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...
James from San Antonio, Texas, grew up saying he hadn’t seen someone in a coon’s age, meaning in a very long time. The phrase likely refers to the old folk notion that raccoons live a long time, but because the shortened word has a long history as a...
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...

