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And will someone, anyone, please tell speakers that ending a declaratory sentence with "ya know what I mean?" is a redundancy! If I knew what you meant, I wouldn't have spent the last 10 minutes listening to you explain it to me.
From age 3, I was a voracious reader, although initially most of that was simply word recognition. Eventually, recognition gave way to actually understanding the words after sounding them out and that led to my interest in the root and/or derivation of same.
I call my purse "my purse". Some people (folks) must still call it that otherwise, where did "murse" originate? If I call my purse "my bag", who is to know which bag I mean. After all, there are: grocery, laundry, garbage, traveling, cosmetic, barf, etc. etc. Since there are so many specific items that could be considered a bag, why not use the correct nomenclature and remove the inevitable question, "Uh, which bag?"
On vacation, I use a fanny-pack. I find it much more convenient to have two free hands and yet have my essentials on my person. But, alas, some people (folks) find a fanny-pack to be a loathsome article and sneer at those of us who dare to find it useful. (u no who u r) Just as we find certain words to be useful.
While I completely agree that language is fluid and ever-changing, I firmly believe that unless one knows the origin, one's education has been neglected. And since I'm already old, and most people can't help noticing that, they expect me to say "folks". They'd snicker if I called your folks 'rents.
And will someone, anyone, please tell speakers that ending a declaratory sentence with "ya know what I mean?" is a redundancy! If I knew what you meant, I wouldn't have spent the last 10 minutes listening to you explain it to me.
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My take on "ya know what I mean?" is "Can you relate?"
What irks me is Nome Sayin' ("Do you know what I am saying?") popular among a certain music genre.
My take on "ya know what I mean?" is "Can you relate?"
What irks me is Nome Sayin' ("Do you know what I am saying?") popular among a certain music genre.
My wife and I have noticed that we baffle some folks with our "See you while ago" parting. It's a nod to my Cajun roots and is pronounced as one word, "seeyawhalago".
Cajuns take pride in their use of "backasswards" English. I've got a picture of a sign in Louisiana that reads, "Stop, You".
My real estate agent thought that "down the Parkway" was strange, I guess it comes from my New Jersey roots, where we say "down the shore," and think nothing of it, along with "subs" for "hoagies," and "soda" for "soft drink." Some of us also say "youse guys," but I never did....
While you are at it, xerox these few pages for me please.
That reminds me of "mimeo," from "mimeograph." I remember the smell of a freshly minted sheet as though it were yesterday. That also reminds me of "burn" - as in "would you burn a copy for me, too?"
Amazing how this thread just popped up and is already 10 pages long. You folks are amazing. I use folks all the time and never think anything of it.
It did cause me to flash back to a college class I had in Florida in the early 80's taught by the long ago departed Mr. Perrin. It was a 3 hour night class and we took a break in the middle. And often to announce break time Mr. Perrin would proclaim "Cokes and Smokes for all you fine Folks"! Still remembering the phrase and Perrin with fondness almost 35 years later!
Pop is totally explainable... it's the back half of the term "Soda-Pop". The NE took Soda, the midwest took "Pop".
What's truly weird is the places where "Coke" is used to describe all soft drinks generically, as in "Do you want a Coke Coke, or a Pepsi Coke?". That's odd.
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