What’s That Buzzing In Your Ear?

I was reading this article on MSN.com about “Buzzword abusers” (you know, the people who sprinkle every conversation with “at the end of the day” or “think outside the box” or “on the same page” and the like) and it got me thinking about things that bug me.

(Unfortunately, as patience is something I always have to work on, it didn’t take me long to come up with a list in my mind of such things.)

But one stood out…

When I was in college, there was a girl on my dorm floor who was kind of a crunchy feminist post-1960’s flower child.

One day she came into my room all excited, and extra “grungily” (yes, I just made that word up) dressed.

“I’m going to see Ani tonight!” she exclaimed.

I had no idea who Ani was, and just figured she was talking about a friend at another school. “Cool,” I answered.

“You wanna come?” she asked.

At this point, I had to find out who Ani was, because if I said yes and Ani turned out to be some back alley drug dealer, there were some serious consequences and ramifications I’d have to consider.

So I inquired about just who Ani was, and found out she was talking about Ani DiFranco, the crunchy feminist musician.

And here’s my gripe… it’s one thing if you actually know someone, and therefore have the right to refer to them in such a familiar fashion.

But if said someone has no idea who you even are, do you really have the right to be on a first-name-only basis with her?

I say no!

I’ve found that fans of Dave Matthews Band have this similar affliction.

When Dave Matthews comes to town, I find that I can’t talk to anyone without being asked, “Are you gonna see Dave?”

Even my grandmother gets into the action sometimes.

If I happen to mention that it’s going to be… oh, I don’t know, a sunny day… she’ll say, “Well, Gary says the rain will hold off until the weekend.”

Gary being a weather guy at one of our television stations, of course.

And no, Gary doesn’t know my grandmother from Adam.

Wait – does Adam have a last name?

Wow, I can’t even write a post without contradicting Jane’s point!

Oh well, I guess at the end of the day, we all just have to think outside the box and try to be on the same page as everyone else.

Hey, don’t forget to enter our The Body Shop / Vera Bradley contest giveaway!

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