Hmm. I remember being in the airport longe in Lima. The place was empty apart from me, Macarius and a band playing 'Hey Jude' repeatedly on the panpipes. We went to the other side if the lounge and round a corner -and the band followed us....
Broken washing machines in laundromats. I have a pillow which needs washing. It's too big to go in my machine. The nearby laundromat has eight very large machines. I took my pillow there today, and ALL of them were out of order.
I'm an admin on a website about women in history. We also have a facebook page. Over half of the people who contact the facebook page are men who are under the impression that our page is some sort of a dating site. Yesterday I posted a piece about a woman who designed a landscape for an estate. She died in 1805. Today, I'm deleting more crap of the "Hello, lovely ladies!" variety. Fortunately, none of the rubbish has been obscene or aggressive, but seriously? Why do some random men find a facebook page about long-dead women and think it's some sort of invitation to post about how they love women and would like to get together with one?
I rather thought the 'Pan Pipes' stuff was recent history - IIRC, I haven't heard such sh**e for ages. Wasn't there some ghastly Peruvian (or somewhere) band that purveyed it?
But yes, I concur. <votive> for Mrs. Smiff and her benighted ilk....
IJ
I think the "musical" instrument you refer to is the ocarina, sometimes called the "Peruvian Nose Flute" by the much missed Ray Moore.
So here's a minor, but constant frustration: people (especially interviewees on television) who begin every comment with, "So ...". [Devil]
This is a relatively new thing IMO.
This has been driving me crazy for a couple of years now. It's not just on television -- I attended a panel discussion a couple of weeks ago. Every single one of the panelists started her answer with "So..."
Definitely one for the deepest pit! I was with my sister when she was considering replacing her laptop, and the (really very nice) embryo in the shop began his answer to her every question with "So".
I don't know where the habit comes from*, but it's spread to the written word: I have several Facebook friends (all considerably younger than me) whose posts nearly always begin with "So".
* but I suspect American or Australian television.
The new So stands at the end of a continuum of sentence-starters that begins with with Uh or Um (which say, “I didn’t really expect your question and am not sure how to answer it, so give me a minute”) and continues with Well (“I didn’t expect the question, but I’ve got an answer and here it comes”) and Oh (“You have presented me some new information; I have absorbed it.”) So says, “I understand the question and how it displays your incomplete knowledge of the subject. What follows is an answer that will help you comprehend what’s really going on and, in addition, suggest a unified theory of the reality.”
In Metro, a free newspaper found on buses and trains in the U.K., most letters from Jo/e Public begin “So,” giving the whole communication a whiny, passive-aggressive tone (with side order of entitlement)
i used to do the same thing in German "Allllsoooooo......" when I knew what I wanted to say in English, but just needed time to work out the translation in my head.
Similarly I notice that people whose first language is a Slavic one tend to begin their responses in English with the word "Actually .,.,".
If I can add another hellish phrase, it's "going forward", as in "We're seeking to develop plans for the future, going forward". So: where else could we go? (And don't quote "Back to the Future" at me!!!)
Can I add the new habit of referring to any group of people of whatever age as "guys"? As in the waitress asking myself and Darllenwr "And what can I get for you guys?"
Can I add the new habit of referring to any group of people of whatever age as "guys"? As in the waitress asking myself and Darllenwr "And what can I get for you guys?"
Unfortunately, it's not new. It's a battle I've been fighting for many years.
I get cross with interviewees who use the word ‘obviously’ in their answer. It may be obvious to them, but not to us, which is why they were asked the question in the first place.
Picking up a load of dirt in a little utility trailer which gets a flat tire which means must unload the dirt on the side of the road detach trailer from car by using car jack then jack up side of trailer to get wheel off. Get to a tire shop which has a tire go to second tire shop for a wheel rim. Then back to trailer to put on tire and hitch up trailer. Then shovel dirt back into trailer. Then drive. Then shovel dirt off of trailer.
Delivery by dump truck is $100 for $15 worth of dirt. Wheel was $55. Tire was $58. Or It could be t'other way round. Either way shovelled dirt 3x and paid more. I am toast, soggy pathetic toast.
On the "so", there's many who use "well" the same way. Myself, I have decided to use f*** in place of both.
I was listening to an interview on the radio. The interviewee said "at this moment in time" and I realised I hadn't heard that phrase for ages. It used to annoy me, but now I feel a certain nostalgia for it.
It may well have been a thread on the previous Ship that I got the reply from, but when someone says "I'm good" in reply to my "How are you?" my further reply is that "That is for Santa to decide."
No, I am not your sweetheart, darling, dear, love, lovely, gorgeous or any other variation thereof if we have only ever met for a passing transaction for approximately 30 seconds and especially if you have spent most of that time conversing with your colleagues or a customer who is more interesting/better known to you than I am.
I am beginning to register that these, in my part of the world at least, seem to be replacing "Please/thank you." and am off to put this to the test.
Oh, Japes, I feel the same way. It drives me crazy sometimes! May I add to your list by saying that when they tell me "perfect" when I hand over the money to pay or do something similar to that, I always want to ask if someone has recently received a score of "imperfect" or at least a rating lower than "perfect". The departing wish to "have a good one" is also making me a little crazy. Oh my, I must be getting old!
Comments
MMM
I think the "musical" instrument you refer to is the ocarina, sometimes called the "Peruvian Nose Flute" by the much missed Ray Moore.
This is a relatively new thing IMO.
This has been driving me crazy for a couple of years now. It's not just on television -- I attended a panel discussion a couple of weeks ago. Every single one of the panelists started her answer with "So..."
I don't know where the habit comes from*, but it's spread to the written word: I have several Facebook friends (all considerably younger than me) whose posts nearly always begin with "So".
* but I suspect American or Australian television.
If I can add another hellish phrase, it's "going forward", as in "We're seeking to develop plans for the future, going forward". So: where else could we go? (And don't quote "Back to the Future" at me!!!)
Unfortunately, it's not new. It's a battle I've been fighting for many years.
Oxygen thieves on 6-figure salaries who contribute or deliver absolutely nothing to the division or university. But we have no money for training.
I saw what you did there.
Delivery by dump truck is $100 for $15 worth of dirt. Wheel was $55. Tire was $58. Or It could be t'other way round. Either way shovelled dirt 3x and paid more. I am toast, soggy pathetic toast.
On the "so", there's many who use "well" the same way. Myself, I have decided to use f*** in place of both.
Actually, I think I'd better get me coat.
F*** it, I'll go nekkid...
Obviously that's the better choice.
IJ
IJ
Better for who?
Those who do not know proper urinal etiquette. If there are 3, and I am using #1, you go to #3, not #2.
And those who don't wash their hands afterwards. Was it Seinfeld who said, "At least pretend"?
TICTH the wanker who has parked in my apartment car space.
No. It isn’t for you to say. Stop it.
How do I do what ?
Be specific, and, if you actually mean 'How are you as regards your health?', be prepared to listen to a lengthy answer.
IJ
IJ
I am beginning to register that these, in my part of the world at least, seem to be replacing "Please/thank you." and am off to put this to the test.