Nikki in Charlotte, North Carolina, shares the story of a man who casually told passersby You dropped your pocket, prompting them to check for something that wasn’t there in the first place. That silly saying reminds her of playing pool and trying to distract an opponent about to shoot with Hey, do you breathe in or out when you take your shot? Other “made-you-look” sayings include your sock is untied and your epidermis is showing. The folklorists Iona and Peter Opie collect many similar kinds of sayings in their classic volume The Lore and Language of Schoolchildren (Bookshop|Amazon). This is part of a complete episode.
In the 1970s, talk-show host Johnny Carson had a recurring bit where he’d declare, “It was so cold…” to which the audience would respond, “How cold was it?” Carson always offered a goofy response, such as “It was so cold the ice cubes were wearing...
Lindsay in San Diego, California, says some of her younger coworkers use the phrase out of pocket to mean “unavailable,” but she’s also heard it used to mean “acting out of line.” The meaning of this phrase usually involves one of three things...
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