I listen to NPR a lot. But it only speaks to the fact that I hate pop music and there is no alternative on my car radio. Even when I have the foresight to tote around a collection of CDs, I tire of them quickly. Heck, I thought I loved PRINCE, but after one listening and skipping through most of the tracks, I am BORED! So I listen to National Public Radio. Usually I hear a program with some experts responding to callers - sound familiar? Don't get me wrong, I really do love it. But I've noticed that many of these super smart experts have developed a habit. I'm convinced it is learned. It had to have started when they heard someone smart, talking about something intelligent, and they noticed the speaker pepper their discussion with the phrasing "sort of". (After you read this, you will notice it everywhere.) So, because they want to sound smart, they adopt this phrasing habit and throw it in like an overzealous dash of cayenne. But what ends up happening is that they don't sound bright at all. Instead they sound like they haven't developed the vocabulary to express the nuances steeped in their area of expertise. Whatever their reason, they lose me immediately. Like a flash in the pan, I'm once more rocking out like it's 1999.
