Yiddish!

On the heels of my last post, and on a lighter note:

Learn Yiddish!

...or at least learn hilarious phrases to pepper your daily conversations with. I never realized how many words/phrases I use until my roommates and friends pointed it out. My grandparents still can speak Yiddish, and used to use it with each other when they didn't want us know what they were discussing. My dad can tell a few off-color jokes and slyly insult people using it. My use extends to words like chutzpah, schmaltzy, shmatte, and other things Tom loves to take out of context.

Spice up your vocab, learn a few choice comments from the link above! Practice the gutteral "ch" sound, and quick reminder: Yiddish can be super sarcastic. My dad loves the phrase "go in good health" (gei gezint, loosely transliterated from how he pronounces it), which is actually kind of like saying "don't let the door hit you on the way out" depending on the situation. Usually, it's a charming language--my grandfather has called me "shana punim" or "pretty face" for years (collective awwwww).

So. Use Yiddish. Use it well. Use it sarcastically or sincerely, whichever works for you. L'chaim.