Gadzooks! A new blog!

Let joy be unconfined! A New Blog. Another one to join the millions probably created every day. But this one is special. This one is mine.

This blog is about talking about interesting things in a way that will entertain and inform. Or at least that is the aim. Who knows what will actually come about.

So to start us off, a very brief post.

Gadzooks! This might be a word most commonly associated with vintage Batman and very dated films and books. But have you ever wondered what it means?

“Gadzooks” is actually a contraction of the words “God’s Hooks”, most likely the nails that held Jesus upon the cross during the Crucifixion. Sometimes this is even shortened to just “‘Zooks!”

There are quite a few similar old oaths which sound amusing to modern ears. One of my favourite is “Zounds!” This is short for “God’s Wounds”. But then there is also the oaths “S’blood”: God’s blood, “S’foot”: God’s foot,  “S’light”: God’s light, “S’nails”: God’s nails and many many more.

These might sound a bit odd and unfamiliar, but I bet “s’truth!” rings a bell. The stereotypical Australian think to shout when confronted with one of their millions of dangerous creatures.

“S’truth” is, of course, God’s Truth. Although it has completely lost it’s meaning to almost everyone. Except you and I of course! [Insert feeling of superiority here.]

Another stereotypical Australian expression which might come in handy when confronted with some terrifying poisonous or toothy creature might be “Crikey!” This is probably just a corruption of the word Christ, just like “Egad” is just “Oh God” run together.

So basically next time you feel annoyed or surprised, how about avoiding one of those overused boring modern swear words, and go for something charmingly archaic. “Zooks! A snake!” or “Zounds! Aliens!”

So thanks for reading my first blog post. Well done for getting to the bottom. The next one will be even better (it has already been written so I know.)

On an unrelated note, today is Pancake Day! (or Shrove Tuesday who want to use the proper name). For some truly incredible pancake art, check out these guys! They are amazing.

Have a great week!