How Did They Get That Way?

Paper Mills are famous for "poor" names and sayings - in some cases, a public relations nightmare. Where you have areas with names such as; Death House; Headbox; Breast Roll; Hell's Half Acre (I believe Will Bill is responsible for that one). Not to mention nick names; Pork chop; Tiny; Stinky; Shine; Pee Wee; Snap; Bat Man; Topper; High Plains Drifter. 

Wild Bill passes on the information below:

Most most good old Southern People also grew up hearing the same phrases.  I will add some that I heard from my grandparents, parents, and in-laws.

1. "He sure is Big Ikie today" - That snob is really showing off his big new Cadillac car he just purchased and hopes we will all be impressed - NOT 
2. "She is ugly as a mud fence" - A description stated by my Mother-in-Law Stora Lee, of a really homely old lady standing in front of the line. 
3.  "It's cold enough to freeze a brass ass monkey" - My Grandmother Ada Grayson one cold morning. 

 

OK People, it's your turn to add to the list! See Alvin's (D.A. Humphrey) list below.  This should be fun.  Oh yes, you Yankees can also contribute. 

 

Wild Bill

SOME OF YOU WILL UNDERSTAND THIS --(FOR  THE REST OF YOU, IT WILL BE A LEARNING SITUATION)

A LICK AND A PROMISE

  

'I'll just give this a lick and a promise,' my mother said as she quickly mopped up a spill on the floor without moving any of the furniture. 

'What is that supposed to mean?' I asked as in my young mind I envisioned someone licking the floor with his or her tongue. 

'It means that I'm in a hurry and I'm busy canning tomatoes so I am going to just give it a lick with the mop and promise to come back and do the job right later.' 

'A lick and a promise' was just one of the many old phrases that our mothers, grandmothers, and others used that they probably heard from the generations before them. With the passing of time, many old phrases become obsolete or even disappear.  This is unfortunate because some of them are very appropriate and humorous. Here is a list of some of those memorable old phrases:  

1. A bone to pick (someone wants to discuss a disagreement) 
2. An axe to grind (Someone who has a hidden motive. This phrase is said to have originated from Benjamin Franklin  who told a story about a devious man who asked how a grinding wheel worked. He ended up walking away with his axe sharpened free of charge.)   
3. One bad apple spoils the whole barrel (One corrupt person can cause all the others to go bad if you don't remove the bad one) 
4. At sea (Lost or not understanding something) 
5. Bad egg (Someone who was not a good person) 
6. Barking at a knot (Meaning that your efforts were as useless as a dog barking at a knot) 
7. Barking up the wrong tree (Talking about something that was completely the wrong issue with the wrong person)
8. Bee in your bonnet (To have an idea that won't let loose) 
9. Been through the mill (Had a rough time of it) 
10. Between hay and grass (Not a child or an adult) 
11. Blinky (Between sweet and sour as in milk) 
12. Calaboose (a jail) 
13. Catawampus (Something that sits crooked such as a piece of furniture sitting at an angle) 
14. Dicker (To barter or trade) 
15. Feather in your cap (To accomplish a goal. This came from years ago when warriors might receive a feather they would put in their cap for defeating an enemy)  
16. Hold your horses  (Be patient!)  
17. Hoosegow (A jail) 
18. I reckon (I suppose) 
19. Jawing/Jawboning (Talking or arguing) 
20. Kit and caboodle (The whole thing)  
21. Madder than a wet hen (Really angry) 
22. Needs taken down a notch or two (Like notches in a belt; usually a young person who thinks too highly of himself and needs a lesson) 
23. No spring chicken  (Not young anymore) 
24. Persnickety  (Overly particular or snobbish) 
25. Pert-near  (Short for pretty near) 
26. Pretty is as pretty does  (Your actions are more important than your looks) 
27. Ret up  (Clean the house) 
28. Scalawag  (A rascal or unprincipled person) 
29. Scarce as hen's teeth  (Something difficult to obtain) 
30. Skedaddle  (Get out of here quickly) 
31. Sparking  (Courting) 
32. Straight from the horse's mouth  (Privileged information from the one concerned) 
33. Stringing around, gallivanting around, or piddling  (Not doing anything of value) 
34. Sunday go to meetin' dress  (The best dress you had) 
35. We wash up real fine  (Is another goodie) 
36. Tie the Knot  (To get married) 
37. Too many irons in the fire  (To be involved in too many things)        
38. Tuckered out  (Tired and all worn out) 
39. Under the weather  (Not feeling well. This term came from going below deck on ships due to sea sickness thus you go below or under the weather) 
40. Wearing your 'best bib and tucker'  (Being all dressed up) 
41. You ain't the only duck in the pond  (It's not all about you)