Cool Beans
Created | Updated Jan 28, 2002
Somewhat more cool than simply saying 'Cool', saying 'Cool Beans' implies that you're anything but cool about a subject, and in fact show an almost uncontainable enthusiasm for the, albeit metaphorical, beans.
The Story So Far
I say Cool Beans all the while, so I intend to spend a little time over the next few weeks or so figuring out why I say it, where it came from, and what it actually means.
Spotted!
In fact, the phrase appears to have developed out of nowhere, its origins are a mystery. Here are some of the places it's been spotted. Did it begin life at any of these? I wonder...
- A former presenter on a local radio station in Leicester - this is where I picked it up from in 1999.
- Apparently, it was in use at both the University of Texas at San Antonio and Montreat College in 1998.
- It appears to have been submitted to this slang dictionary by some guy from Iowa in 1997.
I've also spotted some of you folks using the phrase on h2g2. Thought you could get away with it, didn't you? Here's the tally:
- Apparently, men in kilts are cool beans.
- Naturally, recommendation for the edited guide is cool beans.
- Jelly beans are cool beans.
- There is general consensus that having Jeremy as your guardian angel is cool beans, and who am I to argue?
- Marriage? Cool beans!
- Seducing Fido is cool beans. (I'm not sure why, I was afraid to look any further.)
So Help Me Out Here, Guys
If anyone stumbles across this entry and has some bean-related information for me, then stick it in the forum why don'tcha? You'd earn my eternal gratitude, and be labelled a particularly cool bean.
