Origin of phrase Que te cuentas Sebastian?

[Camposguy]

I am English. My father was from Hellin, Albacete, Castilla La Mancha.

I remember my father occasionally used to say to me "Que te cuentas Sebastian? Cuatro chuletas sin pan."

This sounds as if it was a line from a poem, a song, or possibly a traditional saying.

Entirely by chance, the mother of my son has named him Sebastian.

Does anyone know the origin of these lines? Or how I could find out? Google provides no obvious clue when I enter the words themselves.

[Rusty]

¿Qué te cuentas Sebastián? Cuatro chuletas sin pan.

I'm unable to find this expression, but the whole reason behind this type of saying is usually the rhyme factor (and sometimes the rhyming part is omitted, everyone knowing the other half exists).

Many such expressions are used in Spanish! English has them, too.

I would consider the first three below to be equivalent expressions to the one your father used.

What's the story, morning glory?
What's your tale, nightingale?
How now, brown cow?

Here are a few more, just for fun:
See ya later, alligator.
After a while, crocodile.
Peace out, rainbow trout.

[Camposguy]

I like your reply.

Of the rhymes that you mention in English, I know that "What's your story, morning glory" would have become more widely used because of the Oasis song, even if it didn't originate with it.

The other thing I notice is that there is almost an internal rhyme along with the final rhyme in the Spanish phrase I mentioned, in that the penultimate vowels as well as the final vowels are the same in "Sebastian" and "sin pan".