Tuesday, June 01, 2010

Tipsy Tuesday

The expression to open a Pandora’s box has long been used to describe an act that may have unforeseen and unpleasant consequences. It's derived from a Greek myth in which Pandora, a human woman driven by curiosity, opens a jar (or a box depending on the version) containing various evils, unintentionally loosing them on the world.

The distortion “to open a box of Pandoras” may owe its increasing popularity (the phrase has been attributed to Casey Stengel, Al Gore and Marion Barry, to name a few) to its similarity to “opening a can of worms.” As a figurative expression, “opening a box of Pandoras” may have sounded amusing the first time it was used, but as an ongoing expression it gets old fast.

And from an erotic point of view, "opening a box of Pandoras" has a whole 'nother meaning...

There's being clever with your word usage, and then there's being...well, I hesitate to say ignorant. Let's just say not so clever, shall we?

So, instead of using "opening a can of worms" or "opening Pandora's box" (or a box of Pandoras, for that matter), how else could you say someone's just stepped hip-deep into trouble?

2 comments:

Colleen Love said...

Just say it like it is.

"I saw you kissing your best friend," he said.
"Oh shit," she breathed. She was in a lot of trouble. The secret was out.

:)
Happy Hump Day, Sherrill!
Hugs
C~

Sherrill Quinn said...

LOL Good one, Colleen!