# not do things by halves = δεν κάνω μισές δουλειές



## Theseus (Feb 18, 2012)

If you do not do things by halves, you always make a lot of effort and do things very well/to do things very thoroughly and with a lot of energy:-
-- 'I didn't realise you were decorating the whole house!' 'Oh, we don't do things by halves round here.'
More loosely it can also be used in a spirit of exasperation to refer to someone who, when his wife has run out of, say, dishwasher tablets and asks him to get a packet from the shop, he always buys not one but two replacements and fills the cupboard with spares.
--Can you get another packet of dishwasher tablets and i mean only *one *packet? I know you, you don't do anything by halves!!


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## drsiebenmal (Feb 18, 2012)

Δεν κάνουμε μισά πράγματα.


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## sarant (Feb 18, 2012)

Δεν κάνουμε μισές δουλειές.
Δεν κάνουμε τσουρούτικες δουλειές / πράγματα.


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## daeman (Feb 18, 2012)

...
 Well, sometimes it depends on whether it's just _the_ job or just a chore, or even fatigue duty as in the case of Caius Pusillanimus (Κάιους Σπάρους ή Κάιους Σπαρίλους) :


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## Theseus (Feb 19, 2012)

And the second example viz. to overdo buying shopping items? Who is Mπιχλιμπίδιoυς??


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## daeman (Feb 19, 2012)

Theseus said:


> [...] Who is Mπιχλιμπίδιoυς??



Noxius Vapus, the Caesar's special envoy, who ordered Caius Pusillanimus to "volunteer" for a special mission of spying among the Gauls to gather intel on the whereabouts of the shield in question. As introduced in the book: 

  
Note the porters' smiles widening.


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## daeman (Jun 17, 2016)

...
«​​Οι μισές δουλειές, μου 'λεγε κάποτε, οι μισές κουβέντες, οι μισές αμαρτίες, οι μισές καλοσύνες έφεραν τον κόσμο στα σημερινά χάλια. Φτάσε, μωρέ άνθρωπε, ως την άκρα, βάρα και μη φοβάσαι! Πιο πολύ σιχαίνεται ο Θεός το μισοδιάολο παρά τον αρχιδιάολο!»

Βίος και πολιτεία του Αλέξη Ζορμπά, Ν. Καζαντζάκης


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