You cannot understand my tone from the headline alone.

It’s All Down Hill From Here

Does this headline convey certain doom or an easy and relaxing mood?

One day I heard some people gossiping about a co-worker. One woman said to another “Justin is not doing well. He is really going down hill.”

I didn’t give it another thought until later that same day a different colleague was feeling chatty. The busiest part of the day had already past, and to express her feeling of relief she said “It’s all down hill from here.”

That was when it struck me that the two separate conversations with entirely different meanings had almost the same words.

Is something that is headed downhill symbolic of a bad situation or a good one?

The answer is both.

I thought about the opposite direction. What is not down, is up.

A common way to describe a challenging task came to mind. People often say It’s an uphill battle to describe something that is hard to overcome or exhausting.

Oddly people also refer to upward travels in a positive way. You might hear of an up-and-coming author on Medium. When someone is exceptional at their trade they are sometimes called a rising star. In this context, upward travels indicate improvement and growth.

Is something that is headed up hill a negative or a positive thing?

Again the answer is both.

English is a quirky melting pot.

If you like to ponder goofy linguistics, check this one out:

And here is one that will most definitely make you laugh:

And here is something that is awesome:

Then you will crack up reading these funny famous sayings that were updated by children:

Cheers.