stymied; browser crash

[fflo]

I guess the computer gods didn't want me doing another old movie post again tonight---I was a good way's* into it when I was hit by Mozilla freeze-up and sudden closure. Maybe I'll tell you about it tomorrow, though. In the meantime...

[Poll #660918]

Comments

[andystardust.livejournal.com]

I would say "a way's down the road" if I was determined to use the phrase, although since this is me we're talking about, I would be more likely to cop out and say "down the road some distance." The road is a way, and the distance down that road is that way's distance. Therefore I would say "a way's" down the road. Yeah. La la la.

[fflo.livejournal.com]

Thanks for sharing your rationale! That's pretty much my thinking---like "a good way's down the road" means "a good way's distance down the road," which is the distance of a good way down the road. I mean, my gut tells me there's some genitiveness in there somewhere (genitivity?), though the expression seems to be represented generally without an apostrophe.

And, yeah, of course my point is to figure out how to represent the colloquialism in writing, as aabassplayer dug, not to advocate for its use by those who feel some compulsion to stick to "proper" language.