Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Learning the Lingo

In yesterday's post, I started to refer to something as a "chillbuster," but then figured most of you probably wouldn't really know what I meant by that. "Chillbuster" is a word I added to my vocabulary when I met Mr. Daddy. See, he's the youngest of six kids and they developed a lingo which I've since adopted.

To give you a little background, when I met Mr. Daddy it was some months before I met some of his siblings and it wasn't until the wedding that I met all of them. I knew their names, of course, but it took me ages to learn their order by age because for some reason their actual birth order just didn't seem right.

THEN I had to learn their nicknames. They all had one, and it usually referenced some physical trait, usually disparagingly. First there was Schnoz (big nose), Chuck (short for chuckhole because he had a depression in the middle of his chest between his pectoral muscles), Flip or Gump Girl (Flip because she had big feet as a teenager and Gump Girl because she got kind of tall and lanky and awkward as a teen), Ratboy (because he has kind of a thin face and because of a certain facial expression he used to make) and Biggz (Mr. Daddy, because he has a large head).

I have to say that I find the "language" that they created quite useful and have fully adapted it into my own speech and now even into our kids'. Here's a rundown:

Chillbuster: If something is beyond cheesy and complete cringe-inducing (i.e., someone dancing very embarrassingly, the thing I get called out on most often!)

Jakey: something very tacky or trashy looking (for example, when Mr. Daddy wanted to put up a temporary dog pen at our house, I was very concerned that it would look "jakey."

A Grit: a redneck or, since Mr. Daddy and his family hailed from West Virginia, a hillbilly.

Squid Squeezin's: what they renamed a jar of candy at his Mamaw's house and which is now our standard answer when the kids ask what's for dinner.

UPDATED TO ADD: Fruit Loop Frenzy: Once when they were living in Detroit, one of his siblings walked down to the store in the snow to buy some Fruit Loops. When he got back he left them in the kitchen and went to do something and while he was gone, other sibilings ate ALL the Fruit Loops. When he got back he went into a rage, which his siblings called the Fruit Loop Frenzy. It is now used to describe any type of tantrum or fit.

I'm sure there are more, but those are all I can think of. Did you inherit any sayings from your spouse? Did they inherit any from your family? Share!

14 comments:

calicobebop said...

Those are awesome!

We don't have much in the way of lingo - but we do quote things alot. Especially if they sound funny. Here's a few, and I've tried to spell phonetically...

1) Fam-blee (family) - this is from "A Christas Carol" with George C. Scott where Scrooge observes a poor family. "We are a Fam-blee!"

2) Moe Debly (most definitely) - this is from a blooper reel of "The Newlywed Show" where a contestant was asked the most interesting place he and his wife made "whoopee." He answered "Moe Debly in the butt, Bob." We thought it was hilarious.

3) Most recently, Poelar Beahars. This comes from a show on animal planet called "Creature Comforts" and refers to the children/slugs that are agast that a certain zoo does not have Polar Bears! "What kind of a zoo doesn't have Poelar Beahars?"

Wow, that's the longest comment I've ever made!

Angie McCullagh said...

I find family lingo so fascinating. Like this post!

Burgh Baby said...

There is far too much family lingo going on with my husband's family. I never know what the hell is going on, and I've known them all for 14 years!

Wineplz said...

My in-laws aren't really interesting enough to have their own lingo. That would mean they need to interact with each other, and they just don't seem to do that much. My family, however, is freakin' NUTS! We quote all sorts of stupid movie lines all the friggin' time. And Justin's picked up on a few of them, but since we don't live near anyone, there's not much to speak of.
Llama Face--from Emperor's New Groove, when he sees his face in the water...I get called this when I'm being pouty or whiney
Ludicrous Speed--from Spaceballs--we use it to explain how ridiculously fast someone was going (hey, I didn't say we were original).
Window-Licker--someone is not quite all there or is acting stupid. don't ask the origin...it's not pretty and not for public consumption.

Laurel said...

That is hilarious. That post is one good reason for us to try to add to our brood. Siblings are the best!

Lisa @ Boondock Ramblings said...

My hubby says "Shikee's" instead of...well, you know and I've picked that up.

My mom's family is from the South and instead of saying "wash your hair" they say "wash your head." I've picked that up.

Hubby's mother also used to say "dipper" for diaper and I've kind of got that stuck in my head even though saying it make me thinks of her and then I want to vomit.

Anonymous said...

My fathers family started it and I have continued the tradition of making up words. I've always wanted to do a post about it, but it would be rediculously hard because who knows how to attempt spelling those made up words.

Tootsie Farklepants said...

Once, when we were kids, my mother was very angry with my brother and I over something that I can't remember now. She was yelling at us (which never happened, srsly) and you could tell she was trying to curtail cursing. She finally blurted out "You're just a couple of SHUT UP KIDS" which made no sense and sent my brother and I into a fit of laughter. To this day we use that phrase when we see children acting up.

Anonymous said...

Hubby and I have a few of our own. A moof is someone who is a moronic goof. And, he's the OLDEST of six, so I totally understand the family dynamic.

Lauren said...

hooray for crazy big families!! im number 5 of six (btw: did mr. daddy ever get called by a number instead of a name? i still think of myself as "number 5" instead of lauren sometimes.) here are a few of our word gems:

"fig rowds": those little debbie fudge rounds. bc when my sister was little she tried to write it on the grocery list and thats how it came out.

"romantic": used to describe a delicious meal. also courtesy of my lil sis...she was trying to describe this meal my grandmother had provided but everyone else had already said delicious, wonderful etc._so she busts out with "its just romantic!"

im sure there are more...but this is all i can come up with for now. good blog topic :) im glad we"re not mentioning the unmentionable atrocity of a baseball game last night. stinkin' cinderella.

Unknown said...

This is great! I especially love Fruit Loop Frenzy. I can just see that!

Mine is tent language. Two of my aunts each have 6 kids and one of the families had gone camping. This was in the early 60s and they had an old-fashioned tent that wouldn't stay up. My uncle, usually a very level-headed guy, came out with some words my cousins hadn't heard before. From that day forward, when anyone in my extended family started to get made or frustrated, someone would say, "watch out, we're about to hear some tent language."

Manager Mom said...

Squid Squeezins! I am going to use that tomorrow when The Boy asks me what's for dinner.

I have no good sayings. My Mother In Law calls butts "dupas" for some reason, and the kids think that's hilarious.

Anonymous said...

In my family, if you ask what you're getting for Christmas/ your birthday/ Flag Day, it's always 'dog spitballs.'
It originates from my sister's baby days, when she enlisted my dad to help her write down her Christmas wish list. She dictated a long list of toys, but he only wrote down one item- dog spitballs.
My mom couldn't stop laughing when my sister gave it to her to send to Santa

KG said...

I like 'a grit' though I am from the South, not a redneck, and yet in love with grits. But I like the lingo anyway.