MUNDANE MYSTERIES: Why Do We “Ring In The New Year”?

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: Why Do We “Ring In The New Year”?

Whenever people start talking about “ringing in the New Year”, you’ll usually hear them talk about doing so with things like a kiss, a toast, a New Year’s resolution, a movie marathon, or an entire dozen donuts all to themselves. But when you think about it…none of those things ring, do they?  So, why do…

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: What Does “Just Joshing You” Mean?

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: What Does “Just Joshing You” Mean?

If anyone’s ever tried to give you a false answer to an earnest question, they may have followed up their response with “I’m just joshing ya!”  But who is this Josh fellow, and why do folks invoke his name when trying to pull the wool over our eyes? The phrase “just joshing you” arose out…

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: What Is “The Grapevine” and Why Do We Hear Things Through It?

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: What Is “The Grapevine” and Why Do We Hear Things Through It?

Whenever someone’s sharing some juicy details with you about something of questionable veracity, but they want to try & be cagey about where they got their information, sometimes they’ll say they “heard it through the grapevine.” They might say, “I heard through the grapevine John & Sarah are getting divorced,” or, “I heard through the…

MUNDANE MYSTERIES:  Where Did The Term “86” Come From?

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: Where Did The Term “86” Come From?

Pretty much everyone has heard of the expression “86”, which means to do away with something (like, “Yeah, 86 that order!”). But where did it come from & why? Well, there are a few schools of thought as to its origin, though none of them are actually official. Some possibilities… The restaurant business in the…

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: Why Are They Called “Piggy-Back Rides”?

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: Why Are They Called “Piggy-Back Rides”?

Catching a ride on the back of a pig isn’t really a thing, right? And yet, people love horsing around & giving others what are called “piggyback rides”. But why are they called “piggyback rides”? I mean, people walk on two feet, right? Pigs, on the other hand, hoof it on four. What gives? Where…

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: What Does “Spick & Span” Actually Mean?

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: What Does “Spick & Span” Actually Mean?

It’s Springtime again! And that means it’s time for “spring cleaning”, in the hopes of making your home, car, office, etc., look super clean & like new. Your goal should be to make your place look “spick & span”, you might say. But what does that even really mean, “spick & span”? The full phrase…

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: Why Do We Say We Get “The Willies”?

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: Why Do We Say We Get “The Willies”?

Getting caught in a spider web…walking through an abandoned warehouse…getting caught in a spider web while walking through an abandoned warehouse…those might make you feel uneasy, scared, or otherwise upset. Some would call that a case of “the willies”. But what are “the willies”? Who, or what, were they named after? And how did they…

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: What Does “Goodbye” Really Mean?

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: What Does “Goodbye” Really Mean?

Most of our greetings & farewells are pretty straightforward, especially ones that begin with good (like “good morning”, “good afternoon”, “good night”, etc.). But what about “goodbye”? Are you basically saying, “I hope you have a good bye”? What is a “bye”? Is it some old word once used to reference a certain time of…

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: Why It’s Called “The Box Office”

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: Why It’s Called “The Box Office”

When you go to the movies, you first get your tickets at the box offices, those enclosed, sometimes detached booths just in front of the theaters. But why do we call them “box offices”? Not once have I ever taken a box to them, have you? The actual beginning of the box office involved a…

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: Why Do We “Ring In” The New Year?

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: Why Do We “Ring In” The New Year?

As we prepare to “ring in” the New Year with all sorts of revelries, like toasts, kisses, New Year’s resolutions, movie marathons, and more…have you ever wondered why none of those things ring? So why do say we’re going to “ring in” the New Year? Back when the phrase first originated, it actually involved things…