… is that we mostly grumble about the senseless arrival of imbecilic terms, and almost never celebrate their eventual exit.
Remember a few years ago when every 40-year-old Facebook hipster was saying "natch," to mean "naturally"—as in, I went to both U-2 shows, natch? Well that bullshit seems to be over.
I also dare to hope that "fail" the noun—as in, "epic fail"—is on its way out. I wish it would take with it, tsunami-like, every jerk-off who was linguistically susceptible enough to have ever said or written it.
What other receding ridiculosities ought we send off with a happy toast? I'm eager to hear your nominations, natch.
Suki says
As if you even need to ax:
* right?
* no problem
* how’s it going? (just say “hi.” you don’t care how it’s going and I don’t want to tell you. hell, I don’t even know you)
Reasons why I don’t deserve an opinion on this:
* I write “tots” for “totally” on people’s fb pages all the time
* I comment in lower-case letters on blogs
* I say, “really?” I love that one.
There you go.
Thank you.
No problem.
David Murray says
Confession. I say, “Just wow.” I do it ironically, but I do it.
But “tots”? Sister, please.
Do you also say, in response to someone’s behavior, “SERIOUSLY”? Sometimes I do.
Damn it.
Suki says
I forgive you your “just wow” and your “seriously” and raise you an “obvi” (i’ve never said it but I like it) and I can’t stop it with the “tots.”
I just can’t. I think it’s cute.
I just remembered some other ones that I have no right to hate. Kids nowadays are saying that things are “baller.” I don’t even know what it means. It’s something good. But I don’t like it. I don’t like it one bit.
Obvi.
Suki says
“It is what it is” is pretty terrible, too.
Alright. I’ll quit jamming up the blog lines now. Somebody else talk.
David Murray says
The bottom line is, at the end of the day, we have to raise the bar.
But I’ve never heard “baller” before you said it. I love it. Tots. Never heard obvi. It’s hillare.
Luke Pryor says
What irks me most is this growing propensity to misuse reflexive pronouns, thinking that they are just more formal versions of the pronouns themselves.
“Myself and a friend went bowling the other day.”
It’s bad enough in the first person but misusing it in the second person is just deplorable. On the telephone the other day it was inquired of me:
“Would that be of interest to yourself?”
although I could be wrong and maybe they were trying to broach some pretty heavy philisophical subjects.