The Old Country

The Old Country is Rolf's original home, mentioned in many episodes. It is most likely a reference to many European cultures with odd customs like a lot of hero stories, fights, famous people, numerous sayings using food, clothes and household items (also used to compare) along with other unbelievable things. The passing of the goat is a staple export of this country.

Background
The Old Country is a reference to the lifestyle of creator Danny Antonucci's parents, as the two were Italian immigrants fresh off the boat. Many of the Old Country's strange customs are a reference to how Danny's Antonucci's parents acted. The Old Country was not intended to be located anywhere specific. When questioned about the mysterious location of Rolf's home country, Danny Antonucci replied: "Yeah, I purposely made Rolf with a non-nationality, especially after what happened with Lupo (from Lupo the Butcher, a short by Antonucci) when we were accused of painting Italians in a bad light. But Rolf is me, take his proverbs - my family were always coming out with the strange proverbial stuff that only made sense to them and other family members. His vocabulary is always interesting, I've actually browsed through the dictionary sometimes looking for words he might use, we came in for some flak with 'jujubes' though, people were asking what on earth that meant, but its there, you know what they are right? Leaving Rolf with no set nationality means he's able to adopt all sorts of quirks he couldn't get away with if we'd stuck a label on him. Its the same with Peach Creek Estates, its not anywhere specific, its just one of those countless suburban development regions."

Customs

 * Should you break the law, you are to be hit in the head with the "Hat of Discipline," an enormous hat in the shape of a hammer.
 * A clam is considered a pet.
 * A typical family sits around the stove and tells stories of produce spread.
 * You may learn to ride a unicycle before a bike.
 * Philosophy: "the soil knows all."
 * You must use an odd system of measurement; Foot = pace. Yard = goat.
 * It is socially accepted to eat grass.
 * You may learn to stack sausages at the age of two.
 * Passing of the goat = stable export of the country. Consists of the borrower signing a notepad several times and turning it in to the owner. In the event that the goat is not returned, you owe 2 bags of beans, 5 pigs, and a turnip.
 * You must honor your ancestors.
 * It is disgraceful to play with your food.
 * A shepherd typically chews soil to test its moisture/nutrition.
 * The barber is considered the manliest career, as he is viewed as a man among men.
 * It is customary to give a giant sausage as a gift.
 * It is a travesty to mix salami and bologna.
 * It is believed that if you burn a candle at both ends, it will lead to the life of a hairdresser.


 * Sports:


 * Shining Shoes
 * Synchronized Swimming


 * Old World Fables:

Shepherd: (appears with a rifle): Hey, you bag of flesh! Let's dance! Kerpow! Hairless Otter: (cry of pain) Oh, my otter heart! It has been stroke! You have missed! [hairless otter eats shepherd]
 * The Ugly Boy and the Tree of Heads
 * Once upon a time, an ugly boy was thrown out of his village, and hit his melon on a tree. The boy looked up and was amazed at the many beautiful heads growing from its branches. After many tries, he found one that fit and he ran back to the village, becoming very popular.
 * Hairless Otter Dance
 * Hairless Otter: I am the Hairless Otter and I must eat chicken!
 * Anchovies are good, the stench is to be respected.
 * Shepherd's customary salute: Poke 3 times in head, slap back of head 3 times, then kick in back.
 * When your chores are not complete, you are banished to the cupboard.
 * Do not try a shepherd's patience.
 * Respect fast food.
 * It is a celebratory time when the village idiot falls in a hole.
 * Offering a potted lily is a sign of disrespect.
 * A merciless beating of your laundry with a stick shall "cleanse (it) fresh".
 * A competition is used to settle arguments over possession. It involves "Balancing eggs in the ladle of honor, skedaddle down, circle the goat of maturity, skedaddle back." in a race track constructed out of sausages.
 * Acts Considered Barbaric:
 * A person who lets their cows graze in a large field is considered a barbarian.
 * Hanging a milkbox from a string.
 * Allowing their Nana to rest.
 * Doing "Jumping jacks" without jumping is also the ritual of how you call the "Summoning of Chestnut Elves."
 * If a person throws or harms "The Great Sea Cucumber," they have disrespected your family, although this might just be a family tradition in honor of Rolf's Great Nano's death along with Rolf's family's immigration to America.
 * When this happened, Rolf dressed in black, put a veil over his face, and let people trample his face.
 * If they give you a potted lily (referred to as "The Potted Shrub of Ridicule") afterwards, that is a sign of increased disrespect. The culprit must then duel the victim.
 * You can apologize by baking the "Cupcakes of Sorriness" before the duel or accepting the "Eels of Forgiveness" (eels poured down your pants) after the duel.
 * Quiche is a cursed food.
 * Stuffed pigs head is a delicacy.
 * You have to ask permission before you dance with a pig.
 * In order to ferment potatoes, you put them in your ears.
 * Potatoes are honorable.
 * Julienning a potato is shameful to it.

Weird Things
It's known in his home land that there are a lot of hero stories, fights, famous people, and unbelievable things there. A man in a wolf costume tried to steal and eat sheep. Rolf witnessed a giant Swedish meatball stalking Wilfred in the dead of night. Another strange tale is the story of how his Great Nano crossed the ocean in a canoe made from the soles of his shoes while fighting a giant sea cucumber in an attempt to immigrate to America according to one of Rolf's stories. Because the Great Nano was lost at sea in this battle people of this culture would dress in a tight-fitting sea cucumber suit and prepare a box of sea cucumber balls for the neighbors to feast, (imitating when Rolf and his great Nano had to devour the mighty sea Cucumber that attacked them) but was offended if someone threw one of these balls.

Also, around the holidays, this culture family worships a woman named Yeshmiyek who lives in the center of the earth preparing the holiday feast for good males and females. Rolf also celebrates the guardian pigeon. Another thing this culture does is dueling, he would dig a hole and make a bridge of a tree and then he would put on war-like suit with an ox skull on it and battle his enemy with dead stiff fish.

Sayings, Insults, and Compliments

 * Has your brain turned to custard like half-price pastry?
 * Do not burn the candle at both ends, as it leads to the life of a hairdresser.
 * Stubborn like an ingrown back hair!
 * Has a truck parked on your freshly-paved driveway?
 * Has your think box collapsed?!
 * May shower scum devour your hat!
 * May your nose fester with the rage of olives!
 * You have broken the celery stalk on the back of a sea urchin!
 * May the fleas from your cows inflame your rhubarb!
 * Confess to your crimes, stale end piece of white bread!
 * Has anyone ever told you your hair resembles the backside of a chicken?
 * Ah, the artichoke thickens.
 * Flee in the name of blanched rhubarb!
 * The humble beet is the answer to all riddles.
 * Why must you behave like hens having difficulty laying an egg?
 * May the onion of agony swell your macaroon!
 * The Guardian Pigeon shall disgrace itself upon the head of the mischief maker!
 * The Guardian Pigeon has yet to drop its full load!
 * Come and see the wisdom of the Guardian pigeon.
 * Oho, the ancient ones have stumped the know-it-all.
 * Do not get involved lest your pomegranates shrivel in the cold of the dark sea!
 * I see through this squashed peanut paste on white bread masquerade!
 * I will grill your strudel until you cry like a teensy-weesny baby!
 * Urchins of processed cheese spread!
 * Have you been drinking milk from a rusty bucket?!?
 * Your garden is overgrown, and your cucumbers are soft!
 * The cat sours the basil.
 * You are full of pickles and beets today, eh?
 * Shaklaham!
 * A turnip for your thoughts?
 * Life too short not to smell the parsley!?!
 * Have you stripped the thread of a screw?!?
 * You have squeezed an orange rind in the eye of Rolf!

Economy

 * Turnips, Oranges, Chickens and Rubber Bands are used as money, suggesting a barter economy.
 * Food Products:
 * Carrots
 * Cheese
 * Cucumbers
 * Eels
 * Eggplants
 * Eggs
 * Fish
 * Meat
 * Milk
 * Octopus
 * Parsley
 * Plums
 * Pork
 * Potatoes
 * Radishes
 * Squash
 * Squid
 * Stuffed Pig's Head
 * Sugar beets (a.k.a. "Candied Beets")
 * Turnips
 * Yams

Tribute To Yeshmiyek
[Sung slowly and darkly]  Deep below the dirt and rocks  There lives the bearded maiden fair  Whose kitchen pot is bigger than  Her size of underwear…Hey!   [Faster and happier]  Yeshmiyek who peels the root  And grinds the sausage with her boot!  Yeshmiyek who cures the meat  And stuffs the fruits and sugared beets!  Yeshmiyek who salts the pork  And stabs it with her silver fork!  Yeshmiyek who cuts the cheese  And gives the loaf of bread a squeeeeze!   [Again slow and dark] <br style="clear:both"/> But should your chores be never done <br style="clear:both"/> Your feeble arms too weak to toil <br style="clear:both"/> Yeshmiyek will surely come… <br style="clear:both"/> And throw you in the pot to boil! <br style="clear:both"/> <br style="clear:both"/> [Fast and happy] <br style="clear:both"/> Yeshmiyek who smokes the fish <br style="clear:both"/> And lays a slab on every dish! <br style="clear:both"/> Yeshmiyek who guts the hare <br style="clear:both"/> And seasons it with special care! <br style="clear:both"/> Yeshmiyek who bastes the lamb <br style="clear:both"/> And spits the glaze on every ham! <br style="clear:both"/> Yeshmiyek who bakes the strudel <br style="clear:both"/> Pickles feet and strings the noodle!