mysteries of the words
what the hell is a rain check anyway??? how did something so innocuous a pair of words evolve into something that means "next time na lang?"
i'm on the belief that somewhere we'll never know, a cabal of intellectuals meet every 3 months and decide which words goes into the mass consciousness.
there must a secret conclave that pairs random words together and make them into a new colloquial expression.
take rain check.
checks are good as cash. PDCs are unknown everywhere else but the Philippines. So having a check is having ready cash.
Then rain. Rain is weather. It may sound somber, but there is nothing wrong in the word itself.
anyway, the secret shadowy organization would probably conduct their meeting like this:
"Hey Joe, i thought you couldn't make it to this conference?"
"I was supposed to go on vacation with my secretary, but she cancelled last minute. Mumbled something about the weather being bad and all."
"Rain, huh? Would probably spoil your caribbean vacation anyway."
"Who said anything about staying outdoors?"
"I know how you feel, buddy."
"Good thing i paid the tickets and all via check. Might as well have my staff cancel it."
"Are you thinking what i'm thinking?"
"What?"
"Rain was the cause of your cancellation. And since you paid with a check, you can still keep your money."
"..and?"
"I was thinking, maybe we can use the two words together when referring to a cancelled event."
"Check Rain?"
"No, dummy. Rain check. Payable when the weather improves."
"I better write it down. Meeting's about to start in 30 minutes."
"Yeah, let's head to the jacuzzi."
"And let's introduce the term in the States or something. They like canceling out there."
(editor's note: Rain Check originated from baseball; spectators at games that were postponed because of rain would receive a check that could be used to attend a future game.)
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and that's probably how words started.
Wonder how they invented the terms "lukewarm," "tit for tat," and "yeah, whatever."
i'm on the belief that somewhere we'll never know, a cabal of intellectuals meet every 3 months and decide which words goes into the mass consciousness.
there must a secret conclave that pairs random words together and make them into a new colloquial expression.
take rain check.
checks are good as cash. PDCs are unknown everywhere else but the Philippines. So having a check is having ready cash.
Then rain. Rain is weather. It may sound somber, but there is nothing wrong in the word itself.
anyway, the secret shadowy organization would probably conduct their meeting like this:
"Hey Joe, i thought you couldn't make it to this conference?"
"I was supposed to go on vacation with my secretary, but she cancelled last minute. Mumbled something about the weather being bad and all."
"Rain, huh? Would probably spoil your caribbean vacation anyway."
"Who said anything about staying outdoors?"
"I know how you feel, buddy."
"Good thing i paid the tickets and all via check. Might as well have my staff cancel it."
"Are you thinking what i'm thinking?"
"What?"
"Rain was the cause of your cancellation. And since you paid with a check, you can still keep your money."
"..and?"
"I was thinking, maybe we can use the two words together when referring to a cancelled event."
"Check Rain?"
"No, dummy. Rain check. Payable when the weather improves."
"I better write it down. Meeting's about to start in 30 minutes."
"Yeah, let's head to the jacuzzi."
"And let's introduce the term in the States or something. They like canceling out there."
(editor's note: Rain Check originated from baseball; spectators at games that were postponed because of rain would receive a check that could be used to attend a future game.)
------
and that's probably how words started.
Wonder how they invented the terms "lukewarm," "tit for tat," and "yeah, whatever."
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