Pie in the Sky - 17 December 2012

<p>Looking for a book to read with the kids, or maybe a guide to becoming a better writer? Plus, why are leg cramps called charley horses? And where'd we get a phrase like "pie in the sky"? If you happen to be tall, you've no doubt heard plenty of clueless comments from strangers. A listener who's 6-foot-8 shares his favorite snappy comebacks. Plus, a word quiz for math lovers, bathroom euphemisms, johnny-on-the-spot, and the biggest palmetto bugs in the land!<br /><br />FULL DETAILS<br /><br />Some call it quitting a book, while others call it post-publication editing. You know, in place of any neglected pre-publication editing. John in San Diego, California, who wrote us to suggest that term, wrote us to say that many a book should have been an essay; many an essay should have been a paragraph; many a paragraph should have been a sentence. Cheers, John!<br /><br />Does Johnny-on-the-spot refer to a person or a porta potty? Or both? The phrase Johnny-on-the-spot, meaning a fellow who helpfully shows up at just the right instant, dates to the 1870s. But in the early 1900s, the john became a common euphemism for the outhouse. Today, there are several companies called Johnny On The Spot that operate porta potties and display that name on their doors.<br /><br />The Dictionary of American Regional English has entries for Mrs. Jones, Miss Janet, Mrs. Murphy, and Neighbor Jones, all of which are euphemisms for outhouse or toilet. We've discussed others before, like going to see a man about a horse. It's part of a tradition of not explicitly referring to the place where we urinate and defecate. But please, go ahead and share with us your favorite bathroom euphemisms!<br /><br />What do you call the flavor explosion that comes from splashing some soft drinks from every one of a restaurant's fountains into one cup? A suicide, a graveyard, swampwater? Any special recipes, or do you just go for it?<br /><br />We all know the moon's made of green cheese, but what's the deal with the pie in the sky? The idiom pie in the sky,