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Die Bull-Headed

Darcy calls from North Pole, Alaska, to share a saying her grandparents used when she asked for something she couldn’t have. It sounded like either You may want horns, but you’ll die mole-headed or You may want horns, but you’ll die mull-headed. More often the final element is bull-headed or butt-headed, and it’s common enough that it shows up in the writing of Zora Neale Hurston. This is part of a complete episode.

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  • Today, I heard this segment from 2019 on mole/mull/butt/bull-headed. I remember one or both of my parents, usually my mom in reference to my dad 😉, using the term MULE-headed, basically meaning stubborn. They were from Boone and Grandfather Mountain, NC, respectively. My brother seemed to think this was a fairly common usage, but it didn’t come up on a search of your site. Do y’all (NC born & bred) know it?

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