Do we know what it means?

There are so many familiar phrases in our language that we take the meaning or what we think they mean as a matter of course. But do we know the history of the phrase. With a bit of research we can find the answer. Some are real eye openers. One I have used many times is "for the birds". It seems that in the days of horse-drawn vehicles it was not eye candy on the streets but large deposits of horse...well I need not go further only add that there was an odor attached to that emission. There was very little that could be done to control the horse from doing what it had to do. I mean when you gotta go you gotta go. It seems that when they did excrete (I chose the delicate term on purpose) there were undigested oats in them, a delicacy for a large population of English sparrows. If you say something is for the birds, you're really politely saying that it's horses**t! Beyond the pale I have read about in the several articles about Irish History. The pale was that area around Dublin that was not controlled by England and therefore those who lived beyond the Pale were not subject to British law. Maybe that's why those folks were considered uncivilized. However, my favorite one is "I've got a frog in my throat". It has nothing to do with the croaking sound the frog makes. It was a medical practice in the Middle Ages. Throat infections were treated by putting a live frog, head first, into the mouth. The frog inhaled and supposedly drew the patient's infection into its own body. Thank goodness that practice died out. I will not complain about modern medicine. Think how frightened the poor frog must've been. So next time you want to use a tried and true expression stop and think if that is what your really mean. Especially if you are telling some one their for the birds.