"roller coaster" as cliche
Does anyone else get annoyed when people use "roller coaster" as an adjective? For example, a "roller coaster week on the stock market" or an "emotional roller coaster."
I realize it's just an expression, but roller coasters do not have "fun" parts and "not fun" parts like the latter example implies, and many, many coasters do not go up and down constantly like the former example implies.
Just a pet peeve.
I realize it's just an expression, but roller coasters do not have "fun" parts and "not fun" parts like the latter example implies, and many, many coasters do not go up and down constantly like the former example implies.
Just a pet peeve.
Perhaps I should rephrase. This is not something that infuriates me, or angers me, or frustrates me, or upsets me, or peeves me, or whatever synonyms you can think of. It just makes me roll my eyes, the same as I do when I see those stupid Kia commercials with the guy who doesn't know what his car looks like. Right.
"or peeves me"
but you said it was a pet peeve of yours!
What gets me is hearing the word "Roller Coaster" and getting excited, thinking that they are actually talking about roller coasters, only to realize that it is something boring instead.
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everything's better with a banjo
but you said it was a pet peeve of yours!
What gets me is hearing the word "Roller Coaster" and getting excited, thinking that they are actually talking about roller coasters, only to realize that it is something boring instead.
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everything's better with a banjo
Hey Den...that commercial is not that he doesn't know what his car looks like. He just likes being told that it's his car. It makes him feel cool knowing that he owns such a car, and he gets a kick out of hearing that it's his. He doesn't forget it's his car!
As far as roller coaster as cliche, I don't mind it too much. It certainly doesn't bother me. You also have to realize that a large proportion of the general public is terrified/hates roller coasters, so the good and bad analogies work. If I can find the thread at this other message board I frequent, I'll show you that coaster love is certainly not universal. :)
As far as roller coaster as cliche, I don't mind it too much. It certainly doesn't bother me. You also have to realize that a large proportion of the general public is terrified/hates roller coasters, so the good and bad analogies work. If I can find the thread at this other message board I frequent, I'll show you that coaster love is certainly not universal. :)
Actually, the dictionary says that this is an acceptable usage.
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Decisions determine destiny; Destiny determines decisions.
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Decisions determine destiny; Destiny determines decisions.
Yeah, I know it's acceptable, I just don't like it. :)
Jman, you reminded me of something else that bugs me....when someone rides a coaster and then says something like, "I think the drop was the WORST part!" How was it the worst?!? Why was this person riding coasters if they don't like them?
Jman, you reminded me of something else that bugs me....when someone rides a coaster and then says something like, "I think the drop was the WORST part!" How was it the worst?!? Why was this person riding coasters if they don't like them?
janfrederick said:
"Actually, the dictionary says that this is an acceptable usage.
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Decisions determine destiny; Destiny determines decisions."
But it is also over used to the extreme. The dictionary doesn't count for everything.
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Don't touch the watch.
"Overused" is nearly synonomous with cliche. Like millrace said, I too get excited when I hear someone say "roller coaster" (or at least I tune in a bit more) but more often than not I'm let down when they're talking about something far from theme parks.
Makes you feel like the dog when everyone complains that they're in the "dog house." What's so wrong with the dog house? Some of those things are expensive! :)
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Po!nt of View: A different look at Roller Coasters.
http://www.crosswinds.net/~justmayntz/thrills/index.html
Makes you feel like the dog when everyone complains that they're in the "dog house." What's so wrong with the dog house? Some of those things are expensive! :)
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Po!nt of View: A different look at Roller Coasters.
http://www.crosswinds.net/~justmayntz/thrills/index.html
Well, I'm a stock broker/coaster enthusiast and I think of it differently. It doesn't mean good and bad, it means up and down. I think it's a very accurate way to describe things. When someone says it was a roller coaster day on Wall Street, if you were to look at a graph of the days trading, it would look like a coaster, all kinds of hills and valleys, up and down.
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UCSigep
"Did you make a copy? Because if you made a copy, we could watch the copy."
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UCSigep
"Did you make a copy? Because if you made a copy, we could watch the copy."
This is a pathetic topic!
"The stock market took a launch on a LIM today at a maximum speed of 50 mph, the designer was Vekoma." Is that better?;)
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We are the keepers of the sacred words, Ni!, Peng!, and Nuuuuuwwwom!
"The stock market took a launch on a LIM today at a maximum speed of 50 mph, the designer was Vekoma." Is that better?;)
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We are the keepers of the sacred words, Ni!, Peng!, and Nuuuuuwwwom!
ucsigep, I was making the point that a stock chart doesn't really look like the modern coaster. Most modern coasters (besides Shivering Timbers) don't go up and down in a straight line. Of course when people started using the phrase, many more of them did.
force312, I think this is a great topic...certainly better than "WHEN DO U THINK X WILL OPEN!?!" And I am now the knight who says, "Ecky-ecky-ecky-ecky-pekang-zoop-boing-owly-zhiv..." so there.
force312, I think this is a great topic...certainly better than "WHEN DO U THINK X WILL OPEN!?!" And I am now the knight who says, "Ecky-ecky-ecky-ecky-pekang-zoop-boing-owly-zhiv..." so there.
Then why did you post here? I don't think anybody participating in this topic cares what you think about it.
This is a pathetic topic!
Now...as for it's "rollercoaster" overuse. I don't mind a bit when it's used appropriately. It is very descriptive for things like the stock market or marriage. Nothing else quite sums it up as nicely. Perhaps someone has a better way of describing something that goes up and down like that?
"Fluctuating" - not fun enough
"Reciprocating" - nah
"Rough and Tumble" - not smooth enough
"Bumpy, rocky, or rough" - not really descriptive enough. Perhaps "rocky" comes close, but not quite.
I can understand at something being overused, but I've never noticed it's overuse before.
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Decisions determine destiny; Destiny determines decisions.
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