Last year I publicly made it my business to start saying “Great Scott” more. Ask anybody who knows me, I’ve followed through, to a fault. Great Scott, do I say Great Scott, a lot!
Got a new oldie to make new again: “Now we’re sucking diesel.” First time I heard that one was about 30 years ago, driving with my pal Tom across Ireland. Some kind of Irish country folk song came on the radio of our rented Nissan Sunny and a man sang, “Now we’re suckin’ diesel. Now we’re headin’ west.” We can’t remember any of the other words, but every time we’ve headed west after that, we’ve also asserted that we were suckin’ diesel.
Last weekend it finally occurred to me to research the etymology of the phrase. It originated in Ireland, and had to do with how hard it used to be to restart a diesel tractor motor once it had run out of fuel. A vacuum had to be created, to get the thing to start pulling fuel into its cylinders. When that finally started and the engine started running and work could resume, the farmer would triumphantly say, “Now we’re suckin’ diesel!”
People ask you how you’re doing.
Sometimes I say, “I’m wearing the world like a loose garment.” That usually shuts ’em up.
Today I answered the question on a Zoom call, “How how’s the new year?”
“I’m suckin’ diesel!” I exclaimed.
My explanation of which got us off to a lively start.
I won’t be satisfied this year until all my colleagues and most of our vendors not only know what suckin’ diesel means, but start using it themselves, in staff meetings and update calls.
“We’ve booked the venue, booked the speakers, booked the hotel—”
“Now we’re suckin’ diesel!”
It is to do with siphoning diesel. Now your sucking diesel or now your sucking the red stuff
This means now your doing it right
The diesel is coming so success diesel stolen
Love this! I’m just back from Ireland where my Cork cousin Noel did the driving. And we were sucking diesel from Shannon to Cork to Waterford and back – with breaks for long walks on the boardwalk in Youghal, a great meal and a night’s sleep in the Walter Raleigh hotel, and a beautiful send-off for an old pal from the Bronx who lived out his life in Wexford
On the way back to Shannon cousin Noel pulled into a petrol station to fill up on the special diesel his car took – the Bean an Tí behind the counter after inquiry where were from — she was from Kerry herself — informed us that she “didn’t have a drop” of petrol nor diesel “maybe tomorrow,” she said, with an “Ah sure, now..!” upward tilt of the chin.
Love this!