On Invented Slang

[rachelmanija]

I will do an actual write up shortly, but first I had to quote this. The context is that the character is having trouble walking.

It seemed like at any moment his knees were going to take a vacation and he was going to yard sale like an idiot. - J. R. Ward, Lover UnboundI can tell from context that "yard sale" means "fall down

Comments

[_profiterole_]

Prices go down at a yard sale, I suppose?

[rachelmanija]

Ohh, that makes sense! Still not very intuitively clear. For me, anyway.

[tool_of_satan]

Yeah, I would never get that without it being explained. "Going to drop like prices at a yard sale" would be fine, but wordy. "Fire sale" would work better, I think, since "down" is more immediately accessible as a concept from that; to me the obvious association with "yard sale" is "get rid of stuff you don't want." I could see it being used as slang for vomiting or something more readily.

[rachelmanija]

"Drop like prices at a fire sale" is pretty good. I could see that in a first-person wiseass narrative.

[athenejen]

Oh! I know this one actually! Because it was mentioned on the episode of No Reservations when Bourdain went to Sweden!

A yard sale is skier/snowboarder slang for the kind of wipeout that causes all your gear to go flying off. So it does involve falling down, but it only makes sense in a context where you'd lose everything you were wearing or carrying, and it would have to be a pretty dramatic fall.

[rachelmanija]

I'll be darned, it is real! It makes way more sense in the original context. Yard sale = stuff scattered all over the place.

[buymeaclue]

Yes -- hockey, too. Moreso if someone was hitting our narrator, though.

[sovay]

It seemed like at any moment his knees were going to take a vacation and he was going to yard sale like an idiot.

Never having heard this expression before, it sounds to me like an euphemism for throwing up. I am trying now to articulate why: I think it's a combination of the pure sound of it-yaw, yawn-and the idea of throwing everything out on the lawn that you want to get rid of, whatever the price. So if it really means a strings-cut spectacular faint, it's failing!

Gangster 3: Yeah. We gotta tarantula.

They should maybe see a doctor about that.

[asakiyume]

They should maybe see a doctor about that

Or an arachnologist.

[lorata]

"bought a boat drink" sounds like he got shot and tossed over the side of a yacht to me ...

[asakiyume]

Make sure you get those boat drinks for other people. I wouldn't want to have to knit the yellow cardigan!!

[tool_of_satan]

"Bunch of monkeys on the ceiling, sir! Grab your egg and fours and let's get the bacon delivered!"

[asakiyume]

"Hold up, the trampoline ain't corked in THIS gazebo."

[miz_hatbox]

Especially not for a tarantula! I haven't seen a pattern with enough sleeves for a tarantula yet, and yellow would probably clash with their fur...