"I JOKE YOU NOT"

While visiting with my husband's niece, she used the phrase "I joke you not!" Of course, I knew what she meant, but I'd never heard the phrase previously. I asked members of my family and friends and none had heard it used.

I googled the phrase and there was a large number of references of people using the phrase and also a dreadful "song" by Eminem (which I will not share here).

When I was a kid, I remember that Jack Paar used to say, "I kid you not"; in fact, he had a book with that title. I never used that phrase. I also remember Humphrey Bogart saying it in the film The Caine Mutiny.

Les just asked, "Have you ever heard anybody say catty-corner?" He said that he'd heard it said on the radio. I told him I'd always heard kitty-corner.

It's probably not surprising to those who know me that I belong to organizations and sites which take this kind of discussion seriously (CLICK HERE to see a link). Also, see the maps from the University of Minnesota which show the prevalence of the use of kitty-corner and catty-corner in the United States. From the maps, Les and I think that most Ohioans say "catty corner" rather than the "kitty-corner" which we use. I was surprised to learn that people also say "caddy-corner". Les said, "Maybe there's a luxury car diagonally opposite from them."

CATTY-CORNER

KITTY-CORNER