coming out of my shell

coming out of my shell

Monday, November 30, 2020

I don't even

Blogging has many challenges.  One is circumventing the cultural nuances of colloquialisms.  I'm not one to be too careful about what I say.  I often think I'm funny, and laugh loudest at my own jokes.  Sometimes I'm the only one laughing.  Not a problem for me.  However, I need to remember that words and phrases that resonate with my friends in Indiana, New York, or Florida have different connotations in other places.  

Recently I responded to Robbie at Tone Deaf.  He is sometimes outrageous and hilarious, often prone to honest self-reflection, and almost always British.  His post was hilarious.  I commented "I don't even know what to say." 

In the context of my life and reactions to others, that was a compliment of sorts.  It translates roughly to "I surrender," or "okay, you win."  In real life it would likely be said to my brother "Big D" with one hand on my hip, and one eyebrow raised.  

I think Robbie thought I was scolding him.  

We learn so much from each other.  








27 comments:

  1. Oh yes, I have gotten myself into trouble with that also. I also love it when my jokes go over well, but like even the best professional comedians, I bomb now and then.

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  2. I've noticed that with emails too. People can so easily misinterpret your meaning because that cannot hear your tone of voice or see the expression on your face. Now we even have it in person when masks hide whether we are smiling or smirking! LOL!

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    1. I've learned to be really careful in what I say in emails lest I be misunderstood. And yes, the masks.

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  3. This is a good story to tell on yourself.

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  4. I am afraid I'm guilty of the same thing.

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  5. I thought you'd dropped off the edge of the world, proving a secretly-held belief that it's not only flat but has sharp edges. Happily I notice the parachute must have opened. You floated past several other worlds looking like large uncooked pizzas - places called Trumpismus and Barr-ola - where you were disinclined to stop, until you saw familiar territory where alligators outnumbered humans and these dentist-escapees were busy chewing up dark green metal boxes later revealed to be voting machines. Nothing changes and you were home.

    ... land that you love
    Stand beside her, look inside her
    Through the night with the light from above,


    What's with that third line? It's night yet there's light from above! So she's not standing over, or in, an garage inspection pit. Well that's a relief.

    I didn't think you were scolding me though I'm willing to undergo that experience at some convenient time and at a place which is alligator-free. Only to point out that your words should never be uttered by a blogger. It betrays blogging's sacred premise. You should always have something to say.

    Look at what I've written here. It's just nothingness or as we Brits say, sweet bugger-all. But the words did not not come.

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    1. The words did not come? Do I have to count them all?

      Thanks for the clarification. It seems I misunderstood you. Now I have a headache. But I'm happy you didn't feel scolded.

      I really enjoyed the first paragraph, by the way.

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    2. There's a double negative in my last sentence. I worried about that, imagining it might be missed. Now it has been missed I feel like the Lord of the Universe. But you still have a role; you get to work my punka.

      No such thing as misunderstanding me; it's all pure candy floss, the sound of water dribbling over a tinfoil Christmas tree. Half a second's pleasure then on to peeling potatoes.

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  6. I have this happen. Or when I am just me and swearing like I do in real life people say I could find other words. Yes, I could but I don't wish to. It's my blog. Its my view of the word. I am certain it was just a language thing. My former boss was from the UK sometimes I was confused, sometimes hurt, but I always said something and it never failed to make us both laugh of what I thuoght he meant to what he actually meant. I have learned a lot of british and irish words from him and we still laugh about those early days when working together. But he always told me he was thankful I approached him instead of stewing in my thoughts which were always wrong. So I get you here!

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  7. E-mails and texts (and blog comments) can be hard to interpret because we don't have the accompanying social cues of facial expressions and vocal tones. I've occasionally both misunderstood and been misunderstood. It's an easy mistake to make!

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  8. I tend to be very circumspect in comments on both blogger and Facebook. Well, really I'm like that in real life as well. I go quiet. My mother used to say to us when my sibs and I were young, "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all." Well, I have moved beyond that a bit, but not much. If looks could kill though, there would be a huge pile of bodies somewhere. LOL. I thought your comment was rather benign.

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    1. It was rather benign. Still, it is interesting how communication works or doesn't work, even in the same language groups.

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  9. Indeed Words have varied meanings where ever you come from and whatever Cultural differences you might have, even here. My Mom was Welsh and married an American GI, my Dad. The first time he introduced her to a Friend named Randy she thought that was just the most terrible Name you could give a child... since the word meant Horny to her. I still Smile about that!

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  10. Several times my blog visitors have said I seem smug and self-righteous. I'm not sure how they get this impression as to my mind I'm quite the opposite of smug and self-righteous. It's odd how people can read my words very differently from what I intended to say.

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    1. Don't let those remarks keep you from being yourself. Your job is to write. There's is to try and figure out what they are reading, and if they read it wrong - to learn from it.

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    2. Thank you, very kind and helpful advice.

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    3. Whoops, "Theirs" not There's. :)

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  11. Sarcasm, snark, wit, innuendo, mirth, truth, speechlessness...

    Language pitfalls in this (which included emails and text messages) medium abound.

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    1. They do. Makes me wonder how many people I have inadvertently offended over the years, ha!

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  12. There are so many differences in speach, even though we think we are speaking the same language. It's entertaining to learn these things.

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So, whadayathink?