that’s how the cow ate the cabbage告诉你也不相信

【使用地区】：美国欧扎克山区

【释义】：

An expression hillfolk use to indicate that the speaker is laying it on the line，telling it like it is，getting down to brass tacks—with the connotation of telling someone what he or she needs to know but probably doesn’t want to hear．The expression has its roots in a story about an elephant that escaped from a zoo and wandered into a woman’s cabbage patch．The woman observed the elephant pulling up her cabbages with its trunk and eating them．She called the police to report that there was a cow in her cabbage patch pulling up cabbages with its tail．When the surprised police officer inquired as to what the cow was doing with the cabbages，the woman replied，“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you!”

山民用语，指说话人实话实说，说明事情真相，含义是告诉别人应知道却不想听的事情。这个表达方式来自一头大象的故事。大象从动物园跑出来后，游荡到一个女人的包心菜地。女人看到大象用鼻子把菜拔起来吃掉了。她赶紧打电话告诉警察，说一头母牛跑进了菜地，正在用尾巴拔包心菜。警察很奇怪，询问母牛到底把菜怎样了。女人说“我告诉你，你也不信!”