clichés

First of all, I am not a fan of clichés. I find them annoying and predictable. If someone uses a cliché in an unexpected or unorthodox way it does amuse me. But using them in unusual ways takes away the essence of the cliché, therefore making it not so much cliché and more of an actual clever remark.

I came across a list yesterday of the clichés that I hate the most. It includes things like:

• Breakfast of champions
• Houston, we have a problem
• We've got company (in the sense that the bad guys have shown up, not the sense that you're having friends over for dinner)
• What can I do you for? (it may have seemed original when everyone was saying "what can I do for you?" and someone switched it around in a surprising way, but not anymore)
  

There is also one phrase on the list which is not a cliché, but annoys me just as much. That is "on account of" instead of saying "because of." To me, "on account of" sounds stupid.

Anyway, that's not really the point of what I'm writing about today.

There is one cliché which wasn't on the list, though it annoys me, but I have found that it has some redeeming value. That is "the early bird gets the worm." I have said many times before how much I dislike mornings. Some days it is outright hatred of mornings, but most of the time, just moderate dislike. People who do like mornings will pull this one on me, trying to prove their point that, whether or not I like the morning, I should go ahead and make the most of it. But, when people tell me that now, I have taken to asking them "But what if you're the worm?" Now, I realize I'm not the first person to say this, and actually it could be considered a cliché, too. But, the response from people who've never heard that before makes it all worthwhile. The response ranges from the slight chuckle and "oh, clever" to [my personal favorite] the confused look of horror when someone realizes that he's thought of himself as the "early bird" all his life only to discover now that he might actually be the worm. Something about giving people that sense of doom makes me feel...empowered. I understand now why evil geniuses do what they do.