Is is

Usually I don't pick on how people talk. Okay, that's a lie. I make fun of people all the time, including myself. "And then I'm like, 'Whoa,' and then he goes, 'I know, right?' And then she's all like, 'Yeah right.'" What did I just say? Nobody knows. When did the words "like" and "go" become suitable synonyms for "said"? I'm totally confused by why we all talk like that. Of course, I guess the alternative might be, "So I says to Mabel, I says..." Perhaps that wouldn't sound as stupid.


Anyway, I apparently could go on and on about this. My point is that people sound a lot dumber when you transcribe what they say. It's usually pretty ugly. One of the things I've noticed lately is this one:

What that is is a stupid way of talking.


Why did you just say "is" twice? What kind of awful sentence structure is this? The weird thing is that this happens all the time. I'm pretty sure people are trying to go for dramatic effect. "Here's what it is." (Dramatic pause while people eagerly await whatever you're about to announce.) "It's Gabbo!" Unfortunately, it isn't dramatic. It's actually quite stupid.

I'm sure right now you're thinking, "That's dumb. I would never say that." I think that every time I hear someone do it. Here's my challenge, though: listen to yourself. You'd be surprised. I caught myself doing it the other day, and then I had a stern discussion with myself about the importance of not sounding dumb. What that is is crazy.