Getting my nose to the grindstone
Monday, July 27th, 2009Oh boy, I have major work to do. In a week I’ll be performing a solo theater piece at The Marsh Theater. It’s a new thing for me to do and it scares me, so maybe that’s a good thing. It’ll shake things up a bit.
Keep your nose to the grindstone (to keep working hard).
In colonial America without electricity, the Pilgrims’ main staple food was corn. To get the greatest use from the corn it was ground to a powder known today as cornmeal. The corn kernels were poured in to a stone “bowl” in which the giant wheel (the millstone) rested. The wheel was turned from above by the power of a windmill. In order to get the corn in to the bowl, the “miller” had to pour it in from the back side which made his nose get quite close to the turning millstone.
(via http://www.redgage.com/blogs/sneaggles/etymology-of-idioms.html)
