Made it by the skin of my teeth--where did that saying originate anyway?
(After Shakespeare, a prolific coiner of new words, the King James translation of the Bible has been the biggest source of phrases in English. ‘By the skin of one’s teeth’ is one of them. Meaning ‘narrowly’ or ‘barely’, and referring usually to a narrow escape from disaster, the phrase comes from the Book of Job, in which Job is subjected to horrible trials by Satan, to be relieved finally by God. The precise phrase Job uses is slightly different:
‘My bone cleaveth to my skin and to my flesh, and I am escaped with the skin of my teeth’ (19:20).
Exactly what ‘the skin of one’s teeth’ might be is not entirely clear, and there have been many theories put forward. The most plausible explanation is that it refers to the thin porcelain exterior of the tooth (rather than the gums). In other words, Job escaped with his teeth, but just barely. Job is comparing the narrow margin of his escape with the shallow ‘skin’ or porcelain of a tooth: the equivalent, in fact, of a ‘hair’s breadth’)
It's interesting that a lot of the slogans we use today is a Biblical reference. Any who--I did finish
March pattern on Estonian knit along designed by Toni L. Lorenz.
It was a continuing pattern from February. I'm using handspun silk--
soon to switch to another yarn as I didn't have much silk to use.
I have the other mitt finished from Helical Stripes--it doesn't matter
to me if they match or not--finished in time to begin April's adventure in
the Year of Techniques from AC Knitwear
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