THE LIST: It’s funny to think where our phrases come from

Have you ever given much thought to the things you say and their origin? This first came to mind Friday evening.

Kilee and I had a movie night after watching the lighted parade in Greenfield (which was wonderful, by the way) and taking photos of Santa Claus greeting children in the gazebo at Long’s Park (also wonderful...a nice choice of venue, Greenfield). We watched the Christmas classic “Home Alone,” which is a must-watch in our house during every holiday season.

Anyway, part way through the movie, a young Macaulay Culkin’s character Kevin McCallister is at the mirror, imagining his hair brush is a microphone, lip-syncing to the 1942 Irving Berlin standard “White Christmas.”

I saw on social media the other day a chart that highlighted how many “White Christmases” Omaha has had since 1972. There have been 19, if you’re wondering. I’m sure that, since we’re only 90 minutes east of there, our number isn’t far off.

The National Weather Service broke their chart into Christmases with 1 to 6 inches of snow on the ground, Christmases with 6 inches or more on the ground, and years where snow fell on Christmas Day.

I remember my dad almost busting snow drifts in our 1994 Ford Explorer so we could get home from grandma and grandpa’s farm one Christmas Eve. The power even went out, so that was a Christmas to remember.

I have remembered several Christmases where I’ve hoped it would snow. It’s kind of nostalgic. However the farther into adulthood I get, the less I want any snow. But we live in Iowa because we love the four seasons, right?

It’s easy to see where you get the term White Christmas. Berlin wrote the song for a musical film called Holiday Inn, but it’s about the quintessential winter scene at Christmas. Think the Christmas village sets we’ve all seen before.

There are so many other phrases we use that aren’t so simple to come up with their origin on our own. My grandpa taught me how to drive and I always chuckled when he called the accelerator the “foot feed.” I still do it today sometimes, just for kicks and giggles.

According to the Dictionary of Regional American English (yes, that’s a thing), the term “foot feed” was first cited in 1967, probably from people referring to a term their parents used. The throttle on cars was once mounted on the steering column and referred to as the “hand feed” because it fed fuel to the engine. When it was moved to the floor, the term stuck but was changed to “foot feed.”

Did you know the term “sight for sore eyes” dates back to a book from the 1700s?

Back in the day, medics would have soldiers bite a bullet to distract them during a procedure because they didn’t have anesthesia, thus the phrase “bite the bullet.”

Be careful if someone says you can’t hold a candle to something. “Can’t hold a candle” is a phrase that dates back to masters saying their apprentice wasn’t even skilled enough to hold a candle for them.

By and large, the origins of the term “by and large” is certain. It originated from sailing, when the wind was blowing from one compass position behind a ship’s direction of travel. That was said to be “large.”

In our house, we call the television remote the “buttons.” It’s what I grew up with. Kilee’s calls it the “box.” Neither make a lot of sense, but someone said it once and it stuck.

You can file this column in the miscellaneous file, however it’s funny to think about what we say and where our phrases came from, isn’t it? Be careful what you say. It just might stick.

Housing development

The Greenfield Development Corporation and others gave an update to the city council about a housing development they’d like to see happen here in Greenfield in the near future.

I think we all agree housing is an issue, especially here in Greenfield. What works in other communities like Stuart, Earlham or Van Meter might work here. It might not.

I trust the people working on this have done their homework. I hope we can all get on the same page, trust the process and be patient for a project like this to come to fruition. It is badly needed and could have a really positive impact on the heart of Adair County.

Better to give than to receive

Through the month of October, and into November, we’ve had numerous opportunities to thank those in our community who give an awful lot to others.

We had Fire Prevention Week. I’m always amazed at the fast response of many of our area fire departments. Those folks who drop everything when the tones drop to go help someone, whether their house or property is one fire or they just need help up from a fall, deserve our gratitude, even as the calendar turns to December and the Christmas season.

We had National 4-H Week. I’m a product of 4-H and I’m really thankful for the organization and what it taught me. It taught me about leadership, putting in the work for what you want, and even Robert’s Rules of Order, which I’m convinced everyone should have to learn.

We also had Veterans Day. There were wonderful programs at four of our area schools — three at Nodaway Valley and one at Orient-Macksburg. Most other area schools also had a program.

I was especially struck by Joel Klobnak’s presentation as the guest speaker at Orient-Macksburg. He talked about being kind and making an impact on those you’re around everyday. Good principles to live by!

Happy December!