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Another Perspective
Hooked Phones and Other Fables
Something to think about for the foreseeable future.
“Our phones have been ringing off the hook,” said Rep. Michelle Bachmann about the response to her statement that she was seriously considering a campaign for the Republican presidential nomination. Her office must have very old telephones for there hasn’t been one made with hooks since the 1930s.
My late Aunt Alice had a phone with a hook. It stood in a niche in the hallway wall. It was tall, about ten inches, with the speaker at the top and a hook on the side on which rested the earpiece. One would lift that off the hook and hold it to one’s ear. There was no dial. Taking the earpiece off the hook activated the system and an operator would say, “Number, please.” The caller would then give her the number and she would connect the call. Aunt Alice might have said, “Piedmont 2277, please,” for in the days of hooked phones all numbers had named prefixes, and long before there were area codes.
If one received a great many calls, it would be described as “the phone is ringing off the hook.” That now-antique phrase continues although today’s telephones rest in cradles or slots in plastic dialing boxes, which also have buttons to do various other things. Or, they are cell/mobile phones for which the phrase would be, “The phone is ringing out of my hands.
So, please, Rep. Bachmann, exchange those antique phones you purchased for modern ones. If you keep them, your solicitors won’t be able to interrupt potential donors at the dinner hour since there are no longer live operators at the telephone company and phones with hooks have no dials.
Another head-scratching phrase is one beloved by economists and people in the world of finance. It is “the foreseeable future,” as in, “I think this trend will hold for the foreseeable future.” How is that possible since no one except God can see the future? That is, unless some hedge fund manager or the Messrs. Bernanke and Geithner have established direct hot lines to Heaven. A better phrase would be, “I think this trend will continue for a while,” but that would be admitting that the speaker is guessing and cannot, indeed, see the future.
What can we make of another phrase, “to Hell in a handbasket.” It is often used by people who have been around awhile about the state of the world, as in “The World’s still going to Hell in a handbasket.” The phrase means to attain something without much effort. A handbasket is a light and easy thing to carry; hence, the world is falling apart with no special effort on the part of the speaker.
One fable that needs to be stood on its head is the one involving Robin Hood. The usual description is “He robbed from the rich to give to the poor.” No he didn’t. He took money from the tax collector who he thought had unfairly taken it and gave it back to the people from whom it had been extracted. He and his Merry Men were a sort of Tea Party posse fighting — and defeating — overtaxation.
About the Author
Peter Hannaford was closely associated for a number of years with the late President Reagan, beginning in the California Governor’s office. His latest book is Presidential Retreats.
Letter to the Editor View all comments (39) | Leave a comment
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Robbins Mitchell| 5.23.11 @ 6:33AM
"Hello,Sarah?...get me Juanita down at the diner."
Frisbee| 5.24.11 @ 8:06PM
@ Peter Hannaford: it's a figure of speech. I was born well after the 1930's and can attest to the fact that the expression did not die with "the hook". We still have a wall mount land line and the ear piece does indeed rest in a hook shaped mount although the bottom rests in a trough with charging electrode. By the way, "Bachmann for VP!!"
ChocolateJeebus| 5.24.11 @ 10:58PM
I can attest to this, as I have a wall-mounted phone in my kitchen made in the early 90's. The ear/mouth piece hangs on a hook attached to the base. But I can go ya one better Frisbee, it's not cordless, and the speaker crackles when you try to use it. Any one still "dial" a number?
Appleby| 5.23.11 @ 7:12AM
Recently a game has come out, similar to *Password*, in which people must make other people guess phrases that -- apparently -- were well known fifty years ago but have fallen out of the common parlance since then. We were discussing this at lunch one day, and I came up with several phrases that the others, half my age, did not know: *Pardon my boarding house reach*, *Close enough for Jazz*, *He is doing a Land Office business*, *She doesnt know if she is afoot or on horseback*, and *Its a lead pipe cinch.*
Today they say *a box office business* and *close enough for government work*, by the way. And although some people claim to have internet through *dial-up*, they do not know why it is called that because they have never seen a phone with a dial.
C. S. P. Schofield| 5.23.11 @ 8:38AM
You need to check your English Folklore, sir. Yes, Robin Hood did take special pleasure in robbing the tax collector when he got the chance, but he ALSO stole from the rich who wandered into his grasp. In fact, as I recall, one of the classic stories deals with how he made an exception for an honorable knight who was his involuntary 'guest'.
But fat churchmen, wealthy ornaments of court, AND tax collectors; Robin stole from them all.
Appleby| 5.23.11 @ 8:53AM
But these were the Apparatchiks of their day; it was like stealing from Senators and Lobbyists.
Torchwielding Peasant| 5.23.11 @ 11:21AM
In Robin Hood's time the "poor" were peasants that worked land that they could never own, and the "rich" were the nobles who owned everything. The U.S.A. has no peasants; we are all kings!
shelby new | 5.23.11 @ 9:40AM
Enjoyable posts by Appleby as well as C.S.P. Schofield. The "to Hell in a handbasket" I thought meant something going awry with efficient quickness and without impediment. And by the way, how bout "a month of ten Sundays?" I haven't heard this refrain, meaning a long delay, since I was a teenage girl. Has anyone remember this one?
C. S. P. Schofield| 5.23.11 @ 10:14AM
One of my favorite Comic strips of recent years showed two men in suits walking past the stock exchange, and a devil sitting behind a folding table stacked with handbaskets. One man says to the other "I don't know what that's about, but it can't be good."
Bayou Babe| 5.23.11 @ 1:20PM
I’ve never heard the phrase “a month of ten Sundays.” In my world, though, we still say “a month of Sundays.”
PolishKnight| 5.23.11 @ 10:24AM
I don't think the term "foreseeable future" is nonsense. There are futures we can somewhat accurately foresee such as the weather for next day. It doesn't mean that it's 100% accurate but there are useful models to make a good guess.
There's a cute BC cartoon where the guy asks the weatherman why he doesn't give predictions for the weather a year out. The weatherman responds: "Because a year is a long time to be out of work."
SpiralArchitect| 5.23.11 @ 2:46PM
Lets say someone breaks a bone. It would be asinine to say it would hurt for the foreseeable future?
Hogwash.
buckeyeman| 5.23.11 @ 10:37AM
I remember very well my grandmother operating the last manual switchboard in South Dakota. Just inside the front door was a "hook" phone on the wall. This was their version of a pay phone. You left a nickel in a dish by the phone and "rang up" the operator (sitting about five feet away at the swithboard). She operated the switchboard until around '60 or '62, I think. I still have both the pay phone and the switchboard.
play nice| 5.23.11 @ 12:38PM
Add to the list "going to hell in an armoured limousine".
SugartownSuper| 5.23.11 @ 12:54PM
When I was a boy [mumble, mumble] years ago, the town where I lived was much smaller than it is today. I recall picking up the telephone at the train station and asking for my home number to tell my mother that I was on my way [walking] home. The operator, recognizing my voice said: "Your mother is not at home Sweetie, she is over at Mrs. Smith's house playing cards [bridge]. I will connect you. " Now THAT was the old days!
Dave Williams| 5.23.11 @ 1:52PM
If you want a good laugh, say to anyone under 30 that thus-and-so was "like a broken record." Time marches on....
Appleby| 5.23.11 @ 6:24PM
If one of us kids was blathering on and on, Mama would ask, *Were you vaccinated with a phonograph needle?*
wbheff| 5.23.11 @ 2:34PM
What is also amusing is "deciphering" old sayings that have become garbled over time. for example, I often hear people use the expression "Back in the day," to which I often respond, "What day would that be?" To say, "Back in the old days," or "Back in the days of yesteryear," or "Back in the days of horse-drawn carriages," makes some sense. But the non-specific, "Back in the day," does not. Then there is "The proof is in the pudding," which would render the pudding inedible I think. The actual old saying is, "the proof of the pudding is in the eating," which is akin to "Don't judge a book by its cover." Both mean that one should not judge on appearances alone, whilst, "The proof is in the pudding," is just silly. I sure that readers can think of other mangled metaphors.
The Grey Piper| 5.23.11 @ 4:53PM
Mmm, I think 'back in the day' is understandable and excuseable. Consider it is a shorthand, nothing more, for a lengthier, and possibly recursive statement such as, "Back in the days when we played gramophones and lacquer records, gramophones were hand-wound and the records didn't scratch, they shattered." , as opposed to: 'Back in the day, gramophones were hand-wound, etc."
Some expressions do get garbled, read some of Scott Adams' books with 'true' emails about the odd things rea; pointy-haired bosses say.
Appleby| 5.23.11 @ 6:28PM
Every day I see these: *TOW* the line; *REIGN* him in; *WRECKLESS* driving. These are mangled because (1) the person who wrote them does not know what the phrase (or the incorrectwords) mean; and (2) spell-check does not tell them that they used the wrong word -- only that the wrong word is spelled correctly.
Rich D| 5.23.11 @ 2:40PM
Gilding the lily...
big bob| 5.23.11 @ 3:09PM
they're called idioms, and all languages have them to one degree or another. I would suggest you read the children book series poking fun at idioms called "Amelia Bedelia". Whenever we have something in our household with a double meaning implied via an idiom, we invoke her name and everyone laughs. Very funny indeed. A real "barrel full of monkeys", so to say....
Carroll Melton| 5.23.11 @ 4:18PM
"Robin Hood. The usual description is "He robbed from the rich to give to the poor." No he didn't. He took money from the tax collector who he thought had unfairly taken it and gave it back to the people from whom it had been extracted."
You got that right! Hardly anybody does. Especially DemocRATs who accuse Republicans of being "reverse" Robin Hoods.
Big Jim| 5.23.11 @ 5:56PM
I don't give a tinker dam about any of this nonsense.
c. j. acworth| 5.23.11 @ 6:00PM
Besides phones that could ring off the hook, does anyone besides me remember party lines? When I was a little squirt back around 1958 or so I remember my mom teaching me to listen carefully to the phone to be sure it was our ring and not the other party's. You didn't want to pick up on the other guy's conversation.
Appleby| 5.23.11 @ 6:31PM
Yes, we had party lines, and I remember having only a four-digit phone number, and having to call for *assistance in dialing* to make an overseas call. Direct-dialing was only marginally more exciting than Telstar which gave us satellite television and put paid to the Movietone News.
Alan Brooks| 5.23.11 @ 7:52PM
A negro and your money are soon parted, learn it!
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Dee See| 5.23.11 @ 11:54PM
---Great piece.
MEANWHILE, cause for hope as we're
noticing, as word spreads that cellphones
are, not only linked to brain tumors
---but, are, IN FACT surveillance and eavedropping devices
---people are starting to leave them at home.
CHEERS!
Hillel| 5.24.11 @ 8:21AM
Actually the proper quote is "To Gild the Gold, to Paint the Lilly and perfume the sweetly scented violet" This was from a caviliar poet whose name escapes me. It got shortened to Gild the Lilly.
Jim| 5.24.11 @ 1:16PM
The point of language is to communicate, rather than to satisfy language purists. Rep. Bachmann's language is PERFECTLY understandable, and the only reason I can see why Mr. Hannaford is complaining is that he simply has to find SOMETHING to do with his otherwise worthless English degree.
Bill| 5.24.11 @ 2:29PM
How do you feel about the kind of person who makes it a regular thing to say things like "the world is literally going to Hell in a handbasket?"
Bill| 5.24.11 @ 2:30PM
Or the kind of person who would find that amazing and respond by saying "That's incredible!"
Joe D.| 5.24.11 @ 2:53PM
Peter Hannaford don't you have better things to write about. Ms. Bachmann is doing nothing more then most people do. And you picking on her to make a point is not going to change it. However, there are a lot of expression people us that do not make sense any more or never did. We have to live with it.
Big Jim| 5.24.11 @ 3:53PM
These comments could go on until the cows come home.
Adult toys | 7.4.11 @ 1:22AM
boyfriend wants to have sex with his girlfriend,but ashamed of his small organ...decided to bring girlfriend in dark place,open his ziper and put penis in GF's hand...GF:no thanks ,i don't smoke!
Mobile Phones | 10.28.11 @ 1:05PM
OOT: You must change your phone sir :D