You commonly read that a bowhunter had a "chip shot" on a deer, meaning he had an easy shot he should never miss. I'm no expert on golf -- I don't play golf -- but in watching a little golf on TV, I have concluded that a chip shot is rarely easy. Webster defines chip shot as "a short, lofted golf stroke, used in approaching the green." It seems to me that most chip shots are relatively difficult, and rarely do chip shots go into the cup. If a bowhunter has an easy shot and wants to describe it with a golf term, he probably should say he had a "tap in." That's the term that best describes a can't-miss shot.

Hunters search for all kinds of ways to describe their emotions as they prepare to shoot at trophy animals, and one of the most common is to say, "My heart went into overdrive." Again, this is one of those clichés that makes no sense. Overdrive is a high gear in a car that actually slows down the engine to improve fuel mileage. Sure, the car is traveling at a high rate of speed, but the engine runs at lower RPMs. To me, then, a heart that goes into overdrive slows down. If a writer means his heart started pounding faster, he probably should say his heart went into compound low.

Another common expression that mystifies me is, "The deer was walking parallel with my treestand." How can an animal walk parallel with a single point? I suppose he could be circling the tree, never getting closer or farther away. But that's never what the writer means. He means the animal was walking by in a straight line. However, that's not parallel, because the deer gets closer and then farther away. Parallel means the distance remains the same.

In the greater scheme of life, this might not be weighty stuff, but someone has to think about such things, and, as an editor, that's what I do. Perhaps it all started with Jason Lucas, who indoctrinated me on the ways of fishing and words. Maybe my idolization of Jason Lucas explains my strong opinions about words. Without question, it explains why I NEVER call a fishing rod a pole.