It's a running joke with my family that I never know common phrases or idioms - so when they say phrases like "dark horse in the running" or "by the skin of my teeth" I become visibly distracted and confused by whatever point they're trying to make. I've even Googled "the riot act" on more than one occasion because it seemed everyone knew it but me. And because I'm not familiar with most of these phrases I always end up inappropriately combining them to where they don't make sense - like "no skin off the hair of my teeth". You would think English is my second language.
So one time as Jeremy and I were having a Very Serious Discussion (you could almost call it a fight), I was feeling pretty sad when Jeremy used the phrase "you have to crack a few eggs to make an omelet" describing my approach to life. The Very Serious Discussion turned to laughs when I cocked my head to the side and had to ask him the origin of that phrase - and what exactly it meant. Nothing diffuses a fight like mulling over semantics.
Have a great weekend, friends. I hope you crack some eggs and make some omelets.
I had a college roommate who said 'I know it like the front of my hand' (should be back of my hand) and that she was so happy she was 'in second heaven' (saying is seventh, but I guess second is as far as she got).
ReplyDeleteI have a friend who uses the word guaranteed when she means granted.
ReplyDeleteAs in, "You know, guaranteed I could go on Friday, I just don't feel like it."
I've never corrected her. I don't know...it's funny.
It's a function of being the baby in a very smart family of characters. You grow hearing all these euphemisms and idioms before you have cognitive skills or even basic language skills. As the youngest of four in a family of thinkers, painters and writers, it was challenging for me, too. When I was 19, I checked out a book eups and ids from the Warr Acres library. I learned a lot. !!!! Like the origin of the F word and "What a bunch of baloney" means. Never used that latter one again. My dad used to say "Talk 'til I'm blue in the face." For 20 years I wonder. Blue or Blew? I thought, BLEW. Like a big wind was blowing him in the face. When I entered the room of a conversation I wasn't suppose to hear, my mother said, "Little pictures with big ears." It was signal to stop talking. But, I heard PITCHERS. I always imagined our glass pitcher of tea with giant ears. Try figuring that out. What a great post. I hope you're doing well.
ReplyDeleteThe bartender in Boondock Saints has tourettes syndrome and does that too. it's hilarious, every time!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt0144117/quotes?qt=qt0373577
Ha! That's pretty funny. If it makes you feel any better, I've never heard of that dark horse one either.
ReplyDelete