Category: Omnibit

Explain the phrase when push comes to shove. A push is a shove right? How can a push become a shove when a push is already a shove?

The phrase which means the point at which one must commit to action became popular in 19th century African-American slang eventually becoming universal. A good guess as to the genesis is a sentence from the United Methodist Free Churches’ Magazine in 1873 by Thomas De Witt Talmage in which Push is used as a proper noun: “The proposed improvement is about to fail, when Push comes up behind it and gives it a shove, and Pull goes in front and lays into the traces; and, lo! the enterprise advances, the goal is reached!”

Push comes to shove William Lawrence Sr Omnibit 8-30-18

The brown-headed cowbird is a rotten bird. They lay their eggs in the nests of other species and let them raise the chicks. If the other bird refuses, the cowbird comes back and destroys the nest forcing the building of a new one in which the cowbird again lays its egg.

Brown-headed cowbird William Lawrence Sr Omnibit 8-28-18

Yes Anthony, root beer can be an alcoholic beverage. Really.

Root beer can be an alcoholic beverage William Lawrence Sr Omnibit 8-28-18

Ernesto de la Cruz is the shortest actor to ever appear in film. The Filipino  was 2 feet, 9 inches tall and appeared in such classics as For Y’ur Height Only and The Impossible Kid using the name Weng Weng.

Weng Weng William Lawrence Sr Omnibit 8-27-18

The catbird is most famous for its cat-like call but it can also mimic other birds and even other animals like frogs.

Cat-like call William Lawrence Sr Omnibit 8-25-18

First Blood — at least the book upon which the Sylvester Stallone movie is based — is set in the fictional town of Madison, Ky., which is just a stand-in for Bellefonte, Pa. in Centre County. Author David Morrell had attended Penn State. Many of the characters in the novel have names taken from Penn State buildings.

Bellefonte William Lawrence Sr Omnibit 8-24-18

You think licorice is for candy? Sometimes sure but the vast majority of the root is used by the tobacco industry.

Licorice William Lawrence Sr Omnibit 8-23-18

Few realized that some consider the pheasant to be the most colorful bird — if not animal – in the world. Take that scarlet macaw.

Most colorful bird William Lawrence Sr Omnibit 8-22-18

The European conger eel is the largest in the world. It can reach almost 10 feet in length and weigh up to 240 pounds. OK, moray eels might get a little longer but they won’t weigh as much.

Conger eel William Lawrence Sr Omnibit 8-21-18

 

Similax ornata is a big yum for some folk. It’s a vine native to Mexico and Central America. In Spanish it’s called zarzparrilla. It’s used to flavor  sarsaparilla soda and sometimes  root beer.

Sarsaparilla William Lawrence Sr Omnibit 8-20-18