Re: off-topic - bated breath
- To: Multiple recipients of list <i*@rt66.com>
- Subject: Re: off-topic - bated breath
- From: E* G* <e*@moose.ncia.net>
- Date: Wed, 26 Feb 1997 15:24:42 -0700 (MST)
>"Waiting with baited breath" is a joke derived from the old adage "waiting
>with bated breath." To bate meant either to restrain, check or, sometimes,
>to flutter. So waiting with bated breath meant holding one's breath.
>Waiting with baited breath, on the other hand, meant having eaten something
>smelly intended variously to attract or repel a conversation partner.
>
>celia
If one has to choose between holding one's breath for six weeks (G)
or eating garlic or aged cheese, I'll opt for the latter. I repel
a lot of folks with my conversation anyway. :-((
Ellen Gallagher e_galla@moose.ncia.net
Ellen Gallagher "I yam what I yam!"
e_galla@moose.ncia.net Popeye
Lancaster, New Hampshire, USA
USDA Zone 3
