What is Nigger In The Wood Pile?
1.
A problem with a phone system.
The expression was coined by a pioneer for phone technicians and was carried on through apprentices and journymen. Today it is used in limited numbers among veteran phone technicians.
"Well, I tell ya...I can't seem to get the 2600 frequency to trunk. I reckon there's a nigger in the wood pile, boy."
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