‘Have a nice day!’ and Other Stupid Stuff We Say Every Single Day
Are trite phrases becoming the new punctuation for conversations?
When someone wished my US Marine Corps tough-as-nails father, “Have a nice day,” he either said under his breath or actually out loud, “How the fuck am I supposed to do that.”
If you’re offended by swearing, stop reading now.
Of course, the well-wishing phrase has become trite. A cliché. Meaningless.
And do store associates and baristas and fast-food servers really mean they wish you will have a nice day or is that just a way to punctuate the end of a conversation, such as when we normally say, “Goodbye” or “Bye,” at the end of a phone call?
Well, yes, it has, in fact, become an idiom recognized by Merriam-Webster to replace goodbye and often used in stores to end a transaction. I thought handing someone a credit card would do that too.
Has “Have a nice day” become punctuation, just as LOL is in texts?
I don’t know about you, but I think “Have a nice day” is annoying. I usually just smile and walk away or drive away or mumble under my breath, “Whatever.” Bah humbug. And think about my dad and his response. How the fuck am . . .
