Are You Effluent?

@JudyEv (381837)
Rockingham, Australia
February 8, 2017 10:26pm CST
Before saying I've got it wrong, I hope you'll read to the end. And yes, I do have it wrong but intentionally. Gotta catch the readers' attention. Some phrases catch the imagination and become absorbed into a nation's language and speech base - in this case Australia's. It might be a throwaway phrase but for some reason it strikes a chord, becomes widespread and oft-used. Here are several and I'm wondering how familiar they are to readers in other countries. The first is 'Life wasn't meant to be easy'. The full quote is 'Life is not meant to be easy, my child but take courage: it can be delightful'. The author of this was George Bernard Shaw, the Irish playwright, dramatist and critic, and it appears in the play Back to Methuselah. Australians picked up the first phrase after Malcolm Fraser, who was prime minister at that time, used it in a speech. For many Australians, Fraser seemed to have a pretty easy life so saying this upset some who wanted a few changes made. Nowadays, the phrase is quoted whenever things get a bit difficult. Another saying heard here is 'I'll have what she's having' which comes of course from the Billy Crystal/Meg Ryan film When Harry Met Sally. I'm sure this is well-known in most countries. Isn't it? The third and last phrase taken into the vernacular is from an Australian TV sitcom called Kath and Kim. The daughter is bemoaning her lack of wealth and says to the mother 'I want to be effluent, Mum: effluent'. The mother replies 'You are effluent, Kim. Look at all you have etc'. This was a hilarious part of the episode and for ages people would quote this whenever they had the chance. Edit: For those for whom English is their second language, effluent is liquid waste or sewage. She really needed to say 'affluent' which means well-off or rich. Here's a five-second link to the last phrase: The photo was taken in Kings Canyon, Northern Territory, Australia and has nothing to do with the text. :)
Kath & Kim....Effluent! Season 1 Episode 1 of this fabulous Australian TV comedy show. Kim moves back home after breaking up with her husband and Kath has to deal with her wayward daughter who aspires for a better life and a desire to be affluent (*effluen
20 people like this
18 responses
@LadyDuck (502208)
• Italy
9 Feb 17
Is it intentional also "Gotta catch the readers' atterntion." Or is atterntion a typo?
4 people like this
@LadyDuck (502208)
• Italy
9 Feb 17
@JudyEv For a moment I thought it was intentional. Going back to my comments, I find several typos, it happens.
3 people like this
@Inlemay (17712)
• South Africa
16 Feb 17
@JudyEv called a slip of the finger
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
9 Feb 17
Thanks for telling me. I'd like to say it was intentional but - sigh - it was a genuine typo.
5 people like this
@allknowing (153544)
• India
9 Feb 17
All those popular lines be it from books or movies become part of one's vocabulary and used freely sometimes not knowing the setting that prompted those sayings in books and movies. Having said that it is quite possible they get different meanings under different circumstances merely because not many know where they came from. As far as I am concerned I am affluent because I know the art of living
4 people like this
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
9 Feb 17
Well done you. I was wondering if I should have explained 'effluent' and 'affluent' but hopefully people will know the difference.
2 people like this
@SIMPLYD (90717)
• Philippines
9 Feb 17
I guess what she meant was affluent meaning owing lots of expensive things?
2 people like this
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
9 Feb 17
Yes, that's right. I've edited the post now to make it clearer.
1 person likes this
@PainsOnSlate (21845)
• Canada
9 Feb 17
That's one word I would hate to mix up but I bet its good for a big laugh. The first two i am familiar with but the last one I had never heard of... and I didn't notice the difference in spelling, it sounded the same....
2 people like this
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
11 Feb 17
It was funny at the time. We all went round trying to find somewhere where we could say 'but I want to be effluent'.
1 person likes this
@just4him (323168)
• Green Bay, Wisconsin
9 Feb 17
Other than the last one, I'm familiar with those phrases. Interesting how one letter can change the meaning of a word so completely.
2 people like this
@just4him (323168)
• Green Bay, Wisconsin
13 Feb 17
@JudyEv Yes it is.
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
11 Feb 17
I think it was James Hxstatic who came up with elegant and eloquent which is a good switch too.
1 person likes this
@HazySue (39265)
• Gouverneur, New York
9 Feb 17
Ha, ha, ha Love the meaning of effluent, I had never heard of it. Sometimes mistakes can tickle the funny bone.
3 people like this
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
10 Feb 17
It was very funny at the time. The show had a huge following here.
1 person likes this
@HazySue (39265)
• Gouverneur, New York
10 Feb 17
@JudyEv it's amazing how one can misuse a word.. I love to use the play on words at times just to keep people guessing if I mean what I am saying.
1 person likes this
@dpk262006 (58679)
• Delhi, India
18 Feb 17
I have heard and read only the first one. Though, all three are very meaningful and interesting. Thanks for sharing.
1 person likes this
@dpk262006 (58679)
• Delhi, India
18 Feb 17
@JudyEv Yes, you are right some of the sayings become more popular than others .
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
18 Feb 17
You're very welcome. It is surprising which sayings catch the imagination of the public.
1 person likes this
@snowy22315 (208784)
• United States
10 Feb 17
It's funny how certain catchphrases make it into the culture.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
11 Feb 17
Yes, they do don't it? And probably it is never intentional.
• China
9 Feb 17
Interesting post !I find that people that live in different countries add some local colour to the English and every English-speaking country has their unique slangs.
1 person likes this
• China
10 Feb 17
@JudyEv So far asI know ,there are English English ,American English and English as spoken in Australia.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
9 Feb 17
It probably shouldn't be surprising that sometimes two people can be speaking English but can barely understand each other.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
10 Feb 17
@changjiangzhibin89 That's true. Sometimes there is trouble with a Scotsman understanding perhaps a New Zealander or someone perhaps from Birmingham or Ireland. We had trouble sometimes understanding the Scots or Irish.
1 person likes this
@Jessicalynnt (50523)
• Centralia, Missouri
10 Feb 17
if one isnt affluent, effluent might be what they are swimming in. heh. being broke is pretty poopy
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
10 Feb 17
Yep, that's true.
1 person likes this
@sueznewz2 (10409)
• Alicante, Spain
9 Feb 17
that's funny.... thanks for sharing... some of those slip ups and sayings are funny and I like to seek out the origens...
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
9 Feb 17
They are very clever coming up with some of these lines.
1 person likes this
@teamfreak16 (43573)
• Denver, Colorado
10 Feb 17
Effluent. That's funny!
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
10 Feb 17
They had some great lines from time to time. I found it a bit 'cringe' material but most people loved the show.
1 person likes this
@Ronrybs (21503)
• London, England
9 Feb 17
I like Willie Rushton's version, Life ain't meant to be easy. A gifted comedian and writer taken much too soon
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
9 Feb 17
I didn't know Willie Rushton but certainly 59 was too young to go.
1 person likes this
@Ronrybs (21503)
• London, England
9 Feb 17
@JudyEv He was a favourite of mine
1 person likes this
@thelme55 (79311)
• Germany
10 Feb 17
I love the When Harry Met Sally movie. It was fun. Thanks for the heads up. Now I know a new word.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
11 Feb 17
It was a very funny scene wasn't it? So well done.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
15 Feb 17
@thelme55 They are both so serious. Then there was the chard onnay scene. I'm surprised that made it past the censors. Edit: It gave me a 'bad word' message!
1 person likes this
@thelme55 (79311)
• Germany
15 Feb 17
@JudyEv Yes, it was. So hilarious.
1 person likes this
@patgalca (18481)
• Orangeville, Ontario
9 Feb 17
I remember the first as, "Nobody said life was going to be easy."
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
9 Feb 17
I guess there are a few different versions of it.
@Hatley (163772)
• Garden Grove, California
9 Feb 17
??That sounds like a great video really fun the daughter so caught up in having wealth she cannot bother to get the word right lol would love to see that
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
9 Feb 17
They came out with some great lines in that show.
@Madshadi (8840)
• Brussels, Belgium
9 Feb 17
i haven't heard those phrases before
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
9 Feb 17
In Australia you hear them from time to time.
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
9 Feb 17
This shows why spelling is so important. Using a similar word with a totally different meaning can change so much. I'll always be a stickler about spelling....now if I could train my fingers to only hit the correct keys and hit them hard enough that each letter shows up.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
9 Feb 17
I don't like incorrect spelling. Whenever I find a typo in my comments I correct it even if it is from months back. :)
1 person likes this