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May 24, 2017 17:02
6 yrs ago
4 viewers *
English term

do your twenty

English Other Slang
Stash at least $50K where you can lay your hands on it inside an hour, in case IAB comes and you have to go on the lam. Another fifty for bail money if you didn’t get out in time. Otherwise, spend a little, put the rest away, do your twenty, pull the pin, have a life.

meaning twenty years of work?
Responses
2 +7 work 20 years
3 +3 do a 20-year prison sentence

Discussion

allp (asker) May 26, 2017:
Thanks everybody for your discussion and input.
Sheila Wilson May 26, 2017:
It's certainly used in that context But then "pull the pin" is applicable in so many contexts. Leave any situation voluntarily, with the idea of being glad to get out - job, relationship, party, town, country, club... - and you could use the expression.
Graeme Jones May 26, 2017:
OK, it's work then! Had a google and found a reference in a book by James Ellroy, <cite>Because the Night</cite> (1984) - the joys of Kindle..!

Not read it, but it seems to be about an LAPD cop or ex-cop.<br>

"... You had what? Thirteen or fourteen years on the job?<br>
I had sixteen, Hopkins. You've got what?<br>
Eighteen and a half. <br>
Pulling the pin at twenty?<br>
No."
allp (asker) May 25, 2017:
No, it's not a translation I don't know, maybe they really talk like this, at least in some places.
Graeme Jones May 25, 2017:
Why 20? The arguments given for this being work - the police badge etc. - are very convincing. I just wonder why it is 20? What age do US police retire at? 40? Without your context, 'do your 20' to me immediately suggests 'doing time' (=prison), as Sheila said. But maybe Phil has the better argument - it's just rubbish writing, so anything goes. It certainly reads as though someone has just bought the 'Dictionary of really cool criminal slang' and tried to weave as many terms into otherwise ordinary writing. 'Stash at least $50K where you can lay your hands on it...' Not sure that's convincing as Burglar Bill's usual talk. Or is it just a (slightly bad) translation already?
Jacek Kloskowski May 25, 2017:
to clarify: usualy, a US policeman wears a badge with his service number on his breast, which is secured by a pin. Hence pulling the pin means taking out the badge from the uniform and surrendering it,, e.g., retiring.
allp (asker) May 24, 2017:
There's more to come - 470 pages of it, so any help would be greatly appreciated :)
Sheila Wilson May 24, 2017:
Phil has summed it up Yes, "pull the pin" can mean to retire; but it can mean many other things too. Leaving your native country, for any reason, is pulling the pin on your past life. I don't think there's anything in this sentence that really points to the real meaning of the 20 years.
philgoddard May 24, 2017:
I think this is slightly bad writing. They've overdone the slang to the point that us native speakers are having trouble understanding it.
Jacek Kloskowski May 24, 2017:
"Otherwise (e.g if the IAB - Internal Affairs Bureau doesn't come for you)", then "do your twenty (years of work), pull the pin (e.g. retire from police work) and have a life":

Pulling the pin: 7 keys to retiring happy

https://www.policeone.com/police-jobs-and-careers/articles/4...
Sheila Wilson May 24, 2017:
It's the otherwise that makes me think the opposit In the first sentence the speaker is clearly talking of life continuing as normal but taking certain precautions. So why then use "otherwise"? That second sentence must be an alternative to normal life, I.e. prison. After doing time you're free to fly to S. America or wherever and enjoy the money. You've already paid for your crime, and no country is going to extradite you for some trumped-up reason when you're spending loads locally.
allp (asker) May 24, 2017:
Actually, it's a policeman who committed a crime, so both Terry and Sheila are right. A corrupted policeman who got hold of a large sum of illegal money. I think the "twenty" refers to work and not to anticipated prison time (hence "otherwise" in the text); I couldn't decide between "20 years of work" and "20 minutes of vigorous exercise", which Dariusz suggested originally and which in this context could mean something like "keep fit till you are free to live like a king".

Responses

+7
16 mins
Selected

work 20 years

This is only slightly above a guess.

It sounds like this is a policeman talking and I think they can retire after twenty years of service. So he is saying work for 20 years (do your 20) and then retire (pull the pin) while you are young enough to enjoy it (have a life).

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Note added at 16 hrs (2017-05-25 09:48:20 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

NYC police officers can retire after 20 years, and most do unless they've been promoted. See http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/14/nyregion/most-police-offic...
Peer comment(s):
agree philgoddard : Yes, surely this is what happens if you don't get caught. You can't "spend a little and put the rest away" if you're in prison.
1 hr
agree B D Finch : "... in case IAB comes and you have to go on the lam," makes it clear that he is anticipating avoiding prison.
1 hr
agree Jacek Kloskowski
1 hr
agree Yvonne Gallagher : with BDF
4 hrs
agree Yasutomo Kanazawa
17 hrs
agree Tina Vonhof (X) : Since it's followed immediately by 'pull the pin' (i.e. retire), it must refer to working.
20 hrs
agree Edith Kelly : with Tina
20 hrs
Something went wrong...
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "I think this is the intended meaning. Thank you!"
+3
26 mins

do a 20-year prison sentence

I think this refers to someone who has pulled off some sort of major crime. That's why you have the reference to bail money and going on the lam (going into hiding from someone). So, its saying have a good time for a short while, then give yourself up and "do your twenty (years)". After that you're a free man (or woman) and don't have to look over your shoulder all the time.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 34 mins (2017-05-24 17:36:37 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/do time
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=do time
https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/to-do-t...

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 4 hrs (2017-05-24 21:29:23 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

So, we have here two slang expressions that have multiple meanings; and in each case more than one could apply here.

"Pull the pin":
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=pull the pin
stop what you're doing and leave; disconnect
get out of there; save yourself; escape
lose your temper or start to yell because someone pissed you off
remove a tampon after use
https://www.usingenglish.com/reference/idioms/pull the pin.h...
If you pull the pin, you put an end to something, quit or resign.
https://forum.wordreference.com/threads/to-pull-the-pin.1084...
discussion of a context - inconclusive
http://www.english-test.net/forum/ftopic62628.html
discussion of a context - inconclusive

"Do your twenty"
More difficult to research.
Certainly could refer to working 20 years; or could refer to doing a prison sentence.

I just remember the Great Train Robbers (I used to buy flowers from Buster Edwards after he'd done his time), and how one (Ronald Biggs) led a tortured life on the run. Even after being promised safety from extradition for life in Brazil, he still returned to England in the end and gave himself up.
Peer comment(s):
agree Alison Wedley
2 mins
Thanks
agree acetran
17 hrs
Thanks
agree Graeme Jones : spend a little, hide the rest, go to jail if you have to, come out and retrieve it
19 hrs
Thanks Graeme. That's how I read it, but I admit there are ambiguities.
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