When it comes to the act of writing, E.L. Doctorow once said, it’s “like driving a car at night: you never see further than your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.” This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “E.L. Doctorow...
“If you come to a fork in the road… take it!” Baseball legend Yogi Berra was famous for such head-scratching observations. What most people don’t realize, though, is that the former Yankees star often wasn’t the first person to say them. As Berra...
You know that moment when you get into the car and check your phone before driving off? One listener calls that her media moment. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Media Moment” We talked a few weeks ago about that moment when you...
First names like “Patience,” “Hope,” and “Charity” are inspired by worthy qualities. But how about “Be-courteous” or “Hate-evil”? The Puritans sometimes gave children such names hoping that their kids would live up to them. Also, even some feminists...
This week: whether cotton-pickin’ is racist, unintentionally funny headlines, whether enormity can simply mean “enormous,” how a person can be “such a pill,” and pandiculation. “It’s good stuff, Maynard!”
break the ton v. phr.— «When I was a kid we all drove muscle cars with enormous hemis. The term “breakin’ the ton” was popular slang. You broke the ton when 100 mph was significantly exceeded and sustained.» —“High Speed Slang” by Gregg Mercedes...
