I like licorice. I do. I like it a lot. What I hate – and I mean HATE – is when people say, "I don't like black licorice, I only like red licorice."
There is no such thing as red licorice. Let me say that again – There is no such thing as red licorice!!!
ALL licorice is black. Licorice is not a shape, it's not a particular style of candy. It's a flavor, and the ingredients it's made of, mostly anise, I think, make it black. There can be different shades of black, I suppose, but licorice is always black. ALWAYS.
Those red vines that people insist on calling red licorice? They're strawberry flavored. Those are red vines, or strawberry vines. There is nothing licorice about them. NOTHING! There is NO red licorice.
And then there's this. A story in the Source the other day reported on a guy all excited about his new job. "He said he was anxious to begin the new project." Anxious? Really? He's afraid? I thought he was excited.
As I admonished my co-workers (I'm a real popular guy, as you can imagine) anxious means nervous, edgy, bordering on afraid. It comes from the same root as anxiety.
I suspect that the guy in the story is eager to begin his new job. Eager and anxious are NOT interchangeable. They have completely different meanings.
Thanks for letting me get that off my chest.
Drives me crazy.
I work in a store where the bulk department has trays packed with those candy ropes labeled "cherry licorice", "watermelon licorice", "green apple licorice", etc. I've talked to that department's manager about this incorrect usage of the term and was met with "hmm", but no change. Every time I walk past these items I let out a muffled scream and shake my head. Drives me crazy, too!
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