I had a rough day, and then somebody went and ripped the front and back pages from my dictionary. It just goes from bad to worse.

Behind the Groan

Alphabetically Bad to Worse

A dictionary arranges words alphabetically, so losing pages from both ends can leave an unlucky surviving span that begins near “bad” and ends near “worse.” “Going from bad to worse” also describes a situation that keeps deteriorating. Tell the opening with genuine frustration and treat the damaged book as one more problem in a difficult day. Keep the last sentence resigned rather than triumphant. Its familiar complaint hides the literal trip through the remaining dictionary pages.