Ha ha - now you get more new comments to this old post! :D

I was just thinking about the 'gift horse' one yesterday, but someone already mentioned it.

All those nauticalisms - so many I didn't even know they were nauticalisms! So they are already obsolete but persistent:

*Don't sweat the small stuff
*The devil to pay and no pitch hot
*Between the devil and the deep blue sea
*The bitter end

I'm sure there's lots more; that's just top of head.

For clockwise: You know, I filled the house with analog clocks just to make sure my kids would learn to tell time on analog as well as digital (didn't have to worry too much, the school still teaches time-telling on analog).

But clockwise and counter-clockwise will still persist in anything that turns, like screws and jar lids. I can't see us replacing the term; I bet we'll continue to say clockwise, even if the term gets corrupted and shortened along the way.

Also bet we hang onto analog displays, even if they are driven digitally! :D