Farting

Yes, of course I know that many will think that this is a vulgar subject but it is as a natural subject as sneezing. Maybe the mild revulsion showed to the word is just like the ones I talked about in an earlier blog, 'Bad words.' A few observations:

Many men find the subject a matter of fun especially in jokes and in my observation men generally enjoy farting themselves. Women maintain an air of decorum and pretend not to talk about it.

Then we have the fact that men actually enjoy breaking wind. We recognise the social niceities but it's a great experience to let rip in private. I suspect women just release their gastric gas in a more controlled manner. If you let loose in the bath then the bubbles tickle your testicles; never asked a woman what she experienced under such circumstances.

Billy Connolly, a great Scottish comedian, once came up with the phrase, 'About as welcome as a fart in a spacesuit.' Very funny but inconsistent with reality isn't it? Never knew anyone who objected to his/her own farts whilst finding those of others to be quite obnoxious. And it's certainly really unpleasant in a confined space such as an aircraft. But then, I have been told that the air in your average aircraft cabin is similar to about 7,000 feet so that would increase the farting chances.

It must all be down to small quantities of special molecules for the majority constituent is Nitrogen, CO2, Oxygen and a bit of methane.

Back at the turn of the 19th/20th centuries, there was a French music hall artiste called Le Petomane who could fart at will. Got a little paperback on him somewhere in this house. As I recall, one of his specialities was playing La Marseillaise whith a trumpet up his arse. Brilliant.