Monday, February 23, 2015

Hey, would you remind repeating the last 5 minutes of your conversation for me?

Don't be this guy.

You're at an event and you walk up to a small group chatting, and clearly catch the END of a story.

"He'll never go back to THAT store again, lemme tell ya!!!"


Do NOT say "Hey! Who won't go back to that store? Wait, what store? Why won't he go back? Tell me!"


Let the moment go. Hell, you've actually lucked out, the story's probably over, you can even if you really want to try to join in moving forward.

Everyone who needs to understand the details of the anecdote clearly got it. "Hello. Can you summarize the key points of everything you just said to all these people for me?" is at best awkward and in practice kinda rude.

Add in that even casual storytelling has thematic elements --- a sense of timing, buildup, humor, etc... asking to have it Cliff Noted for you will never read you into the experience.

You missed the train. Get the next train.

Saturday, February 14, 2015

"I like sugar syrup isn't as catchy"

If you're drinking a vanilla half-caffeine mocha caramel frappuccino with extra foam and whipped cream, don't say you "need your coffee lolz!!!!"

You clearly don't like anything resembling coffee.

Wednesday, February 4, 2015

Think they'll have that on the mug in the gift shop?

You really should choose for your child a name that's something original, and yet something with which you have a positive association.

That's why we're eagerly anticipating the coming arrival of MostofTheScenesInReturnOfTheJediThatDon'tHaveEwoks Washington Gerber.

Tuesday, February 3, 2015

A Clockwork Red?

Posted by Anna Kournikova to Facebook today

Malcolm McDowell in A Clockwork Orange.


I'm not sure how to say Clockwork Orange in Russian. But then the book is barely in English to begin with.