Just an average day

Walking through the halls of academia this morning at about 11:15 a.m., having already heard two people unecessarily say "literally," I realized there are so many moments that don't make it to the blog. They're so often unentertaining and less than blog-worthy, I thought. But the numerosity alone is becoming more and more amusing to me. Here are a few of today's eight [mis]usages (so far):

"It will literally take me all night to get it done." (Overheard in the hallway between classes, probably a reference to a homework assignment.)

"I literally ... set down my laptop." (Overheard just before class began. Don't know the context, but don't really need to.)

And 2 of the 4 times my beloved friend Christina misused "literally" on the phone with me this evening:

"I was literally out of my body watching myself." Yeah?

"She literally walked in the other direction..." Impossible!

Christina has long known of my little pet peeve and finds it amusing. She said today that she had been thinking to herself, "Do I ever use that word incorrectly?" Ponder no more, Christina, thy mystery is solved. It happens to all of us. And thanks for the Joan of Arc magnet, it is literally on my fridge. No joke. Seriously. I don't think you understand -- it really is on the refrigerator.

Also, someone said "transliteral" in class today.