I was often called a 'red-headed step-child'.

'The origin of the phrase "red haired step child" dates to the 1830's & 40's when Irish emigrants began arriving in America.

The newly arrived Irish were somewhere below free blacks on the social scale at the time, and lived in segregated communities.

Then, like now, young men were having sexual relations with young women before marriage.

Sometimes the men were Irish and the girls were not.

This resulted in many out of wedlock children with that red Irish hair.

When these young women did finally marry, usually to a young man not of Irish descent, the new husband was not particularly patient or sympathetic to the red haired step child and treated them harshly.

The phrase is derogatory although many do not know its origin, it is still considered an insult to knowledgeable people of Irish descent, and should be avoided in polite conversation.'

Today In - 'Useless Info'

"Long in the tooth," meaning "old," was originally used to describe horses. As horses age, their gums recede, giving the impression that their teeth are growing. The longer the teeth look, the older the horse.

The phrase "raining cats and dogs" originated in 17th Century England. During heavy downpours of rain, many of these poor animals unfortunately drowned and their bodies would be seen floating in the rain torrents that raced through the streets. The situation gave the appearance that it had literally rained "cats and dogs" and led to the current expression.

It's syphilis, b*tch.

This poster bugs me.

Why?

Because it talks about how syphilis is on the increase in gay men.

While that may be the case, I don't like how a big bright poster on a busy street is touting the 'mos as disease spreaders.

Heteros pass it around too you know.

Side Note:

'1718, Mod.L., originally from the title of a poem, "Syphilis, sive Morbus Gallicus" "Syphilis, or the French Disease," 1530, by Veronese doctor Girolamo Fracastoro (1483-1553), which tells the tale of the shepherd Syphilus, supposed to be the first sufferer from the disease.

Fracastoro first used the word as a generic term for the disease in 1546 treatise "De Contagione."

Why he chose the name is unknown; it may be intended as L. for "Pig-lover," though there was also a Sipylus, a son of Niobe, in Ovid.'

Syphilis

Word Origins - 'Skosh'

'[Q] “The word skosh appeared recently in a Wall Street Journal crossword puzzle and, apparently, means ‘a little bit’. Can you tell me about the derivation of his word? I have checked the OED, Onions on etymology, etc. and have found nothing. It looks like an acronym but I can find none listed in various sources I have checked. Your help will be greatly appreciated.”

[A] It does indeed mean “a little bit”. You surprise me a little by your question, since to me skosh is one of the most American of all words, and yet here am I, based in Britain, telling an American about it.

Though it looks like one, it isn’t an acronym. Its odd appearance is due to its having been imported from Japanese. The original was sukoshi, in Japanese a little bit or a smidgen. It first appeared in print in American English about 1951. Word researchers think American servicemen based in Japan brought it back at the time of the Korean War, though several subscribers have mentioned it was common among American servicemen in Japan in the years immediately following World War Two. It is a member of a group of words imported from Japanese in that period, others being origami, teriyaki, shiatsu, and karate. Skosh is a close imitation of the way that Japanese speakers themselves would say sukoshi in rapid conversation, suggesting that it was primarily communicated orally.

It usually turns up as an noun meaning a little bit, a jot, a small amount (“he solved the problem in a skosh more than 13 days”). One of its earlier appearances in print was in advertisements for Levi’s jeans that offered a fuller fitting for the middle-aged under the slogan “Just a skosh more room”.

Though it is now listed in American dictionaries, my impression is that it is still considered to be slang — it doesn’t often appear in books or newspapers, for example. Dictionaries say it is said with the same vowel sound as in post or roach, or as in the naturalised French word gauche.'

World Wide Words