I’m a little nervous about doing this post. SIMB (Shaking in my boots) because I think I’ve had TMB (too many birthdays) to figure out all these shortcuts in the world of texting. See the picture. That’s where I am. Still thinking a fountain pen and notebook has to be the best way to write anything. But alas, I no longer use that fountain pen that I had so much fun filling up out of the glass ink bottles I bought when I was a teen and imagining myself a writer.
I’m still imagining myself a writer, but now I do use a keyboard while I’m trying to imagine a story. If I use pen and paper, the pens are the kind that accumulate until you’ve filled up several cups on your desk and you know you should go through them to figure out which ones still work. Then when you do, they all work and how can you throw away pens or pencils that still have words in them.
But texters don’t have to worry about whether a pen has ink or a pencil needs sharpening. Texters whip out their phones from their pockets and then their thumbs start flying across the screens. They don’t bother typing out words. They use shortcuts like LOL. I know what that one means although the first few times I saw it some years ago my first thought was that it meant Lots of Love. That brought on some puzzled frowns when that expression of love showed up at the oddest times in texts. Finally I figured out they were laughing. Probably at me! Of course ROTFL means something is even funnier. I did figure that one out too, but somehow I always doubt if the person is actually rolling on the floor laughing. Have you ever seen anyone over the age of five roll on the floor laughing? Especially while typing. But perhaps you can ROTFL and text at the same time.
This is actually a rework of a post I wrote 14 years ago when texting was truly more of a mystery to me. Now with grandkids sometimes texting me, I’m not quite as clueless as I once was. Not quite, but still not text savvy. What got me started on the post those years ago was a message from a friend that ended with TTYL. At the time, I had no idea what TTYL stands for. So I tried to figure it out. Since it was at the end of her message, I thought it might be some kind of Yours truly. Truly truly you live. Text till you’re loved. Tomorrow take your leave. Take that you loser. That’s the yellow lemon. Obviously, as you can see I’m TOTT. Too old to text. But now these years later, I realize fairly quickly that it actually means talk to you later. In fact, I’m a little surprised I was so bewildered then. Does that mean that I’m becoming text savvy after all?
For a certainty, I was not back then when I did one of my first on-line interviews. People signed in and I was signed in and they asked questions that after a respectful pause I was supposed to answer. Somebody asked me if I was a SOTP writer. Well, not wanting to appear out of it and TOTT (too old to text), I frantically tried to make sense of what in the world a sotp writer was. Silly? Old? Timid? Proud? I had to forget about the proud and admit my ignorance. Of course! Seat of the pants. Anybody – especially a writer – should be able to figure that out. More so, since I am one. A sotp writer. But not a sotp texting interviewee it seemed.
Now with Google, if I’m confused about a text shortcut, I can just ask the internet what IDK means. Maybe there are even reference books to help us figure out what our youngsters are trying to tell us. I would say I could come up with one, but I doubt anyone would want my versions of those texting shortcuts. But with your help, I’m sure we could come up with some entries that would have us laughing and that might just stay a mystery forever. Even Google wouldn’t be able to figure them out. But I could put some letters together that I might think means one thing when it might mean something not so nice to text experts. Like IITD (I’m in the dark.) So educate me those of you not TOTT. What’s a texting shortcut you use or that you’ve seen. I’m positive we can find some new and different meanings for them. Then we can all be ROTFL.
Here’s a texting joke about a old mom like me that you may have heard but might make you smile again.
A mom sent a text to her son. “What do IDK, LY, TTYL mean?”
The son answers, “I don’t know. Love You. Talk to your later.”
Mom texts back. “That’s okay. Don’t worry about it. I’ll ask your sister.”
What text shortcuts have puzzled you in the past? Or are you one of those texting experts?
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Comments 42
I’m 72, but not much of a talker, so texting works for me. But I don’t use the shortcuts. My husband get aggravated that I don’t just call someone; he has a flip phone so he doesn’t text at all. And he can talk forever, especially with his sisters!
Author
I used to talk on the phone more than I do now although my daughter and I can have a long talk once a week or so. One of my sons calls us on his speaker phone on his drive home and especially when the traffic gets stalled because of roadwork. I think it’s sort of fun doing the texting when you have a group text so t hat you can share pictures and what you are doing with everybody in this or that family.
I hear you, Ann. I still love pen and paper too.
Author
Oh, the joy of writing in a journal with an inkpen that you’ve filled with liquid ink, Diana. Not that I’ve done that for years. Now I’m happy with an inkpen that glides across the page with ease, but I do most of my writing with fingers on keyboards these days. Maybe I should go back to pen and paper for some new inspiration.
I’ve never been a person that talks on the phone or texts very much. If I wonder what some of the shortcuts are, I ask the computer and usually get a answer.
Author
Aren’t computers amazing with their answers, Connie? Not long ago I bought some make up in a little compact and could NOT get it open. I tried over several days and was ready to take a hammer to it. But first, I decided to ask Google, and you know what? I wasn’t the only one who’d had that problem. The solution popped right up after all the complaints and threats to never buy that product again. The solution worked. Opened it right away. Might even buy some more of the stuff. LOL
I don’t like to text. I prefer talking. But I sometimes text the grandkids, or I’ll text “call me when you’re not busy”. My 18 year old grandson also prefers calling instead of texting. I think he might be as clueless as I am with most of the abbreviations. I just had to google SMH to see what it meant. Another one that recently had me clueless is SAHM (stay at home mom).
Author
I had to look it up too, Lavon. I had no idea. But I don’t do all that much texting and if I do, I just write it out in plain words. I wouldn’t have figured out SAHM either. That sounds a little bossy. LOL.
I don’t use those texting shortcuts. It’s easier for me to write in complete sentences, and I don’t really text much either.
Author
Maybe because you do like those complete sentence, Diana, that’s why you don’t text that much. I like writing in sentences too, although I do use some fragments in my stories. Helps the story move along or at least that’s what I hope.
I only know LOL and TTYL, and I’m in my 20s! 😂
Author
Ahh, a breath of fresh air, Marti. Thank you for chiming in to keep some of us from feeling like such dinosaurs in the texting world. We can imagine ourselves young like you.
I only have a landline phone, so I don’t text by phone. However I do send and receive messages on FB and folks like to use alphabet soup there, most often leaving me shaking my head. I loved your post! I can truly relate. It gave me a lot of smiles and chuckles. I’m definitely TOTT!
Author
Glad you enjoyed the post, Karen. I hoped it would get some smiles from those of us TOTT or the younger ones who might be smiling at how we are so inept in the texting world. Calling it alphabet soup is a great description. Love it.
TIL “today I learned” threw me for a loop the first time I saw it.
Author
Glad you said what TIL means, Megan. I guess “today I learned” a lot about those shortcuts.
I usually have to ask my 16 year old grandson what everything means. I don’t text a lot but I do like texting my college age grandsons so I can keep up with them or just tell them I love them. I also send hearts to them. Ann, I also thought LOL meant lots of Love too. Of course my grandson gave me the look and let me know real fast I was wrong.
Author
Those grandkids can straighten out us old grandmas when we lag behind in the texting and social media world, Pamela. One of my DIL likes the hearts and other little add-ons. I never seem to find the right ones when I decide to use them. Then my daughter and SIL like to send funny GIFs to each other. I can never find an appropriate one of those either. Sometimes I suppose I’m simply clueless.
I do NOT know the texting short cuts! I’ll ask whoever sent them to what they mean! Honestly, I only use my phone for talk and text, no apps on it whatsoever, as I took them all off!!
Author
I sometimes think I should take those apps off my phone, Trudy. especially those I’ve never used. Maybe your comment will inspire me to clean up my phone.
I forgot to mention that finding ink for a fountain pen and a new fountain pen might be a challenge today. However with Amazon and eBay it might be possible! SMH
Author
I think they still have those super expensive fountain pens out there, Marjorie. So they surely have ink somewhere. I wish I’d saved one or two of those cute ink bottles with the glass well inside to fill your pen. And then they had those inkpens that had little cartridges of ink. Those were interesting. You can tell I loved pens when I was a teen.
I type most everything out. I don’t know most of the short cuts and often can’t decipher them. I really wish people would just say what they mean. Not everyone understands what they’re trying to say. Rather confusing.
Author
I can certainly find some of the shortcuts confusing, Mary. And you can sometimes say things you didn’t intend to say while texting when the phone decides you are writing one word when you were actually writing something entirely different. I sent an embarrassing message to a neighbor once when a word was changed and didn’t read the message over before I hit send. He just laughed. Sometimes that’s all you can do. Laugh.
I do text but I still sometimes have to ask what some shortcuts mean, and I can’t do the thumb thing!!! Because I am 78, I have to stop and think what a shortcut means. I just now remembered that SMH means shaking my head!!! I have a special sound for incoming texts and there are days it just doesn’t stop!! My grandson, age 20, texts constantly, and I do mean constantly. There should be a support group for people like him who are addicted to their phone. Cell phone addicts anonymous???
Author
I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a support group like that, Marjorie. My grandkids are quite the texters too. One of my granddaughters called me the other day and I have to admit I was surprised. But pleased. 🙂 And I can’t do the thumbs. I’ve tried but give up. I guess I need a whole keyboard.
Way to go remembering what SMH meant. I had to look it up on Google.
My grandchildren may consider me TOTT because I still use a flip phone, not a smart phone, and texting even a short message is quite tedious on a flip phone! But sometimes it’s convenient to just text “I love you” or “I miss you” to a grandchild and not interrupt whatever they’re doing with a ringing phone. I almost never use any abbreviations because it’s quicker to just type out what I want to say instead of trying to remember which combination of capital letters is the correct “short cut”!
These days, many of my health care providers use text messages as reminders of upcoming appointments instead of making phone calls.
Author
People that need to send reminders of appointments have embraced texting, Roberta. And yes, texting on a flip phone is not worth the trouble. Hard enough on a flat screen one with a kind of keyboard. I also agree that I don’t use the shortcuts because, like you, I don’t remember them. But I guess it’s okay for a grandma to be TOTT.
I don’t like to text if it is going to be a conversation better to call quicker
Author
Back and forth texting can be tiresome, Brenda. That’s for sure. Especially for someone like me who has never learned the two thumb technique and poke around with my fore finger. 🙂
Texting is convenient at times , I don’t have the time or interest to learn the short cuts ; I prefer a phone conversation !! People are so addicted to their phones instead of talking with each other person to person .
Author
People are addisted to their phones, Nancy. Some keep them in their hands all the time. Others of us have them in our pockets. I was at a doctor’s office a few months ago and everyone in the waiting room had their phones out doing something on them. I remember when we used to strike up conversations with each other while we were waiting.
I always have to ask my daughter what something means as I don’t text I would rather hear a person’s voice on the phone Have a Great and Blessed Day!
Author
The sweet sound of your loved ones’ voices in your ear. Yes, Sarah, telephones for talking haven’t gone completely our of style. When I’m researching my historical novels, I often think of how in frontier days when a child grew up and maybe moved west or far away, the mother may have never heard from that child again. Makes me appreciate all the way we can keep in touch these days.
My problem is that in texting I am still spelling out words and punctuating which exasperates everyone. Also, on Facebook, I notice many comments being made and the spelling is out of this world. I just saw — “he loose the election.” Oh, I so wanted to respond, but I did not. I am not the language police. I had to say that. Happy texting everyone.
Author
I do the same thing, Loretta. You need sentences and punctuation and words spelled right. 🙂
Took me a while to get SMH, and that I did when I figured it out. I typically only use lol.
Author
Okay, you have me, Dana. I have no idea about SMH. Smile Hard? So Much Humor? So many hahas? I am plunged back into the definitely not text savvy. LOL
Author
Okay, I asked Google, and believe me, I am Shaking My Head. Would have never thought of that.
They all confuse me until I see them enough. I am not in to texting a lot. I like to hear someone’s voice when I communicate with them.
Author
I’m with you, Sharon. Better to hear a voice than just a few words, but I don’t think kids talk on the phone anymore. Maybe they just text each other for a time to meet and talk in person although I have seen plenty of people at restaurants each on their own phones instead of talking.