Daniel from Gardnerville, Nevada, remembers his aunt had a habit of responding to anyone who left the word so hanging there in mid-conversation with, Sew a button on your underwear. It’s is one of a whole family of playful rejoinders, including Sew...
When Kentrell from West Memphis, Arkansas, worked for a granite company, his co-workers who were about to put two pieces of granite together would say I’m going to pull a seam. But why would they use the word pull for the action of pushing together...
With its unusual combination of letters, the word etui is a favorite of crossword-puzzle constructors. Etui means “a small case” and often refers to containers for carrying small instruments such as sewing needles and pins. This word was adapted...
The stitch in your side that results from laughing goes back to the thousand-year-old use of the verb stitch to refer to a sewing needle poking through something. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Stitch in your Side” Hello, you...
The expression “It’ll never be seen on a galloping horse” means “Don’t be such a perfectionist.” But why? A caller remembers an even odder version: It’ll never be seen on a galloping goose. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of...

