They can't paddle me! I'm a girl!
D. reminded me of one of my favourite Calvin and Hobbes strips the other day:
Somehow, I don't think that excuse will do me much good the next time I'm over his knee.
Coming from the UK, I've always found 'heinie' a very odd word. (Is the singular of 'heinies' heinie? Heiny? Heiney? Okay, now it looks even odder.) I wonder if that's where the phrase 'a heinous punishment' comes from?
(I am, by the way, politically opposed to the use of corporal punishment in schools. But you take your startles where you can get them.)
Wow !!! You are a Calvin and Hobbes fan aswell. Could you get any cooler?
ReplyDeleteGod bless you and whatever creatures are drooling under your bed.
Tricky x
It's short for "hindquarters" :)
ReplyDeleteTricky: I'll have you know I wouldn't fit under Pandora's bed, as there's art supplies under there. ;)
ReplyDeletemicki: I'd always assumed it was derived from Yiddish, though that may be entirely due to Wierd Al Yankovich and the fact that it can sound vaguely that way Brooklyn accent. Your etymology suggests that the correct pronunciation is high-nee, not (as it is often pronounced) hee-nee?
Tricky - I think the main creature drooling under my bed is my cat. Creatures drooling in my bed are another question entirely :)
ReplyDeleteMicki - Aha! suddenly that makes sense :) Thankyou for that :)
Mr C - you talk as if pronunciation in the English language was consistent with etymology. Perish the thought! :D