Reality, Shattered

I always thought it was "the whole kitten caboodle". Until like five years ago. Eventually I read it as "kit and caboodle" somewhere, and loudly accused the author of being an idiot until someone set me straight. And even then I didn't believe it. Do you know what finding out that there's no such thing as a kitten caboodle does to a person? I'll tell you what is does: it destroys them.

I'd be willing to bet that you remember Sara Lee's slogan as: "Nobody does it like Sara Lee", even though it's actually "Nobody doesn't like Sara Lee." Yeah, I know. I'd like to get into a physical altercation with the person responsible for that crap.

Oh, and just the other day I learned that it's "beck and call", not "beckoned call." Which actually didn't bug me at all. They both suck.

Comments

[Buckly]

At least you already knew the important one: "couldn't care less". The phrase "I could care less" irks me to no end. But you've been over that one already.

So when is Leo Laporte going to give you your own podcast already? I think he is handing them out like lollipops these days.

[Aurora]

Ooooh I had to comment after I read the one above me, about the whole "couldn't care less" thing. That bothers the hell out of me when people say "I could care less" or "I could give a rat's ass" or something similar. Those are the people I'd like to get into a physical altercation with!

Also, I used to think it was kitten caboodle too :)

[Dennis D]

you mean I don't have the whole Kitten Caboodle after all well crap.But I could care less LMAO.

[John]

Very interesting phrase, information about which can be found here http://www.randomhouse.com/wotd/index.pperl?date=19960716 I am worried about you Sarah. You should not be focusing on such trivia with a view towards a prize fight . You may get squashed by a mean verb and where would that leave us? Pro verbally vanquished!

[spark]

in your travel FAQ you talked about a rug and shipping... you said a major carrier would have given you "piece of mind". did you mean that? Uh......

i think you meant "peace of mind", IMHO

[sarah]

Haha... nice catch spark!

[Clintus McGintus]

there there Sarah, it'll be ok.

[Text Pirate]

When I was a little kid I thought my cousins watched Wrestle-mania on "paper view". I couldn't figure out what paper had to do with wrestling.

That Sara Lee is pretty clever with her double negatives.

[edu]

Yeah. A slogan with a double negative? And don't get me started with "I'm lovin' it". What's next?

Hostess Fruit Pies: "Brin' on yow momma!"

[banana-type]

how about 'irregardless'...

[ronconnor]

so. you're back. that's good to see.

i was beginning to think you'd found a job, but alas i'm guessing not.

btw, NOBODY thought the sara lee jingle when that way! I think you're alone on that one.

i figured out you like piano music. click the link on my name and have a listen.

[Jason]

Even as a kid, I would hear the word "sabotage" and knew what it meant and how it was pronounced, but when I would read my Hardy Boys books I would see the word written and have no clue what it meant and thought it was pronounced as sa-BOOT-age.

Similarly my sister thought Yosemite was pronounced as YO-sa-might.

And lastly, up until last week, I thought a line in Metallica's Holier Than Thou was "judge not the TV, judge yourselves" when it really is "judge not lest ye be judged yourself"

It's funny how your mind makes those leaps and fills in the blanks.

[Jeff]

My girlfriend and I had a similar argument a few weeks back on the phrase "you've got another thing coming" (a la Judas Priest). She swore that it was "you've got another *think* coming". I thought she was joking, but she consulted a couple of friends who agreed with her. I thought I was losing my mind.

[Nick B]

i find its the same with a lot of songs aswell. it makes me mad when i lear the real meanings. REALITY SHATTERED.Keep doing what you do. :)

Nick

[Darren]

Hey Sarah,

I can see why you would be shattered by the whole "kitten caboodle" revelation since you love cats like I do. By the way, I love the pictures of your cat - he's awesome! I've always loved orange cats - what's his name?

Take care - I hope the job hunt is going well

Darren

[Ben]

Hi Sarah,

Ira Glass did an episode of This American Life called "A Little Bit of Knowledge" on a variant of this very topic. You can find it at http://www.thislife.org/Radio_Episode.aspx?sched=1090

[Ben]

Hi Sarah,

Ira Glass did an episode of This American Life called "A Little Bit of Knowledge" on a variant of this very topic. You can find it at http://www.thislife.org/Radio_Episode.aspx?sched=1090

[Ben]

Bah, typepad freaked out. Sorry for the dupe comment. :)

[petero]

Hey Sarah, you SERIOUSLY need a job! You have WAY too much time on your hands...

[Liana]

I thought the Sara Lee slogan was "Nobody does it like Sara Lee" -- so you're not the only one in that corner. That's crazy!!

And now, I shall share that new found piece of information and share it with everyone I know! :)

Hope you're doing well, Sarah!

[kelsnotchels]

I walked around for over 20 years saying,

"for all intensive purposes"

which, for all intents and purposes was WRONG.

[Lee]

Sounds just like the sort of thing that my desk calendar demystifies. I highly recommend one of these.

http://www.amazon.com/Common-Errors-English-Usage-Calendar/dp/1590280563

Or you could just browse the author's website:

http://wsu.edu/~brians/errors/errors.html

[Lucus]

Thanks Sarah...for the Sara Lee comment.

I'm in class and I may have to go home because of this. I can't trust anything I've heard (or think I've heard) anymore.

[yuko]

i always thought it was, "robin red vest", instead of robin red breast....

[Liz]

When looking at myspace-pages, i love reading the comments. One said lets go out and get waisted tonight. I found that funny because I could only imagine the funniest stuff. Waisted does that mean like measured or that you want people to hug you around the waist.

[Zachariah]

Sarah, what you're talking about in your post are called "egg corns" -- they 're discussed on the Language Log: http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/000018.html and on The Eggcorn Database: http://eggcorns.lascribe.net/

[Reader]

"Kitten caboodle" -- I love it! I was going to say I first found out "all intensive purposes" was really "all intents and purposes" when I was 22, but someone beat me to it. So how about another one I didn't find out until a few years ago-- I always thought people were saying "he's the spitting image of his father" instead of "spit and image".

[Reader]

"Kitten caboodle" -- I love it! I was going to say I first found out "all intensive purposes" was really "all intents and purposes" when I was 22, but someone beat me to it. So how about another one I didn't find out until a few years ago-- I always thought people were saying "he's the spitting image of his father" instead of "spit and image".

[Evocative]

Hi, Sarah - I know exactly what you mean by going for years and years misunderstanding a common phrase. For the longest time, I thought the hymn "Bringing in the Sheaves" was "Bringing in the Sheep." Honest mistake, with the Lord being a shepherd and all that.

[Mr. Matt]

My brother always thought "the sky's the limit" was "disguise the limit". I almost like his way better.

[sarah]

@Reader- Um, are you telling me that I'm not "the spitting image" of my father? Are you telling me that I am "THE SPIT AND IMAGE" of my father? Because if so, I'm going to have to go ahead and not be able to deal with that. The grammar police are freaking out.

[Hullo - It's me Again]

OMG



you JUST learned it's "Beck and Call"???

I understand how someone can be at your Call, but how do you be at their Beck?

[Wayne In Akron]

Imagine my shock when I began shopping and found out it was Chef Boyardee, not Chefboy R.D.

[Mattie]

Hey have you ever thought about why "fat chance" and "slim chance" mean the exact same thing? I mean, technically speaking I understand it (irony and all...), but isn't weird that the two phrases are interchangeable?