Philisophical Woodworking Question

[J T]

This is not my fault. This morning I was thinking, and I thought about the recent thread on Pondering in the Workshop.

Now, I am not religious, I consider myself spiritual now, rather than Christian, altho originally raised Christian. Still believe in God too, just probably a bit different perspective than most people. High Priest for the Woodworking Gods.

That said, the question: What does a Jewish, Moslem, Buddhist, or whatever, woodworker say when he hits his thumb with a hammer? If he was raised in the U.S., I figure he's probably gonna put "Jesus Christ" in there somewhere. Far as that goes, what would an Amish woodworker say? I don't care how religious you are, there aren't too many peope who aren't going to say something.

Now me, I know for a fact that sooner or later the words Jesus Christ would probably fit in there somewhere. Probably proceeded by sonovabitch, and several other choice words.

And, I'm convinced there is no athiest or agnotic in existance that's just going to say "Oh my, I have gone and hit my thumb". They'll be instant converts to religion, and calling on God and Jesus.

The more I think about it, the more curious I get.

JOAT Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind dont matter, and those who matter dont mind.

- Dr Seuss

[Lobby Dosser]

I usually utter an 'AAAHHH SHIT!!!', firmly grasp the injured digit, then dance in place to placate the Hammer God.

[Stephen M]

Hmmm. me too.

When that depends on how hard I have hit my thumb. Having put up a couple thousand linear feet of wood siding 2 summers ago, I can speak from personal experience.

I know that when I have really injured myself there is just a sucking in of air as tears well up in my eyes.

For lesser blows, "Bastard!" is a personal favorite followed by colorful but not expecially creative explatives.

-Steve

[Dave Hinz]

When I shot a 3" long framing nail into my left index finger (lengthwise) while building my house, it was "ouch. Son of a bitch. (pause) (look) Son of a BITCH!".

The X-ray is impressive.

[Ward Wheeler]

Fi What I usually say is :Aaarrrrgghhh!!!".

Then I say "Oooh! OOOH! OOWW! OUCH!

I said all this one day when I trimmed my thumbnail with the router, too. Then I peeked - most of thumb still there...

[Peter De Smidt]

Well, my German friend says "Shit" in those circumstances. "Sheise" just doesn't do it. I think it's the hard consonants. Consider the following candidates: Sex!, Copulate!, Coitus!, Fuck! See, it's those hard consonants. Fuck! is much more satisfying.

Nonetheless, the word doesn't matter _that_ much. My father-in-law, a very devout Roman Catholic, makes up his own swear words. For some reason they involve the Demgee brothers. Take any word, say it the right way, and it becomes an expletive. That's why banning naughty words doesn't do a damn thing.

-Peter

[Joe C.]

That's one xray I'd love to see. Your story reminds me of the guy who took an 18" auger bit straight thru the skull. For those who haven't seen it....

what _he_ said?

Joe C.

[J]

"whimper whimper... Mommmmmmyyyyyy!"

-j

[jo4hn]

[snip]>

"Oh dear, I sincerely wish that I had not done that. Oh my, that is very painful. I must learn something from that."

mahalo, jo4hn

[jo4hn]

Or something akin to "f*ck me. damn. damn. damn. Dumbshit." Whilst the dancing goes on. j4

[Wood Butcher]

I used to work with a Hindian who was a Jain (a Hindu sect). His universal expletive was "SHIT!!" said with a short barking sound.

Art

[RonB]

The normal Roman Catholic response at my house is !@#)(&^>

[Mekon]

Post pics in ABPW!!

Mekon

[Mekon]

(SNIP)

I have been atheist since I was 18 and I usually say "Arghhh ...for f*ck's sake!!" Then I try an instant tourniquet with my other hand, all the while knowing that it will hurt more when I let it go and knowing that I HAVE to let it go sometime. Much anguish a few more expletives and then more pain.

Mekon

[Dave Hinz]

Gotta find the film & scan it. I'll put it on a webpage and put a pointer here when I do.

Dave

[Andy Dingley]

This one uses the names of government cabinet ministers. Offends no-one (that matters) and it's the only way I can remember most of the faceless drones.

If you want to invoke deities, I'd suggest Norse pagan ones. They have a good range, they seem particularly appropriate for the job, and a few were even killed by hammer blows.

[TWS]

Indeed. The first words are typically some religious reference which, as you point out, is odd since I am not religious at all. Followed by a steady stream of expletives related to my meager intelligence and family heritage.

The word stream is pretty much the same in all cases, the only variations are in volume and duration based on pain level (pain as is physical pain or pain as in how much work it is going to take to fix the problem).

TWS

[Robert Bonomi]

[[.. munch ..]]

[[.. munch ..]]

OK, so you need some education _about_ the fine art of swearing.

'Expletives' break down in to several basic categories.

"Profanities" Taking the name of _thy_ god(s), and associated figures, in vain, etc. "Obscenities" e.g. 'the seven words you can't say on TV' "Vulgarities" "neither of the above". "Euphemisms" "heck", "Gosh darn it", "drat", 'dag nab it', etc.

A truly devout person will scrupulously avoid profanities. Although they may *frequently* use language in the other two classes.

Note: something like 'Hell and D*mnation!' is _not_ profanity. Merely a vulgarity. "G*d d*mn it", on the other hand _is_ profanity.

It _is_ rather surprising how much 'hurt' you can ventilate using nothing more than vulgarities. *Particularly* if you _don't_ use them much in every-day conversation.

Euphemisms are totally unsuited for expressing any _intense_ emotion. Their purpose for existence is to provide a 'toned down' (and thus more 'socially acceptable') version of the form they substitute for.

The 'force' of _any_ expletive is a function of the class (from profanity down to euphemism), *and* the 'rarity of use'. The less often you use _any_ expletive, the more release you will get when you _do_ use it.

Swearing/cursing _is_ an art-form. *almost* a 'lost art' these days -- as far as _quality_ goes. An analysis I read, back in the early 70's, discussed various life-styles and the skill-set in this regard. One that stuck in my memory: "Marines, especially sargents, practice it extensively. Unfortunately, using a very limited vocabulary, mostly concerned with bodily functions."

[Frank Ketchum]

When I injure myself, I say one of two things:

If it was a power tool, I say "Norm damn it!" If is a neander tool, I say "Roy damn it!"

Frank

[Phisherman]

"Ouch!" I will often use other words if I've been drinking and not around women or children, but it's my personal rule that I'm not in the shop if I've been drinking.