tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1990338437877873686.post6640485251957240300..comments2024-03-27T17:03:57.341-04:00Comments on Murder is Everywhere: The Delights Of Lady MondegreenOvidia Yuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05749549092493567689noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1990338437877873686.post-1357823386238351882013-12-12T12:02:14.861-05:002013-12-12T12:02:14.861-05:00Of course there was the famous theme song from the...Of course there was the famous theme song from the US TV Series "Casey Jones". The song actually says "Casey Jones, steamin and a rollin'" - however here in Scotland it was invariably heard and repeated as "Casey Jones, Steven and the Romans..."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1990338437877873686.post-51859673346065026522013-09-14T03:13:35.854-04:002013-09-14T03:13:35.854-04:00What havoc have you wreaked, oh Caro, in the 24 ho...What havoc have you wreaked, oh Caro, in the 24 hours I've been traveling in commune avocado? I have no "ace up my hole"--love that one Annamaria, though I think it's more properly a Berra than a Mondegreen--despite Everett's suggestion that I try. And no, it's not deNile--that's in Egypt and I'm now by the Hudson--but I do have a story told to me by friend about himself. Brave man.<br /><br />He owned temporary employment agency in NYC and one day sent a young woman with a heavy Bronx accent off to work as a secretary for a new client. My friend freely admitted he was a bit of a snob and though a genuine good fellow believed he had to always appear in control to his staff. Anyway, the next morning he asked the woman what she thought of the new client. As he tells the story, "She shrugged, and without breaking stride in her gum chewing said, 'He's uhh, diqua.'"<br /><br />Diqua? he thought. What a wonderful word. I never heard it before, it's so descriptive. How did this seemingly unworldly young woman know such a word?<br /><br />Not wanting to show his ignorance, he said, "Yes, I agree, you chose the perfect word. He is tres diqua."<br /><br />To his credit he finishes the story as follows.<br /><br />"That got her to stop chewing her gum long enough to look me up and down and say, "What are you talking about? I said the guy's a dick wad.'"<br /><br />Diqua is now a fixture in my vocabulary. It has so many wonderful uses on more occasions than I care to think about.Jeffrey Sigerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00718317707555064653noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1990338437877873686.post-48875337175957190942013-09-13T16:20:31.881-04:002013-09-13T16:20:31.881-04:00Caro, I LOVE this. And it is wonderful to have a n...Caro, I LOVE this. And it is wonderful to have a name for these funny misinterpretations. A family favorite for us is the Creedence Clearwater song "Bad Moon Rising." I was once listening to it with my granddaughters while cooking dinner, and they decided the band was singing "There's a bathroom on the right." (There's a bad moon on the rise.) We never sing it any other way now, and we giggle every time.<br />Regarding butchered expressions, my husband once had a client in Omaha who would say things like, "Oh, that's water under the dam." or "He's still green behind the ears." One day David stumbled out of the man's office and was not able to breathe. The man's associate thought David was having a heart attack. But no. He was just trying to suppress his reaction when at a meeting of five people, his client said, "Don't worry about the negotiations, guys. I've got an ace up my hole, and I'm keeping it there." Enough to wake Lady Mondegreen from the dead.Annamaria Alfierihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12311596277267789834noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1990338437877873686.post-64800721527678770402013-09-13T15:34:05.211-04:002013-09-13T15:34:05.211-04:00I had a boss who always used to say "for all ...I had a boss who always used to say "for all intensive purposes" - as opposed to wishy-washy ones, I suppose. He was also an "irregardless" man. And, of course, there is the famous warning from Mrs. Malaprop to visitors to Africa to beware "the allegories" in the Nile.<br /><br />As ostriches are indigenous to Africa, it must have been a bunch of South African ex-pats who butchered the national anthem.<br /><br />Please keep the Mondegreen's coming.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1990338437877873686.post-76350270253388411342013-09-13T14:41:55.849-04:002013-09-13T14:41:55.849-04:00Great good fun, Caro! I'd never heard the ter...Great good fun, Caro! I'd never heard the term Mondegreen, but I've long enjoyed them. Songs, of course, are an incredibly fertile spawning ground, since few singers seem able to ennunciate (either that, or they chew tobacco while they perform).<br /><br />I used to work with a bloke who grew up thinking that a tall cabinet with drawers for putting clothes into was called a "Chester Drawers," and didn't realize that it was "chest OF drawers" until he was an adult.<br /><br />Another great one (at my wife's expense): she's an elementary school substitute teacher, college educated and all. At the end of one day's work, she was writing a note to the teacher she was sub'ing for, and was going to write something like, "I decided I misewell go ahead..." except she suddenly realized she wasn't sure how to spell 'misewell,' having only SAID the word, never actually WRITING it. She started searching the dictionary, to no avail. Finally, it dawned on her that the word she'd grown up hearing and using (and KNOWING what it meant!) was actually the phrase, "might as well." We still get a good chuckle out of that one periodically (always at her expense still, of course). It even caused us to search for the difference in usage of "might as well" versus "may as well." It's subtle, but there IS a difference.<br /><br />I misewell radish up, sew Jeff can make sum widdy fondue.<br /><br /><br />Everett Kaserhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12371555243187874414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1990338437877873686.post-57500159052627403052013-09-13T08:58:51.347-04:002013-09-13T08:58:51.347-04:00I may chuckle or giggle on occasion, but almost ne...I may chuckle or giggle on occasion, but almost never laugh out loud while reading. Your today's blog has been the exception, repeatedly!<br />I laughed till I could barely breathe. Thanks!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com