Is there really more ways to skin a cat?

One of my co-workers used this phrase today...and that got me to thinking...Is there really more ways to skin a cat? And where did that come from?

OK...so this is something you need to know.

There are several versions of this saying, which suggests that there are always several ways to do something. Charles Kingsley used one old British form in Westward Ho! in 1855: “there are more ways of killing a cat than choking it with cream”. Other versions include “there are more ways of killing a dog than hanging him”, “there are more ways of killing a cat than by choking it with butter”, and “there are more ways of killing a dog than choking him with pudding”.

Mark Twain used your version in A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court in 1889: “she was wise, subtle, and knew more than one way to skin a cat”, that is, more than one way to get what she wanted. An earlier appearance is in ’Way down East; or, Portraitures of Yankee Life by Seba Smith of about 1854: “This is a money digging world of ours; and, as it is said, ‘there are more ways than one to skin a cat,’ so are there more ways than one of digging for money”. From the way he writes, the author clearly knew this to be a well-known existing proverbial saying. In fact, it is first recorded in John Ray’s collection of English proverbs as far back as 1678.

Some writers have pointed to its use in the southern states of the US in reference to catfish, often abbreviated to cat, a fish that is indeed usually skinned in preparing it for eating. However, it looks very much from the multiple versions of the saying, their wide distribution and their age, that this is just a local application of the proverb.

The version more than one way to skin a cat seems to have nothing directly to do with the American English term to skin a cat, which is to perform a type of gymnastic exercise, involving passing the feet and legs between the arms while hanging by the hands from a horizontal bar. However, its name may have been suggested by the action of turning an animal’s skin inside out as part of the process of removing it from the body.

Thanks to world wise words...you know where this comes from...

However...that still doesn't answer the question...

Well if you like quantum like I do...there is this...



There's More Than One Way to Skin Schrödinger's Cat

Authors

V. Enol'skii
M. Salerno
A. Scott
J. Eilbeck

Journal / Anthology

Physica D
Year: 1992
Volume: 59
Page range: 1-24

Description

Two methods for studying quantum discrete dynamical systems (i.e. with a finite or countably infinite number of degrees of freedom) are described and compared for: (i) The discrete self-trapping (DST) equation, (ii) The Ablowitz-Ladik (AL) equation, and (iii) A fermionic polaron (FP) model. The first method, called the quantum inverse scattering method (QISM), emphasizes the relationship between the quantum theory and classical integrability. The second method, which we call the number state method (NSM), can be extended to systems that are not classically integrable. Thus the two methods are not equivalent.

Yikes...but I think her point is this...

How often have you caught yourself saying that there could be no other possible solution to a problem – and that that problem leads to a dead end? How many times have you felt stumped knowing that the problem laying before you is one you cannot solve (or so it seems). No leads/options or solutions. Time to apply Creative Critical Thinking process.

Did it feel like you had exhausted all possible options and yet are still before the huge mountain – large, unconquerable, and impregnable? When encountering such enormous and complex problems, you may feel like you are knocking against a steel mountain. The pressure of having to solve such a problem may be too overwhelming for you.

But rejoice! There might be some hope yet - Creative Critical Thinking!

With some creative problem-solving techniques you may be able to look at your problem in a different angle. And that angle might just be the end of the tunnel that leads to possible solutions.

First of all, in the light of creative problem-solving, you must be open-minded to the fact that there may be more than just one solution to the existing problem. And, you must be open to the fact that there may be solutions to problems you thought were unsolvable earlier. Such possibility is possible with Creative Critical Thinking.

Now, with this optimistic mindset, we can try to be a little bit more creative and critical in solving our problems.


So...is there another way to skin a cat?

There’s certainly more than one way to skin a cat. But which is the right way?

Well...just think about it...then share it...with someone who is in need of some fresh ideas...or skinning techniques.

Love,
The lass