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Epically rules:Slang Than and Now For some strange unknown reason, in the early 90s people started saying “neat” which seems weird because the popular music of the day was grunge and obviously, “neat” didn't come from grunge. “Neat” was countered though with cries of “you/that/it 'rules'”. This was later replaced by “you/that/it 'rocks'” which is still heard today. In the late 90s, slang became more closely related to music once more with hip hop being the mainstream favourite. People were “illin” and “dissin” all over the place. The term “Sup, dawg” was everywhere and people were all from the “hood”. (Sup, dawg is still pretty common today but we haven't heard the term “illin” in a long time. Also, we're not quite sure what “illin” means.) While it was around in the 90s, “sweet” emerged in the 2000s in a big way. Another, more hilarious slang to surface in the mid-2000s was “brain fart”. When social networking and online chatting became huge, acronyms took over not only written communication but verbal mediums as well. People don't have time to pronounce entire words in the 21st century. Acronyms spread like wildfire and the internet took over our talk. The word “search” is rare now. “Google” and “Wiki” are verbs. People can't be bothered to laugh, they respond with a “LOL”. Who has the patience to say all of “Oh my god”? It's “OMG” now. Nowadays, the most common word used to address a friend would be dude (or if you like Bollywood films, doooooode). In the 70s, people used to say “buddy” or “fella”. In the 80s, it was a word we wish would make a comeback, “mac” although it's hard to imagine it being brought back without people thinking it has something to do with Apple (remember when Apple was a fruit?). The most popular word today is probably “awesome”. It's everywhere. Everything is awesome now. To a lot of people, “awesome” has become the only adjective in their dictionaries to imply good, and “crappy” being the only adjective to express a negative connotation (although we have sometimes heard people say “awesomely bad” because they needed to be able to insert the word “awesome” somewhere). Needless to say, these people's vocabularies are remarkable. “Epic” is another word that is on the rise, most prominently on the internet, when describing a memorable past event. Due to the worldwide popularity of How I Met Your Mother, “Legendary” (or more noticeably “Legen..wait for it..dary”) is quickly becoming the preferred slang of the masses. Barney Stinson, what have you done? In 20 years, don't be surprised if people look back on the slang of today and wonder what primitive language this was. If we've missed some notable favourite slang of yours, we apologise. And to end, we want to announce a campaign to bring back the word “wicked”. It was totally rad.
By TheAlien4mearth
Chander Gari- Anyone who's been to Cox's Bazar will remember these things. These are like big jeeps modified to make them look even bigger (and hence, squeeze in more people than is actually possible) Chander Garis work like all-terrain vehicles, immune to the stuff that give other cars a heart attack. They can even survive crabs and their pincers while running over marine wildlife on the beach. Besides the seashore, we can also spot these gas-guzzling contraptions in other southeastern regions of Bangladesh, including Rangamati and Bandarban. TomTom- They look just as cute as their name suggests. Found in medium-sized cities like Rajshahi and Comilla, TomToms are little electric powered scooters that make all the kids go “awww!” They don't have that mind-numbing drone like the CNGs we're used to here, and it doesn't hurt that their horns don't sound like angry squawking, either. Unlike other forms of transport that we know, the TomTom will take us anywhere in the city for a fixed fare per person. Now, ain't that neat? Rockets- Crawling in at a top speed of two centimeters per second, the 'rocket' is something that does anything but live up to its name. If you're still trying to guess what on earth this could be, then we'll give you a hint- its got two huge wheels at the sides, and fins just to make it extra weird. Well, its actually a sort-of-steamer that goes through the major waterways and can take us to most of the southern districts. People who've been on this say that its safer than the regular 'launches' they use to get home - a 'rocket' is already half-submerged, so apparently there's less of a chance of it capsizing in a freak thunderstorm. The Helicopter- This one definitely takes the title of “Weird on Wheels.” What it actually is, is a bicycle. That's right; bicycle. With a slab of wood nailed to the back. That makes for comfy seating as we and our luggage are pedaled to our destination. And where might we go on a 'helicopter', we hear you wonder? People from Jessore, the home of the helicopter, tell us that these contraptions are a convenient way for people to hop across the border without the hassle of the paperwork. The helicopters go where even the Chander Garis won't, sometimes driving straight through fields and wetlands to get to the other side. And there we have it. Customized transport for every traveler that will ever travel. Now that we know what to call for if we're ever stranded in the middle of a kochukhet, doesn't that make our oh-so-lovingly modified Toyotas seem rather lame? Concert Preview: The Return of the ABC Generation Usually when you go to a concert, you go to see one band perform. The others are just appetizers. But every one of the ABC bands are good enough by themselves to headline a concert. So what if you find all three of them on stage in one epic gig? That's right, Artcell, Black and Cryptic Fate are taking stage this Friday, on the 29th of July in what sounds like the concert of the year. Organised by Live-Square: Concerts in association with ABC Radio and Incursion, the show will take place in the Engineer's Institute Auditorium. As the title suggests, the concert is aimed at the generation of youngsters who grew up listening to these great bands. The show will be about 5 hours long, with about 50 odd songs, promising complete musical satisfaction. And finally, the bands will also perform their combined track, “Aashirbaad.” The show has been sponsored by Gallerie Apex and Nestea. The ticket price is at Tk. 1200, perhaps a little high, but these are good bands in an extended gig. Tickets will not be sold at the gate, and are available at various locations of Dhaka till July 28th, i.e. today. So get them now and don't forget to collect your ABC t-shirt. Ticket sales locations: Our Earth From her endless green and magnificent oceans By Sagorika Haque |
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Apparently, there are crazier ways of getting around the country than on top of the good ol' murir tin. Join the ride as we tour the country to find some of the most eccentric ways of travelling: