[hmkpoker]

So I was walking down the street today and an old acquaintance of mine recognised me and said "hello." I mean, I guess he was just trying to be friendly, but isn't that a little, ya know, insensitive?

What you may not know is that the word "hello," popularized as the common telephone greeting, is derived from the old french hola, loosely meaning "hey there."

First of all, I don't own a telephone, and don't wish to be included in some commonplace activity that most of America seems to take part in. If they want to talk on the phone in their own homes, that's fine, just don't include me in it.

Secondly, I am not french. I'm not of any Latinate descent, or English descent for that matter. Don't you think it's a little ridiculous to be barking some foreign greeting to me when I'm not a member of the race from which it's derived? I'm Greek and Czech, so either say "Geia sou" or "Jak sie masz," or just give me a simple nod; makes a lot more sense to me.

Lastly, I also find the original denotation offensive. "Hey there?" [censored] you. I'm "there," so that implies that you're "here"? That's a little egocentric if you ask me.

So please, no more hellos, to me, or to strangers. You never know who you might be offending by saying it.

P.S. I'd like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]