I'm never "fine" anymore. 1

[SantaMufasa]

Tom Kane's pulchritudinous thread reminded me of one of the most fun activities in which I engage...a real ice breaker and conversation piece amongst those whom I meet. The activity of which I speak derives from my resolution to never respond to the mindless question, "How are you?" with the even-more-mindless response, "Fine."

Here are some of my replacements (in alphabetical order) for the overly bland "Fine". You will recognise many, but some are more obscure; all can be far more descriptive of our moods, given the proper circumstances:

ardent
assiduous
coruscative
ebullient
effulgent
energetic
exuberant
fervent
fervorous
incandescent
indefatigable
iridescent
kinetic
luminous
mirthful
oneirataxic
oneiric
pertinacious
radiant
resilient
scintillated
sedulous
steadfast
ubiquitous
unflagging
vibrant
vigorous
vivacious
zealous

I would love to expand this list with your contributions. If you plan on adopting my resolution (to never respond, "Fine," again), be sure that you know the definitions of each word.

Mufasa
(aka Dave of Sandy, Utah, USA)
[

http://www.dasages.com:

Providing low-cost remote Database Admin services]
Click here to join Utah Oracle Users Group on Tek-Tips if you use Oracle in Utah USA.

 

[donbott]

I have a friend who always responds "Terrible but I'm used to it"

DonBott

 

[blutekhnd]

I regularly use the following:

I'm just spiffy
splendiferous
supercalifragilisticexpialidocious

 

[CorBlimeyLimey]

I usually respond with

"I'll let you know when I wake up" or
"I'll let you know when the effect of the drugs wear off" or
"Well, I woke up on the right side of the grass again so I'm pretty happy"

[Cheers]

 

[blutekhnd]

I've never done it, but there have been a few times when I wanted to respond:

"I shouldn't complain, after all...I could be you.

 

[nicksims]

I was speaking with the great-uncle of a good friend of mine. I asked him how he was doing. His response- "Doin' great." I saw him regularly and his response was ALWAYS the same. Same words, same tone, same inflections...

So I asked, why always the same response? Don't you ever have an "off" day? Considering that he was over 70, hauling hay and feeding livestock every morning, I thought maybe one day might not be so great? A little back pain? Who knows?

His response was that people always ask this question and ya' know what? They don't "really" want to know (intentional emphasis on really). So, why bother telling them the truth? They don't really want to know what the bad details are of your bad day, and they wouldn't really know what to say. So, I say "Doin' great." Nobody gets uncomfortable and everybody walks away happy.

Since then, I have always tried to avoid the generic "How are you?" phrases.

And thank you SantaMufasa for I will now entertain others with a few choice words.

Nick

 

[SamBones]

I've given this reply a couple times...

"Why? What have you heard?"

 

[BoxHead]

Several years ago, I began using, "Never better."

I'm always amazed that people almost always assume I don't mean it.

...maybe if I didn't look so grumpy all the time...

 

[SteveGlo]

Does anyone expect an accurate answer? Its just cliché level of communication. Why not ask "do you have a STD?" you are just as likely to get an honest answer.

What's wrong with good morning or good evening?

I used to love the Gruss Got used by Bavarians to complete strangers met out walking - a benediction. And I a confirmed antitheist.

 

[zarkon4]

I sometimes respond with "I'm alive."
or with something that coincides with the weather,
"Fair to partly cloudy.",

 

[CorBlimeyLimey]

Getting back to Santas OP, how about;

effervescent

adj 1: used of wines and waters; charged naturally or artificially with carbon dioxide; "sparkling wines"; "sparkling water" [syn: sparkling] [ant: still] 2: (of a liquid) giving off bubbles [ant: noneffervescent] 3: marked by high spirits or excitement; "his fertile effervescent mind"; "scintillating personality"; "sparkling conversation"; "a row of sparkly cheerleaders" [syn: bubbling, scintillating, sparkling, sparkly]

[Cheers]

 

[SantaMufasa]

Well done, Cor...Good answer...I'll add it to my list. WDITOT?

Mufasa
(aka Dave of Sandy, Utah, USA)
[

http://www.dasages.com:

Providing low-cost remote Database Admin services]
Click here to join Utah Oracle Users Group on Tek-Tips if you use Oracle in Utah USA.

 

[Dollie]

Several years ago, I took a cue from a weatherman one time, and answered "Fair to middling" when asked how I was.

A couple years later and I hear someone else answer the exact same way.

I keep wondering if I started something, or if someone else just had the same idea, like zarkon4.

 

[Dollie]

Or, if you're in the South, er, "Say-owth", you'd be "fah-un".

/southern ebonics are fun

 

[LFI]

For all of you that use these fine responses about which you're talking, please mix it up a little bit! I can stand always hearing "fine" when I ask someone how they are, but I can't stand always hearing "super, terrific, and minorly horrific". Mix it up! Keep me guessing!

Thanks in advance!

Dave

P.S., I've always been partial to "Fair to middlin'" myself!


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
O Time, Strength, Cash, and Patience!

 

[jebenson]

I'll sometimes respond to the "How are you?" with a wide-eyed, near-panic-stricken response of "NOTHING!!!! I'M NOT DOING ANYTHING!!!!" It is especially good if I have something in my hands that I can quickly stuff in a pocket. It's also good to say when I find a coworker away from their computer and take the opportunity to perform some maintenance on their system, and they come back into their office while I'm still there.


I used to rock and roll every night and party every day. Then it was every other day. Now I'm lucky if I can find 30 minutes a week in which to get funky. - Homer Simpson

 

[fumei]

What does oneirataxic mean? I looked it up but could not find anything.

Gerry

 

[SantaMufasa]

Good question, Gerry:

oneirataxic: unable to distinguish between fantasy and reality.

...versus...

oneiric: dreamy.

Prolixly yours,

Mufasa
(aka Dave of Sandy, Utah, USA)
[

http://www.dasages.com:

Providing low-cost remote Database Admin services]
Click here to join Utah Oracle Users Group on Tek-Tips if you use Oracle in Utah USA.

 

[chiph]

Or, if you're a fan of Commander Data:

Functioning within acceptable limits


____________________________________________________________________
If you want to get the best response to a question, please read FAQ222-2244 first

 

[CRilliterate]

At our place it is
'I have no complains'
and 'I have no complains...actually I do but no one listens'