Christmas: The Most Blunderful Time Of The Year
The holiday season is upon us once again. It’s a time for family, friends and potential language blunders at every turn. How to wish people happiness during the holidays is one of the most debated yearly topics out there. It seems like we can’t say anything without offending someone. Merry Xmas, Happy Christmas, Happy Holidays…is there an absolutely “right” thing... Read More
Indian English: A Sure Way To Feel Bamboozled
Indian English is a language apart. Spoken well, as it is by millions of Indians, it is a joy to the ear. Educated urban Indians often speak embarrassingly eloquent English. But, there are many millions more in India for whom English is not their natural language. This fact doesn’t stop them from using the language with gleeful gusto, bending it as they please and cheerfully... Read More
A Modern-Day Mr. Malaprop
What Is A Malaprop? “E gag, man!” exclaims the man sitting across from me in our regular Sunday morning brunch booth. “What’s that?” I say, smiling. “E… gag?” “Yeah,” he says, “It’s…um, Latin. It means when you’re really aspirated with someone.” Of course he means e gad; perhaps even e gads. And I know he means exasperated instead of aspirated. ... Read More
Can I Quote You on That?
Doesn’t anyone know what quotation marks are for anymore? There’s a hint in the name: quotation marks. They are used for setting off words that were said or written by other people, or if you’re writing dialogue, they set off words said by characters. Quotation marks are NOT meant, however, to simply add emphasis. Of course, as with most things, it’s a little more complicated... Read More
Reclaiming Words Is Not Enough
On Shakespeare And Slut Walks If Shakespeare were to crawl out of his grave and ask the age-old question, “What’s in a name?” in today’s society, I’m guessing the answer would be something like “a whole hell of a lot.” It seems to me that names are more important than ever. We’re constantly under pressure to label ourselves and others. Are you a Republican or... Read More
Sticks and Stones May Break My Bones…And Words Can Hurt Too
We’ve always had cutesy phrases to describe various social conventions and situations: baby bump, chocoholic and Brangaloonie, to name a few. Now we can add “funemployment,” ‘recessionista,” and “intaxication” to the list. They sound like fun terms, don’t they? You’re not broke, you’re a recessionista! That joy that you feel upon receiving your tax return... Read More
Let’s Get Physical
Language. It’s a bit of a nebulous concept, but most of us seem to have the basics down. We think it’s a decidedly abstract process of translating thoughts into words. A magical, ephemeral means of communicating the soul’s innermost dreams. A way to satisfy our propensity for analysis and our desire to connect with others. Think William Shakespeare (“Love looks not with... Read More
Movers And Shakers
My roommate is a life coach. A genuine, certified life coach. The great thing about living with a life coach is that she is always there to motivate, inspire and challenge me to be my best self. The downside to living with a life coach is that she is always there to motivate, inspire and challenge me to be my best self. Sometimes my best self is hidden deep within my average self,... Read More
“Seriously”: The Only Word You’ll Ever Need.
Seriously? How does one word alone have the ability to show so much emotion at one time? It carries the tremendous ability to convey anger, confusion, surprise, disgust, frustration and excitement. It can convey one or more at a time, or even ALL of them at once. It’s SERIOUSLY versatile. Seriously. It can even be said as a sentence, a one word sentence. It has that... Read More
Hollywood Lingo: A Tool Of The Tinseltown Trade
Talking The Talk: Rolling Calls and Triple Bangers Whose desk have you sat on?” was one of the first questions I was asked at a job interview. I was interviewing to be a Hollywood assistant, and I had no idea that this question was the industry’s way of asking who I had previously worked for. It was not a question about whether or not I had occupied a piece of furniture... Read More
