The "Annoying Phrase" Thread

[Tiki Tom]

“This isn’t my first rodeo.”

Heard that one out of the mouth of a European colleague the other day. Complete with funny accent. All I could do to keep from laughing and telling him not to squat on his spurs, cowboy.

I remember it (bourgeois) being huge in the 1980's. It's a word I still hear from a diverse range of folk down here, few of them would know Marx from Ayn Rand.

IMHO, if a person uses the word bourgeois, they are most likely bourgeois themselves. Only these days the kids call it "boujie". My daughter seems to have taken ownership of the word because she notes, with a laugh, that her friends at university in the States think she is boujie because she likes her french fries with mayo. I also suspect the term has lost a bit of its marxist flavour these days. Now it's just another way to be sneeringly cynical about everything.

https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=boujie

 

[LizzieMaine]

"Boujie" comes from African-American Vernacular English, where it referred to a certain sort of pretentious upper-middle-class attitude by persons who are not themselves upper-middle-class. "Bourgie" is a variation of that theme that developed in parallel in left-wing culture to refer to persons who claim solidarity with the working class but in fact act in opposition to its interests. They're pronounced the same, but they don't have precisely the same meaning.

When I use "bourgeois" myself, I generally mean it in precisely the Marxist sense. "Bourgie," on the other hand, is as good a word as any to refer to the kind of person who has a tantrum because the barista didn't get the foam on their fair-trade latte just so, or the kind of person who thinks it's cute to stiff a waitress because she rolled her eyes when they criticized the Applebee's Perfect Margarita as not being culturally authentic. In this sense it's more an adjective than a noun, and is most often used as a modifier for the word "a**hole."

 

[LizzieMaine]

“This isn’t my first rodeo.”

The voice of authority! A man of a certain age who has learned a thing or two so listen to the old gasbag!

And “rodeo”? Is that to evoke a certain Western ruggedness? Like the Marlboro man? Or John Wayne? A manly man? One not to be trifled with?

Generally used by the same type of suburban poltroon who buys the biggest, most aggressive-looking SUV on the lot so he can look macho when he drives to the Shop-n-Drop.

 

[belfastboy]

I remember it being huge in the 1980's. It's a word I still hear from a diverse range of folk down here, few of them would know Marx from Ayn Rand.

It would seem Marx like bell bottoms and the hula hoop is seeing a resurgence in popularity.

 

[tonyb]

My objection to “This isn’t my first rodeo,” aside from what I’m already offered on the matter (the puffed-up macho affectation and the appeal to a trumped-up authority) is that it is lazy and unimaginative.

I suppose equally unimaginative are phrases such as “We’ve been down this road before” or “I’ve taken a few strolls around this block,” which have a similar if not quite exact meaning. But those utterances, cliche as they might be, don’t annoy nearly as much.

 

[Zombie_61]

...IMHO, if a person uses the word bourgeois, they are most likely bourgeois themselves. Only these days the kids call it "boujie"...

If anyone ever asks for the definition of "boujie", tell 'em in a matter-of-fact manner that it means "nouveau bourgeois" and watch their heads explode.

 

[LizzieMaine]

I used to enjoy trolling a former boss by telling him he was wearing a "very petit-bourgeois tie" today.

 

[Seb Lucas]

I used to enjoy trolling a former boss by telling him he was wearing a "very petit-bourgeois tie" today.

Nice. I don't think I've ever used the word except perhaps in writings. I am more likely to use the term middle class wanker - an Australian epithet.

 

[Seb Lucas]

My objection to “This isn’t my first rodeo,” aside from what I’m already offered on the matter (the puffed-up macho affectation and the appeal to a trumped-up authority) is that it is lazy and unimaginative.

I suppose equally unimaginative are phrases such as “We’ve been down this road before” or “I’ve taken a few strolls around this block,” which have a similar if not quite exact meaning. But those utterances, cliche as they might be, don’t annoy nearly as much.

Agree. The writer, Martin Amis, describes all good writing as a war against cliche. I think all good expression involves the same war. Generally, the phrases I hate in conversation are cliches which are lazy and indicate a lack of original thought. "It's all good" is my especial favorite to hate.

 

[tonyb]

"You got this."

Those three words are about the last thing I wish to hear from a layperson should I be diagnosed with a condition that could turn deadly. If that layperson feels a need to offer what s/he thinks would be comforting words, just stick with "thoughts and prayers," please. That's every bit as meaningless, but at least it isn't quite so ill-informed.

 

[LizzieMaine]

"Are we good?" or "we good?" is another one that grates -- it usually comes following a completely insincere apology from someone who's just waiting for another chance to sink the knife into your back.

 

[Bugguy]

Generally used by the same type of suburban poltroon who buys the biggest, most aggressive-looking SUV on the lot so he can look macho when he drives to the Shop-n-Drop.

SUV-guy also takes the railroad tracks at 1 MPH. How much did they pay for super off-road suspension?

 

[Bushman]

SUV-guy also takes the railroad tracks at 1 MPH. How much did they pay for super off-road suspension?

Those guys are the biggest pain, especially when you've seen their SUV around before, know they're local, and can assume they know the difference between the "bad" tracks and the smooth tracks.

I suspect these guys like the look of suped up suspension, but have never once taken their precious trucks off asphalt.

 

[ChiTownScion]

"Are we good?" or "we good?" is another one that grates -- it usually comes following a completely insincere apology from someone who's just waiting for another chance to sink the knife into your back.

"True dat" (or "true that") ranks up there as well.

 

[GHT]

Who coined "The Get-Go?" And how dare they export that cursed expression to our shores. A pox on them.

 

[Zombie_61]

SUV-guy also takes the railroad tracks at 1 MPH. How much did they pay for super off-road suspension?

A similar problem in this part of the world is the sheer number of nitwits who think it's cool to buy an SUV or pickup truck and have it "slammed" (i.e., modify the suspension so there's barely any clearance between the bottom of the truck and the surface of the road). Some of these geniuses were at least smart enough to have an "air ride" system installed so they could raise and lower the truck as necessary with the flip of a switch. The others are forced to maneuver their shabbily modified vehicles on the poorly maintained roads here as best they can, which usually means unreasonable delays if you're stuck behind them while they figure out how to get their 3/4" of clearance over the 4" buildup of asphalt they're going to hit just before the railroad tracks.

 

[LizzieMaine]

Any of these dialect phrases with AAVE origins sound ridiculous and, yes, offensive coming from the lips of middle-aged white guys. I used to work for a guy -- the same individual with the taste for petit-bourgeois ties (worn with aqua sport coats, beige linen pants, and boat shoes with no socks) -- who would breeze into the office every day about 11 in a cloud of "Polo" cologne and greet the assembled wage-laborers with "YO! WHUUUUUUUUUUT IT IZZZZZZZZ?"

No. No it izzzzzzzzzn't.

 

[tonyb]

Who coined "The Get-Go?" And how dare they export that cursed expression to our shores. A pox on them.

To answer your question, I believe it’s of Black American origin, although it is quite commonly used among Americans in general in informal contexts.

I suspect it’s a variation on “from the word go,” which was frequently used by my Southern stepfather and his people. I use both phrases myself, frequently. In more recent years I’ve heard it abbreviated to “from the get,” pronounced “git.”