Re: [TANGO-L] What do the titles mean?

[Ruddy Zelaya <ruddy@MILONGAS.COM>]

Hola Naifas y Garabos,
   
Miguel Canals <elpibemc1961@YAHOO.CA> wrote:
  Thanks Bruno for the explanations. What I am looking
for, though, are the Spanish words that they stand for
(N.N. & C.T.V.)? Do you know what they are?

I also came across a milonga "Por H o por B". Any
ideas anyone?

------


N.N. = Ningun Nombre (in other words name unknown or in this case 'whithout a name' or "untitled")
C.T.V. = If you sound off these letters in Spanish, they stand for (onomatopoeically) 'Se Te Ve' (you are showing something).
N.P. = No Place. In horse race wagering, the first 3 spots are Win, Place, and Show. No Place = didn't win at all.
Por h o por b = For any reason. Kids learning to write always have difficulty making the two letters distinct enough.
    Thus, the literal meaning of the idiom is, 'I don't care how it's spelled'.
  
In the case of the milonga, the verse reads:
    Por h o por b, en la pieza,
    no se hace más que chillar,
    ni un tango puedo silbar,
    que te duele la cabeza.

  Roughly translates to:
    For whatever reason, in the [bed]room,
    nothing happens but cries,
    I can't even whistle a tango,
    because you claim [to have] a headache.

--
ruddy