According to Hofmann: Now they’re saying that ‘Now they’re saying’ is the most used phrase of 2020
I don’t know about anyone else, but normally around June or July, my thoughts go to whatever will be considered the words or phases that are most used throughout the year. Such insight comes when you don’t have much of a life.
For the year 2020, it didn’t require much thought power to easily spout off what are easily the most used words and phrases of the year like “social distancing,” “PPE,” “self quarantine,” “pandemic,” “work from home,” “making bagels from home,” “lockdown from home,” “unprecedented” and “sewage-filled dumpster fire Ice Capades from home”.
However, I’m the kind of guy who doesn’t rely on online dictionaries and national media sources to tell me what the most uttered phrase of 2020 is as I get my info from the same place where I get medical and financial advice: the streets.
With that said, the top phrase of 2020 that has yet to appear on any list is “Now they’re saying…”
If you haven’t heard that phrase ad nauseam (or become nauseous after hearing yourself repeating that phrase over and over again), then you’ve been in a coma in the past several months, you lucky dog, you.
Come to think about it, even in a coma, you can probably still hear people using the phrase to talk about your condition.
“Now they’re saying itĢƵ not a coma, but heĢƵ just a lazy bum whoĢƵ pretending to sleep to get out of jury duty and the contempt-of-court hearing. Did you hear that, Harold, you lazy bum?!”
As with everything–especially COVID-19–“Now they’re saying…” is the unofficial hearsay citation to authority figures regarding late-breaking information.
“Now they’re saying we have to wash our hands all the time.”
“Now they’re saying we have to wash them for 20 seconds every time.”
“Now they’re saying we have to sing ‘Happy Birthday’ while washing our hands.”
“Now they’re saying we have to sing the ‘Happy Birthday’ song slower so instead of singing it like we’re at a kidĢƵ birthday party and want to just get through it so we can eat cake as fast as possible. We have to sing it like restaurant employees sing it to customers, which seems to go on forever.”
“Now they’re saying the ‘Happy Birthday’ song is copyrighted, and we have to pay royalties every time we wash our hands!”
“Now they’re saying the ‘Happy Birthday’ song was put back in the public domain four years ago, so we can sing it again, but slower.”
When someone becomes frustrated with hearing the “Now they’re saying” line, the person normally begins asking questions, mainly asking whoĢƵ the “they” in “they’re” as well as whoĢƵ the “re” in “they’re”.
In terms of COVID-19, the answer is normally “The Government,” “The Doctors,” “The News” or, in my case, “Peg-legged Tug Boat Captains,” which happens to be the second place I get medical and financial advice.
Of course, the phrase is not new to COVID-19 or the year 2020; it has always lived in our lexicon, especially in terms of the medical field.
“Now they’re saying eggs are bad for you.”
“Now they’re saying eggs are actually good for you, but itĢƵ the butter you use to fry the egg thatĢƵ bad for you.”
“Now they’re saying the butter is okay, but the margarine and the bacon is whatĢƵ bad for you.”
“Now they’re saying a little bacon is okay, but avoid the morning doughnut.”
“Now they’re saying to avoid your entire breakfast because thereĢƵ too many potential deathtraps.”
“Now they’re saying to remember that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.”
It seems thereĢƵ no good way to combat such a phenomenon. I mean, even this day and age of instant information at our fingertips, the “they-sayers” not only have survived, but thrived, especially this year with much uncertainty in the air.
So, when people you know say, “Now they’re saying the phrase of the year is ‘social distancing’,” you can do what I do and reply, with confidence, that you totally agree with them, but, like me, only you and my tug-boat-captain friends are the wiser…or until they say otherwise.
According to Hofmann is written by staff reporter Mark Hofmann of Rostraver Township. His books, “Good Mourning! A Guide to Biting the Big One…and Dying, Too” and “Stupid Brain,” are available on Amazon.com. He co-hosts the “Locally Yours” radio show on WMBS 590 AM every Friday.