How late is considered late today?
It goes back to the old phrase, "the quick and the dead". The quick get there early or on time; the dead are "late" the moment they have drawn their last breath.
Joan Dawson, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
• In my corner of the world there is a concept that would be translated as the "Toulouse 15 minutes", the standard for (late) starting any event. This is a norm, now upset by a need to begin sports at a given time.
Fortunately (most) rock groups provide a respectable delay in blasting off: much appreciated.
E Slack, L'Isle Jourdain, France
• In death a second, in Europe 10 minutes, in Africa an hour-plus.
Dick Hedges, Nairobi, Kenya
• Early tomorrow.
Pat Phillips, Adelaide, South Australia
• As choristers in a Sussex parish choir we got used to brides being up to half an hour late, but the record was set by a man who arrived almost 90 minutes late for his own funeral, having been stuck in a traffic jam on the M25. Now that was definitely a late, late person.
David Ross, Karlsruhe, Germany
X marks the festive spot
Why do so many people refer to Christmas as Xmas? Where did this strange idea originate?
Two reasons: one religious, one secular:
1) X (Greek letter chi) is the first letter of the title Christos, which means "the anointed one"– equivalent to the Hebrew meshiach or Messiah.
2) As Christmas became more secular, concentrating on Santa Claus and red-nosed reindeer rather than the birth of Jesus, Xmas became an acceptable neutral term for the festive season. You will find that the term is little used by professing Christians.
Alaisdair Raynham, Truro, Cornwall, UK
• Xrist knows!
Andrew Muguku, Nairobi, Kenya
• Families squabble at Christmas so often that it was renamed Crossmas (or Xmas for short).
David Isaacs, Sydney, Australia
• "X" was the code for "Christ" – clearly based on the cross – in times when Christianity was evading the authorities.
Edward Black, Sydney, Australia
• Because of overindulgence in texting?
Philip Stigger, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada
Only in a manner of speaking
Why call a residence with stairs a "flat"?
Whatever did you think "apart" meant?
Stewart Dutfield, Delmar, New York, US
• Frequently houses in multiple occupation were let or leased to tenants floor by floor (level by level) to afford greater privacy.
Bernard Burgess, Tenterden, UK
• Because you are "flat out" tired when you get to the top of the residence.
Vipen Sawhney, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
• Because once you're up it is.
Jacques Samuel, Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada
• The Concise Oxford defines a duplex in British English as "a flat on two floors".
Nicholas Albrecht, Paris, France
Wishful thinking indeed
What is so special about a kiss under the mistletoe?
The mistletoe has a symbiotic relationship with the tree, spewing its seeds, from which it shoots invasive roots into the tree. Wishful thinking of compatibility it must be.
Henk Buzink, Rock, UK
• It's a custom-sanctioned opportunity for opportunities that are customarily sanctioned.
Anthony Walter, Surrey, British Columbia, Canada
What is behind a weak handshake?
Graem Castell, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
At what point does a habit become an ism?
Andre Carrel, Terrace, British Columbia, Canada
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