Hello and welcome!

Our idiom this week is stir up a hornet’s nest – something I try to avoid.

Theidioms.com tells us that to stir up a hornets nest means:

to create trouble

to cause an uproar

to cause an upheaval

a commotion which possibly ends in anger and frustration

They also tell us that this phrase has been used since at least the 1700’s and though it’s origin is unknown many authors have used it in both fiction and non-fictions writings.

A few weeks back, while I was cutting back lavender blossoms which had died off, I noticed what looked like small bees begin swarming near the ground where I was standing. Normally seeing bees in the prayer garden does not bother me but their action seemed angry. I stepped back several steps and observed these bees flying in and out of the ground beneath a lavender plant. Their action was apparently warning me that I was getting too close to their nest and they were prepared to defend their territory. I certainly did not want to stir up a yellow jackets (hornet’s) nest. I have stayed clear of that area since then.

Here’s what I know about stirring up a hornet’s nest.

• Hornets are prepared to aggressively defend their territory.
• If threatened they will inflict pain.

Are humans any different?

Have you ever literally or figuratively stirred up a hornets nest? Please tell me about it in the comments box below.

Hello and welcome!

Since writing about idioms I’ve been paying a lot of attention to the things people say and their use of idioms. This week our idiom comes courtesy of my husband. It is his goose is cooked .

According to Idioms at the Free Dictionary.com one’s goose is cooked means:

1. One is thoroughly defeated, ruined, or finished.

2. One is facing inescapable punishment for some trouble one is in or has caused.

At the Grammarist.com I learned that the origin of this phrase is uncertain. They tell us: The origin of the expression goose is cooked is not really known; many stories that are not based in fact currently circulate on the internet. The most likely origin of the popular saying goose is cooked is the Aesop fable about the goose that laid the golden egg. In the story, greedy people are not content to wait for the goose to lay its golden eggs; they kill the goose in order to obtain the golden eggs immediately in order to have a lot of money all at once, and they find they have ruined their source of good fortune. However, even this origin story is dubious, because the famous phrase goose is cooked did not come into popular use until the mid-1800s. 

Whatever the case I hope you do not find yourself in a situation where “Your goose is cooked.”

Have you ever used this phrase?

Hello and welcome!

Our idiom this week is on the ball – a phrase I found myself using this week while talking to my daughter.

Theidioms.com tells us that on the ball means:

alert to new trends, ideas, and methods

knowledgeable and competent

alert, in command of senses, attentive

understands the situation well

quick to understand and react to a situation

(Yes my daughter was on the ball 🙂 )

They also tell us: This phrase originated in sports, specifically in ball games where the players were asked to keep their “eyes on the ball.” The current usage of the expression began in the 1900s and it is a shorter version of the original term, ‘keep your eye on the ball.’ This phrase is first seen in sports, such as baseball, cricket, and golf. The oldest citation in prints dates back to 1864. Source: theidioms.com

Do you use this phrase?

Hello and welcome!

Our idiom this week is a hard (tough) nut to crack.

The Idioms.com tells us this phrase means:

a problem that is difficult to solve

a person that is difficult to deal with

someone or something that is difficult to understand or

a person hard to get to know or to get close to

This expression is a metaphor alluding to the tough exterior of a nutshell and how hard they are to crack open. It has been in use since the 1700s.

Have you ever used this expression?