Prompt 227-Idioms

Rewrite some of these commonly used idioms to make them more interesting, or maybe start a story: “Pardon my French,” “My mind is in a fog,” “There is more than one way to skin a cat,” “You are on thin ice.”

“Pardon my French, but you’re on thin fucking ice.”

“That’s not even French.”

“It’s just an expression!”

–

“My ears must be clogged or my mind is in a fog because I swear I just heard you say we were gonna skin a cat.”

“No, I said there’s more than one way to skin a cat.”

“I still don’t want to skin any cats.”

–

Pardon my French, but je voulais vous dire que vous êtes belle mais l’anglais n’est pas assez bon pour le dire. De plus, je ne parle pas français et j’ai utilisé Internet pour traduire cela. J’espère que vous pouvez me pardoner.

–

My mind is in a fog. The gray mists have captured it. It does not belong out there. It belongs in my skull. It belongs with me. How did it get out there? What am I without it? Am I alone? No. There are others. The fog holds many minds captive. I can hear them. They want to return to their bodies. The bodies. They seek their minds. No! They must not go into the mists. Into the fog. What does it want? It wants a body. A physical form. It must not get what it wants. The fog is dangerous. My mind is in the fog.

–

There is more than one way to skin a cat. What a stupid phrase to pop into her head at a time like this, but she latches on to it anyway. After all, someone was taking it far too literally. She is grateful for the tears that blur her vision and blot out the sight of the feline graveyard in the abandoned lot. So many little forms stripped of their hides. She hoped none of them had been on their 9^th lives when they’d encountered the Skinner, but she vowed to avenge each and every one of them just the same.

–

You are on thin ice. The early thaw has reduced the lake’s frozen top layer. In years past, it was still safe to come out onto the ice this deep into the winter. The hissing crack beneath your feet claims otherwise. It is too late a warning. You are already on the ice. You spread your feet, slowly, carefully, shifting your weight in the hopes that you can return to the shore before the lake swallows you. One step at a time. You can make your way back to safety, one step at a time. The sun warming your cheeks feels full of laughter at your folly. You glare at it in defiance. You can see the edge. You will be back on solid ground in a few more steps. A shot rings out and bounces off the mountains. The freezing water rushes up around you.

Notes: I couldn’t decide on a coherent story for any of them so I just kind of started writing whatever popped into my head. Obviously, I combined them at first into silly dialogue exchanges rather than attempting to make them more interesting. Then I used each to start a story, or at least get a short paragraph out of it. Something a little different for tonight anyway.

That’s all I’ve got for you for tonight, though. Have your own fun with these idioms! Use them to spark a story! Improve them and modernize them! I have faith in you!

Have a great night! See you tomorrow!

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