Life usually doesn’t fit into nice neat little lists, but that doesn’t keep me from trying. Welcome to my Tuesday 10, where I try to fit the messiness of life into a list of ten. We have a lot of little things we say that don't really mean what a careful interpretation of the words would lead someone to believe. Whether they are catch phrases, idioms, web/text speak, shorthand, or whatever. Here are ten things we say and what they actually mean.
1. "Maybe." — "I don't really want to commit myself to anything."
2. "This goes without saying, but..." — "I really think this is important enough that you should know what I'm about to say before I even say it, but I am going to say it anyways. Probably because I like the sound of my own voice."
3. "Lol" — "I have nothing else to say, but I want the conversation to continue."
4. "Yeah ... yes .... uh-huh" — "I'm not paying attention to you."
5. "I just want to be me." — "I just want to be who I think everyone wants me to be." or "I want to be as strange as humanly possible and get a lot of attention."
6. "I'm starving." — "It's been at least an hour since I ate an extra large double cheeseburger."
7. "I love (nonhuman variable)!" — "I have an unhealthy affinity for (nonhuman variable)!"
8. "It's good to see you this morning." — "Oh, hey we are passing each other in the hall at church again this week."
9. "That is so EPIC!" — "I don't know what an epic is!"
10. "Outreach" — "We want people to come to an event at our church on a night not typically associated with going to church."