Another evocative indie bookstore name: Books Are Magic in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn. And how can you resist walking into an establishment with a sign outside that says “Book People”? There are at least two stores with that name in the United States:...
My dogs are barking means “My feet hurt” or “My feet are tired.” As early as 1913, cartoonist Tad Dorgan was using the term dogs to mean “feet.” If your “dogs” in this sense are “barking,” it’s as if they’re seeking your attention. This is part of a...
After our episode that mentioned eponymous laws, we got a call from Darby Venza from Austin, Texas, who came up with this bit of wisdom, otherwise known as Venza’s Razor: Whenever a garden hose or extension cord can catch on something, it will. True...
nerd bird n.— «The “nerd bird” lives on, after all. A week after American Airlines said it would cease the San Jose-Austin daily service that bore that nickname, Alaska Airlines said Monday it will inaugurate daily service between the technology...
When a proper Southern lady fans herself and exclaims, “I do believe I have the vapors,” what vapors is she talking about, exactly? A caller from Austin, Texas wants to know the origin of this term. Just how did it come to apply to a whole range of...
backing heads
n.— «Her most recent job was “backing heads,” scraping meat from between the vertebrae.» —“A Medical Mystery Unfolds in Minnesota” by Denise Grady in Austin, Minnesota New York Times Feb. 5, 2008. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)