Have a Nice Day

I don’t remember where I saw the sign "Lleguele" (with an accent over the first e). I think it was a business, because I started wondering if it meant "Come in" or "Come again". The word is a contraction of the singular, formal, imperative form of the Spanish verb "llegar", meaning "to arrive", and the word form "le", indicating the action is directed "to you/him/her" -- literally "arrive to you". I asked a coworker today what it means, and he said, "Go for it." That meaning is even more idiomatic than mine. (Maybe it wasn’t a business after all.) Of course, English has its own idioms.

While I lived in Alabama, it never ceased to amuse me when someone would say, "Come see us," as I left the barbershop, grocery store, restaurant, etc. I always wanted to ask them, "What do you think I just did?" Of course, they meant, "Come see us again."

Increasing in common usage is, "Have a good one," instead of, "Have a nice day." I can’t help but wonder what "one" they mean. One of the employees at my usual gas station once told me, "You have a good one." I felt like replying, "Thanks. I’m not interested, but I’m sure yours is pretty nice, too."

Co-asst. mgr. has some amusing phrases. "I’d bet you a dollar to a donut," was one he used today. I’m not sure what that means, but it sounds like he’s shelling out more for a dozen than I would. He also often tells people that he is "busier than a one-legged man in an ass-kicking contest". I know what that one means, and I say "ditto".