The Golden Red Fire Pig

The Golden Red Fire Pig
...um, it's time.

Thursday, April 10, 2008

IGNORE(ance)

O.K... just a quick complaint / observation:
Can someone tell me why full grown adults in a professional workplace, or anywhere for that matter, would use a sentence like:
"Where is you been?"
I just heard it in the hallway, just one of many illiteracies I catch here at work...

Seriously, is that some sort of intentional attempt to "keep it real" or are there people who make it to their 40's+, can acquire a fairly high paying job and yet still aren't able to string a simple sentence together? I know they watch T.V, movies and have conversations with other english speaking people so wouldn't some proper grammer rub off on them?

Also, i know this is covered thoroughly by Chris Rock but, what's up with the phrase,
"know what i'm sayin?" after everything you say? Man that's annoying.

What happened to the days when there was a certain amount of pride surrounding your vernacular? I suppose, like all things, the pendulum must swing and for now idiocy is en vogue. It's all over our current pop culture: the music, tv programming, blah, blah... Dumb is in!! Spread the word! ...no what i mean?
(i sound old)

I was watching John Adams on HBO, a little mini-series "biopic", which is odd for me because american history always put me to sleep in school. (But then, i guess everything put me to sleep in highschool!) It's so well acted though, Paul Giamatti's excellent. Anywho, i was watching and listening to their language flow (granted it was written today, by professionals, but...) it was so interesting to hear, it's almost musical, melodic. The sentence structure is sometimes flipped putting the subject @ the end, subject delay, keeping the listener hooked until the end.

ex: Quickly, into the crisp, dark, silent body of water, the girl flung herself uninhibitedly.
vs: Dat crazy bitch jump straight in, know what i'm sayin?

Just exaggerating to get a point across there...
It seems like everything else in our crack culture, people are in such a hurry they lay out the sentence right away, no time for presentation. It's a shame because conversation, at the end of the day, is one of our biggest gifts, know what i'm sayin?

6 comments:

m said...

whatchu rantin on 'bout, homey? why u buggin?

i love lamp.

One Little Seedling said...

Hee hee... I was about to post ask "M".

ATChipmunk said...

Aaah...I know this dilemma all too well. Been there myself a thousand times. I have sooo have wanted to buy a Ducati for years (used to want a 996, would be a Monster S4R these days)...but the responsible side has always said "no". Although, I think now...in my later years that I would be a much safer rider. No more knee dragging and foolish young'n shenanigans. Would just love to get out on the road and go for a ride. There's nothing like a beautiful day and going for a ride. I'd kill for that feeling again...

Nice to see you added to the "blogosphere"...yet another one to add to my blogroll...=)

ATChipmunk said...

oops...commented on the wrong post somehow. LAst one obviously was supposed to go the the previous post. Doh!

Anyways, I know where you're coming from. Have thought the same myself over the years. Me, I like to turn the slang on/off as appropriate to the situation....know what i'm sayin, Son? Werd...=)

wunderkraut said...

George W Bush Center for Intelligence?

Harry Bundles said...

i know what you're sayin. i know