1001 Arabian Nights

Posted by SR on December 09, 2004

In Reply to: Cows come home posted by Henry on December 09, 2004

: : In Portuguese there is a current expression in these terms: "Deixe os patos passar". It means word by word: Let the ducks go by or pass along.

: : This is an ironical expression, whereby someone suggests that something will happen but certainly in a time that will never really come. The origin is probably from a fable in which a king promises to release a young man from death if he is able to tell him a never-ending story. And the astute young man tells a tale of ducks passing along in a stream. One duck follows the other, and the ducks never stop coming. So the story never reaches the end. Waiting for all the ducks to pass means waiting for ever.

: : Any equivalent in English?

: : Jose Carlos

: Til the cows come home?

Would the literary equivalent be the Arabian Nights?