English & Creativity

I created my first email ID in the year 2000 and it wasnt until a couple of years back that I entered the world of chatting. At first, it was brilliant but it wasnt long before I was hinted at the "chatting lingo".

I always thought I had a good command over English usage, but this chatting lingo took my inadequacy to a whole new level. I still remember the first time a friend pinged "lol" and I asked him what that meant. To which he irritatedly replied "Laugh Out Loud", as though I was expected to know that once I signed up for my email account. Neither of us laughed eventually. 

Days went by and thanks to google, I didnt have to ask such questions to my friends anymore. Some of the phrases I googled are ROFL, Ta, Ty, 5n..

I saw what was happening around me. And I tried to be on full guard by typing in the actual words. But the temptation of its ease of use, made me switch to using "u" instead of "you", "coz" instead of "because" etc. Just a bit relaxed. Only a bit !

But, really, it does turn on your creativity. When asking favours from my friends, I used to tell them "sorry for all the trouble", to which they would inevitably reply "No Problem" or "Anytime". Couple of months back, I said to my friend, for his help, "Sorry for being a PITA". It piqued his curiosity and he asked what it meant, to which I quietly replied "Pain In The Ass". We laughed and we ended up chatting for over an hour catching up on each others' lives. At least, something good came out of this open source dictionary.

This chatting lingo does have its drawbacks. In some situations, especially formal ones, it seeps through your normal writing skills as though you are switching over to a new personality. U kno wat I am talking about rite? gr8 ! And then I go about changing the language back to normal english. As the days wear on, this requirement for editing has become more frequent.

Its as though they both are in a wrestling match. English, on the right, like Batman, neatly dressed, stiff and strong. Chatting Lingo, seated on the left, like Joker, with a "cool" outfit, and with no sense of control. Both of them sitting across the table, with their arms locked and staring into each others' eyes.

And the Joker quietly says "This is what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object... You truly are incorruptible, arent you? You wont kill me out of some misplaced sense of self-righteousness and I wont kill you because you are just too much fun. I think you and I are destined to do this forever."