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          »  » **Woh, Baby**
# Woh, Baby
 January 19, 2025     !
           James in Charlotte, North Carolina, notes that when discussing a newborn baby, he’s heard people say something that sounded like, “That baby ‘woh’ seven pounds, two ounces.” He’s never heard that usage before. The “woh” sound in that case may just be a pronunciation of *were* that lacks rhoticity, that is, an *R* sound. *This is part of a *.
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          »  » **Ratcatcher Garment in the Horse World**
# Ratcatcher Garment in the Horse World
           Robin, in Jacksonville, Florida, has long wondered why the traditional collar word by equestrians is called a *ratcatcher*. There’s a long history in the horse world of referring to various forms of attire as a *ratcatcher*, including blouses and jackets, or to a *ratting jacket* or a *ratting suit*. All of these are in opposition to the very formal traditional fox-hunting clothing. *This is part of a *.
          »  » **Black Country Kitchen Ghosts**
# Black Country Kitchen Ghosts
           *Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts: Stories and Recipes from Five Generations of Black Country Cooks* (|) is about the foodways and folkways passed down through five generations of a Black Appalachian family. The book, by , is part memoir, part cookbook, and thoroughly delicious. *This is part of a *.
          »  » **Woodshedding Music**
# Woodshedding Music
           When a musician is woodshedding a passage of music, they’re trying to master that part by repeatedly practicing it in private, as if having retreated to do so in a woodshed, away from others who might be bothered by it. *This is part of a *.
          »  » **Tummy Egg**
# Tummy Egg
           After misunderstanding the term *tummy ache* as *tummy egg*, a three-year-old has questions. *This is part of a *.