Arlene Remebers

Heavens TO Murgatroyd

  Would you believe the email spell checker did not recognize the word murgatroyd?   Lost Words from our childhood: Words gone as fast as the buggy whip! Sad really! The other day a not so elderly (70ish) lady said something to her son about driving a jalopy and he looked at her quizzically and said "What the heck is a jalopy? Oh, Oh a new phrase!  He had never heard of the word jalopy!! She knew she was old but not that old.   Well, I hope you are Hunky Dory after you read this and chuckle.   About a month ago, I illuminated some old expressions that have become obsolete because of the inexorable march of technology. These phrases included "Don't touch that dial," "Carbon copy," "You sound like a broken record" and "Hung out to dry."   Back in the olden days we had a lot of moxie. We'd put on our best bib and tucker to straighten up and fly right.   Heavens to Betsy! Gee whillikers! Jumping Jehoshaphat! Holy moley! We were in like Flynn and living the life of Riley, and even a regular guy couldn't accuse us of being a knucklehead, a nincompoop  or a pill. Not for all the tea in China!   Back in the olden days, life used to be swell, but when's the last time anything was swell?   Swell has gone the way of beehives, pageboys and the D.A. and of spats, knickers, fedora s, poodle skirts, saddle shoes and pedal pushers. Oh, my aching back. Kilroy was here, but he isn't anymore.   We wake up from what surely has been just a short nap, and before we can say, well I'll be a monkey's uncle! or, This is a fine kettle of fish! we discover that