Root Hog or Die and other Expressions Our Kids Don't Understand

G Low · May 26, 2026

Peace Society said:
who's he?

You know ooh "that smell" can't you smell that smell…..

Peace Society · May 26, 2026

Princeton, Ark, 1863
The town is "dead as a doornail", we did not meet a goat.
Virginia Davis Gray, diary of

heard of "not a soul" - this was new

Thursday, April 21, 1864
After dinner we went to Dr. Compton's and in a few minutes Frank ran in to say the Feds had come again. We could hardly believe it but Mary saw out and said they were "thick as mops in town."
Ibid.

Arkansas Historical Quarterly 42, Spring 1983

guess mops are kinda thick

Peace Society · May 26, 2026

late April 1864, southern Arkansas

Major General Frederick Steele seeking to re-supply at Camden from Pine Bluff
(after failed attempt to connect with Banks at Shreveport)

Recent rains had played hob with the road, and word had reached Steele that the Moro Bottom was almost impassable.

Steele's Retreat From Camden and The Battle of Jenkins' Ferry, p. 55
E. C. Bearss, 1965, Arkansas Civil War Centennial Commission, Pioneer Press, Little Rock

1500s Britain mischief

potter. · Jun 5, 2026

Dog in the hunt - interested in.
Topped himself - suicide.
Fiddle farting - waste time on silly or trivial things.
Warts and all - everything nomatter what
Dont boil the pot over - to maintain interest or momentum.

13 IL Cav & 64 GA Inf · Jun 5, 2026

Peace Society said:
Princeton, Ark, 1863
The town is "dead as a doornail", we did not meet a goat.
Virginia Davis Gray, diary of

heard of "not a soul" - this was new

Thursday, April 21, 1864
After dinner we went to Dr. Compton's and in a few minutes Frank ran in to say the Feds had come again. We could hardly believe it but Mary saw out and said they were "thick as mops in town."
Ibid.

Arkansas Historical Quarterly 42, Spring 1983

guess mops are kinda thick

Yep. Dead as a doornail is a good one.

limestone1863 · Jun 5, 2026

potter. said:
Dog in the hunt - interested in.
Topped himself - suicide.
Fiddle farting - waste time on silly or trivial things.
Warts and all - everything nomatter what
Dont boil the pot over - to maintain interest or momentum.

Heard most of them, but specially "fiddle farting around." :bounce:

CdubeJr87 · Jun 6, 2026

My grandmother used to say, "Hold her, Newt! She's heading for the barn!"

G Low · Jun 6, 2026

I've heard "you don't have a dog in this fight"
And warts and all, I took it to mean taking the good with the bad or with all the flaws.

G Low · Jun 6, 2026

I used to work doing HVAC work in downtown Atlanta, we worked out of Athens Ga. There were three of us in the truck and when we got on I-285, Our boss would floor it and say "hold on boys it's balls to the wall" he would cross four lanes of traffic and get next to the wall where they were running 80mph or more.

G Low · Monday at 9:32 PM

"This is not the way I pictured it". What did people say before photography?

Sheltowee · Monday at 9:38 PM

G Low said:
"This is not the way I pictured it". What did people say before photography?

This is not the way I drew it?

Reconstructed Rebel · Tuesday at 9:38 AM

G Low said:
"This is not the way I pictured it". What did people say before photography?

Sheltowee said:
This is not the way I drew it?

Not the way it was described to me? (Used when settlers bought land, sight unseen, based on the agent's glowing descriptions of the fertile land and gently rolling hills, for example)

Root Hog or Die and other Expressions Our Kids Don't Understand

G Low

2nd Lieutenant

Peace Society

Sergeant

Peace Society

Sergeant

potter.

Corporal

13 IL Cav & 64 GA Inf

Captain

limestone1863

Corporal

CdubeJr87

Private

G Low

2nd Lieutenant

G Low

2nd Lieutenant

G Low

2nd Lieutenant

Sheltowee

1st Lieutenant

Reconstructed Rebel

Captain

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