Our conversation about the phrase I beg your pardon reminded Patricia in Greenville, North Carolina, of a playground taunt from her childhood. If one kid said I beg your pardon, another would respond I grant your grace, I hope the cat will spit in...
Gary in Loris, South Carolina, started listening to this show on the public radio station WHQR, which broadcasts from Wilmington, North Carolina. Then he realized that because of his location, he could also pick up the show through South Carolina...
Nate in Winterville, North Carolina, remembers an older relative asking Are you going to get outside of that? meaning “Are you going to finish that meal?” To get outside of a meal or to climb outside of a meal suggests that you’re...
Amber from Charlotte, North Carolina, wonders why big, heavy shoes are called clodhoppers. Originally, clodhopper was an insulting term aimed at rustics or rubes, a reference to farmers who must literally step over clods of dirt to do with work. It...
Kendall from Boone, North Carolina, says that particularly after Kendall had a challenging day, her mother would gently ask How’s your copperosity? meaning “How are you doing?” Copperosity is a playful variation of corporosity...
Beth from Charlotte, North Carolina, says that if Beth’s hair looked messy, her grandmother would gently chide her with the phrase Your hair looks like a hoo-hoo bird in a haw-haw tree! The name hoo-hoo bird refers to an odd mythical animal...
