Hey foreign guys...Yankee question

[sunndog]

Did the term come from the drive in's?

I heard if you went to a drive in and it rained they would give you a "raincheck" which you could redeem next time you came
If that is true i s'pose it should be written "raincheque"

[Radagast]

Merkins write Check, not Cheque, they ignore the fact that it comes from the chequer pattern on the table used to count His Majesty's Government extortion.

[sunndog]

I suspected so but never seen it written down in yanklish......they dunna speak proper english like wot I does

[Brooksy]

Very good explanations there gents. I have to say though, on my visits to America the locals are always aghast when we tell them that our weather is too unpredictable for long camping trips in the wilderness and drive in movies, added to the fact that in Mid Summer it's too light to see the screen anyway !!.

Now, one thing I did notice a while back, I was at home for five weeks recovering from a shoulder operation and I watched an American show called 'Drive In's and Dives' or something, and not one American chef, presenter or diner could correctly pronounce Worcestershire Sauce!

Also like the Germans, they can't pronounce 'Squirrel' either.

Comments?

[Radagast]

Wooster sauce, did I get it right?
Squerl is pronounced 'tree rat'. :p

[Brooksy]

Just about mate. Now, what about Tomayto?

[Radagast]

That'S pronounced 'yuck!'

[hairyyoda]

Here is another odd one for you Frogman
A large number of farm livestock and animal/horse auctions all over the UK are conducted in a "bidding for" and a "sold transaction price" in "guineas" equalling £1.05p in our lingo or $1.49 in your native tongue
So tonight's homework for any of the "American forum members only" will be "What was the origin of the idea of the selling price being in guineas" Thanks Phil

[rodp]

I get it...Sod's Law = Murphy's Law. "If anything can go wrong, it will."

What does the American phrase 'Take a raincheck on that' mean? I noticed it crept into a certain Yorkshire based soap a while back but they soon put a stop to it.

The word "Raincheck" is antiquated. I haven't heard that word since the early 1980's.

Say went to the gun store. Gun store is holding a sale on .223 Sakos at 200quid a unit. Sale runs all week. Store runs out of guns on Thursday. You come in Friday and want a gun. Store is out of stock. You say "ill take a raincheck on that". Store would offer you a "Raincheck". A piece of paper that says, whenever the store gets more .223 Sakos back in, they'll sell you one at this week's sale price.

Back in the day, a Raincheck meant something. There was an agreement between the buyer and the seller. Beit, an Implied Contract, or Implied Handshake deal.

Selling practices and false advertisement are a big thing in the US.

As time went on, retailers got shady in selling practices. For example....same thing again at the gun store, same deal, week long sale. Gun store only has 3x .223 Sakos to sell. They run out at noon on Monday. Sale lasts all week. 100 folks come in the store between Tuesday and Friday wanting a .223 Sako for only 200quid. Store offers a Raincheck. Store never orders .223 Sakos again. But, they got 100 folks to enter the store, buy a box of ammo or beef jerky, and gave them a piece of paper (Raincheck) that is worth nothing. Sooner or later the public got wise to being offered a Raincheck on a sale...the public finally realized that he retailers were never going to reorder whatever product they offered a Raincheck on. It got to the point that when a saleperson offered you a rain check, the public equated the offer as the salesman telling you to "f@#ck yourself" while being professional and maintaining a friendly smile. In time, no one wanted Rainchecks anymore. No one wanted to put up with the shady selling practices. So 'Muricans did what 'Muricans do...said "f@#$ck you" sued a bunch of stores, cried to the president,...president says "f@#$ck you stores" laws were passed, no more shady selling,...Raincheck is now beyond "dead"...the public wants to forget about the entire concept.

Now those that remember Rainchecks or the slang term "I'll take a Raincheck on that" equated the term with a tongue-in-cheek, polite alternative of telling someone to go "f@#$ck" themselves.

For example...used contextually and correctly;

Brooksy, say you're sitting down at the corner pub, drinking a pint, watching the foote-bole` on the telly.rodp comes in, sits down on the end. He orders a pint. After a while, he starts blowing you kisses, and winks at you. You know me so well He says from across the bar, "You look pretty, like one of my sheep. What say we go to the loo and cuddle a bit?"... ...If this was 1988-or-you are over the age of 60 a polite retort for rodp's gracious offer would be "I'll take a raincheck on that!"




With the Yorkshire soap, I can only fathom two meanings on the phrase.

A.) The soap is so good, that it sells out regularly. "I'll take a raincheck on that"...because it's so good, I want it when ever the retailer receives more from the soap company.

B.) "Yorkshire Soap" "F@#$ck You!"

Soap as in "soap opera", junk make believe programs that women watch every night of the week

[sunndog]

Yep, thought he had you down to a T there rodders