Dawg Days of Summer

We turn the corner of Summer and head into the tail end or as it is

called the Dawg Days of Summer.

The dictionary defines “Dog Days” as: 1: the period between early July and early September when the hot sultry weather of summer usually occurs in the northern hemisphere.

Now that we have made it through another summer it’s time to get back to work and/or school. Remember that first day back to school when everyone stood up, introduced themselves and told about their summer vacations?

So for some reason this set me off on a search about just how much we use dogs in our language and all the phrases and terms that have been alluded to them or because of them here are a few I have collected:

· Gone to the dogs--taken a severe turn for the worse either in health, business or social habits.

· That dog won’t hunt--that’s a bad idea or a damned lie.

· Hair of the dog that bit you--the drink you drink the morning after to get over the drinks you drank the night before. Supposedly this will cure your hangover or at least put you in a condition so you’ll no longer notice it.

· Dog tired--very tired. Have you ever noticed how tired an old dog is after hunting or working cows all day?

· Sick as a dog--I think this is supposed to mean very sick, but most sick dogs I’ve seen don’t show it too much, in fact they don’t seem to get any sicker than other animals like horses, cows and pigs.

· Dog and pony show--this is an old salesman term, which means putting on a “fancy” presentation for clients, almost like the dog and pony act in a circus.

· My dogs are barking--this has several meanings. 1. My feet are hurting. 2. My feet are stinking. 3. I suspect that this person might just be lying.

· In the doghouse--in big trouble

· A barking dog never bites--you hear this quite often around beer joints when some good ol’ boy gets a belly full of beer and starts thinking he’s 6’5” and bullet proof and starts running his mouth about how bad he is. Generally it’s the barking dog that gets bit.

· Mean as a junkyard dog--pretty darn mean.

· Three dog night--this phrase comes from our Australian friends where the degree of cold during a winter night is measured by how many dogs it takes in your sleeping bag to sleep warm.

· If you lie down with dogs, you’ll get up with fleas--if you associate with bad people, you’ll acquire their bad habits. (Don’t mention this to the Aussies.)

· Dogleg left or right--a fairly sharp turn to the left or right.

· Dogs don’t eat dogs--disreputable folks will not harm other disreputable folks, kind of like honor among thieves.

· It’s a dog eat dog world out there--it’s a vicious world, ruthless competition or self-interest.

· It’s a dog’s life--it’s an easy life. (Don’t ask me how a dog’s life can be easy after running around in a dog eat dog world all day.)

· It’s a dog’s life--it’s a wretched existence. (I suppose it depends on which dog we’re talking about.)

· A dog’s chance--not very good odds.

· Every dog has his day--each of us in his turn will get his just rewards, good or bad.

· Call off the dogs--stop some objectionable line of conduct or actions or questions. This comes from hunting when dogs following the wrong scent or having treed the quarry are called off.

· Quick as a dog can lick his dish/ balls/ass (depending on who’s doing the describing)--pretty darn quick.

· Big dog--important person.

· Top dog--boss, leader, head honcho.

· If you can’t run with the big dogs, stay on the porch--don’t try to participate in activities that your ass pocket won’t carry. (Don’t try to do things you can’t afford.)

· Fighting like cats and dogs--having a very rowdy quarrel or some pretty good fisticuffs.

· Bird dog--to follow someone around.

· Let sleeping dogs lie--don’t bring up topics that have been sources of disagreement in the past.

· You can’t teach an old dog new tricks--old farts like me are used to doing things in a certain way and can’t or won’t change.

· Raining cats and dogs--raining hard.

· Dogged me--followed me around, bothered me.

· Dogged my ass--the supervisor paid close attention to my work.

· Dog it or doggin’ it--to be lazy, not working, sitting in the shade or leaning on a shovel while others work.

· Dog-faced liar--a person who is known to deal in falsehoods.

· Tail wagging the dog--folks not suited to make decisions dictating policy, which causes things to go awry.

As you see, our friend and companion, and protector, the dog has made our language far richer by his presence. I’d tell you more, but right now I’ve got to go see a man about a dog.