Swapped Initial Puzzle

You’re listening to A Way with Words, the show about language and how we use it.

I’m Martha Barnette.

And I’m Grant Barrett, and we’re joined by our quiz guy, John Chaneski.

Hi, John.

Hi, Grant.

Hi, Martha.

Hey, John.

Hey.

It occurred to me the other day that even famous rappers have to have someone who makes sure that their computers work and their local area networks and all that stuff are all set up. So that would mean that someone, somewhere, can say that he works in IT for TI.

Oh, boy.

Dig it?

Got it?

Got it.

Let’s explore these swapped initialisms some more. I’ll give you a sentence with two blanks. For example, my TV is so good, you can see the beads of sweat on some of those American League players’ foreheads when they get up to bat. So thanks to blank, I can see how stressed the blank is.

Oh, thanks to HD, I can see how stressed the DH is.

Yes, very good.

High definition.

Designated hitter.

Very good.

Now, these are all pairs of letters, by the way.

Okay?

Okay.

Here we go.

I was going to put my two cents in on a long, involved thread about letter carriers, but then I realized that the blank works at the blank.

The OP at the PO?

The original poster works at the post office.

The original poster works at the post office, yeah.

My cousin works security on an army post, but only works from noon to midnight. He’s the blank blank.

He is the, oh, it’s just slip.

PM MP?

Yeah, there we go.

Yes, he’s the PMMP, Post Meridian Military Police.

When he was overseas, my cousin’s company captain invited him to visit his family in California. So last week he toured Anaheim, Laguna Beach, and San Clemente in the blank with his blank.

He was in the OC with his CO.

That’s right.

Orange County commanding officer.

Right.

Good.

Me, well, I work at a hospital that caters to the needs of retired soldiers myself.

Oh, I’m not a doctor.

If there’s a conference or a meeting, I set up the microphones and projection screens. I do blank for the blank.

I do AV for the VA.

That’s me.

Audio visual for the Veterans Administration.

Very good.

Now, if you get a job at a certain not-for-profit news agency, maybe they’ll announce your new hire over the blank, blank system.

AP and PA.

Yes, the Associated Press Public Address System.

Now, researching a report in our nation’s capital, I wrote to the Washington Visitors Bureau, and they sent me a blank with a video about blank.

A CD about D.C.

Yeah, that’s right.

After listing my litany of symptoms on a Facebook posting, another cousin of mine who’s a blank said I should blank him.

An M.D. Should DM him.

That’s right.

The medical doctor, well, should direct message him.

That’s right.

Finally, my high school gym teacher was a budding musician. I’ll never forget how he made us sit and listen to his latest blank during blank.

I was going to say P-E-L-P.

Yeah, his E-P.

Oh, his E-P.

E-P during P-E.

That’s right.

Well, you guys did okay.

I’ve been KO’d by your skills.

That’s awesome.

Well done, John.

Thanks, guys.

Thanks, John.

We’ll talk to you next week.

This show is about words and language and goofing off and wordplay, and we love your jokes and your riddles. Keep them coming.

You can send anything you want to know about language or everything you want to tell us to words@waywordradio.org.

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