Shiver my timbers!
Got an email today that had “Shiver me timbers!” in the subject line… got me wondering where that phrase originated… wikipedia saves the day!
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the expression “shiver my timbers” probably first appeared in a published work by Frederick Marryat called Jacob Faithful (1834). After an argument over grog, Tom’s father has his wooden leg [a wooden leg was occasionally called a timber in slang] trapped between some bricks and is unable to move. Tom agrees to assist him on the condition he will not get a beating.