If you’re as happy as if someone were throwing pork at you, you’re pretty darn happy. And if something is higher than a cat’s back, it’s pretty darn high. This is part of a complete episode.
Transcript of “Happy Figures of Speech”
Hello, you have A Way with Words.
Hi, this is Elliot from Boulder, Colorado.
Hi, Elliot. Welcome to the show.
Hey, thanks so much.
What would you like to talk with us about?
Oh, well, you know, my grandpa comes from the outskirts of a really small town in East Texas. And though he’s passed since, he always had these totally crazy sayings when I was growing up. And I was interested to see if anybody else had ever called in or anybody know of any other sort of backcountry saying that he had.
Let’s hear some of them.
Oh, man. But he got me one time. I mean, it was amazing. Half the time I couldn’t understand what any of them meant. But one of my favorites that he used to say was when I would ask how he was doing, I’d say, hey, Papa, how are you doing? He said, well, you know, I’m as happy as if you were throwing pork at me.
Happy as if you were throwing pork at me.
Yeah, exactly. I don’t know that that would make me happy personally, but hey.
But that meant he was really happy?
Yeah, I guess so. I mean, yeah, shoot, yeah, I’m real happy.
Okay. When gas prices began to rise, I remember hearing him say that gas prices were getting higher than a cat’s back.
Higher than a cat’s back.
I have heard that one. Very nice.
Yeah. Yeah. And where in Texas was he from?
Well, there’s a town in East Texas, probably an hour and a half east of Dallas, called Wolf City.
Wolf City?
Wolf City, yeah. Wolf with an E at the end.
Oh, okay. But he was born outside of there, I think, really in the country, an old school birth, you know. But he really managed to make me scratch my head and smile at the same time. I still don’t understand what half of those mean, but they are definitely colorful.
Sounds like he was a colorful, interesting man.
Oh, so much. Yeah, very, very much so. And I’m hoping that one day write them all down and make a compilation. But there’s so many to remember.
Yeah, please do. I bet your family would love to have that as a keepsake.
Oh, yeah. Yeah. We’ve talked about doing it.
Do it today.
Do it today, Elliot.
You know what? I’ve got an hour. I’m going to get started.
Okay. You do that and we’ll be grinning like a basket full of possum heads.
Wonderful. Thanks for calling, Elliot. Much appreciated.
Absolutely. Bye-bye.
Thank you guys so much.
Okay. Bye-bye.
Okay. Bye-bye.
