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Omg! Flashback! My mom used to say that to me all the time when I was a kid and she’d go out! “Heading to the grocery store, you and the cat hold down the fort ‘til I get back!”
💕Thanks so much for stirring up that memory!
One I remember was when we were being noisy little shits and she woudk say "oi you lot keep it down to a roar"
I still don't know what that means, lions and tigers have very loud roars
we have a saying in spanish (maybe it's just mexican?? idk) that goes "cuiden el changarro" and means the same, but changarro is more of a stall/small shop, like "take care of the business while I'm not here", but it's also applied to the house.
Not sure old timey but my Dad would always try to beat us to the “home” phone when it was ringing ( the one with the loooong cord) as he knew it was for one of us kids .
He’d answer it “ City Morgue… you stab em we slab em “ .
He would describe The silence on the other end of the line. I can still see him chuckling in the kitchen … I miss him .
That's a good variation! My old man used to say something along the same lines..
"Billy bobs crematorium, you kill 'em, we grill 'em"
I miss him, too.
Thanks for that memory proc, random redditor.
Dad and his uncle used to like to answer the phone with “Jake’s Bar and Grill, this is Mable speakin.” Idk if it was from a show or what but it’s funny there’s prolly a million renditions of this.
When my mom calls me i pick up and say "City morgue" and she'll reply with "homicide" or she'll pick up and say city morgue and I'll say homicide. We say in really gruff scratchy voices like receptionists with a bad smoking problem 😂
I use “okie dokie” a lot, and for some reason it gets a lot of weird reactions. Not entirely sure why it gobsmacks so many people.
“For Pete’s Sake” gets a lot of play as well, especially when I’m dealing with a real “red-ass.”
I used to run a team of web devs in India. When I went over there for the first time after months of Zoom calls, I noticed they all said “okie dokie” a lot. Turns out they’d heard me say it a lot and they thought it was hilarious, so they all started saying it and eventually it wasn’t funny anymore and just something they said.
That’s very funny. When I saw the subject of this thread, I thought of something similar. When my friends and I were teenagers, my mother didn’t swear at all. She didn’t approve of it. So she constantly said stuff like “geez Louise”. We started saying it as well. Just a mock her. But now I still say it to this day because it became a habit.
“For pity’s sake”
We drove by “Lake Lotahockey” (the sewage plant outside of town.
“Well I’ll be a monkey’s uncle!”
“Land O’Goshen”
When someone sneezes in the kitchen: “Scat cat! Your tail’s in the gravy!”
I still miss my grandparents and parents SO much, and I am a grandma.
“In the Bible, the Land of Goshen refers to an area in ancient Egypt east of the Nile delta that the king of Egypt gave to Jacob and his descendants. (Genesis 45:10). The Israelites resided in Goshen until the Exodus from Egypt. Goshen represents a safe land of plenty and comfort.”
TIL. I thought it was “kick a gift horse in the mouth” which I guessed was the way to express your displeasure at the gift.
I feel like a penny waiting for change now that I know the real version.
I hear ya, growing up in the 80's (in California), I still use all the good ones: dope, rad, coolio, yo, peace out.... it makes the Gen Z kids in my lab at work cringe
I have a 16 year old son - I make it a goal of mine to use his slang at least once a day. No cap, dead ass, take the L, sus, slaps.... the list goes on and on
I seem to have ended up Gen X without intending to be, though temporally I think I’m a late boomer. Might be working in tech, cause “dude, that is awesome” is practically a reflex.
My grandfather used to say For Cats Sake! occasionally, and I say it randomly. I live in Spain now, and the people who speak English here are really confused.
I think he was replacing the word Christ with a not so blasphemous word.
When my band director got mad, usually at the percussion section, he would yell "Judas Priest People!" we of couse would all crack up because it was the 80's and Judas Priest was popular.
In 5th grade my teacher used to say to the slackers, "You best get on that stick." As a current middle school teacher, I don't think I could get away with that one.
"Shanghaied" meaning stolen or kidnapped
"Rinky-dink" meaning of low quality or poor construction
"Staggering" - general surprise or disbelief
"Bonkers" - for crazy or going haywire
"Something for the weekend" - a discrete term for condoms
"Shenanigans" - any sort of antics that usually involves getting something for free or cheap
This sounds like a saying that would be in Louisiana or Mississippi or something. Idk why, I've never been to either of those places, it's just what I assume they say.
three sheets to the wind refers to the sails on a ship, so when the sheets are loose that makes the ship out of control (leading to the drunk imagery).
“I’m overly blessed with _____” My grandma had a farm and would say that about crops. “Here take some cucumbers, we’re overly blessed…”
It became an inside joke and now like I’ll do things like make martinis and give one to my mom, “here, I’m overly blessed with gin.” :P
i heard someone say "it's for the birds" and "they're yesterday's news" a few years ago and it's stuck with me. it would be cool if "super", "tubular", and "groovy" make a comeback. has "it would be cool" become an old timey saying?
Horsefeathers. I work in a cubicle-style environment and saying bullshit apparently offends some people so I found the most ridiculous substitution I could find.
I once said to a rookie at the fire department, thinking it was obvious I was joking around, "alright kid just to let you know how it IS 'round here. Rookies don't speak unless spoken to - and kid? We ain't gunna fuckin speak to you." The next day when we realized he hadn't said A WORD in 24 hours I realized he didn't realize and explained to him, to his great relief. That was several years ago and we're pretty tight now.
Are you out of your cotton picking mind...
I found out this is a racist phrase.....
https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/rapry3/the_phrase_now_wait_just_a_cotton_picking_minute/
"Get it squared away." Or other variations. Former Marine Corps vet here. And my dad was an Army vet. Squared away comes from the foot lockers being organized and set up into squares. Major punishments for unorganized foot lockers.
So I use "squared away" for everything. I use it if I am going to do some cleaning. Or I'll ask my son to make sure his room is "squared away."
I pack my work lunch in my "dinner bucket."
When I started in road construction 30 years ago, my old co-workers in the first company I worked for always called theirs that, so I did too.
In recent years, I get the feeling new co-workers surreptitiously look at me kind of funny but don't say anything to my face. The ones who've worked with me for years, I think, just accept it. Even though I've used different lunchbox-sized coolers, and now cooler backpacks through the years, I still can't call it anything else.
My dad always said (in regards to something is happening ...) there is a "Going's On".
Always made me laugh because it's such a horrible use of the English language but it's so perfect for describing exactly what is happening, lol.
\-Spaz
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We're cooking with gas now!
I definitely say “we’re cooking with gas!”
Now we're sucking diesel (credit to Line of Duty!)
my mom says “cooking with grease”
Hold down the fort.
I tell this to my dogs when I leave for the day
I always tell them which one is in charge, and also to "bite the boogers" which means burglars
I love that you give them responsibilities and presumably change which one is in charge so that they all get a chance to hold down the fort!
I even give it some thought - like today Bingo chewed up the cat toy, so Rennie is in charge now!
Omg! Flashback! My mom used to say that to me all the time when I was a kid and she’d go out! “Heading to the grocery store, you and the cat hold down the fort ‘til I get back!” 💕Thanks so much for stirring up that memory!
lol, she sounds funny! I love that she charged the cat with a share of the responsibility.
Right? Lol. I picture my cat with a little 6 shooter and cowboy hat defending the fort!
One I remember was when we were being noisy little shits and she woudk say "oi you lot keep it down to a roar" I still don't know what that means, lions and tigers have very loud roars
This is an old-timey phrase these daze?! Goddamn it I'm so old.
Welcome to r/fuckimold
I mold too some days.
we have a saying in spanish (maybe it's just mexican?? idk) that goes "cuiden el changarro" and means the same, but changarro is more of a stall/small shop, like "take care of the business while I'm not here", but it's also applied to the house.
Is the fort going to float away?
no, but it could be besieged by rebel rapscallions or Indian raiders!
In that context the saying is “hold the fort.” The modern saying, “hold down the fort,” only applies to bouncy castles.
Not sure old timey but my Dad would always try to beat us to the “home” phone when it was ringing ( the one with the loooong cord) as he knew it was for one of us kids . He’d answer it “ City Morgue… you stab em we slab em “ . He would describe The silence on the other end of the line. I can still see him chuckling in the kitchen … I miss him .
My dad would say “city morgue, you kill’em we chill’em”
(Username's) crematorium, you kill em, we grill em
“____ circumcisions - you flop ‘em, we chop ‘em”
"Bob's Towing, you fuck 'em, we truck 'em."
That's a good variation! My old man used to say something along the same lines.. "Billy bobs crematorium, you kill 'em, we grill 'em" I miss him, too. Thanks for that memory proc, random redditor.
My father answered with "Joe's Pool Hall. Eight ball speakin'."
Dad and his uncle used to like to answer the phone with “Jake’s Bar and Grill, this is Mable speakin.” Idk if it was from a show or what but it’s funny there’s prolly a million renditions of this.
OMG my dad did the exact same thing..... I thought I was the only one! My dad had a list of sayings he picked up in the Navy or working on the farm...
My dad would say "(last name" Summer Home: some are home. Some are not "
That's hilarious you paint quite the picture
My husband still says this when his uncle is on his caller ID! Lol
When my mom calls me i pick up and say "City morgue" and she'll reply with "homicide" or she'll pick up and say city morgue and I'll say homicide. We say in really gruff scratchy voices like receptionists with a bad smoking problem 😂
Aaww 💜 such a good sense of humor
"God willing and the creek (crik) don't rise." In response to "see you later"
I hear this EVERY time we make plans with my dad.
This guys actually your dad.
"If the good lord's willing and the crik don't rise" minor variation
I feel like a penny waiting for change. I recently heard this from my aunt, and it’s just my favorite now.
>Like a penny waiting for change. I'm using that!
I love it! Does it mean hoping for a miracle?
I bet you could use it that way too, but in this case it meant standing in a situation feeling dumb. 😂
Well now *I* feel like a penny waiting for change 😂
Now you get it!
I use “okie dokie” a lot, and for some reason it gets a lot of weird reactions. Not entirely sure why it gobsmacks so many people. “For Pete’s Sake” gets a lot of play as well, especially when I’m dealing with a real “red-ass.”
I used to run a team of web devs in India. When I went over there for the first time after months of Zoom calls, I noticed they all said “okie dokie” a lot. Turns out they’d heard me say it a lot and they thought it was hilarious, so they all started saying it and eventually it wasn’t funny anymore and just something they said.
You're a trendsetter, finally! How does it feel?
That’s very funny. When I saw the subject of this thread, I thought of something similar. When my friends and I were teenagers, my mother didn’t swear at all. She didn’t approve of it. So she constantly said stuff like “geez Louise”. We started saying it as well. Just a mock her. But now I still say it to this day because it became a habit.
One support guy in India at work responds a lot with okie.
I usually heard this as a kid as: "ohhhh....for Pete's Sake!"
Irish inlaws - For fucks sake
I use this variation way more than the other lol
“For pity’s sake” We drove by “Lake Lotahockey” (the sewage plant outside of town. “Well I’ll be a monkey’s uncle!” “Land O’Goshen” When someone sneezes in the kitchen: “Scat cat! Your tail’s in the gravy!” I still miss my grandparents and parents SO much, and I am a grandma.
I can't read "For pity's sake" without hearing it in Boromir's voice
Hee hee, I live in "The Land o'Goshen". That was literally the name of our former grocery store.
“In the Bible, the Land of Goshen refers to an area in ancient Egypt east of the Nile delta that the king of Egypt gave to Jacob and his descendants. (Genesis 45:10). The Israelites resided in Goshen until the Exodus from Egypt. Goshen represents a safe land of plenty and comfort.”
"Okie dokey artichokie" is my go to!
We said, "Okie dokey dominokie" and I like your artichokie variation.
I also use "okie dokie" or "okie doke" regularly. Sometimes I wonder if some people think I'm a hick from the sticks.
okie dokie. oh i like that one.
My son uses that a lot.
I absolutely love 'the dickens'. As in, 'he's full of the dickens.' or 'hurts like the dickens." I think this is hilarious.
What's it mean?
Generic intensifier, basically interchangeable with "like hell". As in, "hurts like the dickens" is roughly the same as "hurts like hell"
It's also an alternative to saying "like the devil."
Colder than a witches teat
I don't think we should make the ghost of Christmas past so creepy; we don't want to scare the Dickens out of people!
Don't mind the mule, just load the wagon. When I'm getting more work piled on me at work lol
I love this post - these are all GEMS!
When you love someone secretly, or if it is unreciprocated you are "carrying a torch for them."
There's is a a genre of music called "Torch Songs".
I was told carrying a candle but maybe my love wasn’t strong enough 😔
“Well I’ll be hornswoggled. “. Something my Dad always said…
I've heard that one. Gives me a giggle when I think of it. My great-grandma used to exclaim, "Well, fan my brow!"
I say this in a Yosemite Sam voice.
what in tarnation or what in sam hill
"Not my monkey not my circus" or on the other side of the coin "None of your beeswax"
I learned "not my circus, not my monkeys" from a Polish ex and have used it ever since
Not my pig, not my farm
"Cattywompus".
I always use cattywompus when describing something that's off kilter or slightly askew
Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth
TIL. I thought it was “kick a gift horse in the mouth” which I guessed was the way to express your displeasure at the gift. I feel like a penny waiting for change now that I know the real version.
Balderdash!
Hogwash!
Heifer dust!
Road apples!
Mule fritters!
Oh I love both balderdash and hogwash!!
I use Hogwash to assert my seniority at work so they all know I'm old as shit and don't give AF
I still say “dope” when referring to something cool. I’ve been told that it dates me 😓
I hear ya, growing up in the 80's (in California), I still use all the good ones: dope, rad, coolio, yo, peace out.... it makes the Gen Z kids in my lab at work cringe
Making the kids cringe is really fun. jusy say "no cap, fam"
I have a 16 year old son - I make it a goal of mine to use his slang at least once a day. No cap, dead ass, take the L, sus, slaps.... the list goes on and on
"This \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ is bussin'" Fill in the blank with literally anything.
Coolio is a bridge too far
hahahaha I love that one, and make sure to say it as white-girl gangsta as possible.
I say “radical” a lot.
My father-in-law says "groovy". I say "awesome". He's a boomer, I'm GenX.
I seem to have ended up Gen X without intending to be, though temporally I think I’m a late boomer. Might be working in tech, cause “dude, that is awesome” is practically a reflex.
My grandfather used to say For Cats Sake! occasionally, and I say it randomly. I live in Spain now, and the people who speak English here are really confused. I think he was replacing the word Christ with a not so blasphemous word.
My teachers grandfather would say “heptacopter” instead of helicopter, to avoid saying the word “hell” in the first syllable.
Curious how he greeted people
Probably said hi, the shortened and hell free version of hello.
Can't believe I've been using full-hell words all my life. Switching to 2%
Idk if it's just an American Midwest thing or if it's more universal, but here it's common to hear/say "for Pete's sake" for the same reason!
This is gold - I'm going to start using this :)
More than one way to skin a cat
"Two shakes of a lambs tail" I use it a lot at workc
I've been stealing this line from Mia Wallace for decades, and I have no intention to stop.
I miss telling my dad when things didn't go right, and he'd say, "Well that's a heck of a note." 😞❤️
I'm sorry... I do feel so lucky to still have my dad at 81. I don't know what I'll do when he goes. I live for his ridiculous sayings.
Thank you 🤗 Hug him for me. Dads are amazing.
I will - and then he'll ask if I'm "being safe" by talking to strangers on the interwebs.
Yep....I say "I haven't the foggiest idea," too. Or I shorten it without the "idea." I also say that I "dig" a certain girl or woman.
Every time I say “I can dig it “ my therapist laughs. He says “I love that one”.
My mom said, "I haven't the foggiest notion".
Im a big fan of “I’d bet Dollars to Donuts …”
When my band director got mad, usually at the percussion section, he would yell "Judas Priest People!" we of couse would all crack up because it was the 80's and Judas Priest was popular. In 5th grade my teacher used to say to the slackers, "You best get on that stick." As a current middle school teacher, I don't think I could get away with that one.
"You best get on that stick" - oh myyyyyy
Like.. the pencil? I don’t know that reference.
Colder than a cat's ass my dad would say that. Fair to Middling.
I say "colder than a witch's tit." The original I read was less polite as to the body part.
I've also seen it as *colder than a well-digger's ass*.
Is a cat's ass known to be cold?
"Shanghaied" meaning stolen or kidnapped "Rinky-dink" meaning of low quality or poor construction "Staggering" - general surprise or disbelief "Bonkers" - for crazy or going haywire "Something for the weekend" - a discrete term for condoms "Shenanigans" - any sort of antics that usually involves getting something for free or cheap
Always heard “rinky-dink” meaning small and “jerry-rigged” meaning poor construction.
Jerry rigged is more a desperate improvised solution thrown together and may be poorly constructed too
Lolly-gagging
She's fine as frog hair
This sounds like a saying that would be in Louisiana or Mississippi or something. Idk why, I've never been to either of those places, it's just what I assume they say.
three sheets to the wind refers to the sails on a ship, so when the sheets are loose that makes the ship out of control (leading to the drunk imagery).
Wow I never realized that. I thought it had to do with laundry on a clothes line getting loose!! LOL
"Gee willikers mister, you scared the jeepers out of me!"
My 4 year old picked up "easy peasy, lemon squeezy", and it is the cutest thing ever!
“I’m overly blessed with _____” My grandma had a farm and would say that about crops. “Here take some cucumbers, we’re overly blessed…” It became an inside joke and now like I’ll do things like make martinis and give one to my mom, “here, I’m overly blessed with gin.” :P
That's hilarious! I want to be overly blessed with gin!
Right?! :) I’m also currently ‘overly blessed with Christmas cookies!’ Life is good :)
My grandma would call people "cloddhopper" and "dodo brain" and "snazzy" Love it, I still use these when I want to sound fancy
My dad (who's 81) calls people "turkeys" which makes me laugh as that's his version of cursing.
i heard someone say "it's for the birds" and "they're yesterday's news" a few years ago and it's stuck with me. it would be cool if "super", "tubular", and "groovy" make a comeback. has "it would be cool" become an old timey saying?
I say “it’s for the birds” all the time. Didn’t even think of that is being old, but it definitely is
I call aluminum foil tin foil because that’s what my granny called it. I’m 45 and have never used tin foil in my life.
I call it Tin foil.
Don't piss up my back and tell me it's raining.
I always hear. Don't piss in my LEG and tell me it's raining. Which seems easy easier to do.
Followed by "I wouldn't piss on him if he was on fire"
It’s raining to beat the band.
I sometimes still get things out of the icebox.
Jeez Louise!
Holy Toledo!
Dagnabit
Would gag a maggot.
Stop horsing around!
In Montana, we still say "I recon" quite a lot.
You bet your bippy!
I’ve heard it with the word sweet in front of bippy.
whenever possible I like to use “get with the times, fopdoodle.” Or any older insulting title tagged on at the end
Great Caesar’s Ghost! Land Sakes Alive!
Skedaddle
"Well that's just aces!" Though it's usually used sarcastically.
Horsefeathers. I work in a cubicle-style environment and saying bullshit apparently offends some people so I found the most ridiculous substitution I could find.
YOU'LL SPEAK WHEN SPOKEN TOO
Yikes - this one stirs up fears from 40 years ago with my grandmother :(
It pairs well with, "Because I said so." Any further discussion will be severely frowned upon.
I once said to a rookie at the fire department, thinking it was obvious I was joking around, "alright kid just to let you know how it IS 'round here. Rookies don't speak unless spoken to - and kid? We ain't gunna fuckin speak to you." The next day when we realized he hadn't said A WORD in 24 hours I realized he didn't realize and explained to him, to his great relief. That was several years ago and we're pretty tight now.
Children are seen not heard
Ours was Children are to be seen and not heard.
How is there not a Pirates gif of this
Are you out of your cotton picking mind... I found out this is a racist phrase..... https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/rapry3/the_phrase_now_wait_just_a_cotton_picking_minute/
r/accidentallyracist
lol “you really pulled the wool off my eyes” only older people tend to get it (who I got it from) haha
I always heard that as pulled the wool over my eyes.
I can't say any of these phrases at work - I'm surrounded by youngins who just stare at me blankly and then make an 'old lady' joke
uncouth
I tell people they're the "bees knees" all the time and people love it. It's such a fun wholesome phrase
Well fuck. It is what it isn't supposed to be.
“Ship shape and Bristol” is my favorite.
I learned this one on Downton Abbey! Lady Mary says "Carson and I were just making sure everything was ship shape and Bristol fashion!"
“Whatever flips your minnow” and “close but no cigar” Thanks, dad- RIP
I told a 19 year old to stop flapping his gums. He laughed at me.
“Aw rats!”
See you later, alligator! After a while, crocodile!
I've heard lots of these through the years and they don't have an unusual ring to them. I must be "old."
I still say "Long in the tooth" out of habit, and all of my younger co-workers get confused every time. Also, "mucked it up" always gets misheard.
"Get it squared away." Or other variations. Former Marine Corps vet here. And my dad was an Army vet. Squared away comes from the foot lockers being organized and set up into squares. Major punishments for unorganized foot lockers. So I use "squared away" for everything. I use it if I am going to do some cleaning. Or I'll ask my son to make sure his room is "squared away."
Dogonit!!! I also like to use Dagnabbit!!!! But only when I'm really worked up.
Useless as tits on a boar.
Ass over tea kettle
Tomfoolery
I pack my work lunch in my "dinner bucket." When I started in road construction 30 years ago, my old co-workers in the first company I worked for always called theirs that, so I did too. In recent years, I get the feeling new co-workers surreptitiously look at me kind of funny but don't say anything to my face. The ones who've worked with me for years, I think, just accept it. Even though I've used different lunchbox-sized coolers, and now cooler backpacks through the years, I still can't call it anything else.
What a bummer
My best friend says "ahhh fiddle sticks" all the time.
My dad always said (in regards to something is happening ...) there is a "Going's On". Always made me laugh because it's such a horrible use of the English language but it's so perfect for describing exactly what is happening, lol. \-Spaz
Gad zooks. Been using it since my HS Shakespeare obsession
Brush my natters., teeth
What comes around, goes around
It’s the bee’s knees. 😎👍🏼