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Diddly-squat

Diddly-squat

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Diddly-squat-open blank pages with a penSometimes, I stare at a blank page or a blank screen and write diddly-squat. Nothing. Nada. Zero. Zilch.

Diddly-squat means nothing.

Much that we value in life amounts to diddly-squat. It holds no lasting worth.

We desire and acquire:

  • Expensive homes
  • The latest styles
  • Social status

However, none of those mean anything when we get to the end of the road.

We may know diddly squat about certain information or skills.

For example, I know little or nothing about:

  • Engineering
  • Trigonometry
  • Air traffic control

Financially, we may have diddly-squat.

  • Empty bank accounts
  • Unpaid bills
  • No income

Our pockets are empty and our resources have gone down the drain.

Agreements occasionally amount to nothing.

That happens with:

  • Broken promises
  • Ignored business contracts
  • Failed relationships

Jesus offers a better way.

  • Treat others with honesty and respect.
  • Give our best.
  • Invest in the eternal.

“If one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it?” (James 2:16 NIV).

Thanks to Laura Lee Leathers for the suggestion.

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Copycat

Copycat

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Copycat-Cat reflected in a mirrorChildren and youth are great copycats. They see something they like and mimic it.

Copycat can be a noun, verb, or adjective. 

  1. A copycat is someone who imitates another person (noun).

They see how someone looks or acts and want to be just like them. I saw the perfect example when I served as a juvenile counselor. A young runaway returned from a northern city to his rural southern home. He walked into my office with

  • A new swagger
  • Hat cocked to the side of his head
  • The most exaggerated accent I had ever heard

  1. To copycat is the act of imitating (verb).

The young juvenile was funny but did no harm when he changed his dress and speech. He did hurt others when he followed in the footsteps of relatives who broke the law.

  1. Copycat also describes something or someone (adjective).

That young man displayed obvious copycat behavior. It was not his own but belonged to someone he admired.

We need to choose our role models carefully.

Imitating the right people typically keeps us on the straight and narrow. Following negative examples keeps us in hot water.

We are made in the image of God. May our lives reflect our Maker.

“Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil but what is good” (1 John 1:11 NIV)

Thanks to Cindy Shoemaker for the suggestion. Image by Gundula Vogel from Pixabay.

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Red Herring

Red Herring

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Red Herring-school of fishFew of us like to discuss difficult issues. Instead, we turn attention from the facts with a red herring.

This expression refers to a distraction from crucial matters.

A red herring is a dried smoked fish. Smoking to preserve the herring creates its red color.

The Free Dictionary says the expression may have come from using the fish’s strong smell to distract hunting dogs from a trail.

It may also have come from a writer “who used the scent-laying image as a metaphor.” Mystery writers still give misleading clues about “who-done-it.”

Children frequently use a red herring.

They don’t want to:

  • Complete chores.
  • Work on school assignments.
  • Admit when they disobey.

Instead, they:

  • Complain about unfair rules.
  • Ask irrelevant questions.
  • Talk about another child’s behavior.

A red herring from adults causes much greater harm.

Like children, we distract attention from:

  • Responsibilities we want to avoid
  • Main issues
  • Poor choices

We focus away from our involvement in:

  • Abuse, neglect, or other criminal activity
  • Political misdeeds
  • Business errors

Rather than do what we should, we:

  • Blame innocent people.
  • Focus on unrelated issues.
  • Make self-centered decisions.

A red herring often misleads as well as distracts.

We don’t just chase rabbits. We deliberately point people in the wrong direction.

Enjoy novels with red herrings. Avoid red herrings in real life.

“Jesus answered: ‘Watch out that no one deceives you’” (Matthew 24:4 NIV).

Thanks to Kay Emerick for the suggestion. Image by Hans from Pixabay.

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The Apple Does Not Fall Far from the Tree

The Apple Does Not Fall Far from the Tree

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The Apple Does Not Fall Far from the Tree--red apples on ground around a tree trunkThe apple does not fall far from the tree in orchards. The same is often true for children.

When children act like their parents, we might say the apple does not fall far from the tree.

We all learn from the people closest to us.

  • Parents
  • Guardians
  • Other relatives

They teach us how to:

  • Walk
  • Talk
  • Live

One of the scariest statements a child can make is, “When I grow up, I want to be just like you.” That should make us pay attention to our words, actions, and attitudes.

The apple does not fall from the tree does not always apply.

Children do not always look or act like their parents. Sometimes that is the children’s choice. They may:

  • Rebel against positive examples.
  • Rise above negative examples.

We cannot change our biological roots. We can change our behavior.

May we all learn and live well.

No one, including the best parent, is perfect. Therefore, we want to follow the one and only perfect example we find in Jesus.

When we root ourselves in Jesus’ love, we gain the best life now plus an eternity with Him in heaven. We also bear fruit by sharing Jesus’ love with the rest of the world.

“This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples” (John 15:8 NIV).

Thanks to Thad Reames for the suggestion. Image by Manfred Richter from Pixabay.

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Too Many Cooks Spoil the Broth

Too Many Cooks Spoil the Broth

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Too Many Cooks Spoil the Broth--two large cast iron pots hanging over an outdoor fire My husband and I lived in a college campus apartment for two years. It was so small we had to push our table against the wall to open the back door. Just as too many cooks crowded our kitchen, too many cooks spoil the broth.

When too many cooks add too many ingredients, broth tastes terrible.

The same applies to too many:

  • Managers
  • Coaches
  • Music conductors
  • Agencies

 Too many cooks spoil the broth offers a word to the wise.  

It cautions against several people trying to:

  • Do the same task.
  • Gain control.
  • Influence an outcome.

When that happens, the work:

  • Results in confusion.
  • May be ruined.
  • Has little chance of success.

The Phrase Finder lists a similar proverb in 1575 by English historian John Hooker.

In The Life and Times of Sir Peter Carew, Hooker wrote, “There is the proverb, the more cooks the worse potage.”

Several similar proverbs exist.

  • Too many cooks in the kitchen
  • (A shortened phrase) Too many cooks
  • Too many cooks spoil the soup (or stew).

Extra workers usually help. Extra managers often hurt.

Completing the work is more important than taking credit for it.

Whether we manage or not, let’s faithfully do what God calls us to do.

“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’” (Matthew 25:23 NIV)

Thanks to Joyce McCullough for the suggestion.

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Skinned Alive

Skinned Alive

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Skinned Alive--man who appears in pain with shaving cream on his face and holding a razorHave you ever been skinned alive? It is no fun, is it? We may not lose skin, but it hurts like we have.

To be skinned alive means to be severely scolded or punished.

Many of us think scolding hurts the most.

People of all ages receive threats to be skinned alive.

  • Children who break their parents’ rules
  • Employees who fail to do their work
  • Friends or family who break promises

This phrase comes from the cruel “practice of flaying a live prisoner.”

The Free Dictionary dates it to the mid-1800s.

The threat to skin alive often comes with the strength and power to hurt others.

However, we never want to harm anyone.

Encouraging people to straighten up and fly right is okay. Blowing our top is not.

When people threaten to skin us alive, we want to make necessary changes.

However, if we have done nothing wrong, we may need to say so. Regardless of how they treat us, we want to treat them with respect. Two wrongs don’t make a right.

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds” (James 1:2 NIV).

Thanks to Kristy Robinson Horine for the suggestion. Image by Sammy-Sander from Pixabay.

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Lie Like a Rug

Lie Like a Rug

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Lie Like a Rug--Jumbled multicolored arrows with truth or lie on themMy dad loved to play with words. He would deliberately use the wrong word to give a sentence a totally new meaning. I’m sure some people thought he did not know better. However, he knew exactly what he was doing. Lie like a rug was one of his favorite expressions.

Lie like a rug is a pun, a usually funny play on words.

Puns use words that are alike or nearly alike but have different meanings. “Lie” can mean either to tell an untruth or to rest in a flat position. Lie like a rug combines those two meanings since a rug lies flat on a floor.

If we lie like a rug, we lie boldly and shamelessly.

Our untruth is no mistake. We deliberately lie. Sometimes we know that no one will believe us but lie anyway.

If we repeat an untruth often enough, we may persuade some people to believe.

We sound ridiculous. Yet repetition eventually convinces those unwilling to look at the evidence. If not convinced, they may choose not to confront us or face the truth.

Always weigh the evidence.

Take what sounds like a lie with a grain of salt. Search for truth and follow it.

“Whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God” (John 3:21 NIV).

Thanks to Melissa Henderson for the suggestion. Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay.

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Carry Someone Somewhere

Carry Someone Somewhere

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Carry Someone Somewhere--large boy carrying small girl on his backI still remember a college professor saying he had to carry someone somewhere. His statement puzzled me. I knew he could not carry the grown man on his back. Instead, he meant he had to transport the man in his car.

To carry someone somewhere means to take the person somewhere.

Like my college professor, we may take others to:

  • Appointments
  • Church
  • Family gatherings
  • Wherever they need to go

When the need arises, we don’t hem and haw.  We do what needs to be done. That kind of carrying takes time but is easier on our backs.

To carry someone somewhere also means to accompany the person.

Whether we provide transportation or not, people do not have to go alone. We escort them for:

  • Safety precautions
  • Fun times
  • Dates

The key to both meanings is to be there.

At times, we meet needs. Other times, we simply enjoy one another’s company. Either way, we share friendship and fellowship.

“Then Esau said, ‘Let us be on our way; I’ll accompany you.’” (Genesis 33:12 NIV).

Thanks to Joyce Cordell for the suggestion and to Crystal Gosser for the photo.

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Chew the Fat

Chew the Fat

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Chew the Fat--family around a table for ThanksgivingOur family loves to meet and eat. Thanksgiving, Christmas, special birthdays, or for no reason at all. We also love to chew the fat, spending hours talking and laughing.

To chew the fat means to have long, relaxed conversations.

  • No rush
  • Easy laughter
  • No schedule

We enjoy leisure from the daily grind.

To chew the fat involves little or no heavy discussion.

We simply shoot the breeze. Chats stay:

  • Friendly
  • Relaxed
  • Informal

Conversations may occasionally include bits of gossip. When tempted to gossip, we need to bite our tongue.

Two other expressions share similar meanings.

  • Chew the rag
  • Chew the cud

Origins for chew the fat and chew the rug are unknown. People have guessed possibilities but with no certainty. We find a simpler explanation for chew the cud.

According to Phrase Finder, a cud is the food cows “bring back into their mouths from their first stomach to chew at leisure.” We see that slow chewing while cows graze in pastures.

Enjoy special time to chew the fat with friends and family.

Make memories and strengthen relationships. They are gifts from God.

“I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers” (Ephesians 1:16 NIV).

Thanks to Gail Gosser and Regina Graham for the suggestion.

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Don’t Take Any Wooden Nickels

Don’t Take Any Wooden Nickels

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Don't Take Any Wooden Nickels--wood bowl filled with loose change

I remember my dad saying, “Don’t take any wooden nickels.” At the time, I had no idea what he meant. I knew wooden nickels were not real money. So, why would he make such a strange statement?

Don’t take any wooden nickels warns us not to be conned or swindled.

A wooden nickel is:

  • Fake
  • Worthless
  • Suspicious

Don’t be fooled.

Take precautions. Never accept anything unless you know it is the real thing.

Don’t take any wooden nickels offers a word to the wise.

Before trying anything new, check with people who:

We often hear this primarily American phrase when people say goodbye.

The speaker means:

  • Be careful.
  • Take care of yourself.

According to The Free Dictionary, it probably originated in the early 20th century. “Country residents visiting the city were considered easily duped.” Therefore, they needed to protect themselves from being deceived.

Banks used wooden nickels for promotions during and after the Great Depression.

They redeemed the fake coins for prizes.

 Don’t cheat and don’t get cheated.

We never want to hornswoggle or be hornswoggled. Instead, let’s stay so honest that people can take it to the bank.

“If you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?” (Luke 16:11 NIV).

Thanks to Sharon Berry, Laurel Blevins, Karen Hart, Judy Glen Corbin, Beckham Wilson, and Rebecca Stafford for the suggestion.

Do you have an expression you want explained or thoughts about this one? If so, please comment below.

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