The place where someone starts a journey that
may come to a disastrous end. This term was
first coined by the podcast "Opening Arguments." The phrase was based off of the "Cliff Hangers" game on the TV
Show "The Price is
Right." In that game, a mountain climber climbs up a
mountain, taking one step for every dollar the contestant is wrong in their guess of the price of a prize. A yodeling song is played while the climber makes his ascent. Missing the price by too much could lead the mountain climber to fall off the mountain cliff, and if that happens, the contestant loses the game. Someone who is on yodel mountain is continually taking steps that will lead them to disaster, just like the mountain climber.