# gets all wee-wee'd up



## Schrodinger's_Cat

I would like to translate: 

*President Obama said: “There's something about August going into September -- where everybody in Washington gets all wee-wee'd up”*

Robert Gibbs Defines Obama Phrase, 'Wee-Wee'd Up'

And, in the Urban dictionary

Keep in mind that *wee-wee* = fare pipi

It is when people get nervous for no particular reason.
Getting wound up or riled up over an unimportant issue.
Getting upset when there's no reason to be.

Could I use the verbs _preoccupare, agitare, turbare; irritare, contrariare, infastidire, seccare_

And, how do you translate *There's something about August going into September*?


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## Odysseus54

BenVitale said:


> Could I use the verbs _preoccupare, agitare, turbare; irritare, contrariare, infastidire, seccare_




Your guess is as good as mine.  I just googled the expression to check the usage, and all I found was a barrage of hate content squirting out from under all sorts of very conservative cyber-rocks.   I gave up.

Maybe, if you provide some examples, this will help us find a decent Italian equivalent.


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## TrentinaNE

It's a new expression to many of us.  An "old-fashioned" equivalent seems to be "gets their panties in a bunch."  You know, over-reacting.

Elisabetta


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## Schrodinger's_Cat

This expression is an old expression ... you'll find it in the Bible, Chaucer used it. The meaning vary with the situation.

It can be taken as an insult. At any rate, it is not flattering ... A polite way to express the same sentiments would be, "If you cannot take the heat, stay out of the kitchen."

It's an indication of not being ready for prime time ... another definition of getting wee-weed up is landing a job you're not ready to handle.


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## You little ripper!

TrentinaNE said:


> It's a new expression to many of us.  An "old-fashioned" equivalent seems to be "gets their panties in a bunch."  You know, over-reacting.
> 
> Elisabetta


Or, _to get your knickers/shorts in a twist/knot/bundle._ 



BenVitale said:


> This expression is an old expression ... you'll find it in the Bible.


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## Schrodinger's_Cat

In the late 1300s, Chaucer wrote in the Canterbury Tales: _“Sondry folks are all a-wye."_

Shakespeare in the “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”: 
_"And sleep, I beg thee, let me succor from thy cup … lest I become as them, all wee-weed up.”_

[Elena was quoted saying]

In the King James version of the Bible, in the book of Matthew, chapter 27, it is written, _“When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that the crowd remained wee-weed up, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person, see ye to it.”_

How can you then translate the sentence I posted?


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## You little ripper!

BenVitale said:


> In the King James version of the Bible, in the book of Matthew, chapter 27, it is written, _“When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that the crowd remained wee-weed up, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person, see ye to it.”_


Ben,  I don't know what edition of the King James version of the Bible the person quoting that used, but these ones say "tumult".

When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water.................

There's only one Google listing for the version using "wee wee'd up" and it appears to be the above quote.


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## Bookmom

*“There's something about August going into September -- where everybody in Washington gets all wee-wee'd up*

*Here's a quick try after two glasses of wine...*

*C'e' un fenomeno che fa effetto quando agosto e' a cavallo di settembre in cui tutti quanti a Washington si avvolgono in una tempesta di emozioni..*


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## Schrodinger's_Cat

Charles Costante said:


> Ben, I don't know what edition of the King James version of the Bible the person quoting that used, but these ones say "tumult".
> 
> When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water.................
> 
> There's only one Google listing for the version using "wee wee'd up" and it appears to be the above quote.


 
I have serious doubts about my source ... it was somewhere on the net.

I asked a priest about this quote. He told me that it's not in the Bible ... he also told me that the Scriptures can be misquoted and misunderstood by people ... that it's better to check for yourself (Oops! it's something that I didn't do ... I should have checked first in the Bible ... I must admit that the Bible is not a book that I enjoy reading)

I was also recommended to check at this site: http://www.blueletterbible.org/index.cfm

and type in "Matthew 27:24" giving me:

http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Mat&c=27&v=24&t=KJV#24



> Mat 24:27
> 
> When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but [that] rather a tumult was made, he took water, and washed [his] hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye [to it].


 
The "wee-weed up" isn't there


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## Schrodinger's_Cat

Bookmom said:


> *“There's something about August going into September -- where everybody in Washington gets all wee-wee'd up*
> 
> *Here's a quick try after two glasses of wine...*
> 
> *C'e' un fenomeno che fa effetto quando agosto e' a cavallo di settembre in cui tutti quanti a Washington si avvolgono in una tempesta di emozioni..*


 
Thanks for your input ... I find your translation quite elegant ...


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## You little ripper!

BenVitale said:


> I have serious doubts about my source ... it was somewhere on the net.
> 
> I asked a priest about this quote. He told me that it's not in the Bible ... he also told me that the Scriptures can be misquoted and misunderstood by people ... that it's better to check for yourself (Oops! it's something that I didn't do ... I should have checked first in the Bible ... I must admit that the Bible is not a book that I enjoy reading)
> 
> I was also recommended to check at this site: http://www.blueletterbible.org/index.cfm
> 
> and type in "Matthew 27:24" giving me:
> 
> http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Mat&c=27&v=24&t=KJV#24
> 
> The "wee-weed up" isn't there


Ben, the only reason I queried it is because an expression from the Bible (or the time  it was translated) will have a completely different tone to one that is used today, something I think is quite important in trying to work out a translation.


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## ectropion

*C'è qualcosa che accade nel passaggio da agosto a settembre - quando in tutta Washington serpeggia/fermenta/ un irragionevole nervosismo* 

Ma non ho ben capito come l'espressione "to get wee-wee'd up" viene sentita (desueta? formale/informale?) insomma, come suona a un madrelingua.


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## Bookmom

ectropion said:


> *C'è qualcosa che accade nel passaggio da agosto a settembre - quando in tutta Washington serpeggia/fermenta/ un irragionevole nervosismo*
> 
> Ma non ho ben capito come l'espressione "to get wee-wee'd up" viene sentita (desueta? formale/informale?) insomma, come suona a un madrelingua.



Get all wee-wee'd up is a chiding, derisive, almost childish rebuke.  It's not at all common and I would not have expected Obama to use it.


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## Schrodinger's_Cat

ectropion said:


> *C'è qualcosa che accade nel passaggio da agosto a settembre - quando in tutta Washington serpeggia/fermenta/ un irragionevole nervosismo*


 
So the expression is "accadere nel passagio da Agosto a Settembre"



> Ma non ho ben capito come l'espressione "to get wee-wee'd up" viene sentita (desueta? formale/informale?) insomma, come suona a un madrelingua.


 
Read my posts #1 and #4

The urban dictionary has this definition for that phrase

Definitions and interpretations given:



> 1. Getting upset when there's no reason to be.
> 1. Getting all riled up
> 2. To freak out when the president spends money at a rate unrivaled in human history while he takes over the banks, the auto industry, and the health care industry, and oversteps the constitutional bounds on the powers of the executive branch on a daily basis.
> 3. An ironic term used by our president to make fun of the stupidity and immaturity of the Republican party getting pissed off about the health care bill.
> 4. Wee-wee'd - refers to urinating. When a person is "wee-wee'd up" they are all excited or stressed about something to the point they would wet themselves or wet the bed.
> ....
> 7. A politically-correct Washington-speak version of "pissed off".


 
See what others have said :

Obama invents a new phrase ‘wee-weed’ up

Notable Blunders

Bookworm room

More guesses under "TRACKBACKS"


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## Schrodinger's_Cat

Charles Costante said:


> Ben, the only reason I queried it is because an expression from the Bible (or the time it was translated) will have a completely different tone to one that is used today, something I think is quite important in trying to work out a translation.


 
True, I'll do a search today ... did you search for the expression in the Bible?


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## miri

"C'è qualcosa tra la fine d'agosto e l'inizio di settembre .. per cui tutti smaniano/friggono/sembrano sulle spine a Washington. Non so cos'è, ma questo è quel che succede"

Qui Gibbs spiega: "Let's do this in a way that is family-friendly. I think wee-weed up is when people just get all nervous for no particular reason," Gibbs said. "Bed-wetting would be probably the more consumer-friendly term."


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## ectropion

miri said:


> "C'è qualcosa tra la fine d'agosto e l'inizio di settembre .. per cui tutti smaniano/friggono/sembrano sulle spine a Washington. Non so cos'è, ma questo è quel che succede"
> 
> Qui Gibbs spiega: "Let's do this in a way that is family-friendly. I think wee-weed up is when people just get all nervous for no particular reason," Gibbs said. "Bed-wetting would be probably the more consumer-friendly term."


 Ha ragione miri, quel "where" è tradotto bene con "per cui"... forse però per "to get wee-wee'd up" è più difficile, anche perché a quanto pare le letture sono tante... e a quanto mi risulta in italiano non esiste un verbo che abbia dei rimandi anche volgar-scatologici come questo... almeno non in quest'accezione...


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## Odysseus54

Forse allora " ..c'e' qualcosa tra fine Agosto e inizio Settembre per cui a Washington girano _i  coglioni_ a tutti "  


In alternativa, in ordine decrescente di volgarita' : 

_"le palle"_

_"i marroni"_

_"gli zebedei"_

_"i cosiddetti"_

_"le scatole"_


Ricchezza dell'italiano..

My problem here, though, is that I can't really yet gauge the register of the English expression and pinpoint an equivalent in Italian - I think there is some vulgarity, but delivered in baby-talk.

So, maybe :

"..c'e' qualcosa tra fine Agosto e inizio Settembre per cui a Washington si fanno tutti girare le palline "


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## You little ripper!

BenVitale said:


> True, I'll do a search today ... did you search for the expression in the Bible?


You must have missed the Google links I provided to websites that quote the King James version of Matthew 27:24 in Post 7. I don't have one at home, otherwise I'd check it personally, but I think we can be pretty certain that it uses the word 'tumult' (there are over 300 websites that quote it that way).


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## ectropion

Odysseus54 said:


> Forse allora " ..c'e' qualcosa tra fine Agosto e inizio Settembre per cui a Washington girano _i  coglioni_ a tutti "


Good! Ma forse, se l'irritazione è irragionevole, m'ispiro a Odysseus per un "si svegliano tutti con le  palle girate!"
(Si perde, però, quel childish tone che qualcuno ha sottolineato...)


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## Bookmom

Ok, let's see how old everybody is, c'e' una canzone di Pippo Franco in cui un bambino, ad ogni occassione inopportune, dice "mi scappa la pipi papa".   

Non andrebbe male qui una versione di questa frase, tipo, ...per cui gli scappa la pipi a tutti quanti a Washington...


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## Odysseus54

Except that in Italian there is no metaphore attached to that.


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## Bookmom

Odysseus54 said:


> Except that in Italian there is no metaphore attached to that.


 
It is so seldom heard in English, I wouldn't say that it was obviously or singularly understood as a metaphor either.  I was trying to address the issure of vulgarity stated in baby talk.  It works for me in that sense.


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## miri

Ciao Bookmom, anche a me era venuta la stessa idea, ma non ero sicura che andasse bene!
Avevo in mente immagini di questo tipo QUI QUI QUI

Allora forse si potrebbe dire "*come se a  tutti stesse per scappare la pipì"*,
cioè in quello spiacevole stato di tensione che assale quando si è costretti a trattenerla

O invece si tratta dell'agitazione che viene al bambino dopo che ha fatto la pipì a letto, visto che Gibbs dice "Bed-wetting would be probably the more consumer-friendly term."?


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## Bookmom

Ciao Miri,

Nicely done! I think, "*come se a tutti stesse per scappare la pipì" *comes as close as we are going to get in this case.


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## Odysseus54

Bookmom said:


> Ciao Miri,
> 
> Nicely done! I think, "*come se a tutti stesse per scappare la pipì" *comes as close as we are going to get in this case.




Except that in Italian the closest metaphore, "farsela adosso" , indicates fear, not nervousness or being upset or angry.  

And actually, that's the way I had interpreted the phrase the first time I heard of it, but then I read about nervousness and being p..off, and that pushed me back to square one.


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## ectropion

Odysseus54 said:


> Except that in Italian the closest metaphore, "farsela adosso" , indicates fear, not nervousness or being upset or angry.


 ... e uno "se la fa addosso" anche per le risate...


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## miri

"Avere la pipì" e far fatica a trattenerla e "farsela addosso" sono due cose molto diverse. Il primo dà l'idea di nervosismo, il secondo indica paura.
Anche per gli statunitensi  "get wee-weed up" è un modo di dire insolito, non è una metafora sedimentata.


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## Odysseus54

miri said:


> "Avere la pipì" e far fatica a trattenerla e "farsela addosso" sono due cose molto diverse. Il primo dà l'idea di nervosismo, il secondo indica paura.
> Anche per gli statunitensi  "get wee-weed up" è un modo di dire insolito, non è una metafora sedimentata.



"Avere la pipi'" come metafora per il nervosismo ?  Mai sentito.   

Ho sentito "pisciarsi addosso dal ridere".  

L'argomento che la metafora e' insolita e, aggiungo io, ambigua, serve a che cosa ?   A testo originale ambiguo e insolito, traduzione incomprensibile ?


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## ectropion

a meno che uno non dicesse "tutti a Washington fremono come se stessero per farsela sotto da un momento all'altro" ma in questo caso la traduzione diventa troppo didascalica, per niente fedele all'originale. Poi, se ho ben capito, nella metafora il nervosismo nasce dopo che uno se l'è fatta sotto (bed-wetting)...


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## miri

Rileggi con pazienza
Avevo scritto "come se a tutti stesse per scappare la pipì": non mi sembra incomprensibile. Al limite si può modificare "*Per cui sono nervosi come se stessero tenendo la pipì*". 
Se c'è voluto qualcuno che traducesse dall'inglese all'inglese perchè nessuno riusciva a capire cosa Obama volesse dire, mi sembra che quest'ultima versione sia perfettamente comprensibile e in tono col registro infantile usato dal Presidente ...


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## Bookmom

Ok kids, it's not real fear or paralyzing nerves we're talking about here, it's a sudden realization that the summer is ending and that the politicians and powers that be in Washington have pissed away another legislative year without much sign of accomplishment.  It's a recurring phenomenon that is all smoke and no fire.  Let's not get too carried away here is all the President is saying.  All the excitement will die down and we'll be right back where we started.


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## Odysseus54

miri said:


> Rileggi con pazienza
> Avevo scritto "come se a tutti stesse per scappare la pipì": non mi sembra incomprensibile. Al limite si può modificare "*Per cui sono nervosi come se stessero tenendo la pipì*".




Ah - se vuoi esplicitare la metafora va benissimo.


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## Schrodinger's_Cat

For your reading pleasure, here's "All wee-weed up" : A Brief History


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## Odysseus54

BenVitale said:


> For your reading pleasure, here's "All wee-weed up" : A Brief History



Somebody earlier had refuted the Bible quote.  I have checked my worn-out copy of James Boswell's "The life of Samuel Johnson" - just kidding, I found it on Project Gutenberg - and the passage quoted actually reads :
'I shall give myself no trouble about the matter.'

Was the text edited by Project Gutenberg, or is "Balk" ( the poster of the article on The Awl ) feeding us linguistic disinformation ?


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## miri

And what about The Prologue of _The Canterbury Tales_?

In the version quoted by Balk: _And smale fowles maken melodye,
*Sondry folk are all a-wye
*
_In other versions:
And smale foweles maken melodye, 
*That slepen al the nyght with open ye 

*Edit: 
And Helena's lines!!!!!!Bark: And sleep, I beg thee, let me succor from thy cup
*Lest I become as them, all wee-weed up.
*
Other versions:    And sleep, that sometimes shuts up sorrow's eye,(455) 
*Steal me awhile from mine own company.
* 
EDIT: And Helena's lines!!!!!! Balk: And sleep, I beg thee, let me succor from thy cup Lest I become as them, all wee-weed up.


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