What is "say hey"?

[nq:1]All of a sudden, every second Usenet message has "say hey" in it. Maybe I lead a sheltered life, but ... it spring from (although I'm guessing it has to be American)? Is it related to the equally incomprehensible "heads up"?[/nq]
It's a catchphrase associated with one of the greatest baseball players of all time, Willie Mays of the San Francisco Giants.

Just why you should be se

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Willie Mays has been getting big articles in the news recently because he is number 3 on the career home runs list, behind Babe Ruth, and Barry Bonds is about to overtake him.

It seems unfair that post season home runs should count, but I suppose that they do.
Richard Maurer To reply, remove half
Sunnyvale, California of a homonym of a synonym for also.

[nq:1]<< (jac23) All of a sudden, every second Usenet message has "say hey" in it. Maybe I lead a sheltered ... a catchphrase associated with one of the greatest baseball players of all time, Willie Mays of the San Francisco Giants.[/nq]
Us oldsters tend to think of Willie Mays as a New York Giant. to begin with, he was a New Yorker, noted for his skill at stoopball. The most famous single thi

[nq:1]All of a sudden, every second Usenet message has "say hey" in it. Maybe I lead a sheltered life, but ... it spring from (although I'm guessing it has to be American)? Is it related to the equally incomprehensible "heads up"?[/nq]
"Heads up" isn't so incomprehensible. It's what construction workers say when they are working over other exposed workers. It lets those below know there is a p

[nq:2]All of a sudden, every second Usenet message has "say ... American)? Is it related to the equally incomprehensible "heads up"?[/nq]
"Heads up" has two meanings. It means to be alert about some physical danger. If I'm carrying something unwieldy, I might say "heads up" to warn someone else in the room that they might be struck by the object if they didn't watch out.
It's also an advan

Brian Wickham filted:
[nq:1]"Heads up" isn't so incomprehensible. It's what construction workers say when they are working over other exposed workers. It lets those below know there is a potential danger overhead. Restaurant workers say, "Watch your back" when maneuvering through a room with a tray of dishes.[/nq]
Or in a Mexican restaurant: "Hot plate!"...
[nq:1]The rest of us have ad

[nq:2]Is it related to the equally incomprehensible "heads up"?[/nq]
[nq:1]"Heads up" isn't so incomprehensible. It's what construction workers say when they are working over other exposed workers. It lets those below know there is a potential danger overhead.[/nq]
I learned it in a different context. It's what you shout in a park to let people who may not be paying attention know that a f

( . . . )
[nq:1]Us oldsters tend to think of Willie Mays as a New York Giant. to begin with, he was a New ... plate. (The ball would have cleared the fence in any contemporary ballpark.) He was MVP in his Polo Grounds days.[/nq]
I remember one where he was running fast with his back to the infield, reached high still facing outfieldward and caught the ball without apparently seeing it. Was

[nq:1](1) That's "ironic" in the American sense. Literally following the safety direction could lead you to be injured by the very thing you were being warned about.[/nq]
That's funny, that has been exactly the English meaning of the word since
1649. From the OED:

"

2. fig. A condition of affairs or events of a character opposite to whatwas, or might naturally be, expecte

[nq:2]"Heads up" isn't so incomprehensible. It's what construction workers say ... lets those below know there is a potential danger overhead.[/nq]
[nq:1]I learned it in a different context. It's what you shout in a park to let people who may not ... or errant frisbee is headed their way. It's "Be aware! Potentially dangerous object coming." Sort of like a golfer's "Fore!"[/nq]
Or a basket