This past weekend my girlfriend’s 11-year-old daughter blurted out “sugar honey ice tea” when she saw how long the line was at Captain Frosty’s. I thought this was cute and well put; after all, we had just come off the beach and she had held out patiently for her Frosty Flurry. Waiting in line was simply something she didn’t anticipate on a 90 degree day on Cape Cod.
This got me thinking of my own use of profanity. Growing up it was made very clear to me that bad language is unattractive and not socially acceptable. To take it a step further, I was taught that the use of bad language is a sign of moral degeneracy and low education. But I must admit, I find a great deal of comfort in my four letter friends.
For the most part, I swear because I care. My potty mouth tends to be most colourful when I am trying to express deep emotion, physical pain, frustration or honesty. Sometimes I’ll see the look of horror in my husband’s face after I have blurted out obscenities and I’ll think, good, I’m speaking a language that he understands. I am not particularly proud of how I sound when I am letting off steam but it does feel better momentarily to think that I may have grabbed someone’s attention to get my point across.
I admire when someone can “swear it well”. I crack up every time when Betty White is saying something vulgar; it’s unexpected and she is first class on delivering the goods. If only I could keep my expressions on a squeaky clean level. Incorporating catch phrases like fiddle sticks, rubbish and jiminy crickets should satisfy my meaning plenty. At least it would be worth a try, and try I will. I’ll swear to it.
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Everyone’s probably already said it about 4 billion times.. but it’s stupid how people thing that those you use profanity are somehow uneducated. Heck, let’s just make some judgement and assume to know everything about everyone based on how they talk, what they say, what they wear and what they look like. Lovely.
The first time i heard “sugar honey iced tea” was from Alex (Ben Stiller) on Madagascar, which is a kids’ movie, right?
I have taken to swearing in other languages. That way, I don’t feel so rude and vulgar.
I always go back and forth with this, but I think the key is to be aware of what you’re saying, in what context, and how often. I use your typical swear words, but then I’ll pepper in things like cripes, darn it, fudgesicle, and frak. And it actually has nothing to do with the fact that I’m a preschool teacher and I’m shielding young ears from things they shouldn’t hear (though it does come in handy), I just happen to really enjoy those words.
Just like I enjoy fuck, shit, asshole, motherfucker, and my very favorite, cunt. It took me a long time to bring that last one into my vocabulary, because I always thought it was the must vulgar of the vulgar. A few years ago, I was watching The Vagina Monologues and there was that piece about reclaiming the word cunt that just stuck with me. It is an awesomely strong word and I’m quite selective about how I use it.
I get how sometimes one can run the risk of seeming uneducated by the continued use of curse words, but it’s all about being mindful of how you speak. Think before you open your mouth or before you put your words down on paper (or on the interwebs). Remember that words are frakking cool and really fucking powerful.
(Balls, bollocks, and bugger are personal favorites as well. Delicious.)
I swear, and I swear a lot, but most of the time when I swear, the swear words I use have nothing to do with their actual meanings but rather the emotion that they convey when I use them. I could easily swap out a swear word for some other word, like fudge or sugar, but what I’m trying to express won’t change, and it will have less of an impact when I say it.
I think there’s nothing at all wrong with swear words. Use them, and use them liberally. Might I suggest though, that we change them from being ‘swear words’ to being ‘sentence enchancers’, because really, that’s what they are.
One time when I was little my mom got really mad about something or other and angrily yelled out “GOD….BLESS AMERICA!” We still laugh about that one!
I swear frequently but sometimes I feel like maybe that is not the way to be the elegant young woman I want to be. Sometimes I am watching any number of reality tv shows and I see people cursing up a storm and I find it so trashy. But then again I do it, too? It’s an ugly mirror to look into. I haven’t quit swearing yet but one of these years it is going to be a resolution. There are so many other words we have to express ourselves. I want to be a lady my grandmother would be proud of. Someday… when I stop saying “shit” I will be.
I think swearing is just a word. I swear a lot but I take care not to do it around children, in public or people I don’t know well. I don’t think it’s that big of a deal.
The F-bomb as a friend of mine calls it, is my favorite word. I swear constantly. I tone it down in front of my kids but otherwise, it gets the point across, colorfully. I’m also college educated, so saying it’s only for those who have no education is not quite true.
LOL. I love your idea. I use “Frak” from BSG a lot, and I am trying to even cut back on that.
If you haven’t seen this yet, please check it out! It’s a treat and a MUST for fellow mommies who like to laugh, are also attached to their four lettered friends and a glass of wine every now and again (or every day).
https://www.facebook.com/momswhodrinkandswear
I still swear like a child. “Fruitcakes” and “crumbs” are my go-to words for whatever reason! However, when I do swear, it has a much greater impact on those around me, which I do enjoy.
How funny is it that the sign you chose is from Virginia Beach… that’s where I live! I specialize in beach weddings (Virginia Beach Wedding Chapel) and it always cracks me up hearing the “kids” talk about the no cursing and their doubtfulness of it being enforced… I’ll tell ya right now, the VB cops will ticket you if they get a chance! Thanks for finding a sign from our city though!
I myself have a sailor mouth and yes, it does show lack of education and lack of better words, but it DOES get your point across! As long as you can do it tastefully and don’t look like an ignorant dummy running around with diarrhea of the mouth, it’s fine. Who’s to say that s*** is a bad word? What if they said “desk” was a bad word? Now that’s a whole other conversation… ha.
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I swear. I love to do it – it’s a part of who I am. Luckily my man swears a lot too.
I grew up in a super conservative home and an even more conservative religious school (K through 12–same school..ugh). I could use some words at home like darn it or crap, but not at school. Those were euphemisms for other, even worse words so I’d get in trouble. This started a long tradition of getting people’s attention by using an innocent word that starts out just like the “bad” one I really meant. For example, “That class is shhhh-ugar,” “Ffffuuudge you,” “I don’t fffuunkytime care if you like” and so on.
Now I’m more in the “swear it well” category, but I occasionally slip back into my private swears, which just makes me and everyone around me start laughing.
That visual is a REAL street sign in Virginia Beach at the oceanfront.
I live in Virginia Beach, VA – yep, they have the no cursing signs everywhere!
I think that usually, among adults, profanity is fine! There are certainly plenty of times where it is obviously inappropriate. Swearing is like using exclamation points within words! And that is very useful to exclaim your distaste for a long line, oh how bad you just stubbed your toe, and my favorite reason, for Betty White to be HILARIOUS!
I’ve got a sailor mouth…I admit it. And ya know, I don’t mind. Because I agree with Jennifer (above)…as long as you know when you can and can’t use it, you’re okay.
And PS “sugar honey iced tea” is officially my new favorite swearing phrase.