Yer Friday Funny – Language and Meaning
I’ve heard it said that the US and British are “two Nations separated by a common language”. IMO, that’s pretty close to 100% correct.
And the results are sometimes absolutely hilarious.
What follows I believe to be true. It is a second person account, related to me by someone who claimed to have seen the document in question, many years ago. I do not believe the individual was BSing me.
. . .
Scene: a NATO HQ in Europe. A document is being staffed.
The document has a staffing sheet, which identifies who will review the document by name. Those various names are from multiple NATO nations. At least one of them is an American.
The document has already been partially staffed. It has been through some of the NATO national contingents. It is now being staffed through the British contingent.
The document, or one of the sheets attached, has notes in the margin. One of those notes is next to an underlined name – an American name. There is an arrow pointing at the American’s name.
The comment reads as follows (language approximate).
“We really need this bloke to support our position. Have someone give him a head job.”
The words “head job” in that comment is in turn underlined. Immediately below it, in very different handwriting, is the following comment:
“Take care in using this term around our Yank allies. It has, shall we say, a somewhat different meaning to them.”
In British slang, “give a head job” means “appeal to their vanity” in order to get them on your side. I don’t think I need to spell out the common American interpretation.
. . .
You gotta love that dry British humor – even when it’s unintentional. (smile)
Category: Pointless blather, Who knows
So the Dutch and their Rudder control a la’ Danial Bernath flying skills.
Actually, if they’d used the American interpretation, they’d have had a better shot at getting it “staffed”.
I’ll never forget sitting in a Pub and my British friend prodding me to ask the waitress to ask about her “fanny pack” after discussing this topic. I almost got hit that day!
Right out of the USAF in Germany, I was living in Scotland and Newcastle-Upon-Tyne. At a dinner with my girlfriend and her family all sitting down, I asked her to come to me right away:
“Get your fanny over here!”
EVERYBODY — EVERYBODY — stopped, jaws dropped, and stared at me.
I said: I mean, get your little backside over here ….
She said: Over here, that word means the front side.
They all forgave me and laughed about it later.
–ghp
One of the staples of Air Cav/Attack training back in the day was how we would conduct the “Battle handoff” to the next echelon after our part of the fight was complete.
That was changed in doctrine during the early 90’s to be “Battle Handover” because of a different meaning in British English.
When eating with your Irish or English friends and you become full, never say when offered more, “no thank you … I am stuffed”. No doubt that is spew material!
Being “stuffed” over there has an entirely different meaning and its use is usually restricted to pubs and bedrooms!
Be sure and look for “Spotted Dick” on the Pub menu.
Yes. Pithy. And the #@+*”#@ Nun!
…. and “bloody” is a swear. Should not be used in polite company.
Didn’t know that then ….
-ghp
Way back when, at and around Swamp Lagoon (Camp Lejune), I ran into a clutch of Brit soldiers of one sort or another that were in our AO for some training of one sort or another.
We was on libbo in JVille. We go into one of the out of the way bars. Wall to wall old school red-necks inside.
One of the Brit boyos walks up to the bartender and asks, quite naturally, for a “pack of fags”.
Best bar fight I was ever honored to participate in.
Similar thing, except this was in Iraq during June, 2003: While finishing up eating in the expeditionary chow hall in Basra, a British colleague excused himself announcing he was going to “have a douche and a fag”.
And don’t forget about “knocking up” when you’re at the door, to visit someone.
Or kissing someone on the pecker. [Peck = small kiss; ergo, lips].
–ghp
When I went to NCO School in Quantico in 1987 there was an exchange program with the Royal Marines going on. One of our Instuctors was a Colour Sergeant who taught a class on terrorism.
After he got in front of the class he told one of the Marines in the back “Put the wood in the hole mate”.
He meant to close the door… we were all looking to see who the closest WM was.