Mickey from Austin, Texas, is curious about a phrase his mother uses: Are you smelling what I’m stepping in? meaning “Do you understand what I’m saying?” It likely derives from Black English Do you smell me? and Do you feel me? and is probably...
Norwegians often indicate that something’s crazy or mixed up by using a slang term that translates as “That’s totally Texas!” This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “That’s Totally Texas” In Norway there’s a slang phrase that translates...
The idiom “I haven’t seen you in a coon’s age,” comes from an old reference to raccoons living a long time. Given the racial sensitivity involving the word, however, it’s best to use an alternative. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of...
windshield cowboy n.— «“We don’t ride horses at our ranch,” first lady Laura Bush told CNN. “My husband is what’s called ‘the windshield cowboy.’ That means we ride a pickup.”» —“Bush has brush with an old Texas foe: pesky cedar” by Julie Mason in...