OMG, THEY'RE TAKING SOME OF OUR WORDS AWAY! Lake Superior State University released its 37th annual list of words that should be banned. Every year, the northern Michigan school asks people to nominate the words that got so overused and tired this year that we should ditch them into the dustbin of history. Now don't panic, these people don't actually have the power to ban words. These are just suggestions.
Which is just as well since I have a bone to pick with some of these haters. I kind of like some of the words on the list! Okay, half of them deserve to be on there: Amazing, shared sacrifice (especially when it's spoken by a politician!), ginormous, pet parent, and win the future. Those I could live without. But the rest of the words have brought us all together. We've kind of bonded over them. Is that really such a bad thing? Here are the words I would keep.
Baby bump -- Some people think this reduces pregnancy to a celebrity accessory. But what else do you call a pregnant belly? I know there are two people attached to that bump, but many of us use this phrase on a personal level with friends and family. That makes it less a celebrity thing and more a term of endearment.
Occupy -- No, we're having too much fun with this word. Occupy Okefenokee! Occupy the playground! Occupy this sink full of dirty dishes! See? We're not done yet.
Blowback -- Are you kidding? This is the word that takes namby-pamby "push-back" and revs it up with aggression! As long as there are corporations trying to charge customers extra fees for online banking and bill paying (ahem!), there will always be a need for this word.
The new normal -- Come on, there will always be a new normal.
Man cave -- What, Kris Humphries uses it and suddenly it's off-limits? If you're a single man with a home and you don't want your dwelling to be called a "man cave," all you have to do is not make it look like a man cave.
Trickeration -- I'd never even heard of this word before today (do I live in a cave?), but it reminds me of one of George W. Bush's mangled bon mots. Sure do miss those. I cannot wait for the next opportunity to use that word, "trickeration." How about, "I'm feeling an AMAZING amount of blowback over this Occupy Baby Bump trickeration, but maybe it's just the new normal for men banished to their man caves." I don't know what I just said.
What did you think of the list? Are you sick of some of these words, or do you want to hold onto some of them a little longer?
Image via Adriana Velez