© 2018 Greg & Sylvia RAY

Mind your language and don’t lose your temper

Having had some bad experiences with drill bits recently, I was doing some research to figure out what sort of replacements I ought to buy. Reading over some hints published by a drill-bit manufacturer I was surprised by the statement that mistreating some high-speed steel bits could make them “lose their temper”. The surprise at seeing that common expression used in a discussion about steel was quickly followed by equal surprise that I had never before realised where the expression had come from. To me, losing your temper has always been the same as “doing your…

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The one-eyed king and the devil’s picture books

Has life dealt you a bad hand? But do you still manage to come up trumps most of the time? Or, more to my point, have you ever noticed how many playing card expressions have made it into our regular language? After a long period away from card games (I’m a lousy player, actually – can’t keep a poker face), I was recently induced to play a few hands of euchre, and my son taught me a new game called cambio. One thing I liked about this game was that it alerted me to the fact…

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