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February 28, 2003
Real Estate Agents
You often read about the extraordinary way real estate agents abuse the English Language in advertisements. We have just received a letter from an agent who wants to sell our house and he could even put Joe Bonkers-Bananas (former premier of Queensland) to shame. Joe is (probably inaccurately) famous for the phrase; "I smell a rat, I see it floating in the air, I shall nip it in the bud", which makes sense only if you ignore the metaphors and look at the meaning and context.
Our friendly agent writes: "... timing is everything and it is important to act now while the iron is hot in a market that is boiling over with activity".
Let's take a moment with that phrase:
- Timing is everything = Only fools rush in, look before you leap, consider carefully what you are doing because otherwise a hasty decision could lead to later regrets.
- It is important to act now = He who hesitates is lost. If you delay the opportunity is gone, immediate response required.
- The iron is hot = best time to strike (or is that to go on strike), if you delay everything shatters - which may actually be helpful as the house would be demolished to build units.
- The market is boiling over = frantic activity which is not achieving anything (as in the milk which boils over is spoiled), also suggests may be too late and market will come off the heat for cooling.
The strangest part is the mixing of the hot iron and the boiling market. I suspect that molten (boiling) iron is far too hot for striking and in fact all that overflowing, boiling iron probably creates a situation that is far too dangerous for a mere house owner :grin.
Posted by Peskie at February 28, 2003 12:00 PM
