We've had mention of a few pub names in another string - these can be quite simple and often have (much like the beer) a strong rural flavour such as one of my locals, The Nag's Head. Do you have a particular favourite, an oddity, or even an unusual name for another bar or eating establishment if not specifically pub?

There was a pub called the Nag's Head somewhere in London, years ago when I frequented such places, where the pub sign was a woman in a scold's bridle!

But my favourite City (of London, that is) pub was "The Goat and Compasses", which served good beer and the most delicious Steak and Kidney Pudding (not Pie) that I have ever had.

good beer

I suppose I should have christened this string The Yart of Ale

The last time I was in that part of town, the
Do Drop Inn was still open.

If I wanted to go into the restaurant business, I'd call it
the Frank 'n Stein.

BTW--Nag's Head, North Carolina is a very short hop from where the Wright brothers flew their airplane. That has an interesting place name of its own: Kill Devil Hills.

Kill Devil Hills

C'mon, you tease! What's the story?

The Yart of Ale

A sook of thirsties underneath the bough
A loaf of thread, a Yart of Ale
And thou, beside me in the awadness
And awadness is paradise enow.

And thou, beside me in the awadness

Wonderful! I shall drive home now with a goofy grin and chuckling like a man who's just seen a drunk fish...

Kill Devil Hills

C'mon, you tease! What's the story?

I'll let xara answer. She can do a better job than I.

I'll let xara answer. She can do a better job than I.

i know the place names, but i don't know the stories behind them

there's a bar near by called 'he's not here'

i guess if your wife calls looking for you, that's the place to be. she doesn't even get the chance to ask. just pick up the phone and 'he's not here'

and just fyi, there's already a place called frank 'n stein. they serve beer and hotdogs in the mall.

>Wonderful! I shall drive home now with a goofy grin and chuckling like a man who's just seen a drunk fish...

I never laugh about drunk fish when I'm driving. They can swerve their bicycles in front of you with no warning.

seen a drunk fish...


Is it an offence to be drunk in charge of a bicycle if you are a fish?

drunk in charge of a bicycle

Not offishially. But there's always some oafish pig on wheels who just loves the chase

>But there's always some oafish pig on wheels...

http://www.paintedladys.com/PL/Whimsicals/htm/Artist%20International/pigonbike1.htm
or...
http://www.paintedladys.com/PL/Whimsicals/htm/Artist%20International/pigonbike2.htm

drunk in charge

Now, there's a good job title! Kind of like "Special Agent In Charge". I wonder just what a
Drunk In Charge could be in charge of? Oh, the case,
obviously.

there's always some oafish pig on wheels who just loves the chase

Oafish pig or boorish pig? (sorry, couldn't resist)

Loved the pictures, tsuwm! Pretty in Pink.

Those pictures give me the distinct impression of Mrs. Piggy and Kermit the Frog. It makes me want to go investigate my Jim Henson collection.

>pig on wheels

Loved the pig pictures tsuwm. Just wondering Maverick, did this relate to the boys in blue in any way?

the boys in blue

No, not me offishash - I'm not as thunk as you drink I ham

>I ham <

Putting on an act again are you?

> Is it an offence to be drunk in charge of a bicycle if you are a fish?

There has been the odd occasion I've worried about this one (getting caught, I mean, as it's undoubtedly an offence). I usually come to the conclusion that as long as you can cycle in a straight line you're OK. If you're unsure whether you're cycling in a straight line or not, you're probably not OK. Only problem is you need to ride the bike to assess your ability to assess your straight-line cycling abilities.

Personally I think cycle tracks, and indeed the edge of all roads, should have a nice bike-wheel size groove built in, so us fish can drink as much as nature dictates without qualm.

Oh come on, a pig couldn't ride a bike - it doesn't have any fins.

Amusing discovery though, tsuwm! Maybe I should set up an "other creatures on bikes" sub-section on my web site?

Personally I think cycle tracks, and indeed the edge of all roads, should have a nice bike-wheel size groove built in, so us fish can drink as much as nature dictates without qualm.

I love the imagery that this conjures up... I saw a merry fish cycling qualmlessly by on a groovy track.

>I ham <

Putting on an act again are you?

Maybe - but please forgive the hambiguity.

That's one of the reasons I love Shakespeare - trottering out all those ihambic pentameters!

a merry fish cycling qualmlessly by on a groovy track

Hi Marty,
Your rendition is a lot better than mine, has to be said - if I had a hat to doff I would doff it.

Are you "qualmlessly groovy" when you go XC skiing?

I love Shakespeare
I suppose you are one of the peoeple who believe Shakespeare was written by bacon? [chortle]

Shakespeare was written by bacon

That's truly hawful! And a rasher comment I've seldom heard

Are you "qualmlessly groovy" when you go XC skiing?

FishonaBike,
Good pick-up, the expression works well for my sport. Since I can't think of a witty rejoinder, I'll have to get semi-serious. The "grooviness" has largely gone out of XC skiing over the last decade or so, with the demise of the traditional Nordic "diagonal stride" in favour of a faster "skating" technique. Skating skis are shorter and thinner and rely totally on technique to prevent sliding back during the "kick" or push-off part of the stride, unlike traditional Nordic skis which have a "fish-scale" pattern (thought you'd like that one) or sticky wax on the base.

Having said all that, the above applies primarily to XC ski racing, which I'm not into. I'm more of a back-country skier, on metal-edged skis, with heavier boots, at my qualmlessest on untracked slopes far from the madding crowd.

But this isn't a snowsports bulletin board, so I'd better give it some relevance by throwing in a few XC-skiing-related words. We langlaufers tend to be derided by downhill ("alpine") skiers, who call us "skinny skiers" or "chook-walkers". We in turn call them "yo-yo skiers". We all deride the snowboarders, although I can't for the moment think of a common insulting term, other than the generic "hoon".

Cheers,
ChookOn(Skinny)Skis

Not necessarily insulting, but I ahve heard snowboarders described as the crows of the slopes, due to their tendency to settle in chattering groups on the snow, squawking noisily at each other and not really doing much. Except getting in the way of those who have just got off the lift and would actually like to ski!
(Any boarders out there, I am about half-serious! If you have to stop in groups, do it away from the lift and at the edge of the slope. Please!)

Chookman,

Off-road XC definitely sounds qualmlessliest to me. The best kind of cycling, similarly, is where you're free to take your time and see the sights. Even if you're on a route that's been 'recycled' time and again..

I'm obliged to ask about the derivations of 'chook' and 'hoon'!

Fishman

the crows of the slopes

Very apt, Bridget - especially as on the rare occasions they're moving around they do so in little hops.

I just looked up the relevant adjective, thinking it was 'craven' for some reason (probably as there's a black bird in that word!)

But of course it's corvine.

about the derivations of 'chook' and 'hoon'!

"chook" is common in many parts of UK as a diminutive for "chicken" - usually used as a term of endearment to another human, rather than to poultry. From other threads, I gather it has the meaning of poultry in many other English-speaking places.

"hoon" - leaves me totally bewildered - but someone willenlighten us, that is for certain!

I'm obliged to ask about the derivations of 'chook' and 'hoon'!

Fishman,
As Rhu has explained chooks are chickens. In casual conversation in Australia, the word 'chooks' is a very common substitute for the 'proper' word. We have six chooks in our backyard and within our family we never refer to them as chickens. Some people apparently see similarities between the XC skier's stride and the gait of a chicken, hence the term "chook-walker".

Now for hoon. I wondered about the word as I typed it, and now find to my surprise that it only registers one hit in One-Look Dictionary search (actually two, but I wasn't referring to gold Pagoda coins). It's apparently Aussie slang. The meaning for it in the link from One-Look was "Loudmouth, to drive recklessly". Now that I think about it, it's used as a noun and as a verb. The usage I was first aware of is in referring to young men in "hot" cars with not much to do on a Friday/Saturday night, burning rubber and abusing passersby. They are hoons, and they're "hooning around". I obviously made the mental leap from their behaviour on the roads to that of snowboarders on the slopes. I have no idea about the etymology of the word - can anyone help?

Now please let me qualify - if not retract - my tongue-in-cheek remarks about other alpine recreationalists. I haven't really got it in for 'boarders. I have had several fun days snowboarding, and hope to have more. I think it's great that snowboarding has opened up the slopes to the younger generation who have grown up on skateboards. I have also been guilty of yo-yo skiing, and my daughters love it. But when I go to the mountains I'd still rather "get away from it all" than find I'm still surrounded by it all.

Cheers,
Chookman.

Are 'chook' and 'hoon' pronounced alike? Or does 'chook' sound more like 'book'?

Are 'chook' and 'hoon' pronounced alike? Or does 'chook' sound more like 'book'?

Anna,

chook - short oo as in book
hoon - long oo as in boon

chook

Chook is pronounced like book and hook, while hoon rhymes with loon. I'm not sure where hoon comes from, but it's an everyday word here, used to refer to (mostly) young hooligans. The thought occurred to me that it is possibly a contraction of hooligan. Just don't take my word for it!

Chook,
I should really have guessed that chooks are chickens. I can also see how a XC skier may appear chook-like. You even have the arm/ski-pole movement which makes for the stubby wings. Cute!

"Hoon" is a useful word. To me it somehow implies the leery noises that such folk are inclined to make, as well as the tooting of horns and the slow cruising of cars (preamble to the rubber-burning). Max's "hooligan" connection is probably apt, though also, of course that with "loons".

In fact, I just checked out "loon" on Merriam-Webster online, and it came up with:

1 : LOUT, IDLER
2 chiefly Scottish: BOY
3 a : a crazy person b : SIMPLETON

These all relate to hoons quite well, don'tcha think?

Now, I should really have a bit more of an affinity with 'boarders than yo-yo skiers, being a reasonably keen windsurfer. But I haven't. Suppose, along with skateboarding, it gives my kids an easy means of expressing their independence when they're a bit older. Aren't I kind?

Fish

Funny that your Merriam-Webster did not also state that loon is a aquatic bird. Hmmm.

F.Y.I. in Canada we call our dollar a loony because when it first came out in coin format (instead of paper) there was a loon on the tail side. The name has stuck since. The two dollar coin is called a twony (too-ny) just because the mind works in mysterious ways...

the mind works in mysterious ways...

...his one dollars to perform?

Chook is pronounced like book

There are parts of the UK where the normal pronunciation of book is not the short book that rhymes with hook, but is rather the long booook. There will be voices out there better qualified than mine to elucidate...

mav, don't confuse me now, after all these kind elucidators' posts.
(Yorkshire doesn't count)

There are parts of the UK where the normal pronunciation of book is not the short book that rhymes with hook, but is rather the long booook.

Lancashire is one such place (although with three, rather than four "o"s ) and chook is pronounce herealmost like "chuck". Whilst not everyday parlance, it is not infrequently used as a mild term of endearment.

In Northamptonshire (and Leicestershire, which is next door) the most common expression - used by all to all, regardless of sex - is "My duck." (pronounce "me dook" - rhymes with book)
Why are fowl seen as an apt metaphor for friendly humans? Most of the fowl I've come across are just that!
(perhaps there is a sociological eggquation to explain it )

booook

Although RhubC's quite right in emphasizing that this is a Northern (English) thing, here's a very entertaining pronunciation guide to another well-known regional accent.
http://www.virtualgaz.co.uk/gazzapage.htm
I recommend that you all give it a blast, even if you've no interest at all in the field, nor knowledge of how it should sound!

that loon is a aquatic bird

Yes, belM, I was expecting that. Hang on, I just found the second definition:

Main Entry: loon
Function: noun
Etymology: of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse lOmr loon
Date: 1634
: any of several large birds (genus Gavia) of Holarctic regions that feed on fish by diving and have their legs placed far back under the body for optimal locomotion underwater


"optimal locomotion underwater"
"feed on fish"

Do you think hoons or chooks have their legs placed further back under the body?

In French Québec we also use 'mon canard' (my duck) as a term of endearment - but just for men since this is a male noun. Women are called 'ma poulette' (my little chickie).

Birdies, now there IS something cute about about birds, but we also have a term we use for someone we are friendly with: 'mon choux'. Mon choux means 'my cabbage'. Why a vegetable that gives you gas is a term of endearment for men I don't….wait, hold on a minute there…men, gas, men, gas, men, gas,…hmmm, well alright, maybe if fits .

...his one dollars to perform?

Pun my sole, mav! I know you're not fishing for compliments, but you deserve pride of plaice for that one.
And one good tern deserves another.

mon choux

..so do you call women you are friendly with 'choux fleurs'?

another geezer/geyser/gasser

Choupette (little cabbage) Much less gas involved

Choupette

A delightful word!
Less gas involved? Well, so we are led to believe.

Hang on, bolt from the blue - "choux" also relates to sweet pastries such as eclairs, does it not?

As endorsed by Five Bellies?

I know that we have the bovine four stomachs; what the heck is the significance of "Five Bellies?"

I didn't check the website, but assumed from the url that is referred to 'Gazza' - semi-legendary English footballer and all round lager lout, woman-beater, idiot (in the informal sense), but occasional genius on the field. Full name Paul Gascoigne. The accent in question would then be the Geordie one - for those who hail from the environs of Newcastle-upon -Tyne.

In any case, famously, Gazza's best friend is a Geordie of great girth, whose appetite and size have led to his being nicknamed 'Five Bellies' by his friends. I'm not even sure if Gazza and he are friends any more, but his association with the 'great' man has led to his becoming a minor league TV celebrity in his own right...

(You had to be there...)

cheer

the sunshine warrior

>nicknamed 'Five Bellies'

I get it; one more than a cow!

Who knows? Some Geordies seem to think the height of humour is farting a beat. (I said some godammit - I am not stereotyping here.) But this is probably true of some Brummies, Lancastrians, Cockneys and Prince Phillip, amongst other groups...

cheer

the sunshine warrior

< farting a beat>

and now -- Le petomane (the Musical!!)

>that loon is a aquatic bird

Loons - was also the name given to trousers with particularly wide legs. I remember cutting a slit in the legs of a pair of jeans and inserting lurid flowery fabric in a "V" shape to make the bell bottoms as wide as possible without falling over whilst walking.

Hi Fish. Sorry it took so long to answer, been off up north for a bit of weekend R&R.

Choux à la crème (cream filled) or Choux à la costarde (custard filled) are the pastries. You have to be specific or else you will get the veggie (which is NOT a wonderfully rich, flavourful dessert )

...choux...You have to be specific or else you will get the veggie (which is NOT a wonderfully rich, flavourful dessert

To my ear "choux pastry" always suggests something as tough as old boots.

I guess there's vast potential for humorous language-based misunderstandings. I often recall my very first evening in France some 16 years ago, when my girlfriend (now wife) and I were perusing the dessert menu. She pointed to a particular item on the list and asked the waiter "Est-ce pomme de terre?", to which he responded, chuckling and pointing skywards, "Non, c'est pomme à l'air!"

[Explanation for non-French speakers: pomme de terre - literally "apple from ground" - is French for potato.]

Well, I vaguely remember being taken in my teens to see a one-woman show by a famous actress whose name now escapes me based on the letters of Liselotte, a German princess who married Louis XIV's brother, the Duke of Orleans. Now, whether it was the Duke himself or one of his friends I now forget, but anyway someone in that circle was described as being able to be able to fart recognisable tunes.

Bingley

pomme à l'air

Brilliant!
Perhaps there's a poorly-translated biography of Isaac Newton where it's a potato that lands on his head?
That would have got him thinking.

Or concussed him.

Sorry it took so long to answer, been off up north for a bit of weekend R&R.

I think it's allowed! It's about time I tailed off on the current posting frenzy, actually (sighs of relief all round)....

Just having so much fun!

By the way, I have an uncle who lives in Toronto (boo hiss!). Stayed with him way way back, and we spent some time just a tiny distance north of there - Muskoka??
It was a great holiday.

shanks,
Yes, Gazza was the original "legend in his own lunchtime", wasn't he?

Could probably be called Five Chins these days.

P.S. I don't know why the page is called gazza.htm - must have some Brummie meaning of which I'm unaware.

some Brummie meaning of which I'm unaware.

Well, if there is anyone else out there who hasn't yet checked the site Fishy kindly ponted to, they should hit the doo-dah, an gew there stroitway - it ennarf goin ter maek yer laff, less youra nanna!