Where did this 'No' sign come from? A launderette? A fishing pond?
The truth: Sign seen at a boat launching ramp in Hingham, Massachusetts, USA.
This
regularly used expression means: absolutely not; never. Apparently,
this slang expression originated in the USA sometime around the 1960's.
One
early example can be found in The Washington Post, dated December
1979: 'I've got nothing against robots. But no way, José, is this guy
going to win.'
Tired
of constantly being broke, and stuck in an unhappy marriage, a young
husband decided to solve both problems by taking out a large insurance
policy on his wife (with himself as the beneficiary), and arranging to
have her killed.
A
'friend of a friend' put him in touch with a nefarious underworld
figure, who went by the name of ' Artie.' Artie explained to the husband
that his going price for snuffing out a spouse was 5,000 quid. The
husband said he was willing to pay that amount, but that he wouldn't
have any cash on hand until he could collect his wife's insurance
money.
Artie
insisted on being paid SOMETHING up front. The man opened up his
wallet, displaying the single pound coin that rested inside. Artie
sighed, rolled his eyes, and reluctantly agreed to accept the quid as
down payment for the dirty deed.
A
few days later, Artie followed the man's wife to the local Tesco.
There, he surprised her in the produce department, and proceeded to
strangle her with his gloved hands. As the poor unsuspecting woman drew
her last breath, and slumped to the floor, the manager of the produce
department stumbled unexpectedly onto the scene. Unwilling to leave any
witnesses behind, Artie had no choice but to strangle the produce
manager as well. Unknown to Artie, the entire proceedings were captured
by hidden cameras and observed by the store's security guard, who
immediately called the police. Artie was caught and arrested before he
could leave the store.
Under
intense questioning at the police station, Artie revealed the sordid
plan, including his financial arrangements with the hapless husband. And
that is why, the next day in the newspaper, the headline declared:
'ARTIE CHOKES TWO FOR A POUND AT TESCO.'
Nothing Happened ~
Tags: 'no'signs
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