Outdated Language - Let's be Cool

When was the last time you wrapped something in tin foil and put it in the icebox? Were you wearing sneakers and a blouse – or perhaps a housecoat? Had you been sitting in the front room or the parlor using the shears to cut out coupons that you keep in your pocketbook? Had you used the sweeper on the rug?

Okay, now be honest. How many of you still use the words in that first paragraph? If you do, your younger friends and grandkids will think you are as old as dirt. Over the hill. Don’t know your butt from third base. I could go on and on with these pejorative

phrases, but I’ll spare you. Consider this a conscious-raising column designed for baby boomers who don’t want to sound stale and out of the loop.

What got me thinking about all this was the mention to my friend’s granddaughter that I liked her blouse. She had no idea what I was talking about. That word has died it seems. Everyone wears shirts now.

This was very upsetting. We boomers were the original All-American trendsetters. It began with our poodle skirts, then our minis, maxis, midis, and somewhere in between culottes. What we said was in, was IN. I realize that our time has passed in that regard, but it doesn’t mean that we can’t still be cool in our own way. Yes, cool is still in use – has never gone out of style, and will probably always be useful in this context.

Since I have an Olympic-sized pool of twenty-somethings in my workplace, I asked them what they heard from their elders that was older than Turner Classic Movies. I got some good stuff to share with you. Don’t ask anyone if they’re “going steady.” They have no idea what that means. They’re “in a relationship” or “an exclusive relationship.” If they’re on the verge of a relationship, they’re “talking.” “Hooking up” is shorthand for a one-night stand – usually. This is kind of a grey area. Young women can’t really call their friend a “girlfriend” because that now has a same-sex relationship connotation. Whew! My head is spinning just figuring out the language, let alone the nuts and bolts.

They hate when their parents tell them they “sound like a broken record.” They have never seen a record. A broken record is someone setting a new marathon time, or home run scoring.

Expressions like “Oh my stars!” and “Holy Moley” just don’t cut it with them. Also, one complained that her dad tells her to “roll down the window” of their car, and still refers to the place where they get gas as “the filling station.” She goes there to fill up her Big Gulp.

Prepare to get blank stares if you tell a youngen’ to meet you at half past two. They see time as a digital read out and can’t comprehend the hands of a clock.

I hope some of this has been enlightening and helpful to you. I know that I’ve barely scratched the surface with my limited space here, so I’m opening the floor to you now. Ask the younger generation around you for some more examples, and e-mail them to me, and I will share them with my other cool readers.

Meanwhile, I still have an off-white half slip in my dresser drawer, and I’m not sure why.