4 | OCTOBER 7 • 2021 

for openers
Minor Damage 
W

e “poor mortals” 
are often buffeted 
about by fate and 
damaged accordingly.
Through all of this rough 
handling, items may get 
nicked or 
scratched. 
However, that 
does not stop 
us from using 
those terms in 
other ways in 
our conversa-
tions. Here are 
some instances.
Men who are not caught 
up in the annual Movember 
craze (growing beards and 
moustaches) should practice 
extreme caution when shav-
ing so as not to nick them-
selves.
If you are in Britain and 
try to nick something from a 
store, you may find yourself 
locked up in the nick. (Your 

lack of knack was not worth 
taking the nick-nack. Yes, 
that spelling is an acceptable 
one!) Then a lawyer may be 
hired to save you in the nick 
of time.
We would hope that when 
we move our lodgings, the 
moving men will not nick any 
furniture.
The term even is used to 
apply to colorful figures. 
At Christmas, there is jolly 
old St. Nick. One popular 
name for the devil was Old 
Nick. He was also called Old 
Scratch. (How is that for a 
segue?)
If you are up to par in your 
well-being or your work or 
any endeavor, you may be 
described as being up to 
scratch.
Seeking a quick win? You 
may find good results when 
you scratch off a lottery card. 
That may earn you a sizeable 

amount of scratch, or not. 
The real gambler may stake 
a bet at the track by using a 
scratch sheet and then hope 
that his horse does not get 
scratched. If it does, he will 
have to start from scratch 
seeking his fortune.
If you wish to get a favor 
from someone, you may 
have to employ the strategy 
of “you scratch my back and 
I’ll scratch yours.” A liter-
alist, however, may suggest 
this phrase if he has recently 
encountered a swarm of mos-

quitoes.
A famous person’s hand-
writing may be described as 
chicken scratchings. Well, 
that certainly makes it harder 
to forge, I suppose. Trying 
to read it, however, may lead 
one to scratch his head. He 
may then decide to scratch 
the idea of trying to sell the 
famous signature since it can-
not be read at all.
I suggest you use these 
terms sparingly if you wish to 
minimize the damage in your 
life. 

Sy Manello
Editorial
Assistant

PURELY COMMENTARY

continued on page 6

essay

A True Story
M

y dad worked hard 
to raise four kids, 
moving us from an 
African American neighbor-
hood on Detroit’s Eastside to 
the Northwest 
side, which was 
predominantly 
Jewish back then. 
One day, as I was 
walking home, 
I saw one of my 
neighbors with 
whom I enjoyed 
talking and especially liked. 
Sometimes she would make tea 

and we would sit in her living 
room and talk. She was always 
interesting, and I liked her 
accent as she spoke.
On this particular day, I was 
about to learn just how inter-
esting she really was. This day, 
she was standing in her front 
yard near the sidewalk, which 
may be where she’
d been when 
I’
d first met her. She could have 
been 75 years old; she was 
short, stout and wearing a dark 
blue dress. It seemed that she 
always wore dark dresses. I can 
no longer remember her name, 

as the conversation took place 
over 40 years ago, but I can 
remember what she had told 
me — as if it was yesterday.
I will call her Miss Anna. 
You see, Miss Anna told me 
of her travels all around the 
world. I was filled with won-
der and could only think and 
say, “Wow, wow and wow.
” I 
should mention that I was in 
my mid-teens and was already 
much taller than Miss Anna. 
I must have said “wow” one 
too many times because she 
suddenly grabbed me by the 

shoulders and began shaking 
me. Her eyes locked onto mine 
and she screamed in my face, 
“It was no pleasure trip! We 
were running from Hitler!” 
I felt confused. She quickly 
released me and backed away. 
Then she proceeded to pull 
up her sleeve to reveal dark 
green numbers tattooed on 
her arm. She’
d been a prisoner 
in a concentration camp. I 
don’t remember exactly what 
happened after that. My heart 
began to pound, and the rest 
of the visit was a blur. I do 

Judy Hall

