A number of years ago Joss Whedon wrote a comic book series that was set in the future of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer universe where a future half Slayer, Melaka Fray, her twin brother got the Slayer knowledge and she got the Slayer powers...
Anyway, in that series, called Fray, Joss has people speaking English differently, attempting to predict the changes in the English language that might occur over the next 100 or so years. Sentences, he theorised, would be much shorter and words much more descriptive. So, for example, vampires are no longer called vampires, that takes too long to say. Instead they are called by a description of what they do: lurk, so they are called Lurks.
In the Buffy Season 8 comics she visits Fray in the future and is being filled in on the new meanings of words, her conclusion is that she wished she studied in English class better, to preserve the English language for future generations.
Anyway, all that to say Joss Whedon's context of writing is California. Here, in California, they don't say 'I am going to', nor do they say the shorter 'I'm going to' or even the shorter but still acceptable 'I'm gonna'. Instead they say "I'mma".
For example:
Micah: "I'mma slap you." (His favourite phrase)
Meaning: "I am going to slap you."
Maybe Joss Whedon was on to something, at least in the Californian context.
It's funny to compare it where German, where new words are made all the time too, but instead of making them shorter they just throw them together and say a longer word that used to be two individual words!
Monday, 15 May 2017
Californian Slang 3: Words for Good Things.
When Californians want to express their happiness and delight with a situation they use an unusual choice of words... basically anything we think of as negative is positive here.
Dope:
Austin: "That's dope."
Meaning: 'That's good/cool.'
Ireland: "You dope."
Meaning: "You idiot.
Sick:
Micah: "That's sick, brah."
Meaning: "That's cool/amazing.
Cork: "That's sick, bai."
Meaning: "You're disgusting."
Hella:
Micah: "That's hella sick brah."
Meaning: 'That is more amazing than the word sick would indicate alone.'
There's not an Irish equivalent of this usage, but we only ever use Hell negatively from what I can remember.
Ireland: "Like hell you will."
Meaning: 'No, you won't.'
NB: Some Christians use Hecka to avoid saying hell.
Wicked:
I don't think it is used as much anymore, but I have heard it a couple of times.
Generic Californian: "That shirt is wicked."
Meaning: 'That shirt is class.'
Ireland: "That t-shirt is wicked."
Meaning: Not sure exactly how a t-shirt could be evil, but there ya go, that's what you're saying.
Californian Slang 2: Down
This is the second in the Californian Slang series.
Second Observation:
When a Californian wants to do something they are not 'up for it' like an Irish person would be. In fact, they are quite the opposite. Californians are 'down' for things.
Person 1: "Wanna go to In-N-Out?
Micah: "I'm down."
Cork Person 1: "Wanna go to the Fran Well?"
Cork Person 2: "I'm up for that."
Second Observation:
When a Californian wants to do something they are not 'up for it' like an Irish person would be. In fact, they are quite the opposite. Californians are 'down' for things.
Person 1: "Wanna go to In-N-Out?
Micah: "I'm down."
Cork Person 1: "Wanna go to the Fran Well?"
Cork Person 2: "I'm up for that."
Californian Slang 1. 'Bro'
On my other blog (Waveys Thoughts) I have a dictionary translating Cork into English. This is sort of a similar idea but with Californian and because I am trying to do shorter posts each will have one observation.
So, as has been mentioned before Micah is kind of my expert on all things American, and he is actually from California so a lot of this is what he says (sorry Micah, love you really, forgive me!).
First observation:
Californians says 'bro' like Cork people say 'like' or 'bai'.
"Oh yeah bro, I'm totally down to go there bro, it'll be so awesome bro." - Micah
"Ah yeah like, I'm up for going bai, it'll be great craic like." - Cork person (in case you don't get the distinction).
Please note, you have to pronounce this 'bro' like you are very stoned! Long and drawn out does it, even if you're saying it fast. It sounds more like 'Brah' when it's said.
So, as has been mentioned before Micah is kind of my expert on all things American, and he is actually from California so a lot of this is what he says (sorry Micah, love you really, forgive me!).
First observation:
Californians says 'bro' like Cork people say 'like' or 'bai'.
"Oh yeah bro, I'm totally down to go there bro, it'll be so awesome bro." - Micah
"Ah yeah like, I'm up for going bai, it'll be great craic like." - Cork person (in case you don't get the distinction).
Please note, you have to pronounce this 'bro' like you are very stoned! Long and drawn out does it, even if you're saying it fast. It sounds more like 'Brah' when it's said.
What's in a Word 4: CV
We had an event at CCBC where colleges, graduate opportunities and summer camp employment groups came to one of our Friday Chapels earlier in the semester and the guy announcing it mentioned people could come and find work for the summer or after CCBC and should bring their resumes.
Now, I know what a resume is, but it's a stupid word...
They don't even put the accent on it, it is literally the word resume (i.e. to begin again).
Anyway, we were talking about resumes after that announcement and I told some of my dormmates that we call them CVs and that it stands for Curriculum Vitae, and that C.V. means 'the course of one's life'.
Well:
American words 0, Ways Irish name things 2.
Now, I know what a resume is, but it's a stupid word...
They don't even put the accent on it, it is literally the word resume (i.e. to begin again).
Anyway, we were talking about resumes after that announcement and I told some of my dormmates that we call them CVs and that it stands for Curriculum Vitae, and that C.V. means 'the course of one's life'.
Well:
American words 0, Ways Irish name things 2.
What's in a Word 3: Lift. (Caution NSFW)
So we all know weird things about the word lift in America, right. There is the standard understanding of lift in Ireland as being that thing you stand in, push a button and it takes you to another floor.
Just as an aside, I stayed in some hotels in Texas [thanks Paul] and they were many floors up, like 12 and 15 I think. That's the highest bed I have ever slept in. Anyway...
So that's one thing we call a lift, and they call it an elevator here. They have high hopes for technology, it will elevate you... Usually a word I associate with like Dermot O'Mahony's church, rising to new heights in life, not physically but emotionally, mentally or spiritually.
We use lift in another way in Ireland. It means a journey in a car. So if you wanted to go somewhere in Ireland and did not have your own mode of transportation you might ask someone else going in that direction if you can have a lift with them.
Well, in America they say ride.
I'm sure you know how we use ride in Ireland, but just in case you don't remember... There is the generic ride, like riding a horse, but then there is the other meaning, ride like as in sexual intercourse.
So, the very first time one of my roommates turned to another one and asked for a ride I nearly died. I didn't know what to make of it, who in their right mind just out-rightly asks for a ride like that. I imagine it goes on in shady nightclubs and things, but in Bible College? Really?
Not only that, but it was a guy asking a guy... in Bible College.
You remember the time when it turned out loads of trainee priests in the trainee priest school in Ireland were involved in much gay sex... I began to wonder about CCBC for a moment.
Then the response was a very calm and nonchalant 'sure'. I was a little more confused. Whatever about a proposition like that, someone very calmly, in front of about six other people, taking up the offer of homosexual sex was a little unbeliever... the depths of depravity you know?
It was then that I remembered an American friend telling me they made the mistake of asking someone in Ireland for a ride and the weird reaction she got.
So I asked about it! Did they mean they wanted to be brought somewhere in the other roommate's car?
You can imagine the laughter when I told them what I understood by how we use that word in Ireland... It's one of the ones I don't think I'll ever get used to, I still laugh whenever one of the roommates asks someone else for a ride somewhere!
American Words 3, Wavey 0.
But...
American Words 0, Irish ways of saying things 1.
Just as an aside, I stayed in some hotels in Texas [thanks Paul] and they were many floors up, like 12 and 15 I think. That's the highest bed I have ever slept in. Anyway...
So that's one thing we call a lift, and they call it an elevator here. They have high hopes for technology, it will elevate you... Usually a word I associate with like Dermot O'Mahony's church, rising to new heights in life, not physically but emotionally, mentally or spiritually.
We use lift in another way in Ireland. It means a journey in a car. So if you wanted to go somewhere in Ireland and did not have your own mode of transportation you might ask someone else going in that direction if you can have a lift with them.
Well, in America they say ride.
I'm sure you know how we use ride in Ireland, but just in case you don't remember... There is the generic ride, like riding a horse, but then there is the other meaning, ride like as in sexual intercourse.
So, the very first time one of my roommates turned to another one and asked for a ride I nearly died. I didn't know what to make of it, who in their right mind just out-rightly asks for a ride like that. I imagine it goes on in shady nightclubs and things, but in Bible College? Really?
Not only that, but it was a guy asking a guy... in Bible College.
You remember the time when it turned out loads of trainee priests in the trainee priest school in Ireland were involved in much gay sex... I began to wonder about CCBC for a moment.
Then the response was a very calm and nonchalant 'sure'. I was a little more confused. Whatever about a proposition like that, someone very calmly, in front of about six other people, taking up the offer of homosexual sex was a little unbeliever... the depths of depravity you know?
It was then that I remembered an American friend telling me they made the mistake of asking someone in Ireland for a ride and the weird reaction she got.
So I asked about it! Did they mean they wanted to be brought somewhere in the other roommate's car?
You can imagine the laughter when I told them what I understood by how we use that word in Ireland... It's one of the ones I don't think I'll ever get used to, I still laugh whenever one of the roommates asks someone else for a ride somewhere!
American Words 3, Wavey 0.
But...
American Words 0, Irish ways of saying things 1.
What's in a Word 2: Cutlery
So, as part of the course here we have to do what is called M1 (confusingly also the name of the Visa I'm here on!).
M1 is basically seven hours a week of work somewhere around the Bible College and/or Conference Centre. There are various positions, from office work, AV, librarians, food prep, bakers, house keeping etc. I am a dishwasher. My shift is from 5am-8am and then 12:30pm-4pm on a Friday.
Basically I'm blaming this one on being tired from this 5 am thing.
It's like week three of dishwashing and I'm downstairs (in the Bible College part of the kitchen). One of the employed dishwashers comes into the back room, where things can be pretty slow and I usually do put backs back there, and asks me to check the silver wear.
I left the dish-room walking in an aimless direction, not sure what exactly I was supposed to go and check. Here's the inner monologue again.
"What did he say to check? Silver wear, what exactly is silver wear and where would I find it? What could silver wear mean? It's hardly silver polish, there's no silver down here... What about something you physically wear? Yeah... that could be it..."
Okay, so pause inner monologue a second. In the kitchen in CCBC/CCCC we have various coloured aprons, each apron colour is indicative of a different department in the kitchens. For example, green is the colour of dishwashers. There is also brown, black and white stripped, black, red and blue aprons. Back to inner monologue.
"There are various coloured aprons upstairs, maybe that's what he's talking about. Maybe some team is coming on shift soon and they wear the silver aprons, and so the dish team have to get the silver aprons ready for them to wear. That makes sense. I'll go and check the silver wear."
So, I went upstairs, walked through the kitchen to the entrance to the kitchen where the aprons are kept and checked for silver ones. There were none. I went back downstairs and informed whichever particular shift lead it was that day that there was no silver wear. He was a little shocked and handed me some forks and knives to put out.
That's the moment I realised my mistake. He meant cutlery when he said silver wear. I didn't think he meant cutlery because it's stainless steal, not silver... completely different element America!
American Words 2, Wavey 0.
But American Names 0, Actual English names 1.
M1 is basically seven hours a week of work somewhere around the Bible College and/or Conference Centre. There are various positions, from office work, AV, librarians, food prep, bakers, house keeping etc. I am a dishwasher. My shift is from 5am-8am and then 12:30pm-4pm on a Friday.
Basically I'm blaming this one on being tired from this 5 am thing.
It's like week three of dishwashing and I'm downstairs (in the Bible College part of the kitchen). One of the employed dishwashers comes into the back room, where things can be pretty slow and I usually do put backs back there, and asks me to check the silver wear.
I left the dish-room walking in an aimless direction, not sure what exactly I was supposed to go and check. Here's the inner monologue again.
"What did he say to check? Silver wear, what exactly is silver wear and where would I find it? What could silver wear mean? It's hardly silver polish, there's no silver down here... What about something you physically wear? Yeah... that could be it..."
Okay, so pause inner monologue a second. In the kitchen in CCBC/CCCC we have various coloured aprons, each apron colour is indicative of a different department in the kitchens. For example, green is the colour of dishwashers. There is also brown, black and white stripped, black, red and blue aprons. Back to inner monologue.
"There are various coloured aprons upstairs, maybe that's what he's talking about. Maybe some team is coming on shift soon and they wear the silver aprons, and so the dish team have to get the silver aprons ready for them to wear. That makes sense. I'll go and check the silver wear."
So, I went upstairs, walked through the kitchen to the entrance to the kitchen where the aprons are kept and checked for silver ones. There were none. I went back downstairs and informed whichever particular shift lead it was that day that there was no silver wear. He was a little shocked and handed me some forks and knives to put out.
That's the moment I realised my mistake. He meant cutlery when he said silver wear. I didn't think he meant cutlery because it's stainless steal, not silver... completely different element America!
American Words 2, Wavey 0.
But American Names 0, Actual English names 1.
What's in a Word 1: Paper Towels.
So this series on the blog will look at the difference between what we call things in Ireland and what they call them here. Shout out to Micah, as it is usually him that explains these things to me.
It's almost the last week of my first term (American's say semester) here. But casting things way back to the very first week or so, we come to dorm cleaning.
So we do dorm cleaning every Tuesday. I clean the toilets and Micah cleans two of the sinks and counter and mirror over them. Well, this particular dorm cleaning I had the kitchen roll in the bathroom and Micah asked me if I could pass him the paper towels.
I don't know if anyone in Ireland calls kitchen roll paper towels, but I've never heard it called paper towels before. I looked at the towel hanging on the hooks outside the bathroom door and wondered if any of them could be classed as paper.
Here's my thought process:
"Why would one need a paper towel, surely it would just fall apart?
Who would even make a towel out of paper? What would the purpose be?
Maybe Micah means like a thin towel, like thin like paper. Now which of these towels looks paper thin? None of them... Okay Micah is looking at me funny, he has a confused face. I probably also have a confused face. I have no idea what he's looking for, I need to just hand him something or tell him I don't know what he's looking for."
I have no idea how we came to the understanding that when he said paper towels he meant the thing I understood to be called kitchen roll, but we got there eventually.
However, that wasn't the only time. A couple of weeks later I needed the kitchen roll and Micah had it. So I asked him for the kitchen roll, but realised it wasn't called that and stopped midway, trying to figure out what it was called but not remembering, again!
American words 1, Wavey 0
It's almost the last week of my first term (American's say semester) here. But casting things way back to the very first week or so, we come to dorm cleaning.
So we do dorm cleaning every Tuesday. I clean the toilets and Micah cleans two of the sinks and counter and mirror over them. Well, this particular dorm cleaning I had the kitchen roll in the bathroom and Micah asked me if I could pass him the paper towels.
I don't know if anyone in Ireland calls kitchen roll paper towels, but I've never heard it called paper towels before. I looked at the towel hanging on the hooks outside the bathroom door and wondered if any of them could be classed as paper.
Here's my thought process:
"Why would one need a paper towel, surely it would just fall apart?
Who would even make a towel out of paper? What would the purpose be?
Maybe Micah means like a thin towel, like thin like paper. Now which of these towels looks paper thin? None of them... Okay Micah is looking at me funny, he has a confused face. I probably also have a confused face. I have no idea what he's looking for, I need to just hand him something or tell him I don't know what he's looking for."
I have no idea how we came to the understanding that when he said paper towels he meant the thing I understood to be called kitchen roll, but we got there eventually.
However, that wasn't the only time. A couple of weeks later I needed the kitchen roll and Micah had it. So I asked him for the kitchen roll, but realised it wasn't called that and stopped midway, trying to figure out what it was called but not remembering, again!
American words 1, Wavey 0
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