Well, Whadya Know

Why do we call that children's game hopscotch?

The game - called scotch hoppers in the seventeenth century - - is played on squares cut into the ground or marked on pavement. The name was derived from the Old French word "escocher," which meant to cut or mark. It was anglicized to "scotch." From the same source, we get the expression, to "scotch a rumor." And butterscotch - didn't you ever wonder about that? - is simply butter-colored candy cut into squares.
[source: A Browser's Dictionary by John Ciardi]

Why do we associate Dalmatians with firemen?

The answer is simple. The key facts are that there is a natural affinity between Dalmatians and horses, and Dalmatians make good watchdogs. People who owned valuable horses often kept Dalmatians around to guard them against horse thieves. Fire engines used to be drawn by fast and powerful horses, a tempting target for thieves. So, Dalmatians were kept in the firehouse as deterrence to theft. The horses have long since gone, but the Dalmatians, by tradition, have stayed.
[source: The Handy Science Answer Book compiled by The Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh]