Oh my mom is full of 'em. She’s Thai, been in the states for nigh on 30 years, but some colloquialisms just escape her (or she intentionally butchers them, but she denies this).
One of her favorite phrases is “Jesus Christopher Columbus!” which never fails to crack me up. The other day, describing a short-cut to me, she said it came in very handy to avoid the “Round Robin Hood’s Nest” of an intersection nearby. Way to throw em all together, Ma.
Then there’s the mangled pronunciations. I was going to South Africa earlier this year, and when I told her about the trip, we had this conversation:
“Oooh, you know what I’ve always wanted from Africa? (Because to her, it’s all just one place)”
“What’s that, Ma?”
“Sa-vane’-yers.” (Phonetically)
(Me, racking my “Momolisms” database, and comparing it to African-related themes)
"Sayvayners? You mean… savannahs? (How am I going to fit that in my suitcase? Does she want giraffe dung and a few blades of grass?)
“No, not savannahs. Sa-vane’-yers. You know, like, from Africa. Jesus Christopher Columbus, how do I say it? Like a snow-globe maybe.”
(A snow globe? From South Africa?)
“I have no idea what you’re talking about, Mom.”
“Sa-vane’-yers. Sa-VANE-yers. Things you buy for people on a trip because you feel guilty for leaving your poor mother behind!!”
:smack:
“SOUVENIERS, Mom, Soo-vuh-neers’”
“Yeah, sa-vane’-yers.”
:smack:
What a Round Robin Hood’s Nest.