If you alternate alcoholic beverages with glasses of water over the course of an evening, you’re said to be zebra striping. This bit of slang was inspired by how the animal’s alternating black-and-white markings are like the contrast between the...
In the 1920’s, Americans were warned of a new danger sweeping across the country. This menace that harmed people’s health, ruined minds, and threatened marriages. The culprit? The national obsession with a new form of entertainment:...
An alcoholic who’s been sober for 29 years wonders if she’s overly sensitive to the terms non-alcoholic and alcohol-free being used with reference to food and drink. The problem is that alcoholic has more than one meaning. It can refer...
Pete in Minneapolis, Minnesota, wonders about the word canooper, which he’s heard used to refer to a type of alcoholic beverage. Also spelled kanuper or canuper, this word is rarely found outside Minnesota. Its origin is uncertain, although...
Kathy from Huntsville, Alabama, remembers that her father would entice guests to stay awhile longer with the puzzling phrase We’re fixing to open up a keg of nails. Actually, the keg of nails in this case is a jocular euphemism referencing a...
Gaywater is not the opposite of conversion therapy. It’s a southern American term for whiskey, especially the illegal kind. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Gaywater” You know the term gay water? I’ve seen...