The English language can be tricky, especially when you consider the amount of slang, acronyms and innuendoes. I am a 60's baby, and I've seen so many changes over the years.
Does anyone remember using the term groovy? It was a term often used back in the 1970’s. I remember using that word, and my sisters had a big sticker on our garbage can in our bedroom that said Groovy. It reminds me of bellbottom pants and backcombed hair.
In the 1980’s, we had some crazing sayings that could confuse anyone today Let’s start with “Grody”. If we found something was gross, or undesirable, a typical response would be “that’s Grody man, like totally Grody to the max”. Grody? Imagine saying that today?
“Take a chill pill” was pretty common. It basically meant “calm down, or settle down. I wouldn’t say something like that in today’s world.
“Barf me out”. Yup, that was a common 80’s saying. Yuck, who thought of that one? It basically meant that is gross, or disgusting, enough to make me want to vomit. Ewww…glad that saying went to the wayside.
There were other sayings that were just bizarre. Imagine if you were in the workplace today, and something did not impress you, and your response was “Gag me with a spoon”. Seriously? Oh but we were so cool in the 80’s when we said that. Yup, really cool sounding “oh that is so bad, he is such a dickweed man, like a total barf bag, gag with me with a spoon”.
Ok, how about this one? “Eat my Shorts!” Yup, the one and only Bart Simpson comes to mind for me when I heard that. I remember when the Simpsons first came out. It was a bit of a taboo show for many parents I knew because they didn’t want their kids picking up on the rude sayings. I loved the show. I found it to be fun, silly and something you really couldn’t take literally. I had not issue with my older kids watching it, but with some good discussions about what you see is not what you repeat. I don’t think I would be too crazy if my eight year old came into the kitchen and said “hey dude, eat my shorts man”.
Veg out. I was veggin' out this past week. I picked corn, peas and potatoes from the garden. Oh, silly me, that’s not veggin' out. That’s gardening. Veg out refers to relaxing, or simply doing nothing. This saying was popular in the 80’s, and it’s still heard today. It’s a cold rainy day today, and I think I’m just going to sit back with a book and veg out”.
“Wannabe”. This sounds like a dinner topping. Hey I’ll have two beef patty with gravy on the fries and a side of wannabe. Ok, got that one wrong. It has nothing to do with food. Wannabe may have started with surfer slang, used in the 1870’s and 80’s. People would copy the style of movie stars and famous musicians, and if they went a little overboard, were sometimes referred to as “wannabe’s”, or someone who is trying to be like someone else.
Think of all the words people have used to simply describe “good”. Some of these words were intended to sound cool, and even became common language in the workplace. “Awesome” has stayed around, but how about these words? “Bitchin’, Radical, Sweet, Wicked”. Try looking those words up in a dictionary and see what you get? Personally I wouldn’t use the word “Bitchin’” in an office environment, or around young children, but I still find myself saying “yeah that’s awesome” or “wow – that is totally wicked”. Hmmm. Old days wicked meant mean or cruel, as in a wicked witch. How confusing for newcomers to the English language.
In my 40th Episode titled "You Said What?" I dive into the topic of slang and acronyms. Acronyms are second nature to the younger generation, and more like a second language to those of us in our 50's. As much as I am trying to get with the times, I am not going to give you a sentence that looks like alphabet soup.
Imagine today if there was a class dedicated to acronyms. Really, many of the acronyms are just like an offshoot of the old shorthand. I look at all the seasoned cell phone users who can type quickly with two thumbs. They can speed-text and get those messages out fast. Throw in some short-form acronyms and the message gets across faster, well, that is, if the recipient knows what the heck it means.
Remember when LOL first came out? It can having many meanings, depending on where you get your answers. Most people think of it as “lots of luck” such as “good luck on that one”, and many others think of it as “laugh out loud”. I think it you put a smiley face emoticon beside it after making a cheeky remark, it’s clear it means “laugh out loud”. “ROFL” stands for rolling on the floor laughing, referring to something that is extremely hilarious.
IDK – stand for I don’t know.
SMH is for “shaking my head”.AMA is “ask me anything”. Hmm. I think of American Motors Association, and I’m Canadian.
TL or DR stands for “too long, or didn’t read”. If you see that in comments, it could mean that there was too much detail or the reader simply didn’t have time to read it all.
ICYMI – stands for “In case you missed it”. This saying is likely used on social media posts.
ASAP – “as soon as possible”. This one has been used for years, even in professional offices. If a project or task is urgent, it’s not uncommon to see a sticky note with bright red letters “ASAP”, and indication that everything else goes on the back burner.
MSG – Message. Please message me. Hmm.. MSG is something I look for on the soup can. If a soup has MSG, I’m not eating it because it upsets my stomach. Yes, MSG also refers to monosodium glutamate. Once again, imagine trying to learn our language and sort out what all these things mean.
FB – stands for Facebook, and I have a FB group for Lindy’s Audio Cafe. If you haven’t joined my group, I recommend that you look it up on FB, search for Lindy’s Audio Café, and select “Join” That way you can stay up to date on group discussions and upcoming episodes. FYI, I do my best to keep it up to date and IMO it is worth it to join.
If you are a parent, you might want to visit the Acronym School of Arts, if there is such thing. At least become familiar with the terms, especially if you are wise and are making sure you are aware of what your teen is doing on the internet. PAW stands for “Parents are watching” and PITR stands for “Parent in the room”. “PAH” is for “parent at home” and “KPC” is for “keeping parents clueless”. Nasty, OMG, that is awful.
I am so glad I raised kids in the generation when internet first came out. I had guidelines and rules for internet use, and I might not have been the cool parent, but it helped keep my kids safe.
We are always learning, and yes, often reminiscing. Those were the good old days, and yes, I wore groovy jeans. For those who are younger and listening to this podcast, be patient with your parents, and grandparents. We didn’t grow up in the world of internet abbreviations. It’s ok to type that word out in full so we can understand it. After all, if you can text 100 words per minute, you can add a few more letters so we know what the heck you are talking about.
TTYL!
