"folks"....HATE that word...
Actually none of those expressions annoy me Kerry! Does that mean I'm a prude? :laugh:
;) ;)
I remember when I worked at the nursing home years ago, people kept saying the word "per". They'd say something like "We are now to check the resident's water pitchers each hour PER Scott". Or "David, you are to handle all the showers tonight PER the charge nurse".
That really got on my last nerve! Per! Per! Per!! Go buy a cat why don't ya?! :laugh:
:P :P
I agree, Jess. It's so darn . . . um . . . ah . . . folksy! ;) :laugh:
Jess and Brad, you failed to vote! Please go back and do so! PER David! :laugh: :laugh:
;) ;)
This IS a poll after all! ;)
I hate when someone say, "Well, we'll just see about thaaaat".
They are always defensive, wrong or both.
Brad
Jess and Brad, you failed to vote! Please go back and do so! PER David! :laugh: :laugh:
;) ;)
This IS a poll after all! ;)
Whoopsie Daisies!
It's whoopsie daisy, and don't include that. My sweet grandma uses it all of the time, and I think it is precious.
Brad
MY grandmother said Whoopsie DAISIES too (it was a popular phrase back in the early and middle 1900's) BUT it gets on my nerves when I hear people my age using it. I'm sorry I offended you Brad, but I won't apologize for what gets on my nerves and what doesn't.
David, you didn't offend me by any stretch. I've just never heard that phrase from anyone under 80 ;)
Brad
When somebody my age says it, well.... >:(
.....it gets on my nerves. :laugh:
Jess and Brad, you failed to vote! Please go back and do so! PER David! :laugh: :laugh:
;) ;)
This IS a poll after all! ;)
so BOSSY...see what happens when you get all activisty??
Well YOU ended up voting didn't you?
So it worked! ;)
Kerry, you may thank me now! ;) :-*
I picked just "fairly unique" and "shouldn't of."
"Shouldn't of" is just plain grammatically wrong, or, if, not, it's substandard English. Expand "shouldn't" and you end up with "should not of." That's just wrong. The expression should be "should not have," as in, "You should not have done that," or, "You shouldn't have done that." If you are writing dialogue, I suppose you could write, "You shouldn't 've done that."
"Unique," like "pregnant," is something that either you are or you aren't. There is no such thing as degrees of uniqueness.
I think when I say it I say "shouldn't have" but with my twangy Indiana accent it sounds like "of". Actually I guess I'm saying "shouldn't huv". (huv=have). Or something like that anyway! :)
'Under the bus" gets my vote for the hackneyed expression of the election season, and "meme" became one of those words like "paradigm" and "meld" that are deployed to display intellectual-with-it-ism and seem to emerge from the ether into common usage rapidly enough to go from obscurity to majorly annoying in a couple of days. In fact there's another one--"out of the ether."
Oh I just thought of another one! Brad made me think of it!
Whoopsie Daisies!
Yeah. That gets on my nerves! Hugh Grant said it once (and I'm a huge Hugh Grant fan) and even I wanted to box his ears for saying it! :laugh:
(Thank you Brad for voting!)
Kerry, You didn't vote either, and you started this poll! Go vote!! ;)
None of them really irk me, though I remember when I was living in the UK and "at the end of the day" was the phrase du jour--I remember a hilarious interview with Geri Halliwell where she used it like, ten times, including "At then end of the day, in the morning..."
'Under the bus" gets my vote for the hackneyed expression of the election season, and "meme" became one of those words like "paradigm" and "meld" that are deployed to display intellectual-with-it-ism and seem to emerge from the ether into common usage rapidly enough to go from obscurity to majorly annoying in a couple of days. In fact there's another one--"out of the ether."
I'm familiar with "at the end of the day", "paradigm", "meld" and "out of the ether", but have never heard of "under the bus" and "meme". Can you give me examples of "under the bus" and "meme"? I'm curious. :)
When I was back in England I used to hate the phrase, love as in shop assistants saying, will that be all love? I am not their love.
My kids had also started to say, like at the end of each sentence, as in you know like, always going up at the end. Grrrr.
I also hate corporate motivating phrases such as, there is no I in team, and let's make sure we are all singing from the same song sheet.!!!
Personally I really over use the word, really, and just. It was just so annoying and I really don't beleve.
Hundreds more but that will do for the time.
I'm familiar with "at the end of the day", "paradigm", "meld" and "out of the ether", but have never heard of "under the bus" and "meme". Can you give me examples of "under the bus" and "meme"? I'm curious. :)
Obama threw his grandmother under the bus..(he used her to deflect attention from himself)
think of a group of people traveling in a bus together...then one gets thrown off the bus and the bus runs over them...it is a betrayal, they thought they were one of you, that they were safe. It is not a good thing to do.
I'm still not grasping exactly how that works, Jess. ::)
Can you put "under the bus" in a sentence for me, so I can see it in situ? (Don't you just hate that expression "in situ"?!)
And "meme"?
Don't get me started! I have lots of language pet peeves. Most involve bad grammar, but I think Kerry's thread is more about annoying, trite phrases.
My latest: going forward. Can't stand it. I once heard an introductory speech by a colleague who used the phrase in every sentence. (He later resigned because of "health" problems, which turned out to be a sex scandal, but, no connection, I'm sure. ::))
I'm with Jeff about modifying "unique". Can't be done!
One more: I could care less. No! Think about it...if you could care less, you could care less. The real phrase is I couldn't care less. As in, there is nothing about which I could care less.
I did!
"Obama threw his grandmother under the bus"
He was giving a speech about race and called her a racist...she was his grandmother and he took a cheap shot at her to save himself.
I think when I say it I say "shouldn't have" but with my twangy Indiana accent it sounds like "of". Actually I guess I'm saying "shouldn't huv". (huv=have). Or something like that anyway! :)
Isn't that one of those annoying performers who don't say a word?
;) ;D
I looked 'meme' up awhile back because I was interested in how it came into common usage; the internet seems to be fertile ground for meme propagation.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meme
Ta muchly, Lynne.
English is not my first language and I know I often mangle my sentences but this OF business drives me NUTS!
I would never have guessed. Seriously! :)
And I work with the language for a living.
Or should I say, "I would never of guessed"? ;D
Such as impact — as a verb. ::) As in, "how will this impact you?" (Teeth get impacted, not people.) Why can't you just say affect?
Shouldn't of >:(
And my worst offender - supposably. >:( >:(
It's either probably or supposedly, not a combined word!!!
I've seen 'probably' contracted to 'prolly' in written fiction. Makes me nuts. ::)
Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!
That's another hated word. It's not even a word. People tell me they use it because it's faster than writing/saying probably, but prolly doesn't even look like the word probably and if it's too much trouble in a conversation to enunciate two extra syllables, then I suggest one should go home and get some rest!!!
Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!
That's another hated word. It's not even a word. People tell me they use it because it's faster than writing/saying probably, but prolly doesn't even look like the word probably and if it's too much trouble in a conversation to enunciate two extra syllables, then I suggest one should go home and get some rest!!!
And my worst offender - supposably. >:( >:(
It's either probably or supposedly, not a combined word!!!
How would you even use that in a sentence? ???
I looked 'meme' up awhile back because I was interested in how it came into common usage; the internet seems to be fertile ground for meme propagation.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meme
I've seen 'probably' contracted to 'prolly' in written fiction. Makes me nuts. ::)
MarieZ, word (sorry Lynne, heehee) on think outside the box. I'm looking for a job right now, and run into these stupid job description cliches all the time!
Such as: "We're looking for a team player who can think outside the box and hit the ground running . . . etc. etc. etc."
Especially since if you think too far outside the box, they tend to assume you're not a team player. ::)
I always laugh when I hear someone say:
"I don't mean/want to complain, but"
I want to say to them, "then don't".......Obviously you want to complain, so why preface it with that? The same can be said "I'm sorry if I shouldn't say/do this" and then they say it or do it anyway.
:laugh:
One that truly annoys me is "conversate". "You and I are gonna have to conversate." I had someone say that to me, and I replied with...
"No, we can either converse about something, or we can have a conversation, but we can't "conversate."
;D ;D ;D
Her response? She said, "Imagine you're a team of one."
I always laugh when I hear someone say:
"I don't mean/want to complain, but"
a team of one."
I picked the same one as BrokebackDev but for different reasons: Shouldn't of
Is that as in "I should not of done that?" Obviously the correct way is "Shouldn't HAVE" . It's amazing how many intelligent people substitute OF for HAVE, it's certainly rampant on the net.
English is not my first language and I know I often mangle my sentences but this OF business drives me NUTS!
For some unfathomable reason, the United States Army has adopted the slogan, "An Army of One," in its recruiting ads.
I also reject "no offense, but" because it prolly means I'm about to be thrown under the bus.
That's also how I feel about "no worries." When you hear that, it's time to start worrying.
Prolly shouldn't use "No worries" if you're not Australian. Doesn't that come from "No worries, mate"? Isn't that Australian usage? Kerry? ???
And then, of course, there is the cousin of "No worries," namely "Not to worry." :-\
There's that hated "Prolly" again! ;D
It sounds like a cross between Pram and Trolley.
"Clang clang clang, goes the Prolly!"
Prolly shouldn't use "No worries" if you're not Australian. Doesn't that come from "No worries, mate"? Isn't that Australian usage? Kerry? ???
And then, of course, there is the cousin of "No worries," namely "Not to worry." :-\
"No worries" is used extensively throughout Oz. It is used as a sunny, upbeat exclamation of camaraderie and trust. Unlike such expressions as "I'm not a racist, but . . . ," it has no hidden, darker, ulterior connotations. It means exactly what it says. I use it as "No worries," minus the "mate". Australians do not have exclusive copyright over "No worries". Feel free to use it at your leisure! :D
Recent greetings that I have heard that just stop me dead in my tracks because I have no idea how to respond:
You get a call from someone or you call someone and the first words out of their mouths are:
"Hey, whadda ya know?"
Dead stop. Train of thought instantly derails, conversation ball rolls under the couch. Is he asking me a question? Is he thinking out loud? What do I know? I know lots of things... how, what? WTF do I say to something like that?
Similar to this is
"Hey what have you been up to?"
And they're not really asking. This isn't an opening conversation gambit, it's just something said as a greeting. What have I been up to? Slam on the conversation brakes. Screeeeeeeeeeeeech. I've been up to a lot and nothing at all, WTF do I say to something like that?
Usually I respond "Nothing" which is really lame and again, the conversation dies to an uncomfortable pause.
I would accept both such greetings as rhetorical salutations, similar to "Hello, how are you?" As such, IMHO, a simple "Hello" or "Hi there" would suffice, by way of response. This is open to interpretation, of course, and one can choose to be more literal in one's response, should one choose to do so, with something like "Hi. Not a lot! You?"
When someone greets me with "Hello, how are you?" my standard response is "Fine thank you. How are you?" or simply "Fine thanks. You?" Even though I'm aware the initial greeting was rhetorical, I still respond as I do, as a matter of courtesy. :D
I've never seen someone struck speechless when asked "How are you?" when greeted such, but I have seen such a greeting open a real Pandora's box, whereby the greetee takes the greeting literally and proceeds to rattle off, ad nauseam, a lengthy diatribe of health problems. ::)
I guess there are no fixed rules. I have a dear old friend who always greets me with, "Hi Kerry! What are you doing?" whenever he phones. It's his cute way of saying "Hello!" Because we've been friends for over 30 years, I always respond literally with "Washing up" or "Making the bed" or whatever it was I was doing when the phone rang. We laugh and get on with our conversation. I've recently taken to greeting him in the same way, when I phone him, with "What are you doing, George?" :laugh:
I actually LIKE when someone asks that question....because it gives you an opening to get off the phone if you need to. I will answer my mother for example every time she calls because she has chronic health problems...so when she asks 'what are you doing?' I can answer her honestly, I am watching TV (and she knows I can talk) OR I can say something like "I am just walking out the door to give a lesson" (and she knows I CAN"T talk and I will call her back)
That reminds me, I often respond "Talking to you" when George asks "What are you doing?" ;D
Here in Oz, it's what we call "Stating the bleeding obvious." ;) :laugh:
MarieZ, word (sorry Lynne, heehee) on think outside the box. I'm looking for a job right now, and run into these stupid job description cliches all the time!
Oh, that too -- job descriiption cliches!
how about "driven" as a euphemism for "we want somebody who's going to work himself half to death and have no life outside of the workplace"? ;)
"young uns" ........ I still hate that word or phrase or whatever it is. I remember people saying things like "The young uns can sit over there."
2) cutesy-poo euphemisms like "dayum" instead of "damn." Either say it or don't.
Recent greetings that I have heard that just stop me dead in my tracks because I have no idea how to respond:
You get a call from someone or you call someone and the first words out of their mouths are:
"Hey, whadda ya know?"
Dead stop. Train of thought instantly derails, conversation ball rolls under the couch. Is he asking me a question? Is he thinking out loud? What do I know? I know lots of things... how, what? WTF do I say to something like that?
Similar to this is
"Hey what have you been up to?"
And they're not really asking. This isn't an opening conversation gambit, it's just something said as a greeting. What have I been up to? Slam on the conversation brakes. Screeeeeeeeeeeeech. I've been up to a lot and nothing at all, WTF do I say to something like that?
I think what falls under your definition of cutesy are words like "beeoytch" for "bitch". But again, I don't think it's so much cutesy as a form for "polite" conversation. ;)
Um, how the heck is that pronounced, anyway? ??? Three syllables? "Bee-oy-tich"? Two syllables? "Bee-oytch"? ???
Um, how the heck is that pronounced, anyway? ??? Three syllables? "Bee-oy-tich"? Two syllables? "Bee-oytch"? ???
I've heard bee-oytch. :)
Tell you what, when I'm in a particularly cranky mood (happens a lot lately ;D ) I even tend to get annoyed with, "How are you?"I get asked this a lot. Seems that "hello" is not considered enuff ennimore. It always makes me stop and do a self-inventory. I suddenly realize I've been running on automatic pilot. I usually answer either "It's too early to say" or "I guess I will make it to the finish line." Or I'll say "I'm vertical...that's enuff for now."
Maybe I should have filed this one under "Bitch, bitch, bitch"?hehe! :D
Or is it "Bee-yotch, bee-yotch, bee-yotch"? ;D
It's probably good we don't work together, friend Jeff. You would find me impossibly chirpy.
What I don't like is when I pass someone -- I don't mean on a crowded sidewalk, but when the two of us are the only ones around -- and they don't say anything, or even make eye contact.
Yes, I hate to feel invisible myself too. And it happens more and more as I get older. Sometimes I get the urge to head south where people are friendlier when that happens to me too much.
Another thing I do is stare at people if they refuse to look at me. I figure they deserve it.
Anything that starts with "Why don't you...."
It's a cultural thing. When I started out in my first job, I had an English-speaking boss who would review my work and then go "why don't you... check this, write that, etc" I thought he was asking me why I hadn't actually thought of doing whatever it was, and was therefore indicating my work was inadequate. I felt the direct question was very rude. Then as I got more proficient in English I realized it's just a way of suggesting a course of action. But my feeling about the "why don't you's" still sticks with me since then.
"Well, why don't you? Hunh? Hunh??"
Anything that starts with "Why don't you...."
It's a cultural thing. When I started out in my first job, I had an English-speaking boss who would review my work and then go "why don't you... check this, write that, etc" I thought he was asking me why I hadn't actually thought of doing whatever it was, and was therefore indicating my work was inadequate. I felt the direct question was very rude. Then as I got more proficient in English I realized it's just a way of suggesting a course of action. But my feeling about the "why don't you's" still sticks with me since then.
It's absolutely humiliating. Of course the English language also has other derogatory words for people. As does German. But somehow naming human beings "trash" is completely unacceptable for me.
Me too. Especially "white trash," because that's not only demeaning, it's also racist. People who use the term don't always seem to realize this.
Another thing I do is stare at people if they refuse to look at me. I figure they deserve it.
Probably not when it's a white person using it about another white person, but I can see how it still is, even then.
Probably not when it's a white person using it about another white person, but I can see how it still is, even then.
Dunno. Like the descriptor 'red-neck', some people take pride in the expression that they're "trailer park trash."
Go figure.
How about "do you mind?" Or its twin, "hope you dont mind."
You certainly arent allowed to say 'yes. I do mind."" That makes you the ass for saying so. It
stops them from taking the onus for getting you to do something you dont really want to do, without being able to
say so.
Me too. Especially "white trash," because that's not only demeaning, it's also racist. People who use the term don't always seem to realize this.
Probably not when it's a white person using it about another white person, but I can see how it still is, even then.
I think it is especially then. It's not an insult to white people (except whoever it's referring to), it's an insult to black people. That is, and I can't think of any non-awful way to say this, when someone uses that phrase they're implying that some white people are trash and some white people aren't. Whereas with black people, implicitly, there's only one category.
Dunno. Like the descriptor 'red-neck', some people take pride in the expression that they're "trailer park trash."
Go figure.
I have a friend who revels in being "South Jersey Trailer Trash." He feels it frees him from having to observe certain bourgeois standards of life and behavior.
I have a friend who revels in being "South Jersey Trailer Trash." He feels it frees him from having to observe certain bourgeois standards of life and behavior.
I was at a Harry Connick concert (front row, center, thanks to ticketwizard EDelMar) and he referred to himself as Louisiana trailer trash. It didn't ring quite right with me, but it helped when he started taking off clothes while tap dancing!
What's wrong with pussy and dick?
I should think not. The son of the former district attorney of New Orleans ain't trailer trash.
Some business expressions that leave me cold:
"On a going forward basis"
"Circle back..."
"Swim lane"
I was just going to say the exact same thing! Except I wasn't going to say "ain't," because I am not grammar trash.
Kidding, Jeff, I know you're not either -- I'd never apply that label to anyone bothered by incorrect use of "unique."
BTW, how do you stand on "hopefully?" I have decided to go with it, because there's just no good concise alternative that doesn't sound silly. Hopefully, the grammar cops will give it the green light soon.
Jeff: Webster's been dead a long time, and anything that's good enuff for Annie [GEFA] is good enuff for me! Besides, they're not as cutesy as "Veejay" and "poopie" or whatever. Same goes for "ain't" -- GEFA!
"Swim lane"
Yeah, it's the fancy new way of saying process flow, which was the previous fancy way of saying how to get something.
In business? ???
We all fall off the grammar wagon now and then, especially in speaking. In writing I will go out of my way to rewrite to avoid misusing hopefully. It doesn't require much effort to change, "Hopefully, we'll go tomorrow" to, "I hope we can go tomorrow," for example.
Yeah, it's the fancy new way of saying process flow, which was the previous fancy way of saying how to get something.
I HATE it when people confuse "that" and "who"!!
"personal friend" - what other kind is there?
To me, "hopefully" and "I hope" have slightly different connotations. "I hope" seems an expression of more personal desires, while "hopefully" more readily includes the listener, and maybe even fate in general. Also, "I hope" seems more iffy, whereas "hopefully" seems more or less assured.
For example, "I hope we can go tomorrow," seems more like a personal wish for a prospect that's far from guaranteed. "Hopefully, we'll go tomorrow" it seems mutually agreed upon, and pretty likely to happen if all goes well.
"One hopes we'll go tomorrow" or "It is to be hoped we'll go tomorrow" are closer matches to the misused "hopefully," but it is to be hoped that one doesn't have to hear them in conversation.
Yes, but people say or write, "Hopefully we'll go tomorrow" when they mean, "I hope we'll go tomorrow."
Heya Elle. I can understand why that would seem a bit redundant. But, I can also see, perhaps, something like a distinction between "at-work friends" and "personal friends."
"meme" became one of those words like "paradigm" and "meld" that are deployed to display intellectual-with-it-ism and seem to emerge from the ether into common usage rapidly enough to go from obscurity to majorly annoying in a couple of days.I have to admit I am really uncomfortable with the use of the word "meme" to mean a short funny questionnaire. It gives the impression that the speaker doesn't know what a meme actually is, (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meme) which is a little embarrassing. :-\
Here's another one: "The boss wants to talk to Sally and I." This one makes me kind of sad, because it's someone trying their best to be grammatically correct (they know not to say, "Sally and me want to talk to the boss") but they're trying too hard! I always want to gently tell them to take Sally out of the sentence and see how it sounds. But I usually bite my tongue because I don't want the speaker to get mad at I.:laugh: Oh, yes that is a distressing one.
Back to "Why don't you do such and such" -- the one I really hate is "I need you to do such and such."Ooooh, yes how arrogant! >:( :P :laugh:
I always think "personal friend" is a way to emphasize your closeness to someone you're name-dropping, thereby inflating your own importance. As in, "Barack Obama's dentist's cousin is a personal friend of mine."
Shouldn't of >:(I love to write that one. It's like, so far beyond the pale that no one would think it's a mistake.
Now, spoken, it would just be "shouldn't've" which is altogether okay.
And then, of course, we have the qualifier close, as in "close personal friend."
I presume as opposed to more distant personal friends. ... :-\
I think this makes sense actually... there are degrees of relative closeness among "personal" friends. I know in my real life I have personal friend who (not that... or is it whom?) I feel are more distant than others.
There are close friends vs. regular friends, I agree.
Jeff: Webster's been dead a long time, and anything that's good enuff for Annie [GEFA] is good enuff for me! Besides, they're not as cutesy as "Veejay" and "poopie" or whatever. Same goes for "ain't" -- GEFA!
I'm with you on "hopefully" Katherine...though hopefully, people will not use it too often!!
This is not something I hate but it's starting to get on my nerves...people who say BTW when talking rather than by the way. Also those who say WTF or LOL or ROFLOL or BBF, etc. Those things are fine on the boards or texting, but not in a business meeting FCOL!!
How about expressions we love? Can we discuss those too? The other day my friend Rodney said his dog could destroy a ball in "two shakes of a lamb's tail." I love that expression!!
A friend in college used to nod and sagely say about someone who got on your nerves, "He knows where your goats are tied."
I was like ???
She looked at me and said, "He knows where your goats are tied...So he can get your goat."
;D
Been a serious favorite of mine ever since.
Ah, but are those close or regular friends also personal friends or, perhaps, impersonal friends? ;D
And be careful. I seem to remember there are some people around here who dislke categorizing some friends as cyber friends, so I shudder to think what they think about parsing friends as close personal or just personal or regular friends.
If you have any irregular friends, I recommend Metamucil. ;D
At Christmas time I assign dollar values to my friends. I have $25 friends, $50 friends and $100 friends. Is that bad? :-\ ;)
I think most people do the same, if not quite so systematically. You sound very generous! :)
I think most people do the same, if not quite so systematically. You sound very generous! :)
Just about all of my friends this year are $0 friends. Mainly because my kids are three-digit friends.
Metamucil is the food of the gods! ;D
Metamucil is the food of the gods! ;D
At Christmas time I assign dollar values to my friends. I have $25 friends, $50 friends and $100 friends. Is that bad? :-\ ;)
One time they were advertising these kitchen rags that are supposed to absorb everything, even carpet spills. You could get 2 of them, BUT at the end of the commercial they would double your order! You got 4 for $19.99 plus $5.95 shipping and handling. So for $25.94 we get four yellow rags. And then she had the gall to say "YOU GET IT ALL!" Oh boy! Four little rags for roughly $26.00. Geez. ::)
I seem to only see that commercial when I am watching BBC America...is that what they think of us across the pond??? LOL
I hate those commercials where they advertise something and then you have to call in to order it, because IT'S NOT AVAILABLE IN STORES!! And then, when they tell you the price at the end (it's almost always $19.99 plus shipping and handling) they say "You get it all!". I don't know why that bugs me so much but I hate it.
You get it all!
::) ::)
One time they were advertising these kitchen rags that are supposed to absorb everything, even carpet spills. You could get 2 of them, BUT at the end of the commercial they would double your order! You got 4 for $19.99 plus $5.95 shipping and handling. So for $25.94 we get four yellow rags. And then she had the gall to say "YOU GET IT ALL!" Oh boy! Four little rags for roughly $26.00. Geez. ::)
And this really isn't an expression, but I also hate how they put a bunch of things in small print down at the bottom of the screen at the end of commercials. It's faint, very tiny, and they only leave it on for about 2 seconds. You'd have to be a speed reader and have a magnifying glass in your hand in order to see it. When I see companies do things like this, I make it a point NOT to buy anything from them. It's obvious they are trying to deceive us. If they weren't they wouldn't use all that tiny, faint, blurry print at the bottom of the screen. >:(
"Settle down" isn't quite as bad, but it's annoying, too. When I use it myself, it's because I'm trying to be patronizing. I should stop that! ::)
Remember the famous Popeil Pocket Fisherman? ;D
Are you by any chance talking about "Sham-Wow!"? Those commercials crack me up. Because, you're right... the amount of money for rags is pretty funny. But, also, the name of the product is pretty hilarious. And, the guy they have on the commercial is such and over-the-top **SALESMAN** in his on-camera persona. I think he's also wearing a headset during the commercial. LOL!
:laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
I hate "Don't get your knickers in a twist" and "Don't get your undies in a bundle." Unnecessarily rude ways to say "relax."
Yes Jeff, I remember that one. The Popeil company sold all kinds of weird things and their commercials appeared in abundance on TV each Christmas. I also remember that "kitchen chopper" device. You would place an onion, a potato, a tomato (etc) inside it, push down on the plunger and it would "slice it, dice it, chop it.." ::)
I think the Sham-Wow is a Billy Mayes (sp?) commercial, isn't it? He's starting to get on my last nerve!
He shouts. And he's obnoxious too. >:(
When used by an American, that's also a Anglophilic affectation. We don't call our underwear knickers on this side of the pond. ;D (Remember the "Dear Sexy Knickers" episode of Are You Being Served?) But I would rather be told not to get my knickers in a twist than be told not to get my bowels in an uproar! :laugh:
Dear Sexy Knickers! I remember that, probably even have it around somewhere. (Interestingly enough, the current ad down the side of this page has Shopzilla advertising sexy men's underwear.)
I think we should start a thread: The most annoying commercials, and most useless,
items sold on air. The "Sham Wow rags" would be one of those for sure..
In my mind the most annoying and most useless item catagory however have been on TV, for over fifty years. I have only seen them advertised at the christmas season...
Wait for it... You know it you love it ,,, you cant live without it... Chi chi --CHIA PET.........
That is proof that people will buy anything. No matter how useless, and no matter how many guises it comes in. guhh
Bet you'd look good in the "Clever Mesh Bars Trunk," Clyde! ;) ;D
In my mind the most annoying and most useless item catagory however have been on TV, for over fifty years. I have only seen them advertised at the christmas season...
Wait for it... You know it you love it ,,, you cant live without it... Chi chi --CHIA PET.........
That is proof that people will buy anything. No matter how useless, and no matter how many guises it comes in. guhh
I've fallen and I can't get up!!!!
However, I was able to type this, enlarge the font and bold and center it!
I've fallen and I can't get up!!!!
However, I was able to type this, enlarge the font and bold and center it!
"The pottery that grrows!" Indeed. ::)
Bet you'd look good in the "Clever Mesh Bars Trunk," Clyde! ;) ;D
Don''t I wish that were still true!!! :laugh:
Maybe you should give 'em a try. You never know what might happen. ;D
Do you remember the crowds in streets running in terror in Godzilla?
Once, in New Orleans, years ago, I saw a T shirt that said, "Help! I've fallen and I can't find my beer." I still think that's hie-larious.
In New Orleans, you'd be walking along the street and someone would yell out, "I know where you got you shoes!
"Where?" you'd say.
They'd yell, "You got 'em on your feet!"
Much better than that other, more famous, New Orleans anatomical street yell.
Would that be the one about showing your boobs? ::)
Yes, though they didn't use the word "boobs."
Plus, in recent years, the yelling has become co-ed, so more than one kind of body part now gets requests.
In New Orleans, you'd be walking along the street and someone would yell out, "I know where you got you shoes!
"Where?" you'd say.
They'd yell, "You got 'em on your feet!"
Much better than that other, more famous, New Orleans anatomical street yell.
Just goes to show what drunk people think is funny. ::) ;D
Here's another one of which I was reminded only minutes ago: Repurpose. :P
I have a question for folks about how you think about your posts here at BetterMost.
When you write your posts are you in conversation-mode or in formal-writing-mode? I tend to type these in a very conversational way. This is pretty much how I approach most emails too. Even my work emails are pretty conversational.
I feel like my writing voice and my conversation voice can be quite different.
I have a question for folks about how you think about your posts here at BetterMost.
When you write your posts are you in conversation-mode or in formal-writing-mode? I tend to type these in a very conversational way. This is pretty much how I approach most emails too. Even my work emails are pretty conversational.
I feel like my writing voice and my conversation voice can be quite different.
My writing is pretty conversational as well. It's been years since I have engaged in scholarly or technical writing. The writing I do at work is marketing oriented often. There is usually some kind of story I am trying to get across. So I would be hard put to churn out some dry stuffy prose. Recently I even referred to the company as "one of the best outfits around." I was surprised that it passed muster, but this is the West, where such idioms are acceptable!
I guess what I'm trying to say is that IMHO so-called good English does not necessarily have to be an intellectual treatise that no-one except a select few academics can understand.
IMHO the primary purpose of good English is to communicate and be understood, not to try to give the impression that "I'm smarter than you are."
I don't call restaurants "eateries."
I have a new one. And I don't 'hate' it, per se; I use it often enough, but I think it might be a sign of the times changing.
'My bad' has sometimes taken the place of an 'I'm sorry' or 'I apologize'.
It started for me back in the mid-nineties, playing soccer. The etiquette was that when you screw up (make a bad pass, don't trap the ball well, etc.) people said 'My bad' and I understood the point to be that you're playing your best, acknowledge it, and move on.
The phrase seem to have creeped into everyday conversations now when an apology really is an appropriate response. It's something about which I hope to be more aware in my day-to-day conversations.
I have a new one. And I don't 'hate' it, per se; I use it often enough, but I think it might be a sign of the times changing.
'My bad' has sometimes taken the place of an 'I'm sorry' or 'I apologize'.
My kids say ["my bad"] a lot, and frankly I love it. I'm just so thrilled that they're acknowledging wrongdoing and apologizing at all, I don't care if they say it in Klingon.
Context is everything. ;D
One phrase that's certainly overused, but I don't share the widespread annoyance with it, is "have a nice day" or "have a good day." It's really just a variation on the archaic "good day" as a standin for "goodbye."
I wonder if feelings about expressions such as "How are you" or "have a good day" will change as things get gloomier in the next few months. Already I've had people look incredulous when I responded that I am great, as if we're all supposed to go around being miserable these days.
I think the etymology of "My bad!" is that it is a contraction of "Am I bad!"
Here's one I irrationally dislike. "I'm all about [whatever]." As in, "I'm all about oatmeal" from someone who eats oatmeal for breakfast every day. It's like, hunh, there's nothing important in your entire personality or life but oatmeal? (Note: "My breakfasts are all about oatmeal" would be acceptable.)
Oh, and here's yet another one: "jones" or "jonesing," as in, a craving some [non-drug] thing. Like, "I'm on a diet and I'm jonesing for a hamburger." I just can't stand that one. It's not that I object to drug-related slang on a moral basis. I wouldn't mind, "I went off my diet and ODed on french fries." Or "Please don't narc on me to the Weight Watchers leader." But I hate "jones," even when it applies to actual addiction. Way too cutesy. Does one really need a cutesy name for one's chemical-dependency problem?
Hmm .... I notice all my examples are food-related. So typical. ::)
oh! you reminded me of one I hate!
when someone tells you something negative ( for example, they don't feel good ) and you say "I'm sorry"...and their response is "Well it isn't YOUR fault I have a cold!"...
huh?
I can't express compassion without taking responsibility for the problem? I guess I should say "I am sorry you have a cold and are not feeling well" just to be clear but good grief!
from: injest on Today at 08:14:46 AM
oh! you reminded me of one I hate!
when someone tells you something negative ( for example, they don't feel good ) and you say "I'm sorry"...and their response is "Well it isn't YOUR fault I have a cold!"...
huh?
I can't express compassion without taking responsibility for the problem? I guess I should say "I am sorry you have a cold and are not feeling well" just to be clear but good grief!Yeah, I've had that experience too. The problem is that in English, I regret that... and It's my fault that... are both expressed in the same way: "I'm sorry." Two very different meanings that people sometimes have trouble navigating.
I'm not sure how "narc" came into being. I believe it refers to the narcotics police.
I use this in place of "stool-pigeon-ing". If someone "narcs" on me, they're tattletaling. Is there another word that could be used that doesn't sound grade-school-ish or something from a Jimmy Cagney movie?
Yeah, I've had that experience too. The problem is that in English, I regret that... and It's my fault that... are both expressed in the same way: "I'm sorry." Two very different meanings that people sometimes have trouble navigating.
I use this in place of "stool-pigeon-ing". If someone "narcs" on me, they're tattletaling. Is there another word that could be used that doesn't sound grade-school-ish or something from a Jimmy Cagney movie?
The only other one I can think of is "tell," which is usually understandable in context. "Don't tell on me" or "don't tell Mom" both imply getting someone in trouble in addition to simply imparting information.
Another one that bugs me a lot, my family does it all the time, and I could just cringe..
Calling everyone, men women, elders or whomever.. DUDE!! That bugs me bad DUDE.....ukk
You know, "Good day" is probably a shortening of "Have a good day." But maybe now it's become too much associated with a terse or even hostile goodbye. Like when someone says, "Good day to you, Sir," puts on his top hat, turns and summarily marches out of the office. So we had to reclaim the "Have a" to make it sound more friendly.
I suspect it may be more archaic than that. After all, good-bye developed from the long and archaic, "God be with you." I wouldn't be surprised if Good day (G'day if you're from Oz ;D ) went back to something like, "God give you a good day."
Well, goodbye is a corruption of "God be with ye"
I didn't know that about "goodbye." Interesting!
However, isn't "have a good day" simply the secular version of "God give you a good day"? Same sentiment, just different in terms of where that good day comes from.
However, isn't "have a good day" simply the secular version of "God give you a good day"? Same sentiment, just different in terms of where that good day comes from.
Well. ...
Back when people said, "God be with you," if they said, "God give you good day," I don't think there would have been a "secular version." "Good day" would have just been a shortened version of "God give you good day." Nobody was "secular" back then.
Calling everyone, men women, elders or whomever.. DUDE!! That bugs me bad DUDE.....ukk
I like "blank is the new blank" if it's something so absurd it's funny. Like, I heard of someone saying they were vacationing in Minnesota in winter because "Cold is the new hot."
But not when it's used sincerely, as in, "50 is the new 40," or "Brown is the new black."
Another one that bugs me a lot, my family does it all the time, and I could just cringe..
Calling everyone, men women, elders or whomever.. DUDE!! That bugs me bad DUDE.....ukk
Other candidates for loathing, as published by Lake Superior University in its annual List of Words Banished from the Queen's English include:
Webinar
Hunh? ???
A Webinar is a seminar on the Web. I've never actually attended one that worked...the graphics usually freeze up on me.
Other candidates for loathing, as published by Lake Superior University in its annual List of Words Banished from the Queen's English include:
They left out "agenda" and "the blame game" ! :P
They left out "agenda" and "the blame game" ! :P
I like "blank is the new blank" if it's something so absurd it's funny. Like, I heard of someone saying they were vacationing in Minnesota in winter because "Cold is the new hot."
But not when it's used sincerely, as in, "50 is the new 40," or "Brown is the new black."
I like mine and I mean it seriously :D : "Straight is the new gay."
I like mine and I mean it seriously :D : "Straight is the new gay."
Aaaack! :o
They take everything from us: hairstyles, clothing styles, piercings, tattoos. ... Don't give them that, too!
Is there a way to say "I'm sorry" in Klingon, I wonder.
Jean-Paul Gaulthier has a complete line of make-up for men, including eye-liner & blush; Body image issues and the associated cases of eating disorders are growing among men. etc..
Ah yes. The ugly side of metrosexuality. Which of course isn't a sexuality at all: its all style and no substance.
The whole scenario you describe is truly tragic.
Milo
Is there a way to say "I'm sorry" in Klingon, I wonder.
Yes there is
Being a Klingon means never having to say you're sorry.
Being a Klingon means never having to say you're sorry.
Being politically correct means always having to say you're sorry.
(Told y'all I'd steal it! :laugh:)
HEY BRAD!!! I think that's you're cue to re-post the lyrics to "I'm Still a Guy." :laugh:
Ah yes. The ugly side of metrosexuality. Which of course isn't a sexuality at all: its all style and no substance.
The whole scenario you describe is truly tragic.
Milo
I have no problem with guys who want to wear make up or do drag, but I will never understand it.
I am soooo glad to have been born a man, and not have to put that shit on, or try to walk around in heels. I don't know how women do it.
:laugh:
It does get ridiculous sometimes, though. Last night I was shopping with my son. I had on boots with a 2 1/2-inch, wide and sturdy heel, but even they were making my feet hurt a bit. I was wishing I'd worn flats. Then I saw this group of young women -- that is, I guess they were young because I didn't really look at their faces. My eyes were too riveted by their boots, all with 6- or 7-inch stiletto heels.
It goes both ways, though. Wearing makeup and heels is not an obligation -- lots of women don't feel they "have to put that shit on" -- but if you want to gussy up a bit, you can. Men are stuck with a more limited range of looks. Tell you what, I'm a straight woman, but I seriously feel there are many more attractive women than men, and I think it's at least partly because they have more beautifying options.
OK, point taken, but what if you had bad skin and wanted to cover it up. With makeup, you could hide the blemishes. But most men don't feel comfortable doing that. So they're just stuck with the zits. Same if you have invisible eyelashes, need more color in your face, want to change the shape of your mouth ...
Extend that to other aspects of appearance. Until recently, men couldn't respectably even color their hair. They still can't, in certain millieux. For example, a male artist could get away with showing up in a different colored hair every week. So can a woman bank executive. But a man bank executive can't.
OK, point taken, but what if you had bad skin and wanted to cover it up. With makeup, you could hide the blemishes. But most men don't feel comfortable doing that. So they're just stuck with the zits. Same if you have invisible eyelashes, need more color in your face, want to change the shape of your mouth ...
Extend that to other aspects of appearance. Until recently, men couldn't respectably even color their hair. They still can't, in certain millieux. For example, a male artist could get away with showing up in a different colored hair every week. So can a woman bank executive. But a man bank executive can't.
It goes both ways, though. Wearing makeup and heels is not an obligation -- lots of women don't feel they "have to put that shit on" -- but if you want to gussy up a bit, you can. Men are stuck with a more limited range of looks. Tell you what, I'm a straight woman, but I seriously feel there are many more attractive women than men, and I think it's at least partly because they have more beautifying options.
"Oh, are you feeling bad? Get a new hairdo! It will change your outlook!"
That won't work for you and me, will it, Chuck? :laugh:
Not unless I get a transplant, and after seeing how they're done, I'd rather be bald. :laugh:
and by the way, we've really taken the thread off topic! :laugh:
Well, true with blemishes, but I get them, and find that if I really take care of them with a skin treatment at night, they are very minimized during the day, and not an issue.
I think that's a trap we've (as a society) put women into....."Oh, are you feeling bad? Get a new hairdo! It will change your outlook!"
Edit:
Views on this issue must really "travel" with gender, because with equal honesty and sincerity I'd say there are many more attractive men than women. Of all ages, shapes, and sizes. Every time I go out on the streets of Philadelphia I see someone, man or "boy."
Not unless I get a transplant, and after seeing how they're done, I'd rather be bald. :laugh:
I should emphasize that the attractive women aren't attractive to me in a sexual sense, just an aesthetic sense. And men don't "have" to be as physically attractive to be sexually successful. That's a whole nother part of this issue.
Oh, I hate the expression "whole nother" something. There! I'm on topic! ;D
Sometimes it just gladdens the heart to see a happy, smiling, attractive young man.
And shouldn't that be "whole 'nother"? ;D
Not unless I get a transplant, and after seeing how they're done, I'd rather be bald. :laugh:
I'll join that queue! :laugh:
I'm what's called "blokey" here in Australia, when it comes to fashion. Let me give you an idea of what I mean by that:
* I have a couple of black business suits for work. When one wears out, I buy another black business suit.
* I have 10 pastel business shirts for work. As each one wears out, I replace it with more pastel business shirts.
* I have a collection of silk ties for work, which I've been wearing for years.
* I have a couple of pairs of black business shoes which I replace with yet more black business shoes when they wear out.
* For years I have worn the same style black underwear and black socks. When I need more, I know exactly what I want. No need to shop around. I replace them in one job-lot of 10 new pairs of black underpants and 10 new pairs of black socks. I'm in and out of that store in 5 minutes flat! :D
* I used to have a moustache for some 20 years. I was comfortable with it and it with me. Saw no need to change it. One morning, a couple of years ago, I shaved it off on a whim. Now I'm just as happy without the mo and probably will be for at least the next 20 years.
* I've worn my hair in the same style for most of my life, not that there's much remaining these days. Can't see any reason to change it.
Yep, definitely blokey! ;) :laugh:
"The kids were finally being have" (long a) for "they were finally behaving."
I don't hate it--it's a regional thing, I guess. But I heard a salesperson say it this week and I thought about how---everyone knows what it means, but it isn't being used properly. Anyone else hear it in their area?
"The kids were finally being have" (long a) for "they were finally behaving."
I don't hate it--it's a regional thing, I guess. But I heard a salesperson say it this week and I thought about how---everyone knows what it means, but it isn't being used properly. Anyone else hear it in their area?
around here, people will say (which drives me NUTS) "We have to conversate!"
One time, I turned to the person and said, "There's no such word as "conversate"! You can have a conversation, or you can converse.
::)
I ain't coming coming up with anything for "being have," though.
I wonder whether that's related to "ax." You know, as in, "Let me ax you a question."
Maybe. I always figured that was just kind of careless pronunciation, but ...
Because they say that a lot in New Orleans, I was going to jump from there to a discussion of all the New Orleans expressions that are weird ("making groceries" instead of "grocery shopping," "neutral ground" for "median," "earl" for "oil" and "oil" for "earl," "when I was coming up" for "growing up" -- there's a ton of them) but then I remembered another kind of expression I hate. I hate cutesy names for cities that get way overused, such as "The Big Apple," "The Big Easy," etc.
They say "ax" (or, perhaps, "aks") for "ask" in NOLA? I remember reading something about the "aks" pronunciation for "ask" years ago, in the midst of the Ebonics controversy. Remember that?
Well, I guess a media is sort of "neutral ground," between two or more lanes of traffic.
And didn't Archie Bunker say "earl" for "oil"? Or was it just "terlit" for "toilet"? ;D
New Orleans and certain parts of New York share an eerily similar accent, I guess because of similar immigration patterns.
I hate cutesy names for cities that get way overused, such as "The Big Apple," "The Big Easy," etc.
Oh, here's one I've loathed since I was a whippersnapper: "lady" this or that. "Lady doctor," for example. It's not used much anymore, but oy.
How about - and this one is even yucky for me to type - "Frisco?"
I do enjoy "Left Coast" though.
Oh, here's one I've loathed since I was a whippersnapper: "lady" this or that. "Lady doctor," for example. It's not used much anymore, but oy.
"Left Coast" always makes me smile. :)
It's sure better than "flyoverland."
Here's one that makes me cringe: "Persons" this and "Persons" that! :P
I know it's done to avoid using "man," but it still drives me crazy because with a little thought I'm sure there is a better way to get around using "man" that substituting "person."
The worst cringe-inducer is the term for an afternoon professional baseball game played on a weekday. These games used to be called "Businessman's Specials," for the "businessmen" who would sneak away from the office to attend them, but that term can't be used anymore, so now they are "Businessperson's Specials." :P Since these games are played on a business day, why not "Business Day Special"?
Here's another that relates to local politics.
The members of Philadelphia City Council are elected by district. The members of Council, male and female, are still called "councilmen," and their districts are called "councilmanic districts." :-*
"Councilmanic" makes me think of a member of the Council jumping around, waving his or her arms in the air, and shrieking hysterically. ...
Would it be so difficult to call the members of Council "representatives," and their districts simply "Council districts"?
Do they also have "councildepressive districts?"
Here's one that makes me cringe: "Persons" this and "Persons" that! :P
I know it's done to avoid using "man," but it still drives me crazy because with a little thought I'm sure there is a better way to get around using "man" that substituting "person."
The worst cringe-inducer is the term for an afternoon professional baseball game played on a weekday. These games used to be called "Businessman's Specials," for the "businessmen" who would sneak away from the office to attend them, but that term can't be used anymore, so now they are "Businessperson's Specials." :P Since these games are played on a business day, why not "Business Day Special"?
Here's another that relates to local politics.
The members of Philadelphia City Council are elected by district. The members of Council, male and female, are still called "councilmen," and their districts are called "councilmanic districts." :-*
"Councilmanic" makes me think of a member of the Council jumping around, waving his or her arms in the air, and shrieking hysterically. ...
Would it be so difficult to call the members of Council "representatives," and their districts simply "Council districts"?
Like actors and actresses?
But as it is, I've noticed they're moving toward calling actresses actors. Once or twice, someone has mentioned an actress with an ambiguous name, like maybe Sigourney though not the actual Sigourney, and said "so and so is a really good actor," and I've started to say "wait, isn't so and so a woman?" but then remembered and stopped myself.
Heh. Because to call them "Councilors" is too close in pronunciation to "counselors".
My issue is with title Catholic 'priests' and the desire of women to be - 'female priests'.
??? Nobody suggested councilors. They're all called councilmen now. I suggested representative.
Lutherans--and I think Methodists, too--refer to all clergy as pastors, rather than as priests. I've never looked into the derivation of the word, but today anyway it seems to work equally well for both genders.
??? Nobody suggested councilors. They're all called councilmen now. I suggested representative.
Lutherans--and I think Methodists, too--refer to all clergy as pastors, rather than as priests. I've never looked into the derivation of the word, but today anyway it seems to work equally well for both genders.
I believe they are pastors because they lead their flock, baaa.
I believe they are pastors because they lead their flock, baaa. OurBoysPersons were pastors. :)
Newspapers usually use "city councilors."
Or ministers, right? I thought all Protestants, except Episcopalians, used "minister" instead of "priest."
Going forward. :P >:(
Did anybody mention "Aha moment?" I'm all for people having insights and epiphanies, but an "aha moment" sounds like an insight with all the depth of a saucer of milk.
We can now proceed to going forward...
hehe! I think Aha moment succeeded paradigm shift. Whenever I say that, my friend Chuck hands me two 10-cent coins!
Why?
Para - digm
sounds like
pair of dimes (10 cent pieces) ;D
hehe! I think Aha moment succeeded paradigm shift. Whenever I say that, my friend Chuck hands me two 10-cent coins!
Surely you have to have an Aha Moment before you can shift the paradigm?
Here's one I'd never seen or heard of until it started showing up on Bettermost:
Christianist
Hunh? ??? WTF? :P
Here's one I'd never seen or heard of until it started showing up on Bettermost:
Christianist
Hunh? ??? WTF? :P