Always and Never
I have issues when people say "always" or "never" and they don't truly mean "always" or "never". It's interesting, because I hadn't really ever given it much thought until yesterday, when Matt brought it up in a conversation, noting how I get hung up when people say "always" or "never".
What bothers me is quite simple. I think in serious conversation, people should mean what they say. And they should have a firm enough grasp of language to know how to do that. So when someone says "always" or "never" but really means "sometimes" or "most of the time"...it drives me nuts. Because how hard is it to just say "sometimes" or "most of the time"?!!
And it can be confusing to me! Matt mentioned that maybe I should view the comment or conversation from the other person's communication style or standpoint. Often, though, I feel that I really don't know if they are actually trying to say "always" or "never"or if they mean something else. So I guess I could ask for clarification.
Perhaps this is related to me noticing grammatical errors all the time (I actually turned down a college due to spelling and grammatical errors in the acceptance letter they sent). Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that I am detail oriented and usually rather straightforward. And as a result, unless I am telling a story for comedic effect or am being just plain goofy (because who can pass up exaggeration then?!), I usually mean exactly what I say.
What about you? Is there anything odd like that that bothers you?
What bothers me is quite simple. I think in serious conversation, people should mean what they say. And they should have a firm enough grasp of language to know how to do that. So when someone says "always" or "never" but really means "sometimes" or "most of the time"...it drives me nuts. Because how hard is it to just say "sometimes" or "most of the time"?!!
And it can be confusing to me! Matt mentioned that maybe I should view the comment or conversation from the other person's communication style or standpoint. Often, though, I feel that I really don't know if they are actually trying to say "always" or "never"or if they mean something else. So I guess I could ask for clarification.
Perhaps this is related to me noticing grammatical errors all the time (I actually turned down a college due to spelling and grammatical errors in the acceptance letter they sent). Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that I am detail oriented and usually rather straightforward. And as a result, unless I am telling a story for comedic effect or am being just plain goofy (because who can pass up exaggeration then?!), I usually mean exactly what I say.
What about you? Is there anything odd like that that bothers you?
Comments
And "toad in the hole" looks good!