Making Heads or Tails of Idioms

Hand Over Fist

REMA’s SUMMER OF IDIOMS! Vol. 1 Issue 3

Original Release: 8/3/2009

What was said? That company makes money “hand over fist”.

Did someone really say that? Yes, then I put my hand over my fist to see if it would make sense… but try it… it doesn’t.

What does it mean? Quickly and continuously.

Origin: The allusion in this phrase is to the action of hauling on a rope. An earlier version of the phrase was ‘hand over hand’, which dates to the mid 18th century. This is found in a paper by Cooke in the Royal Society’s Philosophical Transactions for 1736: “A lusty young Man attempted to go down (hand over hand, as the Workmen call it) by means of a single Rope.”

The term is now used to suggest speed and profusion, especially in financial dealing, e.g. ‘making money, hand over fist’. In the 18th century ‘hand over hand’ and the later ‘hand over fist’ had a different meaning though and meant ‘making steady progress’. ‘Hand over fist’ is a little more descriptive of hauling on a rope than ‘hand over hand’, after all, when we grab on a rope to pull it we do make a fist and then reach forward with our other open hand.

This term makes an appearance in William Glascock’s The naval sketchbook, 1825: “The French … weathered our wake, coming up with us, ‘hand over fist’, in three divisions.” Many of the early citations refer to slow steady progress – exactly what could be expected if a ship were being pulled closer to another by means of a rope. The ‘making money hand over fist’ figurative use is a clear allusion to grabbing handfuls of money and pocketing it. This is later, but not much later, in Seba Smith’s The life and writings of Major Jack Downing, 1833: “They… clawed the money off of his table, hand over fist.”

Source: http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/hand-over-fist.html

SIDE NOTE: Rema’s Summer of Idioms would like to give a shout out to Rob for teaching me the difference between a “call out” and a “shoutout”.
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Table Stakes

REMA’s SUMMER OF IDIOMS! (Special Edition)
Original Release: 8/1/2009

What makes this a special edition you may ask? Well, the following expression is brought to you by a special guest!

Special Guest: Chloe

What was said? Table Stakes (in two of Chloe’s meetings last week)

Did someone really say that? Yes (unless you think Chloe is lying).

What does it mean? In business, table stakes also refers to the minimum entry requirement for a market or business arrangement. It can refer to pricing, cost models, technology, or other capability that represents a minimum requirement to have a credible competitive starting position in a market or other business arrangement. For example, if you want to be a Wireless service provider the table stakes are the basic features you need to have in order to be in that business to achieve foundation capability – Network, Handsets, a data service, a mail server etc. Beyond that real competitive advantage comes from additional nimbleness and cost or product differentiation.
SOURCE: Wikipedia

In poker, table stakes limits the amount a player can win or lose in the play of a single hand. A player may bet no more money than he had on the table at the beginning of that hand and consequently cannot go back to his pocket for more money once a hand is dealt. In between hands however, a player is free to rebuy or add-on so long as his entire stack after the rebuy or add-on does not exceed the maximum buy-in.

SIDE NOTE: Rema’s Summer of Idioms welcomes new subscribers: Lindsey and Alan.
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Minnesota Nice

REMA’s SUMMER OF IDIOMS! Vol.1 Subject 2
Authentic Launch: 7/10/2009

What was stated? Oh he’s sooooo Minnesota Good.

Did somebody actually say that? Ya… that was severely stated to me in a gathering final week.

What does it imply? Principally… when somebody is good to your face however apparently doesn’t imply it. Who new Minnesotans had been such assholes?

ORIGIN: Minnesota good is the stereotypical habits of long-time Minnesota residents to offer hospitality and courtesy to others. The time period can be generally utilized in a derogatory approach, to connote a kind of smiling stubbornness, compelled politeness, false humility or passive aggressive hostility of individuals within the Higher Midwest area.

Stereotypes of Minnesotans typically overlap with qualities of different individuals from the Higher Midwest, together with the notion that many are quiet and don't want to offend others or trigger a disruption, even when it’s for their very own profit. Author Garrison Keillor performed with this picture in a chunk written for the radio program A Prairie Dwelling Companion referred to as “Wobegonics”, the supposed language of Minnesotans which incorporates “no confrontational verbs or statements of sturdy private choice, you already know.” Typically space residents who transfer away, or in any other case are available in contact with others who don’t subscribe to the perfect, say that they must shed their “Minnesota good” with a view to work together correctly with others or get out of troublesome conditions. The generosity of state residents has gained respect—the heavily-reported influenza vaccine scarcity of fall 2004 didn't strike the state as onerous as elsewhere since many individuals willingly gave up injections for others.

Minnesota Good can be the title of a 2003 28-minute documentary by Jeffrey Schwarz in regards to the Coen brothers’ film Fargo, a film that shows a number of the stereotypical habits.

One other definition of “Minnesota good” is to be passive aggressive. Ex: “I’m Minnesota good. After I’m offended at somebody, I don’t allow them to know. I simply smile pleasantly to his or her face after which proceed to speak about them behind their again. I'll almost certainly maintain a grudge too. ”

SOURCES:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minnesota_nice
http://www.urbandictionary.com/outline.php?time period=minnesota%20good

SIDE NOTE: Rema’s Summer season of Idioms welcomes new subscribers: Lauren, Kelly and Sharon.
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Get Your Goat

REMA’s SUMMER OF IDIOMS! Vol.1 Issue 1

Original Release: 6/17/2009

What was said? I’m gonna “GET YOUR GOAT”!

Did someone really say that? Ya… that was seriously said to me in a meeting today.

What does it mean? basically… to annoy someone… and let me tell you… he was successful

ORIGIN:
1. This apparently refers to an old English (Welsh?) belief that keeping a goat in the barn would have a calming effect on the cows, hence producing more milk. When one wanted to antagonize/terrorize one’s enemy, you would abscond with their goat rendering their milk cows less- to non-productive.

2. There is one theory, espoused by H.L. Mencken among others, that ties the phrase to the world of horse racing. It used to be common practice, goes this theory, to stable goats with race horses, trainers believing that the mere presence of the goats would help keep the excitable thoroughbreds calm. If an unscrupulous gambler were to arrange for the removal of a certain goat from a certain horse’s stall the day before a race, the horse might be so flustered by the absence of its hircine pal that it would lose the race. The gambler would thus have “gotten the horse’s goat.”

Unfortunately, the first occurrence of the phrase in print, according to the Random House Historical Dictionary of American Slang, was in 1908. Since goats are no longer (if they ever were) housed with race horses, the practice must have arisen near the beginning of the 20th century — and been abandoned shortly thereafter — for that theory to be true.

A more likely origin of the phrase lies in an earlier (1904) citation in the Random House dictionary, for “goat” as prison slang for “anger.” I think this may be the key. After all, goats do, with much provocation, get angry. To bring out the “goat” in someone may take some doing, but will eventually have dramatic results.

QUESTIONABLE: Some people say “Get your GOAD”, “Get your GUT”…..

A goad is a pointed rod used to urge on livestock. A modern equivalent of a goad is the cattle prod. To goad is to stimulate into action. The phrase “goad you on” comes to mind. To “get your goat (goad)” then is to be successful in stimulating a response. Alternative: The word ‘gut’ down through the years was altered to goat. When something gets your gut, it upsets you and ties your stomach in knots. Alternative: Hyperactive racehorses were often given goats as stablemates because their presence tended to have a calming effect on the horses. After the horse became attached to the goat, it got very upset when its companion disappeared – making it run poorly on the track. In the 19th century, when a devious gambler wanted a horse to lose, he would get the horse’s goat and take it away the night before the race, thus agitating the horse.

SOURCES:

http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~genepool/sayings.htm
http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/10/messages/1015.html
http://www.joe-ks.com/phrases/phrasesG.htm
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Harsh My Mellow

“Harsh My Mellow” Definition, Origin, etc. Volume 1.1

Original Release: 3/17/2009

Dear Subscribers to Rema’s: “I grew up in this country and still don’t know their Idioms.”

HARSH MY MELLOW:
First heard: In cab en route to the Kill Bill restaurant in Tokyo with Chloe, Chris and Rob.
Context: Rob was about to summarize the readings for global strategy class he did earlier on the computer and Chloe said, you better do it now before dinner and drinks rather than “harsh my mellow.”

BASIC DEFINITION: buzzkill (when used with “don’t harsh my mellow” intention is “don’t be a buzzkill”)

ORIGIN: From Worldwideworlds.org: The longer expression seems to have originally been West Coast drug and hacker slang of the middle 1990s. It became more widely known in 1997 when it turned up in The Online Adventures of Ozzie the Elf on ABC television. When Ozzie is criticized by an elf in Santa’s workshop, he says, “Don’t harsh my mellow”. Since then, as you’ve discovered, it has begun to appear from time to time in mainstream newspapers and magazines; I’ve seen it in Time magazine and also in the issue of Fortune for March 2003: “That guy really harshes my mellow, and I don’t appreciate it”.

SOURCES:
http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-har2.htm
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Harshing+my+mellow

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Somebody’s Gotta Make the Doughnuts

“Making Heads or Tails of Idioms” Newsletter. Volume 1. Issue 5. Part 1 of 2.

Original Release: 12/20/2010

**Special Edition** Pop Culture Idioms

What was said? “Well, somebody’s gotta make the doughnuts around here”

Did someone really say that? YES!

Doughnuts: Kari Steinberg texted me saying that it was used three times in her meeting. Then a week later, the partner on my project said it.

What does it mean?

“Somebody’s gotta make the doughnuts” means somebody’s gotta do the work. Originally, I thought it meant that making doughnuts is a difficult, laborious process, but no… I was wrong.

Origin:

Somebody’s Gotta make the Doughnuts: Fred the Baker in a Dunkin Donuts commercial from 1983 woke up saying “time to make the doughnuts” while he was getting ready to go to work to “make the doughnuts.”

Sources:
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=time%20to%20make%20the%20doughnuts
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_to_make_the_donuts

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Out of Pocket

“Making Heads or Tails of Idioms” Newsletter. Volume 1. Issue 4.

Original Release: 11/14/2010

What was said? Out of Office Message… “I will be out of pocket for the remainder of the week and can be reached on my cell phone at…”

Did someone really say that? Yes. Constantly.

What does it mean? Out of pocket has roughly three meanings.

In the sentence above, it is used to explain that the individual is unreachable / unavailable through the end of the week even via email and telephone, especially for work purposes. Another definition usually refers to expenses that are not reimbursable and therefore one has to pay it out of their own pocket, especially as it charges / payments that are not covered by health insurance. Finally, the third meaning usually references something “out of whack” and is typically used on the streets (according to my sources)… if someone is wearing something ugly “that girl’s clothes are out of pocket” (however replace girl with another word).

Origin: Around 1974 “out of pocket” started being used to mean “out of touch” or “unavailable.” No one seems to know exactly why this sense arose or what the “pocket” in this case might be… however below is an interesting theory:

“Out of pocket” refers to the quarterback on a passing play in American football. When “in the pocket,” the quarterback is protected by the linesmen, and is therefore in his/her normal mode of operation, operating ideally, relatively stationary (seeking out receivers). When he/she is chased out of the pocket, he/she is on the run, not able to pass effectively, and is unprotected from the vagaries of the other team. “In the pocket” is used multiple times per game by color commentators, and “chased out of the pocket” (also “scrambling”) is used very frequently, or at least was in the 80’s. People who tell me they are “out of pocket” are on the run (on a business trip), not operating ideally (maybe they have their laptop but no high-speed Internet connection), and unprotected (schedule in flux, not at home, etc).

A more common phrase meaning the same thing is “out of the loop,” which first appeared around 1983 and is probably rooted in computer terminology.

Sources:

http://www.word-detective.com/102603.html

http://ask.metafilter.com/87766/Out-of-pocket

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=out+of+pocket

My Corporate Flashcards – with a pic of someone going in an ambulance and the following quote “Looks like he’ll be out of pocket for a while.”

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