Mentor speaks at least three languages fluently, and English is not her mother tongue. She has no accent, which means her accent is close enough to my own that I don’t hear one.
Y’all know I’m language friendly, and I like fun with language. Mentor and I communicate very well with one another, but now and again when she twists a turn of phrase, I cannot find her meaning.
For instance, yesterday.
She sent me a message, basically, Please call to determine the status of Jane Doe’s paperwork. See if we can pick it up. She is having kittens.
I replied, Sure.
I must have read that sentence three times. “She is having kittens.”
awww. why is she telling me this?!?
Mentor and I share relevant information. By this I mean we don’t talk about extraneous stuff. Whatever we tell one another includes specific directives, inquiries — you know, like Cut The Crap and Just The Facts Ma’am.
Now, I knew Mentor didn’t mean it literally, but I knew it had to be important, or relevant, otherwise, she wouldn’t mention it. Our business decidedly does not deal with kittens. There are no kitten conundrums to solve, no kittens to consult with, no kittens to ship. I love kittens, but that’s not what we do there.
This bit of information was a bit like your pharmacist saying, “Take these three times a day and with plenty of water,” and then adding, “The new moon is April 7th.”
The relevance of the kittens did not fit the directive and I am too curious to let kittens lie.
I called to determine the status of Jane Doe’s paperwork. I called Mentor with the results of my call. After that, I asked her, “What did you mean, she’s having kittens? Like, is her cat birthing today?”
“Nooo. Did I not use it right?”
“I guess not. What does that mean to you?”
“She’s upset.”
think, think, think…
“She’s having a cow?”
“Yes!”
Then there was howling laughter on both ends of the phone. I laughed so hard I cried.
I’m so glad she gave the update to Jane Doe, because me being me, I would’ve thoughtfully added, “By the by, Congratulations on your kittens! How sweet!”
Happy Friday Everyone! I hope nothing makes you have kittens this weekend!
joeyfullystated 
Those kitten images kept distracting me from reading the hilarious exchange 😀 😀 I still think you should call her to congratulate for her kittens!
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Haha, Imma pass 🙂 But kittens are so cuuuuute! 🙂
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My mother used to say “having kittens” like that, meaning the same thing as you figured out. I’d forgotten about that turn of phrase because everyone now has a cow, thank you very much Bart Simpson.
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Is that right? Well goodness! Maybe it’s a thing. I’ve never heard that. But OH the laugh we had! 😛
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I’m with Ally. I know the phrase “having kittens” so I was kind of confused as to why you were confused. I kept waiting for the weird revelation that never actually came… HA.
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Oh my! It must surely be a thing. Maybe it’s my own ignorance, but we sure had a good laugh! 🙂
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Maybe it’s a regional thing? 🙂
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I wonder. But then, my husband JUST recalled he’s heard it, so ….
I must admit, it sounds much nicer than having a cow 😛
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LOL
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Would’ve been MUCH worse if I’d called and said the kitten thing, then, wouldn’t it? Oh my. What a day!
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It basically means throwing a hissy fit.
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I do wish you’d remembered that last night. Thank you for remembering now — Still a good laugh! 😀
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Many thanks! I’ve had enough kitties this week!
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Oh no! You simply must have a kittenless weekend, Jan!
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Aww when I read your title I thought little Joey was gonna’ be the Mama to a bunch of kittens. I have heard that expression for many years,and I know it means somebody is upset or angry about something. Now I am curious about where it came from. Hope you and yours have a Happy Friday.
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That nixes regional…
The Mister said it’s because kittens hiss, and so it’s like a hissy fit. He didn’t remember this last night when I told him the story, but now, maybe it’s doubly funny?
Thank you — you enjoy your weekend too! 🙂
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Well that is curious. I never thought of a connection between “hissy fit” and “having kittens”.But it makes as much sense as anything.
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Luanne posted a link that describes the origin of the phrase and it’s pretty neat. I had such a good time with this today 😀
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That is funny! We’ve always said having kittens, too, meaning being upset, or having a fit, as in having a conniption fit.
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It seems I am the last one to know! Oh what a riot we had with it, and then again at me 😀
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I am only fluent in English, the version of English they speak in New England, the version they speak in New York and the version they speak in Pittsburgh. I would recognize “having kittens” as a serious thing, but I’m not sure where I picked that up.
Then again, with all those images of cute little kittens, I can’t imagine how that started. Unless someone started it when her cat was having 8-12 kittens.
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Luanne’s comment gives a link where they describe the origin and it’s pretty neat!
I love this expression and will use it plenty!
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I’ll check that out.
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Okay the first thing I thought was that you were working in a veterinary clinic, then I thought maybe she meant conniptions….
Honey does this at home with English expressions all the time and I do it just as often in French. It’s a great way to keep each other on our toes and thoroughly entertained 🙂
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I think it’s fun! I love stuff like that, and I am glad you and Honey have all the fun! 🙂
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I think I’m going to start my own phrases now. How about having weasels?
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I suppose one could have whatever one pleases, although at present, it’s just kittens and a cow 😛
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I’ll stop at porcupines and hedgehogs.
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Apparently ‘having a bird’ is also a thing.
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Never heard that one before.
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I’ve heard “having kittens” before, but “having a cow” is a little sillier.
As for the kitten pictures: awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww…
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Hehe! I love the kitten expression!
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Too funny! Thanks for the laugh, Joey! We should incorporate this expression into modern language.
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I take it you hadn’t heard of it, either? Yes, this shall be my new thing!
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This is the first I’ve heard it! I love it and will have to find a way to use it soon.
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This was funny! Having a cow? yes. Having kittens? No. But if you have some we might could sneak one in the house w/o husband noticing. You think? 😀
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I don’t think one can sneak kittens for too long, but for you, I would try! ^_^ Ours are all fixed, but I’ll keep an eye out 😉
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You are the best!
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No, YOU ARE!
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Mentor was ri-ight. “Having kittens
If you’re having kittens, you’re freaking out in an uncontrollable manner. The phrase dates back to more superstitious times when witches were viewed as a genuine threat to society. It was said that witches could place a spell on a pregnant woman by turning her unborn baby into kittens that would scratch at the womb. Many women suffering from perfectly normal pregnancy pains believed that they had fallen victim to a spell. As time went by and people began believing in science over witchcraft, the irrational fear died, but the expression survived.” That is from this wonderful website: http://www.bbcamerica.com/anglophenia/2014/09/7-british-animal-idioms-will-baffle-americans
But having kittens sounded right to me, so I think I’ve heard people use it. Maybe even my family? (who are not Brits)
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That’s a fantastic explanation! What a nice time to discover witchy idioms 😛 Thanks so much! She was so excited when I told her it was a thing, she was right 🙂
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I bet she was! Did she learn British English or American English first, I wonder . . . .
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I don’t know, I will ask her tomorrow and get back to you 🙂
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She said she’s not sure. As a school-aged child in Germany, she learned American English at home but also learned British English at school. She says she can’t say for sure which came first.
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She probably has more English smarts than us put together!
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I dare say. I tell you, I spoke to the woman for almost an hour in my interview, and found her impeccable. Would never have guessed English wasn’t language #1. When she told me I was astonished and may have gushed a bit about how good her English is. 🙂
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Hihihhh. This is all sorts of hilarious to me, since I barely know this one, and only through the Simpsons, and would never know how to use it in a sentence. Thanks!
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Oh well you’re welcome. I hope you read that having kittens is a suitable expression. First we laughed at her, then we laughed at me 😀
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Add me to the list of people who would have totally understood “she was having kittens”. That expression is pretty old. Another one I remember from my youth is “having a bird”. I guess I was never indoctrinated into the Simpson’s phenomenon because I would never say “having a cow”.
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Having a bird is a thing, too? Wow, I am learning so much today! 😀
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To add to the other comments – I too am very familiar with the phrase “having kittens”, here in England we still say it pretty commonly. I’ve not actually heard of having a cow! Funny post though, I can imagine the confusion!
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It’s been a fun ride 🙂
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I think idioms can make learning and understanding English challenging for anyone. 🙂
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I agree. I loved this one 🙂
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WE use that expression over here, My mum still says it quite often 🙂
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Bwahahahaha!!! omg, that is FABULOUS!
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🙂
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I think I would rather have kittens that a cow. Ouch.
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That made me laugh so hard! I can only imagine the other person’s response if you had congratulated her on the kittens. 😀
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I KNOW! Can you imagine?!? Oh what a pickle! 😛
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Yep, we grew up with ‘having kittens,’ it seems really strange when you think about it. I thinks it’s an English phrase that Aussies picked up. I’m going to throw it into conversations today to see if anyone else is confused.
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Oh do give it a go, I’m gonna try to use at as much as possible! 🙂
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I love hearing new sayings or regional styles of speaking. My husband was most amused by my “fixing to”, which is a decidedly southern thing. I, however, had never heard the term “y’all” until we traveled to Alabama when I was a kid.
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Funny 🙂 I rarely fix to these days, but I say y’all — pretty much everyone says that here.
My father used to make fun of my mother for fixin to do the tradin. My husband’s granddad still does the tradin 😉
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