We are flying without a net
Posted: December 8, 2025 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: blended idioms, expressions, humor, language, malaphors, mixed idioms, words 5 CommentsThis was heard in a conversation about medical treatment without data to rely on. It is a mix of “flying blind” (working on intuition or guesswork instead of data) and “working without a net” (to take action that is risky or otherwise does not provide safety). Almost a congruent conflation but not quite, but both idioms involve working without any certainty. The speaker may have been thinking of flying acrobats with no net underneath. A big thanks to Tom Justice for sending this one in!
Malaphors 
What about Frankie Avalon?
What about Frankie Avalon?
OK, I’m dense. What’s the Frankie Avalon reference to this malaphor?
Annette (a net) Funicello and Frankie Avalon. Sheesh. Am I that old?
Not at all. I’m just not that quick… (however an Annette Funicello reference is pretty old school).