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Stay too long at the fair

Posted by Graham Cambray on January 19, 2009 at 18:55

In Reply to: Stay too long at the fair posted by ESC on January 19, 2009 at 12:38:

: : What's the origin of: 'stay too long at the fair'?

: I couldn't find it in my references. I think the origin comes from staying too long at the once-a-year carnival, county fair, etc., to the point a person is dazzled and unsatisfied with ordinary life. But a search online gave another meaning, "don't stay too long at the fair," quit when you're ahead.

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........ and possibly before you upset the folks back home - including a worried / suspicious girlfriend. There's an old song (too chintzy to be called a folksong, more a children's song):
en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/Johnny's_So_Long_At_The_Fair. Dated 1770s in the UK, 1790s in US.

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