Tag Archives: baseball

14 Aug

gastropub

Where taught: Meat and Potatoes

gastropub, a new word to be added into Webster dictionary

gastropub

During the last weekend, my friends, Jason and Ashley, from Buffalo visited us. We had a great time together, taking a short trip to D.C. and going to a baseball game in Pittsburgh.

Yesterday, while walking from PNC Park to a parking lot, we were passing by a restaurant called Meat and Potatoes. This place is considered to be one of the best restaurants in Pittsburgh. I have never been to but am planning to go soon.

Right in front of the restaurant, there was a street sign that they put on and it says “Meat and Potatoes, Gastropub.”

When I saw that sign, I thought, “Hmm.. gastropub? That’s a new word for me.” Because it sounds interesting, I was able to remember the word till this Morning.

Sometimes, new words just want me to remember by showing themselves more than one time within a very short time period. Well, that is exactly what happened this Morning.

We all were watching Today show this Morning and they were talking about new English words to be added into Webster dictionary in 2012. Coincidentally, gastropub was one of them.

How can I forget this word? I am sure you have a pretty good idea that this word means a restaurant that serves also beers or liquors. That’s pretty much what it means. But, to be more precise, the definition that Webster will use is as follows.

a pub, bar, or tavern that also offers meals of high quality.

It is a combined word of gastronomy and pub. Wouldn’t it be nice if we had this kind of experience all the time to learn new words? They will definitely stick.

Hey, my friends! I will let you know whether the restaurant is really what it claims to be after I eat food there.

18 Aug

will-call

WILL-CALL (source: http://fieldnotesbrand.com/)

Oh boy! It is official! Pirates lose every time I go to the ballpark to watch a game. Yesterday, I went to the PNC Park with my friends and Jessy. They won two previous games but they lost yesterday when Jessy and I were there. But, I will support the Pirates no matter what because I am not a fair weather fan.

Knowing that my friends are visiting and they want to see a MLB game, I bought tickets online. As I was filling the required information out, I noticed that  there was only one option for the delivery type and it was “WILL-CALL.”  (I believe there should be a lot more options but all the other options were not available because I only had two more days to the game.)

When I first saw this “WILL-CALL,” I thought they WILL CALL me to discuss how they are going to deliver the tickets. Thus, I decided to wait for one day. Nothing happened. Well, I gotta do something to make sure that I get the tickets before the game. So, I called the Pirates’ customer service, asking this simple question, “What does this WILL-CALL  mean as the delivery type?”

My initial guess was totally off. However, it is not too far off according to its origin or history. Here is the history of the expression I got from Wikipedia.

In the days before the telephone, the phrase “I will call on you” was commonly used to mean that someone will visit you, or speak to you. The phrase has since largely fallen into disuse, with the word “call” being much more commonly associated with the telephone than speaking to someone in person. The term “will call”, however, has stuck, and means that the customer “will call on” the company to pick up the tickets or merchandise, as opposed to having the items delivered to them.

Even with this origin, the real meaning as of now is the box office that customers pick up their pre-purchased tickets. It does not even mean that the customer WILL CALL the box office. Instead, it means the physical box office. Oh, well, I actually did call.

So, one advice, if you hear or see “WILL-CALL” in the context of purchasing tickets, that does not mean you call someone or they will call you. It just means the box office or you need to pick up your tickets from the box-office.

Good luck with your shopping!

23 Mar

on the ball

Who taught: Kathy

On the ball (source: http://www.choicehow.com)

One more week! Then, I will become a homeowner for the first time in my life. Not sure whether it is a good thing or not because many of my friends have told me, “Terry! You are getting yourself into a series of troubles but it is kind of fun.” I kind of get what they mean but it is still pretty exciting. About a month ago when I first singed on the sales agreement, I felt like I am just buying a thing, which is true. The only difference from the things I have ever bought so far is that I cannot take it with me. It is kind of irony. Isn’t it? Buy something that cannot be taken with you. Well, as time goes by to get closer to the closing date which is March 31, 2011, I feel that this is real. That house is mine and I will live in it soon.

But, it has not been just simple. Ever since I signed on the sales agreement, I have been very busy with home inspection and documents preparation, etc. What can I say? Nothing is easy in the world! During the process, I have been keeping in touch with a few different people and one of them is Kathy who works for my mortgage company. A few days ago, she asked me to buy a home insurance and keep her informed as the last step. So, I did it and sent an email where I put quote number and name and phone number of the sales agent I talked to, etc.

A few hours later, she sent me a response. It was very short. She said, “Boy! You are on the ball.”

When I first read it, I thought I was able to understand what she meant but not sure whether my feeling was right or not. One thing I can say, though, my feeling about a new expression is getting better and better. 🙂 So, my first feeling about the expression, on the ball, was “I am doing good.” To find out whether I am right or not, I googled it. Here is the meaning of the expression! “Well-informed and be in complete control.”

But, the more important part is its etymology. Where is it from? Doing my research, I found this forum in which you can find a lot of different stories about its origin. I will leave it up to your discretion. Being a huge soccer fan, my choice is that it is from soccer just like a English guy’s argument. Baseball is too small to have a feeling of being on the ball. Soccer ball is big enough to have my foot be on the ball. Hence, I can totally imagine that I am in full control over the ball by putting my foot on the soccer ball. I am sure you would have the same feeling if you’ve ever played soccer.

What do you think?