These are the kinds of random things that I think about. I remember back in 1999, I was wondering what the abbreviated version of the next decade would be. For example, we'd refer to graduating in "ninety-five" or being born in "seventy-seven." It would seem so formal to have to say, "I'll get my master's in two thousand and three," but too short to say, "I'll get my master's in three." I think I asked someone and they said we were going to say "aught-three." Which also seemed weird. I was picturing us all with our noses in the air as we talked about "the blizzard of aught seven."
So of course now we say "oh-three." I talk to clients for work, who are referring their young children for therapy, and everyone gives me their date of birth, "four, ten, oh-six," etc. So recently I was wondering, what about the next decade? We'll lose the "oh." But it still seems too short to say, "we bought this house in eleven." Doesn't it?
So last night I was watching the news, and the announcer was talking about the Guantanamo Bay prisoners being moved by "April twenty-ten." Hmmm...so is that it? We'll say "twenty" first?
Jury's still out, I think.
The Five (#10 Slowly Getting Later Edition)
8 months ago
2 comments:
In my opinion, "twenty-ten" is right. We said "nineteen eighty-four" didn't we? I sure don't recall saying I was born in "one thousand nine hundred and seventy-four", so this "two thousand and nine" business already seemed too wordy...
It's funny because I think about this exact thing way too much!
Post a Comment