First, I should say--I HATE to clean up barf. The smell of it alone can cause me to gag and nearly barf myself. But there was so much of it that I couldn't, in good conscience, leave Eric to deal with it solo. So, as I cleaned, I needed a place for my mind to wander so that I wouldn't end up barfing on top of the barf.
I thought about the time when my brother and I told our German-speaking friend all the different phrases we use for "vomit" in the American-English language. Our friend, who is an Austrian, teaches high school English near Linz, Austria, and he couldn't wait to go back and tell his students all about this. He was in awe of our wide array of these descriptive phrases. Here are the ones I can remember:
VOMIT
BARF
UP-CHUCK
RALPH
TOSS YOUR COOKIES
LOSE YOUR LUNCH
HEAVE
BLOW YOUR GROCERIES
BLOW CHUNKS (this was one of our favorites - so visually inspiring)
WRETCH
HURL
What a fascinating language! Got any more to add?
driving the porcelain bus, puke, yak. This is fun!
ReplyDeleteDriving the porcelain bus! I love that! Never heard it before. And how could I forget puke? After Eric read this post, he reminded me of the sea-sick version: feeding the fishes.
ReplyDeleteMy Eric says to add "reversal of fortune." :)
ReplyDeleteLove that one, too!
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