Quote meaning - Please Answer

[life-of-amesu.livejournal.com]

Halloa,

Since we all know Wodehouse to be the inventive and creative man that he was, usually using unique and time appropriate language (i.e. old bean and crumpet, chewing on the carpet, tight as an owl wetc). Ir might be a completely silly question but I was wondering if any good person here would know what the following quote meant: (re: the bold text bits) (It's from How Right You Are, Jeeves)

"You will observe me bowling up in the Wooster sports model tomorrow afternoon with my hair in a braid and a song on my lips."



Thank you my daring and awesome Wooster friends. :)

Comments

[trista-zevkia.livejournal.com]

I thought it was a reference to the Flight of the Valkyries, by Wagner. The Valkyries have braided hair and sing as they go to fetch a fallen warrior. But that's just a guess.

[dogwoodblossom.livejournal.com]

I don't know of a specific reference or origin for this expression so maybe somebody else can do better, but it just means that Bertie will be in a good mood and raring to go. To me it calls to mind a milk maid or someone skipping through the Alps and about to burst into song a la Julie Andrews in the opening of The Sound of Music. The braid specifically implies an outdoorsy sportiness. A lady's long hair might be done up in a braid if she were going to be doing something active; tennis, or skipping through the Alps with a milk pail.

Those are just my impressions though. I'd like to know if anybody has something more concrete.

[cherrypep.livejournal.com]

Urban dictionary, surprisingly, has a definition for 'Hair in a braid':

'Enjoying the festivities with the maximum enthusiasm, being the life of the party.'

Of course urban dict isn't exactly merriam-webster, but it seems to fit the context here. I suspect it's American slang but either way it is not a very popular expression on google.

The second bit - the song - I always just took to mean 'with evident cheer'. Might well have missed the point though.

Isn't Wodehouse's terminology great?

[wotwotleigh.livejournal.com]

I did a little searching around and it seems to be a common expression of the period (late 19th-early 20th century), but I can't find any hint of an origin. I know what it's supposed to mean ("Wouldn't miss it for anything!"), but I have no idea what the etymology is. Hmm, this is going to drive me nuts now!