A good journalist would go back through her archives to ensure her facts were correct; in this case, that Pigdump has indeed done an item on overused phrases in the past.

Well, I'm sure I have, but I'm feeling a little lazy this morning, still catching up from getting that extra hour sleep, I suppose. So let's just say sometime in the past nine-plus years, Pigdump griped about some stupid damn phrase or another once or twice.

Ahem.

Now you know it's true that I do watch the occasional sporting event on television, and listen to the odd sporting event on the radio, so chances are I hear quite a few cliches during my waking hours. But lately I've also spent time following the volatile market, watching pundits and politicians through a useless election up here and an historic election down there. And through all of this media bombardment I've subjected myself to, there are several phrases that people should JUST STOP SAYING!

For instance:

"At the end of the day..."

As in, "Oh sure, the markets suck and we've lost our life savings, but at the end of the day, you know the bank stocks will come back."

Or, "Oh sure, the Leafs won two games in a row, but at the end of the day, we know they're still that awful team in rebuilding mode."

Or, "Oh sure, we're all in love with Obama, he can do no wrong, but at the end of the day, he's going to inherit a nightmare and be the man in charge at the lowest point in US financial history."

And then there's this one:

"It is what it is."

You know, a pundit is asked, "How do you explain the fluctuation of the Canadian dollar?" And he replies, "The dollar was over-inflated earlier this year. It is what it is...a currency tied to the energy sector."

Or, "Can you explain the Sens' bad goaltending?" And the answer, "It is what it is, shaky, weak."

Or, "Did you think the country would turn on Dion so much?" The response, "Charisma shouldn't be the most important thing for voters in an election, but it is what it is."

This stuff is LAZY talk. It's throwaway banter to fill space, it's redundant yet it doesn't mean anything. Honestly. And EVERYONE uses these phrases. (Just don't get me started about that athlete who "has to play within himself...")

UGH!

Does anyone else feel this way? Or as usual, am I just a whiny pundit pontificating profusely again and again? I suppose at the end of the day, it is what it is and there's nothing I can do about it. Unless I play within myself.

Thanks and good luck.