Special Feature

Yesterday we mailed this to a number of our readers:

We are thinking of starting a new feature called "My First Screw" and we need your story. Can you send a picture of your first screw (if you remember) and tell us a little bit about how you got started? It turns out a number of people remember their first screw and we will publishing their stories in issues to come.

We'll also consider "My Favorite Screw" stories. Here is the first story we received:

My First Screw by Robert Cordy

My first corkscrew was a Haff patent (The Daily Screw - April 13). On a business trip to Alexandria, Virginia, I went out from my hotel to buy a bottle of wine and there was a street fair/junk sale and I saw the Haff with its tarnished but beautiful brass band and could not pass up the purchase at $1.00. I have forgotten what the inscription was since I have now given that screw (and several others, mounted in a case) to my son who was with me during that first find. That was 1976.

In 1977 I worked in London for 3 months and discovered Portobello market. The hunt was on! In 1991-1993 I lived in London and the hunt turned to a frenzy. I now have about 400 such animals but the hunt for "affordable" screws is less successful and thus less fun (for me). And living in New Meadows, Idaho, the hunt is at a near standstill. After just finishing six holiday weeks in the UK and Ireland, the only purchase was an interesting Clough with a unusually large button (see photo).

And at age 68 I sure hope this is not my last screw.

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Answer to Yesterday's "What is it?"

A Can of Worms

Wirtz, Virginia - Now that was an easy one, wasn't it? Where does that "can of worms" expression come from?

From the Random House Dictionary of Popular Proverbs and Sayings by Gregory Y. Titelman (Random House, New York, 1996).

“It’s like opening a can of worms. This is a highly problematical situation or complex problem. Broaching it may lead to utter chaos. The saying originated in the United States in the mid-twentieth century and refers to the live bait kept in jars or other containers by fishermen.”

From the Morris Dictionary of Word and Phrase Origins by William and Mary Morris (HarperCollins, 1977, 1978):

"Don’t try to pass me that can of worms" has been a staple item in the jargon of advertising agency types for decades. The meaning is clear: don’t try to fob off a complicated, perplexing problem on me."

From Ron Maclean, author (with Bob Nugent) of William Rockwell Clough: Inventor and Manufacturer of over a Billion Corkscrews (The Virtual Corkscrew Museum, 2002):

A "can of worms" you say - hey, it's a "can of 1900 patent Clough corkscrews." Please pass the corkscrews!

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Bulls 4, Runners 0

Pamplona - Bulls gored at least four people on Tuesday in a long and dangerous second sprint at the running of the bulls.

And now the running is over. It's time for the bullfights. Watch for both matadors and bulls doing corkscrew maneuvers. They do battle until the matador his sword home with a slight corkscrew twist.

The bulls win the run but lose in the end.

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News Index

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