Margaret from Huntsville, Alabama, says her mother used to tell her to hurry up by saying to get something done with a burning needle and a hot thread. The more common expression is with a hot needle and burning thread, meaning to do something...
A listener in Richardson, Texas, notes that before her mother married, her middle name was Knight and her last name was Chevallier. For those who know the French word for “knight,” chevalier, this made for some occasional chuckles. This...
When a member of our Facebook Group named Melody jokingly dubbed herself as Highway to Mel — an homage to the AC/DC song “Highway to Hell” — Quiz Guy John Chaneski found a musical hook for this puzzle, which requires blending a...
Susan in Virginia Beach, Virginia, says that whenever she looked sad as a child, her grandmother would say she looked like somebody licked the red off her candy. This phrase goes back at least to the 1920s, and refers to licking the red coloring off...
The threat I’m going to cloud up and rain all over you goes back to at least 1911. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Ima Cloud Up and Rain” We heard from Keith Johnston in Rosemead, California, and he writes, A...
If you want to be a better writer, try skipping today’s bestsellers, and read one from the 1930’s instead. Or read something besides fiction in order to find your own metaphors and perspective. Plus, just because a city’s name...