Idioms

Recently, I overheard a person use the phrase “Who died and made you king?” mid-argument and I was reminded how much I love English idioms. Can we appreciate the awesomeness that is an idiom? A phrase that literally means one thing, but we collectively understand it as another. Where do they come from? Why are they so underused? Truly phenomenal phrases such as “the best thing since sliced bread,” “the elephant in the room,” “quit cold turkey,” “hold your horses,” and “get your ducks in a row” (why are they all animal related?) all going to waste! I want to see these in our daily vocabulary!

Grades

Amongst the hundreds of things that might anger me in a day, one thing stands out: how we keep getting tests at the very end of the term! I get it, tests are a “natural” part of life, I’ve long accepted that fate. But I cannot handle a week of having tests in every class. How teachers expect me to study for eight classes is beyond me. And not to insult the locked-in teachers, but if tests aren’t graded in time for revisions, then I’m stuck in purgatory waiting for my grades to plummet. Next term, perhaps no tests at all?

Weather

Let’s be real, DC. why is it so cold? There has been on-and-off snow for the last two weeks, and now it’s just cold! There is no light snow for sledding, walking anywhere feels like a chore, I’m constantly watching the sidewalk to avoid slipping, and my feet keep sinking into the gross slush. Instead of a fun snow day, I’m here slipping on the walk to my bus stop. What gets me even more is that it’s so hot in the classrooms. I have to take off 100 layers of clothing for security, put them back on, and then do it all over again when the classroom feels like 90 degrees. There is a time for the cold to end, and that time is now! •