scrubbedexpat097

I was trying to spell it like they sing it, but yeah it looks weird


Drugs are evil. No worty stuff for me thanks. I like to sound crazy, I'm proud of it

SultanOfSwing

It's not your fault, since the word 'tomato' is spelt the same no matter if you pronounce it the American way, or the correct way

robin1234

We furriners have to eat the stuff by the bushel just to stay on an even keel.

Egg and Cress

Aw, hell, why not!? Go ahead, "fill 'yer boots" (as my OH says)!

lyonsden1193

To those who feel they need to "justify" their speech patterns and/or quotes, get over it! If we all spoke the same, sounded and acted the same, this would be a very, very boring planet. Just my opinion......have a nice day!
Or should that be, have a good day? (for the Californians - missing you already!)

Sally Redux

Hilarious.

Have a nice day all of you.

Christian

I can remember working my first job in Québec, before I went back to England for what I thought was going to be for good. If the client were English we were meant to say ‘Have a nice day’ or anywhere after 4.00 PM ‘Have a nice evening’ and if the client were French then « Bonne journée » and « Bonne soirée » respectively. It washed over me, I did as I was told ... I didn't think of where it came from, just that we were meant to speak that way whether on the telephone or in person.

I think today I'd say the English without second thoughts regardless of whether speaking here or back home. (Though, where I came from in the UK, the older working class often still said ‘Good day!’ more on meeting but sometimes when parting as well, and perhaps, subconsciously, I saw this in the same light). Yes, I did learn to say the N. American in a commercial setting, and I hadn't considered that before, but I confess, I've said it myself for years now without even realising.

The same goes for ‘You're welcome’ after ‘Thank you’. That was not standard when and where I grew up. We said ‘(My) Pleasure’ or more formally ‘Not at all’, however, ‘You're welcome’ is so expected here as too seem rude if it's not an automatic reply to a ‘Thank you’.

One word that can occasionally turn my stomach —even now— is the ubiquitous use of the word ‘sick’ in virtually all instances of being ‘ill’, without any sense of the noun with the connotation of vomit or as a verb to vomit.

And I used to dislike the use of the word ‘quite’ in some cases on this side of the Atlantic. However, I've found its sarcastic or ironic use doesn't exist in N. America, so that it simply means ‘very’ and the speaker is sincere. In early days here, in the wrong context, it could appear very rude, but I now know that this is never the intention.

paranoidandroid

I can't imagine anyone wanting to say that.

SultanOfSwing

paranoidandroid

"Have at it". Does that really make any sense? I hate that. Oh and, "Git r done".. another bloody ridiculous phrase that I hear down here on a regular basis.
Sorry if I've duplicated someone else's dislikes, but I haven't read the whole thread.

paranoidandroid

Agreed we shouldn't have to justify why we dislike particular things, we're just letting off steam on a website designed for Brits.
Personally I think that the people that don't like the "steam letting" or the thought of a thread titled as it is, should just not read the thread it if it bothers them.. and that isn't directed at anyone in particular, just an observation.

paranoidandroid

Neither would you be stupid enough to go onto a yanks in Britain forum to try and defend why they shouldn't dislike something of ours, if they had a similar thread.

robin1234

Have at it (and similar) is an ancient phrase I believe. I can think of several instances in Shakespeare, for instance, where he uses "Have at you."
Example; in Troilus & Cressida, Troilus says "Come, both you cogging Greeks; have at you both." No doubt if there'd been a USA in the bard's time, he'd have said "you cogging Yanks."

I actually frequently wear a T-shirt that says "Git R Done" on the front.. a remnant from my daughter's grad school palaeontology club I think.

Sally Redux

As I said, it simply wouldn't interest me, they can think what they like and it will be part of their process of settling in. However, it seems that some on here see anyone not "lovin' it" as mentally ill.

robin1234

Actually they DO have similar threads on UK-Yankees, & I have to admit that I do contribute to them.. but with a descriptive, rather than prescriptive intent.