Does your family have a word for the cardboard tube left over from a roll of toilet paper? A caller says his family refers to them Oh-ah, Oh-ahs. Turns out many families have their own terms for them, including drit-drit, dawda dawda, hoo-hoo, to...
paper daisy n.— «Rangers have the unenviable task of picking up what they euphemistically call “paper daisies”—pieces of toilet paper left to blow around. Some people don’t even bury it.» —“Fraser Island a big toilet...
By the way, if you want to read about more family words, check out Paul Dickson’s book, Family Words: A Dictionary of the Secret Language of Families. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Paul Dickson’s Family Words...
Cabbage Night n.— «Ah, the joys of the annual ritual of mischief known throughout Vermont as Cabbage Night. It’s the night many home- and business-owners have come to dread as youths harness all their collective naughtiness into one...
white rose n.— «“Uh-oh,” Brook said as she came across a couple of wads of toilet paper—or “white roses” as the stewards call them. “I’m not too impressed.” Brook and Haskell tidied up one of the campsites...
send Fidel a telegram v. phr.— «The show is a reminder why “Sending Fidel a telegram” has become such a popular euphemism for taking a dump among Miami’s exilio community. That point is further driven home in the gallery’s...

