Not Quite a Boyfriend - 9 December 2013

<p>If an older man and woman spend lots of time together, going to family gatherings and the like, but they're NOT dating, what do you call their relationship? Best friends? Dear friends? Or . . . something else? And a marathon runner who's crossed 31 states on foot talks about the odd phrases people use when giving directions. Plus, handegg, victuals and vittles, nernees and farsees, take a decision vs. make a decision, and the growing popularity of text tattoos.<br /><br /><br />FULL DETAILS<br /><br />When it comes to tattoos, passages of text are an increasingly popular alternative to images.<br /><br />The word victuals is pronounced like "vittles" and refers to cooked foods and shares a Latin root with vitamin and vitality. Sometimes it's spelled vittles, a form often associated with more informal or rustic speech.<br /><br />If you pass by a place, does that mean you go into it? Or do you go past it? An Australian caller and his American ex-girlfriend disagreed. In parts of the English-speaking world, the phrase pass by is one in a long list of synonyms for "visit," along with drop by, come round, and go by.<br /><br />While in Canada, Jami Attenberg, author of The Middlesteins, encountered the term keener, meaning "enthusiast."<br /><br />Our Quiz Guy John Chaneski sorts out the hosts with a puzzle about book categories on Amazon.com.<br /><br />When an older man and woman spend lots of time together, going to family gatherings and the like, but they're not dating, what do you call that relationship? Best friends? Dear friends? <br /><br />Texas Monthly barbecue editor Daniel Vaughn has been mulling how to classify the term BBQ, since the Q reflects sound, not an initial. It's a type of abbreviation called clipping. BBQ goes back to restaurant signs and menus from the 1930's where space was at a premium.<br /><br />What do you say when someone stands between you and the television? Some people say, Were you drinking muddy water? Another option: I can't see through your bay window!<br /><br />The term less