Between a rock and a hard place
Between a rock and a hard place
phrase of rock informal: faced with two equally undesirable alternatives.
Sample Sentence:
“The alternative was equally untenable—he was caught between a rock and a hard place.“
English – English – English – English – English – English – English – English – English – English – English – English – English – English
Phrase of the day: Satz des Tages:
“Between a rock and a hard place.” Faced with two equally dangerous or difficult choices or circumstances. This phrase dates from the early twentieth century.
Sample Sentence:
“Trying to please two supervisors is like being between a rock and a hard place.”
Colloquial / Colloquialisms:
Umgangssprache / Umgangssprache:
“He’s gone Deolali” This saying originated during the Second World War (WWII). British troops were stationed in India to protect “The Jewel in the Crown” of the British “Raj” from attack/invasion by the Japanese Army. DO-LALI (as you would pronounce it) is a small town in India that has a very high humidity (Feuchtigkeit) percentage. If the British troops did not take their salt tablets they would literally GO MAD and so this is where the saying comes from and was made popular. British troops were in India for over 200 years and so the saying could be much older than the 1940’s.
In the 1970s there was a British comedy program which was set in the 1940s in India, in the town of Deolali and yes, the comedy program did mention that if you did not take your salt tablets, then you would go Deolali / mad/crazy.
Wit, Wit, Wit Business examples:
Witz, Witz, Witz Geschäftsbeispiele:
“The financial cost of playing golf can be best figured out when you realise if you were to devote the same time and energy to business you would be a millionaire in approximately six weeks.” Quote by Buddy Hackett.
Amusing story: Amüsante Geschichte:
The “Danke” – “Bitte”! syndrome.
An amusing story in Söll, Austria on a skiing trip in 1983.
I first came across this “syndrome” in 1983. I was staying at the Pension “Kaiserblick” in Söll (I wonder if it is still there????). This ski area is quite a popular area to go skiing for the British. The pension “Kaiserblick” was a small guest house (“Pension” – means “Guesthouse” in German and not the money (Pension in English) that you get from the Government when you retire). It was a nice place, quite close to the main ski lift (at the time, I had no idea today). It was a family-run guesthouse with the husband being the Chef (cook), the wife the waitress and the daughter the chambermaid. There were about 8 rooms in the building. All were taken. There were 8 tables in the breakfast/dinner room and so each mealtime there would be this “ritual” of the “Thank you – please!” Each table had between 2 – 4 people and so for example, at dinner, the waitress would serve the soup. Each person would say, “Thank you”, as the waitress passed them their bowl of soup and each, “Thank you” would be answered with, “Please!” One table equalled 4 “pleases”. Now for table number two. The same procedure, “Thank you” would be answered with, “Please!” and table 3, 4, 5 and so on.
THEN, the waitress would return to collect the now-empty soup bowls. The person would say, “Thank you” as the waitress took the bowl. She would answer with, “Please!” Eight tables could mean up to 32 times she would say the word, “Please!”
This was “The Starters”; now for the “Main Course”. The waitress would balance 4 plates on her arms and pass them to her guests. They would say, “Thank you” she would answer with, “Please!” – 8 tables, a maximum of 32 times.
People would eat their meals. But, then the waitress would return to collect the now-empty plates. As we gave her the plates we said, “Thank you” and she would answer with, “Please!”
Now for the “afters”/ “dessert” / “sweet”. The same procedure as before and again when she collected the empty dessert bowls.
This woman HAD to say, “Please” as this is the German answer for “Thank you” = “Danke” – “Bitte!”
We stayed in the guesthouse for a week and I watched this “Thank you”, and “Please!” at all mealtimes. This was just us, for one week. The Ski season could be from October, at the very earliest, but probably November, until April at the latest, but probably March. Her guests (mostly British) would be polite and say, “Thank you” and she would always answer “Please!” If they were German, then, “Danke” – “Bitte!”
I can imagine the waitress lying in bed at night, curled up and asleep after a long hard day’s work and as she dreamt she would say, “Please! – Please! – Please!”
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Translate the Text into English: Übersetzen:
Adjectives:
Multiple Meanings
In English, we can use light to refer to weight or colour. In German, leicht only refers to weight!
Das Mädchen ist leicht. The girl is light.
Kurz can only be used for objects and time. To say a person is short, use Klein.
Das Buch ist kurz. The book is short.
Der Mann ist klein. The man is small.
Back in the 1950’s toll meant crazy or insane. Nowadays, it means great.
Let’s talk about Bach
Earlier, we practised how to say that soft ch sound (like in humid). leicht, nicht, schlecht
as in “humid”
When a ch comes after an a or u, the sound is harsher and farther back in the throat, almost like the sound, some people make before spitting. schwach, Nacht, Buch like “leicht”, but even harsher.
Another sound made in the back of the throat is the German r at the beginning of words. It’s similar to gargling or a cat purring. ruhig, rund, Reis like gargling.
Die Suppe ist klar.
Der Vogel ist frei.
Das Kind ist leicht.
Die Maus ist leise.
Ist es lang?
Er ist ruhig.
Ihr seid Toll.
Die Nudeln sind lang.
Der Junge ist leicht.
Sie sind schwach.
Es ist leise.
Die Männer sind ruhig.
Es ist ruhig.
Er ist schwach.
Es ist schwach.
Der Kaffee ist Toll.
Das Wasser ist normal.
Das ist normal.
Snowy Oaks, Yosemite NP, CA, USA
English – English – English – English – English – English – English – English – English – English – English – English – English – English
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Quote of the week: Zitat der Woche:
Dolly Parton said the advice she received from her father that she always tries to live by is:
“Be a first-rate version of yourself, and not a second-rate version of someone else.”
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