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…
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…
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…
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…
Ever heard the phrase, “Bah! Humbug!” around Christmastime & wonder what it means? The most famous examples of the phrase come from Charles Dickens’s timeless 1843 tale, A Christmas Carol, in which the curmudgeonly Ebenezer Scrooge regularly proclaims “Bah! Humbug!” when referring to Christmas. Since Scrooge particularly hates the otherwise happy holiday, it’s easy to…
Have you ever been told “you have a chip on your shoulder”? What does that even mean? And what kind of chip are we talking about? From what we now understand about having a chip on your shoulder, you know that it can motivate you to be better, learn from mistakes, or reach goals, even…
You could definitely ask your buddy whether The Godfather Part II is as good as everyone says it is, but you’ll never know for sure unless you sit through all four hours of it & see it for yourself. After all, the best way to determine the something’s value is to experience it firsthand, right?…
You’ve probably heard the phrase, “You just won a brand-new car” on many a game show. You might have told a friend before about a “brand spanking new” TV you bought. Or, because you listen to WFRE, you’ve definitely heard Brooks & Dunn proclaim how they’re a “Brand New Man”. But, are “brand” & “spanking”…
Picture it: a 9-year-old kid running an egg-&-spoon race ends up crossing the finish line right behind the winner, before someone pats him on the back & says, “Sorry kid…close, but no cigar”. What do you think that would mean to the kid? Having never heard the saying before, he’d probably think, “Why is my…
No one likes cold feet. Especially a husband whose wife brings her ice-cold tootsies into a warm bed. But, what about figurative “cold feet”, like when someone in a business deal pulls out at the last minute? Or, what about the situation where we hear the phrase most often: wedding nuptials? Why is a groom…