Jaelle Terrell
I’m a language maven. I adore words. I deconstruct every sentence I hear. I must read every t-shirt and bumper sticker I encounter.
I love the word schadenfreude. We need this word. Sadly. Words like selfie and spork? Begrudgingly. But Webinar! I will never, ever!
I was once engaged in a conversation with a person who said, “You know what I’m saying?” one to two times every sentence. You know what I’m saying? Every. Sentence. It was as if he was asking if I understood the definition and meaning of each thought he was conveying.
Catch phrases and idioms come and go and I’m sure you can remember one that you thought might never end. My current one, the phrase that is most misused and overworked is, “I’m old enough to remember…“
There is nothing wrong with saying, “I’m old enough to remember … “ when it fits organically into a conversation. “ … to remember party lines. Wing windows. Ice boxes.” But people misuse this phrase over and over. All day long. To hearken back perhaps two years. Or five. What they are doing is using this phrase to suggest or imply wisdom, a generational knowledge with perhaps a touch of warmth thrown in. Again, there is nothing wrong with that. But, I’m thinking, get some new material. That’s a great gag. Milton Berle told it all the time.
~ Jaelle Terrell