"Wait...that phrase didn't make any sense!"

[Jiefu]

A little bit more of a technical thing, but Coach's "This used to be a nice neighbourhood!" in the Opening for Left 4 Dead 2.

Makes reasonable amount of sense doesn't it? He lived in Savannah and hates seeing it be torn up by a bunch of zombies. The problem? The part where is says it is the third level of Swamp Fever. They're in the swamp. He hasn't been there, nor could it be considered nice by any of their standards.

Just bugs me.

Coach and Ellis seem to know about the swamp areas (at least more than Nick and Rochelle do), so it's possible they have been there. Coach is at least 35 years old, I'd guess, so he's had plenty of time to visit such places.

Plus, it was almost certainly nicer BEFORE the zombies got there.

 

[Rasputin1]

"By the skin of your teeth."

Did I miss a meeting or something?

 

[jordanwb]

"You can't have your cake and eat it too."

Yahtzee said it best: "I think I'd want to eat a cake I have, not much else you can do with it except hide in it if you're a stripper."

 

[she_never_was]

A lot of these cliche terms became popular because of mediocre fiction authors and their overuse of these stereotypical terms. Phrases like "once upon a time," "scarce as hens teeth," and so on, are a big part of writing. Open a book (generally a book that's not a 'masterpiece') and see if you can find cliches like the one's we are discussing. They are everywhere. [For example: I went and grabbed a book ("The Way of Shadows" by Brent Weeks, basically assassin science fiction nonsense). First page I flipped to: "didn't know if it was my imagination." Total cliche. Took me seconds to find.]

I like sitting back and listening to daily conversation to pick out these cliches. It's CRAZY how unoriginal the human is.

 

[Vigormortis]

As for mine, the tell old "It could be worse." It makes no sense, you're supposed to say, "It couldn't be worse."

Pisses me off.

I've always wondered why the hell everyone (and I do mean everyone) says, "It was in the last place I looked."

Um, yeah. No shit.

Well, were they wrong?

Actually, "It could be worse." makes perfect sense. One says that phrase when, after something's gone wrong, they want to emphasize that things could have, in fact, gone much worse. Ergo, it could have been worse. :/

And in response to my phrase, no they weren't wrong. But see, that's my point. The object in question will ALWAYS be in the last place you look. Unless you're stupid enough to keep looking for it AFTER you've found it.

A little bit more of a technical thing, but Coach's "This used to be a nice neighbourhood!" in the Opening for Left 4 Dead 2.

Makes reasonable amount of sense doesn't it? He lived in Savannah and hates seeing it be torn up by a bunch of zombies. The problem? The part where is says it is the third level of Swamp Fever. They're in the swamp. He hasn't been there, nor could it be considered nice by any of their standards.

Just bugs me.

If I'm not mistaken, I'm fairly certain Coach was using sarcasm when he spoke that phrase. After all, he's talking about a muddy crap-hole of a deep-swamp village. It was an attempt (a poor one at that) at making a "funny" about the situation.

 

[mike1921]

"It is what it is"

... What is it?

Mine...

"Time to talk about the birds and the bees."

How are they suppose to do... it, and why are they doing it so much that it has become a saying?

It's ok, you can say sex on the Escapist.

OT: Have your cake and eat it too always confused me.

Well, obviously, you can't have your cake and eat it too because you're supposed to have sex with it.

 

[Zombus]

howabout "jack of all trades", "fit as a fiddle" or "keep a stiff upper lip"?

jack of all trades is kinda logical but why jack?

 

[Taco of flames]

Speaking of death, what does kicking the bucket have to do with dieing?

Well, as it turns out, should you happen to kick a bucket, you explode 3 seconds later. This was documented in the show "Doomsday Arcade."

 

[MagicMouse]

howabout "jack of all trades", "fit as a fiddle" or "keep a stiff upper lip"?

jack of all trades is kinda logical but why jack?

why NOT Jack?

And right as rain makes sense to me, its a natural occurrence that is just supposed to happen. So, when the phrase makes you say "i'm feeling as I naturally should"

 

[Frozen Donkey Wheel2]

"...Or you'll know the reason why!" as in "Do what I say or you'll know the reason why!"

*ahem* Um, excuse me, sir? Yes, I'd like to ask a question, if I may...THE REASON WHY WHAT??!!!

 

[Citrus]

Well, I got ninja'd on the first page, but "I could care less" was mine as well.

Spoiler: I really don't know how it attained such widespread use.

 

[The Seldom Seen Kid]

A friend of mine once said: "If the teacher would just give us the answer, we would be smarter."
I swear I spent 15 minutes on that.

 

[chozo_hybrid]

"Nuttier than squirrels in a wood chipper."

 

[General BrEeZy]

i dont know, but the first time i saw "Abu Dhabi" in a Garfield comic, i was kinda put off. but thats ok. because i know it now...
..
yep, totally satisfactory.

 

[Blueruler182]

"It is what it is"

... What is it?

Mine...

"Time to talk about the birds and the bees."

How are they suppose to do... it, and why are they doing it so much that it has become a saying?

It's ok, you can say sex on the Escapist.

OT: Have your cake and eat it too always confused me.

Well, obviously, you can't have your cake and eat it too because you're supposed to have sex with it.

Or hide in it if you're a stripper...

Sorry! I had to do it!

 

[ethaninja]

"the cats tuxedo"

What the fuck does that even mean???

Just like the Bees Knees. Teh fuck?

Haha I found that rather humerous

 

[PrimoThePro]

"I've tried everything but..."
Have you? Everything? Really?

 

[arsenicCatnip]

Mind your p's and q's i dislike both of these letters so why should i mind them

Back when they used old printing presses(The ones where they had to switch the letters by hand), people would sometimes get the lower case p's and q's mixed up since all the letters were backwards. That's where the phrase came from. YOU JUST GOT LEARNED!!!

I thought the P's and Q's referred to pints and quarts. (of alcohol)

so when the customers in a tavern were getting drunk and disorderly, the owner or barkeep would tell them to mind their pints and quarts.

but I could be wrong.

Actually, yes, this is the story I heard, too.

One I've never understood is 'safe as houses'. Most accidents happen in the home. So houses aren't very safe, are they?

 

[avatar_vii]

"A friend in need is a friend indeed."

I think it means that if someone needs help or wants something, they will be very friendly towards you in order to get it.

 

[IxionIndustries]

Speaking of death, what does kicking the bucket have to do with dieing?

I think it has to do with using the bucket as a stand to hang yourself from. When you kick it, you initiate the long, painful process of asphyxiation, and therefore dying.

One thing that confuses me is "Who let the cat out of the bag".

Seriously, what asshole shoves a poor kitten into a bag, and just leaves it there?