Cats and Trails and Garden Tales
Musings on cats, travel, gardens and life
Some words I don’t use
LOL. No, don’t use it. I envy people who do. So convenient and concise. But it’s not for me. I tried it once and felt like an imposter. Haha, no problem. Heehee, occasionally. LOL? Lol? Never. There must be some deep seated emotional reason I can’t use it but I haven’t figured out yet what it is.
Bucket List. Nope. There are many things I want to do, plan to do, places I would like to go and plan to go. Good enough. I just can’t put it into the context of “before I kick the bucket.” Why spoil the dreams and all the fun of planning with that?
To die for. As in, “this cake is to die for!” Sigh. It may be really good cake. The best I have had in a long long time. But “to die for?” Um, no. I don’t think so. But again, I envy those who can say it with such passion. You do it well and it makes me want to try that cake! But I tried it once and it didn’t work out (the phrase not the cake.) That imposter thing again. So I would say it if I could but I can’t so I won’t.
Adamant. It’s a great word, actually. I said it once, a long time ago, just like this, “a DAM ant” where I thought it worked really well for emphasis. And my friend said, do you mean “ad-a-mant?” (spoken correctly rolling off the tongue, all in a hurry. ) Yes, I guess I did. But that was the last time for me. I don’t say adamant anymore. Too risky. Whatever. (Btw, I like “whatever.” “Whatever” works for me. So does “btw,” by the way.)
Dis. As in “disrespect” I guess, I was never quite sure. Seemed like everyone dissed someone else there for a while. Do they still do that? I can’t use words that seem to come out of nowhere and then disappear.
Toulees or tulies. As in “out in the.” Now I’m going way back. I was in grade school I think and had written a story about a girl who lived out in the “two leaves.” The spelling made perfect sense to me as that is how I pictured the word. But my sisters read the story and laughed out loud. (They actually DID laugh out loud, though there was no LOL in those days.) So I’m not taking a chance on that one again. Then again, no one says “out in the tulies” anymore, do they?
It’s hard to keep up. Do you have words like that?
~ Susanne
Cats and Trails and Garden Tales 
Love this! I do say “adamant” sometimes and out in the “toolies”, but I am with you on the rest. I definitely remember some words that I knew well from books that I tried to speak, and did so badly. My reading prowess was often ahead of the level of conversations I was exposed to!
A bucket list doesn’t appeal to me much. As sure as you make one, another amazing opportunity will present itself. You don’t want to ignore the opportunity because you are stuck to your list!
Hi Deborah, Thanks so much for your comment! I think your spelling of “toolies” must be the correct one! I guess I’m still getting it wrong! 🙂 What you describe is absolutely true with me. I would see words on the printed page but didn’t know how they were spoken. Or didn’t realize the word I was hearing was the same one I saw in print. Reminds me of another one that I only recently connected the correct pronunciation with the spelling: ‘aficionado.’
I don’t get ‘toulees’, but I do hate LOL, and any similar ‘text speak’. I have used adamant, though not frequently. ‘To Die For’ has never entered my vocabulary, I am happy to report. The same with ‘Bucket List’, which I get, but have never had occasion to use. Then again, I was pretty close to that bucket when it began to be popular as a phrase.
My personal pet hate is the use of ‘Awesome’, to describe anything from a hamburger, to a baseball cap. I am afraid that you Americans have to take the blame for reducing an ancient word of power into nothing at all, just everyday nonsense.
I have some often-used and favourite words. These include ‘Nonetheless’, and ‘Doubtless’, among others. I could go on about this all night, but I choose not to, for the sake of brevity.
(Another good word…)
Nice post, Susanne.
Best wishes, Pete.
Hi Pete. Thanks for your comment. Maybe toulees or tulies (I obviously never got the spelling right) was only an American expression from the last century meaning far away from civilization, out in the woods or “in the sticks.” I confess I haven’t heard it for quite some time.. I totally agree with you that we spoiled and trivialized the word ‘awesome’ by its overuse. Nonetheless, brevity and doubtless are good words with staying power..
I found this.
tulies
n.pl.—Gloss: the boondocks or the middle of nowhere. Note: Out in the tules/tules means “out in the boondocks” or “far away.” Encarta says that “to be in deep tules” is a Hispanic English expression meaning “to be in trouble with the law.” Another spelling is “tules,” plural form of “tule,” pronounced TOO-lee, which is a type of Californian bulrush and the origin of the term. The expression is most common in the American southwest, including California. «The dirt road might as well be called Old Rutted—it’s that rough—but McCullough doesn’t seem to mind. At 75, the snowy-haired scientist still loves driving his giant 4×4 into the wilderness—the “tulies,” as he calls them—and getting out to hike through the spiny desert.» —“Mapping the Border” by Margaret Regan Tucson Weekly (Arizona) Oct. 4, 2007. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
You got it right.
Hey thanks for the note! I guess it is legitimate after all! 🙂
I consider things like lol and btw (which has, after all, the same number of syllables to enunciate as “by the way,”) to be keyboard shortcuts, not for verbal speech. I think they’re dumb, but I resort to them because I have a chronic RSI. I can’t use a keyboard at all anymore; I use handwriting input in my computer, or I can peck the virtual keyboard with my stylus. While fewer characters to scrawl or peck would be helpful, I refuse to give up my normal written language style.
It took me a long time to cave to smiley faces, but I have.I like my cat and fish better: ^..^ >>°
Oops–Wordpress can’t render my fish.
Hi Lauren, Lol and btw certainly cut down on key strokes and have their place. ‘Lol’ just doesn’t work for me for some reason I have yet to discover. I do like the smiley face. It works well when I don’t know what other closing to use particularly in an email. 🙂
Susanne, perhaps you and I need the same therapy! Lol has NEVER worked for me! I don’t know why either but it just doesn’t!
Now I am ADAMANT that your writing is AWESOME! LOL! Writing is on my BUCKET LIST! (Which, BTW, in all honesty, I have never had a “bucket list”! And I hope I’m not DISSED for that!
Now, just one more thing to add. I am always irritated by the use of EACH AND EVERY! It just does not make any sense to me! What is the difference between EACH DAY and EVERY DAY as in EACH AND EVERY DAY! Comments are welcomed on that one! Or maybe I just need therapy!
Love it! I am seriously laughing out loud!! Yes, LOL!! Definitely add writing to your Bucket List!! As far as ‘Each and Every Day’ goes, it never bothered me before but now that I have been enlightened I’m sure it will now! Hahaha! Maybe we could go into therapy together!! 🙂
Reblogged this on Cats and Trails and Garden Tales and commented:
Perusing some of my older posts and found this one. I like words. But words don’t always like me. I still don’t use these. 🙂 Do you have words like that?
“Dis” for sure is something I NEVER use….”LOL” is not me as well…in general, if someone 25 years or younger says it, it’s not for me!
“Dis’ seemed to come out of nowhere and then took over! Glad to see we agree on this one. 🙂 thanks for your comment! 🙂