“Every now and then say, "What the f***."”

The Movie: Risky Business, 1983 (Paul Brickman, screenwriter and director)
Who says it: Curtis Armstrong as Miles, a high school senior and best friend of Joel (Tom Cruise)
The context: Joel’s parents have just left town for the weekend, and Miles wants Joel to live it up a little. The line recurs throughout the movie.
How to use it: I think you can figure this one out.

All right, I agree that using the asterisks above is coy and disingenuous, because we all know what that word is, and it's not as if I don't use it myself far too often (usually while driving). But I don't like that I swear like a sailor, because Mom really did teach us all better than that.

One of the great compromises of my parents' marriage seems to be that Mom got Dad to quit swearing (at least in front of her) and Dad got Mom to be punctual (it's not a McLaughlin family trait). Through the whims of genetics, I am constantly late -- but I feel really bad about it, which makes me swear.

Today I'm late posting because I said "What the -- heck," and took the dogs to the park first thing, instead of turning on my computer. Gary's dog Pete could be Dizzy's larger, goofier brother; they look very much alike, down to the big black patches on their hindquarters. I used to say that Dizzy was smarter than Pete, but after watching them together for a week, I must admit it's not true. They are equally dim, and being together seems to subtract rather than add IQ points. But they are loving and hilarious, and Dizzy will miss Pete when we leave. If we ever leave.

I'm picking up the car on Monday afternoon. It'll be drivable then, because it's drivable now. Whether it will be street-legal (it's missing a taillight, mysteriously) I do not know.