A breeze
Today’s expression is “a breeze.” What does it mean if something is “a breeze”? It means, it’s very easy. It’s not complicated. It’s quick. And, crucially, it’s surprising that it is that easy.
Earlier in today’s lesson, I said that logging into a web site with a password manager is a breeze. If you log into a web site that you frequently visit and you have the password memorized, it’s not a big deal. But that’s not always the case. Sometimes the act of logging into a web site can be complicated—especially if you forget your password, forget your username, have to request a new one, forget if you even have an account. But guess what—logging in, on your phone, on your browser, wherever—logging in is a breeze with a password manager. It takes all the complication out of the equation. We say it’s a breeze because it’s easy and fast, and it’s surprising. It’s a solution to a problem.
I forget if I mentioned in a previous lesson, but I got a COVID antibody test. Here’s what happened. I had an appointment to get my annual flu shot in October. And I thought, while I’m already at the doctor’s office, I may as well get the COVID antibody test. This test tells you whether your body has produced the chemicals that fight COVID—so, if you have the antibodies, you’ve most likely had COVID.
I didn’t need to know. It was really just for my own curiosity. So I asked whether I could get the test, and they said sure. They came by with another needle, took a little blood, shipped it off, and I got the results in a few days. It was a breeze. I didn’t have to make a special appointment. I didn’t have to wait in a line. They didn’t have to stick something way up my nose, like the normal COVID test. Just a quick little blood sample and I was on my way—they emailed the results. (They were negative—I haven’t had COVID.) It was a breeze. I thought it might be complicated, but it wasn’t. It turned out to be a breeze.
I’ve lived in a number of states and I’ve had a driver’s license in a number of states. When you move across state lines, your new state will usually require you to take the written driver’s test. It’s usually 20 or 30 questions on a computer. I remember one time, I moved to a state and the test was full of statistics. Like, if you don’t wear a seatbelt, by what percentage does your chance of dying in a car crash increase? Um, I don’t know. It doesn’t matter; I’ll just wear my seatbelt all the time. Or, at what weight must a child use a car seat? I have no idea: I don’t have kids or a car seat. That was a hard test!
But when I moved to Illinois, the test was a breeze. In Illinois, the questions were like, if you see a school bus stopped with red lights flashing, what should you do? That test was a breeze! I was expecting it to be hard, full of statistics and questions about children, but it was easy. That test was a breeze.
I’ve always loved borrowing books from the public library: I still do it. But you can now borrow electronic books from many major library systems in the US. I started doing it in New York, and Chicago now has a lot of e-books available too. It’s a breeze to borrow an e-book. You just log into your account—and my login is my library card barcode number, which I never remember, but I’ll use a password manager for that in the future—anyway, you log in, search for the book you want, and if it’s available in electronic form, you’re just a few clicks away from having it on your Kindle. It’s a breeze. No trips to the library, no waiting in line, no hoops to jump through. It’s a breeze. You borrow the book and Amazon pushes it right to my Kindle.
Quote of the Week
Today’s quote of the week is from the writer Alexander Cockburn: “There is no criticism like the criticism of straightforward indifference.”
Indifference means, you don’t care, you don’t pay any attention to something. These days, so many people do things to provoke a reaction. Criticism is what they crave; they seek conflict. But the quote says, the harshest criticism is to just ignore someone. “There is no criticism like the criticism of straightforward indifference,” says Andrew Cockburn. I do definitely agree with that point.
See you next time!
And that’s all for today’s lesson, the first of 2021. We have lots and lots of great plans for Plain English in 2021, by the way. I wish I could tell you all of them right now, but I’ll share more as I know more.
We had a great live call with Plus members a few weeks ago, where we shared our personal and professional goals for 2021. The overriding sentiment on the call was, we want to hold onto the good parts of 2020. That could be a slower pace of life, more attention on self-care, less running around, more time at home with family: we want to hold onto the good that did come out of 2020 as we look to improve things in 2021.
That was a great call—we do two live calls with Plus members per month. If you’re a Plus member, you can see the dates and times on your dashboard. If you’re not yet a Plus member, but would like to be, then you can read all the details at PlainEnglish.com/Plus.
We’ll be back on Thursday with another travel destination. I know, I know, we can’t do it yet. But the day is coming! This will be a fun one, coming up on Thursday.
Use realistic expressions like a native speaker
