Thursday, November 14, 2019

Day 126: Language oddities, and NOLA!

I often stub my ear (as it were) on words or phrases which suddenly appear, out of nowhere from my perspective, and are everywhere right away.  I've been thinking about two of those recently.

One of them is the word "kiddo", usually co-occurring with "my", especially spoken by teachers, as in: "I told my kiddos today that they should get ready for their next test."  This one has been around, I think, for maybe five or six years.  It appeared out of nowhere, and then I was hearing it everywhere.  The girls' teachers, Kivrin's tutor, my students when they do their field placements.  Everywhere.  I really don't get it.  It sounds strange to me.  I wonder if it's a replacement for the oft-called-out "kids" ("they're not baby goats", which is honestly ridiculous, as if language didn't change), seen as better than calling them "children", or "students".  Has anyone else heard this one?

The other one kind of makes me roll my eyes.  When ordering a salad at a restaurant, I am often asked if I want to "add a protein".  For example, today, I ordered a salad (make your own) to which I added, among other things, chickpeas, eggs, and nuts.  The person then asked me if I wanted to add a protein.  Of course, there's already lots of protein there.  Here, protein seems to be a euphemism for "meat" (because it's almost always steak, chicken, and some kind of fish on tap).  Isn't that weird? 

Other than that, I'm in the truly insane time of the semester, and yet Rick and I are going to New Orleans this weekend for no other reason than that we really want to, and this was when tickets were affordable (and, to be fair, it was our 25th anniversary this summer, so).  Anyone have any recommendations for us while we're there?

6 comments:

Wanderingcatstudio said...

Kiddo is something I've heard (and used) for decades... maybe it's a Canadian thing that's made its way down to you...?

Allison said...

I'm surprised that kiddo is recent for you. I grew up being called a kiddo. I'm curious what the OED says about it.

twinsetellen said...

Agree with the others - kiddo isn't new to me. I use it as a term of endearment. A person can be a kid, or if I adore them, a kiddo. Usually the person is of the younger variety, but not always.

(you qualify as kiddo)

And for NOLA - of course the beignets at Cafe du Monde, the original site, if only for the novelty of walking on powdered sugar about 5 cm in depth.

Erica Gunn said...

I'll echo the other commentors: kiddo has been around forever in New England. I wonder why it never made its way to California? Language is such a funny thing...

Have a great time in New Orleans! I've only spent a day or two there, so I can't comment on the best things to do.

greenmtngirl said...

That kiddo thing makes me nuts, and I agree that it's been used much more recently, especially of groups of children or children in the general sense. (That's somewhat different to me than using it as an endearment of a specific child.) I'm not sure why it's used more, but what bothers me about it is that used in that general way it's so diminishing. I have to admit, though, that the other term I hear a lot from schools is "students" and that troubles me too, because of course children are students when they're at school but it's so one-dimensional a way to think about them. I say "children" or "kids" a lot and I feel like I'm out of step or I get odd looks, as if I'm saying something a bit wrong. It is so interesting.

Wanda said...

It's been too long since I've done much blog reading...

Kiddo - that terms brings back memories. I'll occasionally say it to a younger family member but it's more something my mom said in an endearing or lighthearted way. She was born in 1916 so I always assumed it was a throwback to earlier days.

Interesting that it's being used again.