How I Am Like Willis and Chris Tucker

Raise your hand if you are familiar with any of the following expressions or abbreviation:

1. like touching the 3rd rail
2. a hard row to hoe
3. I am going to SFO
4. I am going to OR

I have used all three of these in professional communication recently, and was understood by only 20% of my audience.  It never occurred to me how often I use colloquial expressions until these particular examples were pointed out.  I love languages and often do better in disciplines that have a unique jargon, so I am not surprised to learn that I use jargon frequently.  However, with the exception of SFO, I would have considered these expressions more universal.  Clearly, not.

In fact, one colleague who complained of my "colorful turns of phrase" asked me if I was from the midwest.  I'm not sure what that is supposed to mean, as she is from Kansas herself, but I bet you can guess.

1. The third rail of a subway is typically the one that runs the electricity to power the cars.  If you touch it, you will be electrocuted.  Thus, touching the third rail is dangerous.  To say something is like touching the third rail would suggest it is close to or is dangerous.
2. Before planting seeds, it is common to hoe a row of soil to make a trench to accept the seeds.  If the soil is poor or the trench needs to be particularly deep, this can be difficult and require much labor and time.  To say something is a hard row to hoe suggests it would be difficult and require much work.
3. SFO is the airport code for San Francisco, CA.
4. OR is the state abbreviation for Oregon, USA

One explanation is that the stodgy work environment could account for the lack of comprehension of the first two, but what about SFO and OR?  At dinner tonight, two of my closest friends (who also missed these references) blamed their misunderstanding of SFO on my notorious texting skills (i.e., a complete lack thereof).  That's fair.  But, OR?  

Still, the lesson for me is the same: speak plain-er.  This will be a struggle because it first requires an awareness.  But, there's hope:  I almost wrote '"the take-home" lesson for me'!

I am Willis.

I am Chris Tucker.