About Me

My photo
Antwerp, Belgium
Welcome to the new, and improved version of Heaven in Belgium. I am Jientje. "Jientje", like the boys name Gene, followed by "chu"? "Gene-chu", that's how you pronounce my name. Yes!!!!That's it!! So now you know huh? I am an addicted blogger. I was born and raised and am still living in Belgium. Yeah, the "this-is- Tuesday-so-this-must-be-Brussels" kind of Belgium .. There, you see? Maybe you couldn't find it on the map, but at least I'm trying to change that a little by sharing lots of pictures. I really love to cook and create new things, like this blog for instance. I am a mother,a grandmothe and a wife too! They say I'm a traveler, and a photographer. Well that's just what they say, I love to make pictures, but I am far from professional ... If my English is not perfect, that would be because it's my second language. I do hope you'll forgive me any possible misspellings or strange vocabulary ... Now, as a result of all of the above, I get way too little sleep and my days are always much too short!

Followers

Heaven is in Belgium

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

A Thousand Words In Idioms, M and N

As long as people have been around, they have tried to communicate with each other. As a means of getting the message across as clearly as possible, idioms and sayings have found their way into our language. Now, because "a picture paints a thousand words", I thought it would be nice to make this a photo challenge. The idea is to choose an idiom, or a saying, ( even slang is allowed) and illustrate it with a picture. Each week we'll cover two letters of the alphabet, okay? You can find the first edition here if you need some inspiration.




"A Thousand Words in Idioms"

If "language is the dress of thoughts" ( Johnson), then idioms must the wardrobe ...


But before we start, may I have your attention please? As I am going away on holiday for the next two weeks, ( no Internet :-( ... eww! ) so I won't be able to host this meme until I get back again. But we will resume this on July first and do our O and P then, okay?
Now I KNOW you're going to miss me, and I will miss each and every one of YOU but you'll still be able to visit my daily posts. Some of them are already scheduled, and I'm working very hard to have something up for each day I'm gone! So please please please, keep visiting this blog while I'm gone? And leave me a comment while you're here? Because, that's why I'm going through all this trouble in the first place. I would love to come home and read all your comments? And I'll visit you all back as soon as I'm back, okay? Deal?

Now, on with the business of the day. Where were we? Oh yes, M and N right?

M is for ...

Okay, I have a little treat this week to make up for the time that I will be gone.
I found FOUR idioms, to go with one and the same picture!
Now how's that huh? Is that clever, or is that VERY clever?

*ahum, cough cough* ;-)


The first one is obvious: "Make a pig's ear": If you make a pig's ear of something, you make a mess of it.
Next up: "Murky waters": Where people are behaving in morally and ethically questionable ways, they are in murky waters.
" Muddy the waters": If somebody muddies the waters, he or she makes the situation more complex or less clear.
And the last one is my favourite one : "Make a silk purse out of a pig's ear": create something valuable out of something of no value.




N is for ...


"Needle in a haystack". If trying to find something is like looking for a needle in a haystack, it means that it is very difficult, if not impossible to find among everything around it.


Can't wait to see what everyone else has posted!!
Don't forget to sign the Mr Linky, okay? Melli? Rosidah? :-)

25 comments:

MaR said...

Love the piggy!! glad you were careful and you didn't get wet :D
About "Needle in a haystack": we have the same idiom in Spanish.
I am playing this week but will be gone the second half of July myself. Enjoy your hols, keep your new cam in a safe (dry) place!!!
Have a wonderful Wednesday, Jientje.

Anonymous said...

Love the pig. These idioms were fantastic my friend. You outdid yourself with these. I love the haystack...I haven't seen one of those in years :) I'm gonna miss you while you are gone. Have a great time and be safe :) Aloha and Dadaaa

MaR said...

The tea cup is one of my favorite pictures, it was taken early in Dec 2007 and intended for my Xmas header only, but I keep using it :)

Gattina said...

Hahaha ! that pig is cute ! very nice findings !
When are you leaving exactly for holidays ?
I wish you nice weather and a lot of fun and take a lot of pictures (but that I don't have to tell, lol) We are going on the 19th to the Garda lake (as usual) for 10 days to visit family and friends. Fortunately just besides our appartment is a camping with internet connection. So I can post from there every day. I take my little baby computer with me. Don't you have a cyber café around there ? I always found some everywhere even in a little town in Turkey. (I was the only woman, lol !) Just for an hour.

quilly said...

That pig is a cutie!

There is also another way to look at making a silk purse out of a sows ear, it also means attempting the impossible. Of course, being the optimist you are, you didn't remember that because you don't think anything is impossible. ;)
And if I ever did manage to find a needle in a haystack, I'd probably find it with my butt!

Nessa said...

Your piggy is so cute. I post a piggy too for a different idiom. Of course, now that I am all caught up, you postpone the game. Have fun on your vacation and I will be here to see your schedule posts.

Melli said...

WOW!!! I am sO impressed! Not only with the FABULOUS picture of that cute little pig - but also the FOUR idioms to go with it! You are such an over-achiever!

And that HAYSTACK! We don't have haystacks like that over here... not that I've EVER seen anyway! It's beautiful!

RA said...

This time I signed Mr. Linky first ;). That's one fine piggy and some great idioms! The N idiom has also a wonderful scene. It looks like a great place to stroll around. Thank you for hosting this meme. I hope you have a wonderful vacation, Jientje :).

Unknown said...

Do you have ANY idea what's in that water? *shiver* But I LOVE the pictures - which are, as always, excellent.

Eve said...

I love your pictures, as always. Pigs are among my favorite animals. I'm not sure why I love them, I just do. :D And I love your meme. Idioms - what a good idea. I'll have to think about O and P and try to join you next time.

Carleen said...

How clever to come up with four different idioms for the same picture!

I'm going to miss this meme while you're away, but two weeks gives me plenty of time to come up with a really good post. :)

Wanda..... said...

Pigs and haystacks seem to go together too...will miss you while you're away!

Carletta said...

Hi Jientje,
I finally got it together after I returned to join in this week. I also have muddy water. :)
Now if I can get Mr. Linky to let me link. He wouldn't last night.
Love the piggy but that's really an awesome haystack. Like Melli said, we don't have that kind here - yours is more artistic!

Unknown said...

I've always loved the silk purse out of a pig's ear. :)

Robynn's Ravings said...

COOL HAYSTACK!! Hey, I brought Grizzly on to look at yesterday's macros. He was blown away and what is an S5? I know it had to do with your camera that got injured.

Bill ~ {The Old Fart} said...

Great ones Jientje, really liked the Hay Stack idiom, I am forever looking for that needle in a Haystack.

Susanne said...

Never heard the pig's ear idiom but we do say the Murky waters and the needle in a haystack.

I posted the picture of the flower basking in the sun. Yes, we actually got sun today! :v)

Unknown said...

This idiom challenge is making my brain work...this is good...love the pig...love your idioms.

I posted, now I'm off to check out what the others have to show and tell...

Dr.John said...

Never heard make a pig's ear before so that was something I learned.
Two good idioms and illustrations.

Dr.John said...

Never heard make a pig's ear before so that was something I learned.
Two good idioms and illustrations.

Momisodes said...

Wow! I've never heard of some of these before. I love the pig photo!

Jientje said...

@ Mar: I'm scared to death to come anywhere NEAR water since that happens! Thanks, I will!
@ Thom: I'm not gone yet! The pictures were both taken at the Museum Park. Haystacks like this one are not common anymore, they don't make them like that anymore. Sad but true.
@ Mar: I remember that header!
@ Gattina: I will be leaving Friday night around ten PM. We will be driving all night. Thx for the good weather wishes, it's raining cats and dogs here, eww! No Internet there is a choice I made.
@ Quilly: I have been known to make purses out of pig's ears! I LOVE creating things from scratch!
@ Nessa; YOU my friend have outdoine us all. What a great effine us amade and a wonderful post. I loved all your pictures!
@ Melli: Haystacks like this one are not made any more around here as well. This one was at the Museum Park.
@ Rosidah: That Museum Park is one of: That ourite places to stroll around in!
@ Lceel: Mud, pig shit ...Yuck! Need Iud, pn?
@ Eve: I would love you to join in next time! Please do!
@ Carleen: I'm looking forward to the next one as well!
@ Wanda: That's why I chose those pictures! How clever of you to notice that!
@ Carletta: Great minds ... Lol!
@ Lisa: Yes. You are that kind of person too I guess!
@ actonbell: Thank you!
@ Robynn: S5 is my p revious camera!
the Canon powershot S5 IS, quite a mouthful, don't you think?
@ Bill: I hope you'll find it someday?
@ Susanne: Yaay on sun!! Still raining here! That flower is amazing, I've never seen one like it!
@ Kim: Thanks!
@ Dr John: It's nice to learn something new, isn't it?
@ Sandy: Yes, that pig was CUTE!!

San said...

A very cool meme.

Have a wonderful trip!

Susan English Mason said...

Congratulations on your post of the day nomination from David at authorblog. Your blog is very well designed.

Willow said...

This was a fun one!

And congrats on the POTD contender today!

What am I up to? Follow me on Twitter

    follow me on Twitter

    FEEDJIT Live Traffic Feed

    Blog Archive