Random Thoughts Sechs: Eeeeehhhh...

[MaryKB]

Commercials in Canada can be so strange!

I remember some from when I was younger ...

One was for helping you overcome illiteracy. At the end, they say "Look us up in the Yellow Pages under 'read'."

Another was for some kind of discount phone service. They'd say "Has your phone been disconnected? We can help .. call us now and we'll reconnect you!"

 

[aimeeandbeatles]

It was an American station. I don't think medication commercials are really allowed in Canada.

 

[Broken_Erika]

I remember an ad i saw on a bus when i was a teenager, it went "Is your Telephone Disconnected? Call us!"

 

[rah]

Someone called our telephone help desk line to report her computer was out and the help desk person told her to open up a help desk ticket (which requires being on-line)

 

[Kyriakos]

Someone called our telephone help desk line to report her computer was out and the help desk person told her to open up a help desk ticket (which requires being on-line)

"I lost the password to my email"
"Ok, I just emailed it to you"

 

[Ferocitus]

There's a nice saying which goes:
Don't be sad that it's over.
Be happy that it happened.

There's also (the somewhat trite)...
If you can't be with the one you love,
Love the one you're with.

 

[MaryKB]

I wish I could just die tonight.

 

[Takhisis]

I'd rather you didn't.

 

[Snerk]

Bad nights, bad days. Here's hoping tomorrow will be brighter for the lot of us.

 

[Kyriakos]

Bad nights, bad days. Here's hoping tomorrow will be brighter for the lot of us.

Some are born to sweet delight.
Some are born to endless night.

(yes, I wrote that ^_^ )

 

[Cutlass]

Was fairly hot out today and at one point a guy I talked to briefly offered me "a water". And I dunno why I thought of it, but a few minutes later I was wondering about the language of it. In today's common usage of the American version of the English language, there really was no confusion about what he was offering me: a bottle of water. But 30-40 years ago, or in formal usage of the language, that statement simply would not have worked. Still doesn't work in the formal, technically correct, usage of the language. What the hell is "a water"? One drop of water? One molecule?

I'll tag @Dachs since he's teaching the language these days.

 

[Dachs]

Was fairly hot out today and at one point a guy I talked to briefly offered me "a water". And I dunno why I thought of it, but a few minutes later I was wondering about the language of it. In today's common usage of the American version of the English language, there really was no confusion about what he was offering me: a bottle of water. But 30-40 years ago, or in formal usage of the language, that statement simply would not have worked. Still doesn't work in the formal, technically correct, usage of the language. What the hell is "a water"? One drop of water? One molecule?

I'll tag @Dachs since he's teaching the language these days.

It's a colloquialism that has different means based on the situation. "A water" refers to the most plausible container of water for the context. So in a restaurant, a waiter or buser might offer "a water", which would be universally understood to be a glass of water. Working outdoors, however, "a water" would, as you say, mean a bottle.

This isn't that different from other situations. Having "a whiskey" usually means a glass, but could mean a shot, depending. Having "a Coke" could mean a glass (sit-down restaurant) or wax paper cup (fast food, concessions) or bottle (other contexts). Dropping semi-necessary precision (the container to be used) for brevity is pretty common for colloquialisms in English!

I don't know that that tells you anything you didn't already know, but it does confirm what you've been thinking about it.

 

[Takhisis]

We could say that it's a partitive use in a language notorious for having historically crippled its case- and number-based nominal inflection, but I'd have to explain what partitive cases are.

As Dachs points out, it's the same as ‘a coffee/coke/soda/whisky/beer’.
Perhaps it's like that because (going by my relatively limited experience of contact with 'Muricans) you people are not that used to drinking water after over a century of indoctrination by the beverage industry? In other languages similar constructions exist and water is not as exceptional an offer.

 

[Traitorfish]

Perhaps it's like that because (going by my relatively limited experience of contact with 'Muricans) you people are not that used to drinkign water after over a century of indoctrination by the beverage industry? In other languages similar constructions exist and water is not as exceptional an offer.

I had Americans down as the water-drinkers par excellence. It's only in the last decade or so that the British have grudgingly conceded you can drink water without steeping some sort of leaf in it first.

 

[Lexicus]

You know it's funny, when I was a swimmer I used to bring gatorade to practice, and I would fill the empty bottle with water from the water fountain, then I realized water was more satisfying anyway. This process took like two years to play out

 

[Kyriakos]

Here we say the same, "a water" means what it does in context. Ok, if you are wearing monocle you would still define the container.

I had Americans down as the water-drinkers par excellence. It's only in the last decade or so that the British have grudgingly conceded you can drink water without steeping some sort of leaf in it first.

Drinking loads of water is very good practice.

 

[Takhisis]

I had Americans down as the water-drinkers par excellence. It's only in the last decade or so that the British have grudgingly conceded you can drink water without steeping some sort of leaf in it first.

They do the same, but with coca leaves.

 

[Cutlass]

Actually, Americans drink water like crazy. Where else can you spend $2 to buy a pint of something in a bottle with a designer label that you could get 100 gallons of out of a pipe for the same price?

 

[aimeeandbeatles]

My cat just caught and ate a mosquito that got into the house.

 

[rah]

I hope you praised her/him.