Volume XIV

Down go the Warriors — sent home by our hometown heroes, the Minnesota Timberwolves. And since Golden State’s packing up and heading back across the Bay, we figured it’s the perfect time to talk bridges in this week’s edition.

I. Burning bridges🔥

Back in the day armies would cross a bridge into enemy land, then torch the thing. It wasn’t in an act of spite, rather it was to show their own troops: there’s no going back now.

Nowadays, it’s quitting your job morning of. Walking out of practice when coach puts you on the line. Or getting caught eating the leftovers of the roommate you don’t jive with.

Once it’s burned, it’s gone. The kind of thing even George Clooney couldn’t smooth talk his way back from.

II. I’ve got a bridge to sell you 🌉

The phrase comes from real con men in the early 1900s. They claimed to “sell” iconic landmarks like the Brooklyn Bridge to unsuspecting victims. The joke was simple: no one owns the bridge, and only a fool would think they could buy it.

So to the guy living paycheck to paycheck who drops $250 on a shirt just because it says “Supreme”?

Boy, do I have a bridge to sell you.

III. Water under the bridge 🌊

This one comes from the image of a river flowing under a bridge — once it’s gone, it’s gone for good. The French had a similar phrase, “De l’eau a coulé sous les ponts” (“Water has flowed under the bridges”), and by the late 1800s, English speakers were using it to politely turn the page on old drama.

Fast forward to today, and it means the same thing: whatever happened, it’s downstream now. A little strategic amnesia for things that just aren’t worth the energy anymore.

Keep on sending on. Forward to a friend.