Are you ever walking down the street and overhear two people talking? Sure you have, who hasn’t? Going along with this I am sure you have heard phrases or sayings which cause a confused look to cross your face. Usually these are all saying we use but if we would take the time to think about them, we probably wouldn’t. Phrases are already finished expressions. They allow the user to provide some thought without necessarily having to think. Now in most cases this practice is more than acceptable and serves as a framework around which actual conversation can build. These are the phrases that through time have been used too much and have too little meaning for their continuation. Phrases like “it is what it is,” or “no offense.” Phrases that really don’t make much sense and are just used as fillers in conversation. For this week’s issue we wanted to take a closer look at some of these very same phrases. We wanted to break them down and perhaps have you think about them in a whole new light. Surely you will still continue to use them (as will we) but at least you cannot say we didn’t try. So read further, think outside the box (another one which should be deleted) and have a good laugh at some of the things people say to each other in everyday conversation. We are omitting a conclusion form this post simply for the pure fact that “it is what it is!”
“No Offense”
This is something we have all heard before and use ourselves. I could go on and on about why this is an absolutely moronic statement. I’ll try and keep my thoughts to a minimum however in order to somewhat save the reader. “No offense,” is just a way to insult someone and get away with it. “John, no offense dude, but your sister is kind of a whore.” Now, since you used this saying John is absolutely not allowed to be angry with you. You threw the disclaimer in there in order to insult the sexual frequency of John’s younger sister. But alas, all is fine since you were able to brandish this great and very useful phrase. I’m just going to come out and say that anyone who is sitting there having this phrase used on them and not taking offense, well I am sorry but you are just plain stupid. Now I do not think any of you reader would fall into this category. You are obviously intelligent as you have made a great decision in continuing to follow our blog (and we thank you for that). Now I must admit at times I have been known to use this phrase myself. I don’t pretend to condone it or to use it often, but at times if I want to insult someone it can be a useful means to an end. I guess we use it because the recipient never realizes they are in fact being insulted directly to their face. It is supposed to be a professional or respectful way of telling someone off without hurting their feelings (refer to John above). I think all of that nonsense should be thrown to the wayside and people just need to realize what this saying truly means. Just know next time you use this phrase on me, I am indeed going to take offense.
“There are plenty of fish in the sea”
This saying is commonly used in order to console a friend or loved one after they have just discontinued a relationship, been dumped, cheated on, etc. When I took time to really think about this phrase it made me laugh as I realized it really is just another pointless thing we say to each other in order to fill in the conversation. I’m going to put myself in the shoes of someone who has heard this before. If I am just getting out of a relationship I can guarantee you this is one of the last things I want to hear from you. I am well aware there are about three billion women on the planet. I do not need you telling me how many women there are. I mean out of the total women on the planet there are probably 30% I am not attracted to, 30% who are not attracted to me (low balling this estimate here for my own ego’s sake) 15% who are already taken, 5% who prefer women over men, and another 15% who are geographically isolated from me. This really only leave 5% of all available women who may be interested in settling down with me. Thank you for reminding me of my loneliness and misfortune. You are an ass and not a friend. Really those so called “fish” in the sea are very limited and often out of reach. You have now done the opposite of consoling me and have simply caused me to be extremely sad.
-Note (No real or research based statistics were used in compiling this data)
“Lets do this”
Sorry but no. I would prefer to stay at home now and do absolutely nothing. I feel this phrase is partially derived from Nike’s slogan just do it, either way let Nike continue to do it and let this undo itself. Let’s do this is not necessarily as awful as some of the others; however it ranks quite high on cliché factor. It just seems to impue of the typical college or road trip movies, like animal house. The phrase is a rallying cry shouted at the top of the lungs, and yet there seems to be a slight hesitation in wanting to do this or why the need for all the bolstering and “showgraphy” to convince all of us to commit this action. "umm, and the "likes"
This one is like the plague, once it has started it just trails on behind for the rest of the conversation. The use of umm and like is not even a conscious phrase it is a pure filler nonsensical noise. In speech or English classes these “blurps” are seen as abominations and there mere use can lead to the docking of points. Well in the real world there is no point system to dock people, thus these phrases are allowed to continue to be uttered often machine gun like destroying the essence of the information the person is trying to convey. Because if you use these enough, your creditability often takes a hit and people begin to concentrate more on the words you are using than what the sentences you are saying mean. A study was done that if these two phrases when used as fillers were eliminated from speech, noise pollution would drop by 50% globally and greenhouse gas emissions by 15% (Wikipedia.globalnoise_study.com).
“That’s fire”
This is used to describe something cool, awesome, exciting. This phrase seems to have been used far less than the others we have mentioned. This is precisely how it should be. This fact pleases me very much. This phrase needs to die, and quickly. I have heard it used throughout the ‘twitter world” by some athletes and have even been unfortunate enough to hear it person from time to time. Every time I hear this I want to cringe and hide in a corner. I was once dating a girl a couple years ago who would use this phrase in conversation as well as in text messages. It may sound odd but every time she used it, it was a huge turn-off. I couldn’t help but focus on anything other than how utterly stupid and ridiculous it sounds. I think ultimately not too many people have heard of this phrase because it is not spreading. It is not spreading because it’s a stupid saying.
“It’s all good/It could be worse”
What, really. No it is not all good. In fact, if you are saying this it is probably the opposite. While this phrase is said to relieve anxiety or worry, it doesn’t seem to have the greatest of effects. The person is just reminded that whatever it is, is being mishandled or there would be no use in expressing the goodness of what’s going on. Also if things are square, prefect, all good most people are aware enough to realize this fact. So add a little depth and vocabulary, and perhaps say how everything is alright. It could be worse is the other hand of its all good. It implies negativity to the situation that really does not contain the level of compassion or empathy the orator might think that it does. Few are comforted by the thought that there is a worse situation, because often they already know it. Obviously there are worse situations, I could lose my physical abilities like walking or talking, I could lose my cognizant ability. So of course things could be worse, perhaps what you meant to say was that this is a difficult and/or terrible situation and I am there for you. If you can cause reassurance and support, this is much greater than empty and “unthought” phrase, but it could be worse, they could be trying to kill you.
“It is what it is”
The history of this phrase traces back to the origins of the early mathmetician like newton. They would use it when they were deriving complex equations and discovered that in fact it equals it, and thus it is what it is. But in all seriousness we cannot stand this phrase. What the hell is “it?” Why would it not be what it is, and why are you telling me it is what it is, because if it is what it is, shouldn’t I already know what it is? These are questions we must ask ourselves when entertaining the notion of using this phrase. We will leave you with those final questions to answer on your own time.
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