Monday, July 03, 2006

Borrowed lexicon

Have you ever thought about how many words and phrases you pick up from your friends or even where you pick up some of the things you say? I couldn't sleep last night, and I stared at the ceiling thinking about it. I don't understand where these random thoughts come from. (It's reminiscent of M and I discussing things like the concept of matter and then wondering why people think we're nerds.) So, here's a shout out to some of the random people and characters that have influenced my dialog, and if I've left out anything glaringly obvious, let me know.

"Little bit."- Jennifer Aniston as Rachel Green on Friends
"Wicked"- Sara
"WOOOOOOOOOOO"- Tommy Taco
"Cutest ever"- also Tommy Taco
"Fabo"/"Fabulous"- the illustrious Pat
"D'oh"- MEP, as influenced by Homer J.
"I'll prove it like a theorem." (Okay I don't say this, but it's one of the funniest things I've ever heard, so I wanted to type it, and I will say it if ever asked to prove anything.)- David Schwimmer as Ross Geller on Friends
"Loads" as in "I've been beaten loads of times"- Harry Potter

I know there are loads of others, but I can't think of them, or I can't remember where I learned them.

For a more intelligent twist on this entry- do you know that one of the things I missed most while I didn't have internet was dictionary.com? I cannot stand it if I come across a word that I don't know. It doesn't really happen all that often (not because of my overwhelming intelligence as much as the dumbing down of society), but when it does, it grates on my nerves. I rely on dictionary.com because it's fast, easy, and I've never been around a dictionary that didn't smell moldy. I think that's a major difference between fairly intelligent people and fairly unintelligent people. If you don't know something, do you try to figure it out or do you dismiss it as something you'll never need to know? The word I ran across while without my beloved online dictionary was in an article in Newsweek or Vanity Fair. I can't remember which, and I can't find it now. It bothers me every couple of days when I realize that the author of the mysterious article knows one more word than I.

Sometimes, when I realize what an enormous geek I am, I wonder how I landed such a fantastic husband. Oh, wait, he's an enormous geek, too. It works.


5 comments:

die Frau said...

My man and I also have our own brand of nerdiness, but it's more dork than nerd, I think. It has a hint of sci-fi to it.

Ted's favorite new word that I taught him is DEFENESTRATE. It means to throw something out a window. People can also be defenestrated. I have picked up a number of his expressions, such as

-"Oh, no doubt!"
-"Absolutely."
-Referring to a dog as "herself", as in,"And what did herself do today?" But he got that from his dad.
-I am also trying to start using "dodgy", also a Briticism.

I am a word junkie. I love etymology.

monkeymama said...

quick like a bunny...come on, Kiddo!

Elliotte says...what tha?

feather nester said...

DH's & my nerdism for the weekend:

DH: Look how when I flick the tape measurer with my whole arm the G-force is only enough to extend the tape a millimeter or two, but, when I use just my wrist, it extends several inches.

Me: That's because you're using the shorter, quicker muscle fibers of your forearm as opposed to the larger muscle groups of your back and shoulders.

No, I'm not kidding. Let's all join together in a collective Elliotte "What tha...?" (Not that I know Elliotte, but it seemed fitting.)

monkeymama said...

yeah, Elliotte is that five year old child that your dad relishes in...he says that I am paying for my raising...she also wants to be a rock star(don't we all at one time- I wanted to be Shawn Cassidy)

Ouiser said...

How could I forget "quick like a bunny"? I actually think of you (Angie) ever single time I say it.

As for Elliotte, that's awesome. I am cracking up as I type.