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Hot under the collar
English Phrase: Hot under the collar It’s getting hard to drive these days without getting hot under the collar. I don’t know how people receive or manage to keep their driver’s licenses. With the advent of drive recorders, it seems there is no shortage of videos of stupid drivers doing foolish things on the roads.…
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Putter around
Word of the Day: Putter around The evenings and early mornings are beginning to get quite chilly here in Wakayama. Soon there’ll be no more puttering around in the garden for me. Can you believe it’s already November first? Where does the time go? Halloween 2019 is now history, and we can look forward to…
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Make your blood run cold
English Phrase: Make your blood run cold As the leaves fall and days grow shorter, we know Halloween is growing closer. There’s something about Halloween that makes your blood run cold. It could be that thoughts of witches and black cats come more quickly to our minds as we walk down lonely streets and dark…
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Bloodcurdling
WotD: Bloodcurdling All Hallows’ Eve is on Thursday. You may hear some bloodcurdling screams around the witching hour. If you’re smart, you’ll take my advice and not go out by yourself. In horror movies, the first person to die is always the stupid one who hears a noise and investigates it alone. They are the…
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Jack o’ lantern
Word of the Day: Jack o’ lantern In North America, hollowed-out pumpkins or jack o’ lanterns with gruesome faces and evil smiles lit by burning candles are a common sight in windows and on doorsteps. Where did this custom come from, and why do they use pumpkins? You may have asked yourself this question many…
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Over my dead body
English Idiom: Over my dead body You should be especially careful about what idioms you use around Halloween. All the strange ones come out at this time of year, and if you refuse something by saying over my dead body, they just may take you at your word. I’m not one for ghouls, goblins, vampires…
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Send shivers down your spine
Idiom: Send shivers down your spine Here we are, only two months until Christmas, and we’re going to discuss what sends shivers down your spine. Soon everything will be love and joy, peace and happiness, cinnamon and peppermint. Halloween, however, is a frightfully delightful time of year. It’s a time to think of spiders crawling…
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Dig your own grave
English Idiom: Dig your own grave The countdown has begun. It’s only one week until the big day. There’s something about Halloween that causes people to let loose, do stupid things, and, as a result, dig their own graves. Until November first, I’ll be featuring a Halloween-themed word, phrase or idiom each day. My favourite…
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Look out for number one
Phrase: Look out for number one Some Japanese look up to and even admire Americans and maybe even Canadians because we are independent and individualistic. Well, looking out for number one is not as easy as they may think it is. When you look out for number one, you are your number one priority. It…
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Upset the applecart
Phrase: Upset the applecart Did I ever tell you that my original plan was to teach English in Germany? Yeah, that was the plan, but along came a pretty Japanese girl who upset the applecart, turned me around, and here I am, living in Japan. To upset the applecart means to interfere with or otherwise…
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