[This series is a play on ‘writer’s block’.]

There is a word that annoys me so much.

Huh?

Yes. Huh.

And apparently, I’m not the only one annoyed with it. Huff Post’s culture writer wrote a piece about it some time ago: “Honestly, I never want to hear the word ‘huh’ again”.

Whether it’s written or verbal, my blood would shot up to my head whenever I encounter it. There’s something about the word that makes you feel dumb. Was I not clear in what I said or wrote that the answer I got is…”huh?” And why can’t I get a “pardon?” or “say that again?” or “what do you mean?” or an actual conversation that would tell me which part was unclear and I’d be glad to clarify it without resorting to sarcasm.

I get that in this SNS era, the shorter the better. We don’t even know how to spell properly anymore because it’s too troublesome to type the correct spelling, for example, of “why” so it becomes “y”. Now, that is not as annoying as “k” for “okay” or “ok”, another short cut that can rile me up. (A friend once said “k” is just one letter short of “ok” so why can’t you make the effort to do it?) “K”, just like “huh?, imo, is up there as one of the rudest word in messaging or chats.

And I do admit that I succumb to the temptation of using “huh” when I get annoyed as well. Those people who use it probably think there’s nothing wrong with it and miss the sarcasm I’m aiming for anyway. But I just end up getting annoyed with myself for falling into the trap.

I don’t mind “???” or “what?” though even if the latter sounds equally rude. But “huh” just needs to go.

Huh?

© Orange Jasmine Purple Yam (blogging since 2001). Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the contents in this site without permission from the author/owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Orange Jasmine Purple Yam with appropriate link to the original content.