Ok, I’ve been able to do this rather special whistley thing with my tongue now since I was about five, and noone else I’ve ever met has been able to do it.
If I roll my tongue so it’s like a tube sticking out of my mouth, I can whistle through it and it sounds perfectly like an owl. I think I’ve had a conversation with an owl at night in my garden, or probably just someone a few houses down who’s doing the same thing…
Right, no matter how many people I ask, I’ve never, ever found anyone else who can do this, and I’m getting quite worried…please, someone out there tell me that I’m not a freak (well, not for this, anyway!)
Count me in as another person who can do this. I never thought of it as being anything unusual until I read your post, though. I often do it when I’m bored, alone, and fidgety. 'Tis a great way to annoy those around you .
Well, after sitting at my computer for the last few minutes with my tongue rolled up and blowing out hot air, (great imagery, huh?) let me be the first to say, No, I cannot do this.
Conclusion, it must be ME that must be the FREAK in this thread!
aw darn… thought i came upon a post about something i can ACTUALLY do (turn my tongue sideways)… but i just tried this rolled up business and haha i look pitiful…
Thankyou people, you have made me realise that I am not entirely alone in this. Although none of my college friends can do this, and find it slightly weird, and very annoying, I’ll always be happy in the knowledge that my friends on SDMB can.
Now, to find people who can do the other things that make me a freak…
My sister and I are genetic freaks. It is generally agreed upon that being able to roll the tongue is a dominant gene. If you can’t roll your tongue, then your kids cant eitehr (unless the other parent can and happens to pass on that gene). Now, neither of my parents can, and I have seen them try! They really are unable to form that trough. My sister and I, however, CAN! My brother cannot. My mom insists we weren’t adopted, and that my father is our father (we look a lot like members of his family, so it is utterly believeable), so why can we do this and neither of them can? Dunno. My biology prof in cegep told us both that we must be wrong, and that our parents can, but really, they CANT. Even my grandmother can’t!
On top of that, I can fold my tongue TWICE - into two troughs, making it look like a wave going through my tongue. No one else in my family can do that.
As for the OP - I can’t whistle through my rolled tongue. Maybe with practise…
I can whistle by folding my tongue slightly and pressing it against my palatte in such a way that when blowing, it produces a sharp, high-pitched sound like a cheap plastic whistle. The interesting thing about this is that my lips are not pursed or in any other way involved. I can also whistle very well while inhaling, as well as exhaling, and can whistle entire verses before taking a regular breath.
Another odd thing is that I can turn my tongue to the right so that the end is nearly upside-down but cannot even begin to do it when trying to turn it to the left. I wonder why? It’s like it’s parylized when I try to turn it to the left.
Hmmsies, the whole pressing the tongue against the palatte thing is old hat, but my dad could always take it to the extreme and do it so loud that it could deafen people, and start dogs howling around our village.
I actually started whistling before I could talk, I wasn’t even one, and used to sit in my pram whistling one note over and over again. It drove my mum insane, it’s great to think i was doing that even at such a young age!
Whistling while inhaling’s useful, too, and I can whistle vibrato which is kinda cool.
Whistling does not get the respect it deserves. To be a good whistler should be as respectable as being a good musician. We whistlers should unite for whistler’s rights! Or not…
