard you talking about your ride on the galloper would assume you were an intimate, appropriately-aged, friend of G. Montgomery Burns.
12 comments:
The lady also said I had to share half my winning $ with her if I won some serious $ on Jeopardy someday. Now I won't have to worry about keeping that promise.
Oh by the way, as sore as I am. I truly enjoyed the ride. Thanks for slowing down for me.
Is it a north-of-the-equator / south-of-the-equator thing?
Yo yo yo, I think the phrase is mad trivia skilz.
I hope you slapped your wife for typing that.
Carousels go clockwise and merry-go-rounds go counterclockwise. Count on it. These days, though, they've become synonymous to the masses, even in Webster's (that's a dictionary), just as other cultural and linguistic distinctions are fading due to our crass and homogenous society. But just because too many people are too ignorant to know the difference doesn't make it so. Put down your iPod and read a book.
Being a former Disneyland Fantasyland employee, one who spent many hours ckeaning the carousel, I know the difference between carousels and merry-go rounds. A carousel has only horses, and a merry-go-round has other animals.
I have a Pull Away Merry-Go-Round built by Game Time in Michigan. It is octogan shaped, no animals and it can go eitherway by pushing and pulling action. Is it considered a Merry-Go-Round or a Carousel? Any idea when it was built?
The carousel at Six Flags Great America in Illinois is the largest in the world. It is a double decker carousel with horses, tigers, pigs, stationary benches and even a giraffe. It does run counter clockwise. I remember the merry go round being a playground/park ride. Back in my youth (1970's) every playground had one. Big rotating circle with handrails. You'd grab a rail....race around the gravel or dirt and hop on once it was spinning fast enough. You'd wrap your arms and legs around a bar until you either fell off, leapt off , or god willing...dragged your heel into the ground until it slowed down to a dismountable pace.
The difference is carousels have horses, Merry-go-rounds have any animals.
The difference is that Carousels are rides that go on their own and you sit on horses or animals while a merry-go-round is a toy used at a kiddie park in which one runs around and pushes themselves in order to spin... just saying...
I just happened to take my grandchildren on a carousel yesterday at a mall in The Woodlands, Texas. And yes, of course, I got on it with them! In fact the entire family got in on the fun. This carousel had horses and all sorts of animals and sleigh-type benches on it. It rotated counter-clockwise.
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