To go gaga is to become senile. To go gaga over someone is to be so besotted with them that you are unable to function rationally. Haven't you asked about "back burner" previously?
when you cook on the stove, the back burner is for keeping things warm, the front burner is for the active cooking. Putting something on the 'back burner' means you aren't actively working on it, but you haven't forgotten about it either, and it might come back to the front burner for more active cooking.
Rapper - someone who performs rap, a music (I use the term loosely) style of speaking rhyming lyrics. Shock jock - a disc-jockey who is renowned for deliberately trying to shock people with their comments, guests, topics of discussion etc. usually done in a humorous way, with their target audience enjoying the irreverent way they often go about their work, although which Others might often find offensive. F-bomb, as you stated. Riled up - annoyed, but more energetic than simple annoyance: so probably angered and irritated.
A scholarly definition of music is: an art form using sound as a medium, having three components: melody, rhythm and harmony. 1. Rap has rhythm. In fact, rhythm is one of its strongest components. 2. Rap usually (although not always) has harmony. It's typical for a rap performance to be accompanied by musical instruments that provide a background of chord changes to emphasize the poetic structure of the lyrics. Nonetheless, some rap performances are accompanied only by percussion, which establishes and stabilizes the rhythm, but is devoid of pitch and therefore devoid of harmony. 3. However, rap does not have melody. The lyrics are spoken as poetry: with a rhythmic cadence but without melody. Therefore, from a scholarly perspective, rap is definitely not music. Since the commercial debut of rap in the 1970s (originally in the Afro-American community but now widespread), many rap artists have added melody to their compositions, either provided by the musical instruments supporting the rappers, or by interludes which are sung by other members of the ensemble. (The popular and well-respected band Linkin Park is a perfect example of this. Each verse is started by the rapper, but at the end of his portion of the lyrics the singer sings the last few words. Then the rapper drops out and the singer continues. Their big hit "In the End" is performed this way.) This gives the composition more dynamics. This style of performance, an offshoot of rap that blends rapping with singing and/or instrumental backup or interludes, is called "hip-hop." It definitely qualifies as music. This is a polite way for a newspaper or other publication to tell the readers that a public figure (politician, business leader, athlete, entertainer, etc.) has used the word "fuck," without having to actually print it, which would violate the editorial policies of many publications intended for "family" reading, i.e., suitable for children.
There is a subtle difference in meaning. You would say "he painted the left but not the right side", because you are talking about each side as a separate object. You would say "he painted the left and right sides" talking about them together as part of a whole. (in fact "both sides" would be used here, but I am using the above to illustrate)
An American would just as likely say, "He painted the left and right side." We seem to be pretty intolerant of inflections, so we happily abuse them.
I believe it's an expression from swimming, when you're able to keep yourself from sinking by swimming without moving anywhere.
"Tread water" means to remain more-or-less vertical in the water, using your feet to keep your head above water. You bend your head backward to keep your mouth as high as possible. This is probably the easiest way to keep from drowning while waiting for a rescue. You use less energy, so you'll stay alive longer. An accomplished swimmer in good physical condition might be able to keep this up for several hours. If you can see land, then you have to decide if you'll be better off to swim toward it. This will take more energy so you'll get tired faster, but if the land is close enough, you can reach it. But you have to be aware of the currents. If they are pushing you away from the shore, only a very strong swimmer would be able to reach it.
So in relation to the dollar, I believe it may mean that the value of the dollar isn't sinking, but it's not improving either?
The government, obviously. Haven't you been paying attention? Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! It's even called "bailing out". (Removing water from the bottom of a boat.)
Exactly. But the use of an idiom that normally refers to a human swimmer, who is desperately trying to avoid drowning, implies that the value of the dollar is in danger, and without some form of rescue, it will eventually lose its energy and begin to fall.
