The Hogs Ate Him
Growing up there are so many expressions...so many words that my father used to say that have annoyingly become part of the language around my house.
Of course, the classic - "Bah!" - whenever my father was exasperated - which was often - has become standard lingo around all of the Fazzolari households and has also crept into the homes of our close friends.
Then there are the Italian swear words. You could tell how angry my father was by how many of the words were strung together - and unfortunately, I am handing those same words down to my kids. I don't even really know what they mean! Yet I heard my nephew Rocco say them on his last visit, so they are words that stick with you for quite awhile. Sam laughs every time I let loose with the string, which is good, I suppose, because we didn't laugh when my father let go. We ran.
There is also a classic story out there of a college friend, Fluffy, who after hanging out with me for years, approached an Italian woman (right off the boat) at a wedding (he was a little tipsy) and tried to impress her with his knowledge of the language. He shared my father's famous string of words and she slapped him across the face.
Yet the other day I answered Matt in another of my father's famous expressions.
"Where'd Jake go?" Matt asked.
Without even thinking, I answered: "He went to crap and the hogs ate him."
Matt just stared at me.
"My father used to say that all the time," I said.
Matt hesitated for a long moment. Finally he just tossed his palms out flat.
"But why?" he asked.
"Bah! I have no idea."
Of course, the classic - "Bah!" - whenever my father was exasperated - which was often - has become standard lingo around all of the Fazzolari households and has also crept into the homes of our close friends.
Then there are the Italian swear words. You could tell how angry my father was by how many of the words were strung together - and unfortunately, I am handing those same words down to my kids. I don't even really know what they mean! Yet I heard my nephew Rocco say them on his last visit, so they are words that stick with you for quite awhile. Sam laughs every time I let loose with the string, which is good, I suppose, because we didn't laugh when my father let go. We ran.
There is also a classic story out there of a college friend, Fluffy, who after hanging out with me for years, approached an Italian woman (right off the boat) at a wedding (he was a little tipsy) and tried to impress her with his knowledge of the language. He shared my father's famous string of words and she slapped him across the face.
Yet the other day I answered Matt in another of my father's famous expressions.
"Where'd Jake go?" Matt asked.
Without even thinking, I answered: "He went to crap and the hogs ate him."
Matt just stared at me.
"My father used to say that all the time," I said.
Matt hesitated for a long moment. Finally he just tossed his palms out flat.
"But why?" he asked.
"Bah! I have no idea."
Comments
Wish I could have seen Fluffy do his thing... that must have been hysterical.