Know your English
"Hi, come on in! Is something
wrong? Please don't tell me
you're going to cry."
"Cry? Why would I do
that?"
"I haven't the faintest idea.
If you're not going to cry, then
why the sad face?"
"Haven't you heard? The
Left has withdrawn its support,
and there are..."
"It was expected, wasn't it?
Would you say that this decision
of the Left came out of
left field?"
"Left's decision came out of
left field! What are you talking
about?"
"When you say that something
`came out of left
field', what you mean is that it
came as a total surprise. You
were not really prepared for
it."
"I see. So, when something
comes out of left field, it is
totally unexpected."
"Exactly! Here's an example.
The hailstorm, which
lasted more than an hour,
came out of left field."
"The two slaps that Surabhi
gave Rahul really came out of
left field."
"That's a good example.
The Principal's decision to
start new courses without
consulting his teachers came
out of left field."
"My friend Deepa thinks..."
"Please, I don't want to talk
about her. She is a nut case."
"No, she isn't."
"If you ask me, she's way
out in left field."
"What's with you and the
word `left' today? Way out in
left field? What does it mean?
Wait, wait. Let me guess. My
friend Deepa is a nice person.
But most people find her odd.
Does `way out in left field'
mean odd or crazy?"
"Very good! That's exactly
what it means. The word can
be used with things as well.
For example, don't pay any
attention to the Principal.
Most of his ideas are way out
in left field."
"You should meet some of
my classmates. They are way
out in left field."
"The Minister talked about
how we could keep our population
under check. The recommendations
he made were
way out in left field."
"That's expected, isn't it?
When was the last time a politician
talked sense?"
"I can't remember. Tell me,
why do you look so sad? It
can't be because of the Left.
There must be some other
reason. Come on, out with it."
"You're right. It has nothing
to do with politics. You
see, my friend and I have been
working on a project. We have
to make a presentation next
week. Yesterday my friend
rang up and..."
"Let me guess. He wants
you to make the presentation
on your own. He doesn't want
to be involved."
"Exactly! He says he's going
to be out of town and..."
"He's left you holding the
baby."
"Left me holding the baby?
What baby? What are you
talking about?"
"When someone leaves you
holding the baby, they inconvenience
or burden you with
additional responsibility."
"The person who is supposed
to help you,
disappears."
"You are on your own. The
other person doesn't want to
deal with the problem. And
you end up being responsible
for something that you..."
"And if things go wrong,
you are blamed."
"That's right! Here's an example.
When the company
went bankrupt, all the partners
ran away. My poor cousin
was left holding the baby."
"I want everything in writing.
I certainly don't wish to
be left holding the baby.
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