Tuesday, February 5, 2008

Phrases

I know that people develop their own way of saying things and sometimes their own phrases, but have you ever had someone mention that you say something odd? I'm not just talking about regional differences in language like whether you say soda or pop, or if you turn on a light versus cutting on the light.
After you are told that you say a certain thing it can make you uber aware whenever you think or say that phrase.
I know I have a few odd phrases that I say.
My mom used to comment that my twin sister and I would talk about "getting up in the 7's" or "getting up in the 8's." To us that meant that we got up sometime during the 7 o'clock hour (or 8 o'clock for the second example) but we didn't notice exactly when.
Jim laughed at me when I used to say that a parking lot was "all parked up." (…meaning of course that the parking lot was really full.)
Well, recently Jim has commented on the fact that I say "very occasionally." He says that the words are contradictory and that I don't need the very to modify occasionally.
He's right of course, but somehow I can't seem to stop using it and now I notice whenever that phrase enters my head. I suppose it isn't such a big deal but now I am uber conscious of it and I know that there is an emphasis on professor speaking correctly. I suppose I will eventually get over it and stop noticing it even if I still very occasionally use the phrase.

2 comments:

Andrea said...

Wow, I have never even heard of cutting on the light. Must be southern? I think very occasionally is different than just occasionally. To me it is less often than occasionally. :)

Susan Z said...

Yep...it's a southern thing to cut on and cut off the light. That and you "carry people" as in, "Would you carry me to the store?"