Blast from the Past: Flirting with Fans

It’s been quite astonishingly warm out here in New England, and all I can say is thank heavens for air conditioning, because relying on a fan to stay cool--especially a hand-held one--would have not have worked for me! Then again, fans have other uses, as we learned in this post from 2009:

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Now, on to how to flirt with fans. Mr. Shafer’s introduction to fan flirtations in his Secrets of Life Revealed (Baltimore, 1877) is short and to the point:

The fan is also used for flirtations, and the following rules govern the subject:

Carrying in right hand: You are too willing
Carrying in right hand in front of face: Follow me
Carrying in left hand: Desirous of an acquaintance
Closing it: I wish to speak with you
Drawing across the forehead: We are watched
Drawing across the cheek: I love you
Drawing across the eyes: I am sorry
Drawing through the hand: I hate you
Dropping: We will be friends
Fanning fast: I am engaged
Fanning slow: I am married
Letting it rest on right cheek: Yes
Letting it rest on left cheek: No
Open and shut: You are cruel
Open wide: Wait for me
Shut: I have changed
Placing it on the right ear: You have changed
Twirling it in left hand: I love another
With handle to lips: Kiss me

Well! Again I see a lot of potential for miscom-munication here, especially for those of us who tend to be klutzy. Then again, we might end up with a wide circle of acquaintances that way…

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Incidentally, I needed a fan this past weekend, when I learned that Evergreen won the Best Young Adult Novel category of the OK-RWA's National Reader’s Choice Award! A thrill and an honor, for which I'm very grateful.