h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

*blink* Is there something going on here that I missed?

No. This person has a history of this, according toan italic warning on their space from 5 wks ago.

Freedom of speech will go a lot further toward a fair diustribution of the world's resources than spamming the f word several hundred times in this thread will ever do.
Chill.
jwf

Sorry Im probally just incoraging the
maderatours to be more vigulent
which is a bad thing.
Really Im juast an idiot
cant say much more then that

The researcher concerned has already had one warning, so I guess it's goodbye for them. I *really* hope that doesn't bring up the 'lifetime ban' hassle yet again, so shortly after the axing of ****'s recent half-a***d creations. (For anyone who doesn't know what I'm talking about there, it's probably better not to ask, or try to find out.)

On the vinegar front, I'd salt first, then wash the salt down the pile with a reasonable amount of vinegar, then salt the top again. In the good old days, the ideal amount was just enough that it didn't leak out of the newspaper to any significant extent. In a tray, excess vinegar can risk spoiling the peas or gravy, and overvinegaring a pie is a heinous crime

On the chip shop front, when I lived up in Glasgow we always called it a chippie. However, a couple of visiting American students found this hilarious. Any reason why that I missed, or were they just being strange tourists?

Over here a chip shop is a chipper and a chippie is a carpenter. Very odd really.

I think the latter was a term for prostitute, but have no idea why. I would also use chippie for a carpenter chappie.

~jwf~

Did you seriously not get the 'before a certain form of dog' gag?

And I had you down as one of the smart cookies!

pre-terrier

oh, and presumably then, on the chip- conversation, to be chipper is to be as happy and confident as a carpenter?

To chip in again, perhaps being chipper means having the chips on your shoulders balanced. When the chips are down,do you know when you've had your chips?
And, yes Virginia, there IS a huge difference between proper chips and French fries.

So who invented the chip, and assuming native Americans lacked the technology to produce Sunflower oil, whither French fries ( the Belgians have them with mayonaise y'know)?

Hmm, there's a point. I'm sure I remember something saying that French fries actually originated in Belgium, but somehow France got the credit? Think it was in some interview with a famous Belgian pointing out that there are actually a lot of famous Belgian people / things but that the rest of the world generally thinks they are French. Any confirmation on this?

Belgian fries just doesn't have enough "f"s.
Magritte was Belgian.
So is Tintin.
Don't know about Snowy.

But isn't chip/chipping old. With English place names like Chipping Norton and Chipping Sodbury (I think) I'd have assumed it meant something in Anglo Saxon or something

Charlie the chipper chappie chortled on his way to Chipping Norton

perhaps we should move this to a new thread 'Famous Belgian People / Things that people think are French'

So, a question for everyone, is this the biggest detour off topic ever for BritEng?

If so, sorry for contributing!

Ah thats the sort of language that separates us from the Americans!

Oops simulpost!
Ictoan, I think we're still vagually round "chip".

I can confirm that the Belgians have chips with everything!

But how do they define "chip"?