“Back to the drawing board” (starting over after failure)
A drawing board is where plans are drawn up, such as the design for a new building, airplane or automobile. If that design fails, the designers have to go "back to the drawing board" to…
“Illegal aliens have always been a problem in the United States. Ask any Indian.”
"Illegal aliens have always been a problem in the United States. Ask any Indian" has been cited in print since at least 1985, when it was credited to humorist Robert Orben. Another joke…
“If you want to get laid, go to college; if you want an education, go to the library”
"If you want to get laid, go to college. If you want an education, go to the library" is a popular quotation credited to the musician Frank Zappa (1940-1993). Zappa loved libraries, but…
“War is God’s way of teaching Americans geography”
"War is God's way of teaching us geography" was said by comedian Paul Rodriguez at Comic Relief in 1987. Rodriguez later added the Gulf War (started when Iraq invaded Kuwait in…
Bowen’s Rule (Bowen’s Law; Bowen’s Revenue Theory of Cost)
Howard Bowen (1908-1989) wrote about the "revenue theory of cost" in regard to higher education; the theory has been called "Bowen's Law" and "Bowen's Rule"…
“Write drunk, edit sober”
"Write drunk, edit sober" ha been printed on many gift items, such as posters, mugs and T-shirts. The one-line saying has usually been attributed to writer Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961),…
“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams”
"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams" is a popular quotation that has been credited to Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962). However, the quotation has not been…
Jenga Building (56 Leonard Street)
The Swiss architecture firm of Herzog & de Meuron designed a building for 56 Leonard Street in Manhattan that looked like imperfectly stacked blocks. Curbed NY's Septembe 15, 2008 story…
“If I had six hours to chop down a tree, I’d spend the first four of them sharpening my axe”
Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) is often quoted for having said, "If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I'd spend six sharpening my axe." The hours vary (usually it's given as…
“We forgive a child afraid of the dark; the real tragedy is when men are afraid of the light”
"We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light" has been frequently credited since the 1960s to the Greek…
Wall Street of the West (Montgomery Street in San Francisco)
San Francisco's Montgomery Street runs through its Financial District ("FiDi") and has been called the "Wall Street of the West." The term "Wall street of the west…
“Liberty is being free from the things we don’t like in order to be slaves of the things we do like”
"Liberty is being free from the things we don't like in order to be slaves of the things we do like" has been cited in print since at least 1912, when the quotation was credited in…
Concorde Hotel (Radisson Martinique on Broadway)
The Radisson Martinique on Broadway has been called the "Concorde Hotel" (after the Concorde airliner that made transatlantic flight between New York City and London/Paris) because many…
Crown Jewel of Wall Street (40 Wall Street)
40 Wall Street (The Trump Building) is a 72-floor building that was the tallest building in the world when it opened in 1930; it is the tallest mid-block building in New York City. The building had…
Wall Street of the West (17th Street in Denver)
Denver's 17th Street has been called the "Wall Street of the West" since at least 1908 and the "Wall Street of the Rockies" since at least 1978. Many banks and financial…
Goldman Sachsony (Goldman Sachs + Saxony)
The financial firm of Goldman Sachs is so influential over world governments that the nickname "Goldman Sachsony" (Goldman Sachs + Saxony) has been used to describe any country where…
Wall Street-Washington Corridor
The term "Wall Street-Washington Corridor" was popularized by the economist Simon Johnson, who used the name in the article "The Quiet Coup" in the May 2009 Atlantic magazine…
Conveyor Belt of Wall Street (Wharton School nickname)
The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania sends many of its graduates to Wall Street jobs. A Financial Times story in September 2012 called Wharton the "conveyor belt of Wall…
Queenser (inhabitant of Queens)
People from the borough of Queens usually refer to themselves as from their particular neighborhood, such as Forest Hills, Kew Gardens or Flushing. "Queenser" has been cited in print very…
Queensite (inhabitant of Queens)
People from the borough of Queens usually refer to themselves as from their particular neighborhood, such as Forest Hills, Kew Gardens or Flushing. "Queensite" has been cited in print…