hard eight
n.— «Many kids programming networks are virtually sold out for the crucial holiday season, in particular for what is known as the “hard eight,” the eight weeks leading up to Christmas. “For fourth quarter, we are definitely sold out,” said Barbara Bekkedahl, exec VP-advertising sales for Fox Family Worldwide.» —“Kids TV market sees unexpected 4th quarter jump” by Wayne Friedman Advertising Age (2) Oct. 30, 2000. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
Books were rare treasures in the Middle Ages, painstakingly copied out by hand. So how to protect them from theft? Scribes sometimes added a curse to the first page of those books that was supposed to keep thieves away — and some were as vicious as...
It’s hard to imagine now, but there was a time when people disagreed over the best word to use when answering the phone. Alexander Graham Bell suggested answering with ahoy! but Thomas Edison was partial to hello! A fascinating new book about...