staircase wit

thinking of the right answer too late; the perfect, usually piercing, riposte that you conceive only when replaying a verbal exchange later in your head

from the French l'esprit d'escalier, the witty repartee you thought of as you're going downstairs to leave

My coworker Ann had taken to calling me "Markus", which I hate. I told her I hated it, and her response was,"It's a term of affection."

I muttered something like "Well it's not".

What I SHOULD have said:
Considering her name, "OK, to cement this 'affectionate' relationship, I'll call you An(n)us."

by Mandingoe July 14, 2004

pissing contest

1. a dispute that's a matter of one side's claims or bluster against the other's; a word feud; bickering; belly bumping. Contrary to some definitions, women are quite capable of(although usually less inclined to) "hold their own" in a pissing contest, which could morph into a shirt-shredding cat fight

2. many of the pointless definitions at this site that every one over the age of 8 already knows the meaning of

Liberal Conservative
Goth Prep
Pro-life Pro-Choice
Religion Atheist
ad nauseum in aeternum

by mandingoe June 08, 2004

teardown

A house purchased to be demolished where the land is used to build a larger, more expensive house. Teardowns are purchased because the land they sit on is worth more without the house.

My parents house in the old neighborhood is worth $600,000 but it would definitely be a teardown.

by Mandingoe January 12, 2008

mash note

a love letter, particularly a hot and steamy one. The future of mash notes is endangered by the internet.

He felt waves of jealousy when he discovered the mash notes to his wife from an old flame written twenty years ago before they were married.

by Mandingoe October 09, 2004

day

As used in the phrase "back in the day", this means October 9, 1979

Back in the day, punk was raw.

by mandingoe May 18, 2004

heads-up

1. advance notice

2. a warning

Just wanted to give you a heads up so you'll be expecting his call.

by mandingoe January 18, 2005

birdseye lowdown

the essential facts, the straight dope.

Cut to the chase means what's the bottom line or conclusion.

"What's the birdseye lowdown?" is similar but also involves the key details.

Here's the birdseye lowdown on the Vig ...

by mandingoe September 22, 2004