The cats and dogs are coming down
By Judy Evans
@JudyEv (382240)
Rockingham, Australia
February 5, 2022 3:46am CST
I thought I’d written about this before but I’ve searched for all the keywords I can think of and nothing comes up so hopefully you haven’t read about this before. Or, if you have, hopefully you’ve forgotten about it. 
I once volunteered to help people learn conversational English. One lovely young lady was from Italy. We were talking about idioms once and I told her how, when it is raining heavily, people sometimes say, it’s raining cats and dogs.
I also encouraged her to send me an email sometimes, just as practice in writing English. So, one day, after we’d had a lot of rain, I received an email which said ‘the cats and dogs are coming down’. 
The photo is of two of our cats. Every time the ginger cat (Blue) poked his head out, Smoky would whack him.
I once volunteered to help people learn conversational English. One lovely young lady was from Italy. We were talking about idioms once and I told her how, when it is raining heavily, people sometimes say, it’s raining cats and dogs.
I also encouraged her to send me an email sometimes, just as practice in writing English. So, one day, after we’d had a lot of rain, I received an email which said ‘the cats and dogs are coming down’.
The photo is of two of our cats. Every time the ginger cat (Blue) poked his head out, Smoky would whack him. 24 people like this
22 responses
@arunima25 (93194)
• Bangalore, India
5 Feb 22
Reading it made me smile. I have often heard such cute things from my students in English class. English is not our mother tongue and sometimes we get to hear such funny incidents in lower grades where children are just beginning their journey with English.
That's a cute picture. And I am sure it must be entertaining to watch these two play their poke and whack game
I have often heard such cute things from my students in English class. English is not our mother tongue and sometimes we get to hear such funny incidents in lower grades where children are just beginning their journey with English.
That's a cute picture. And I am sure it must be entertaining to watch these two play their poke and whack game2 people like this
@moffittjc (128837)
• Gainesville, Florida
5 Feb 22
It's nice that your friend remembered your idiom, even though she did turn it around a little bit. English doesn't always make sense, especially when you're translating from one language to another. As we like to say, "that's just the way the cookie crumbles," meaning that's just the way it is.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (128837)
• Gainesville, Florida
7 Feb 22
@JudyEv There's a such thing as white tea? I've only ever heard of green tea and black tea.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (382240)
• Rockingham, Australia
8 Feb 22
@moffittjc We always used to ask 'do you have black or white tea?" White tea has milk in it but in colour it is actually brown, not white.
1 person likes this
@JESSY3236 (22245)
• United States
8 Feb 22
lol When I tell my mother it's raining dogs since we have cats.
1 person likes this
@JESSY3236 (22245)
• United States
15 Feb 22
@JudyEv I have inherited three cats and I own one cat.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (382240)
• Rockingham, Australia
16 Feb 22
@JESSY3236 I'm sure you love them all. I'd like another cat but it wouldn't be very practical at the moment.
1 person likes this
@oahuwriter (26773)
• United States
6 Feb 22
The idiom email, so precious!!
Aw, guess Smoky is Alfa.1 person likes this
@JudyEv (382240)
• Rockingham, Australia
7 Feb 22
@oahuwriter Oh yes, they were both loveable.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (382240)
• Rockingham, Australia
5 Feb 22
At least she tried to use the expression and she had remembered it.
@BarBaraPrz (51831)
• St. Catharines, Ontario
5 Feb 22
Cats are nice but shouldn't there be BOOKS in that bookcase?
1 person likes this
@BarBaraPrz (51831)
• St. Catharines, Ontario
6 Feb 22
@JudyEv How many more cats did you put up on the shelf?
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (382240)
• Rockingham, Australia
6 Feb 22
@BarBaraPrz We only had the two. Here's Blue saying his prayers.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (382240)
• Rockingham, Australia
5 Feb 22
It was funny that she turned it around a little. We used to have water-fights on Boxing Day which was when we mostly got together with Vince's side of the family. We had water pistols for a while but soon learnt that basins or buckets were much more effective.
We used to have water-fights on Boxing Day which was when we mostly got together with Vince's side of the family. We had water pistols for a while but soon learnt that basins or buckets were much more effective. 1 person likes this
@wolfgirl569 (135819)
• Marion, Ohio
5 Feb 22
She had got the idea. Smoky was rotten
1 person likes this
@wolfgirl569 (135819)
• Marion, Ohio
6 Feb 22
@JudyEv Some are more interested in playing with the mice. Pretty has let a few go doing that.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (169490)
• United States
6 Feb 22
Cats do a lot to entertain us as well as each other. Your friend had gained enough to kind of get the sense of the idiom.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (382240)
• Rockingham, Australia
6 Feb 22
Yes, she had. I wonder if she ever uses that phrase now.
@RebeccasFarm (91297)
• United States
5 Feb 22
Oh they are visiting you are they
1 person likes this
@RebeccasFarm (91297)
• United States
5 Feb 22
@JudyEv Yes the poor things, they are good memories of them for you Judy
1 person likes this
@FourWalls (86755)
• United States
5 Feb 22
English is confusing enough to native English speakers! I wonder if there are idioms like that in other languages that we don’t know about.
I wonder if there are idioms like that in other languages that we don’t know about.1 person likes this
@SophiaMorros (5044)
• Belews Creek, North Carolina
5 Feb 22
My mother once wrote me that everyone in the family had had some sort of fly. She meant some sort of bug...she was close.
1 person likes this
