Something I once heard my sister say to our grandniece, “I saw the Beatles live.”
“People don’t have pensions anymore?”
No, Mom, we don’t.
In my day.
Let me just talk for a while, you’ll get some
pulling myself up by my bootstraps
You kids, get off my lawn!
“Knee high to a grasshopper” (short)
“Beyond the pale” (outside social norms, I think. Maybe just strange)
“Dance maven”
“I’ll just do that in my copious free time…” (sarcastically, because you are too busy)
“Copacetic” (it’s all good)
“Heavy” (meaning important, grave)
I learned all of these thirty years ago from a man in his fifties. He was full of interesting expressions.
The only time I have ever heard the word copacetic and only reason I know it exists is because of a song that probably only dinosaurs and hipsters listen to anymore: Bound For The Floor.
Other than that, I’ve never heard it used in any context. So I’mma agree that it’s definitely an old person word ( or a pretentious “I’m BeTtEr ThAn YoU” kinda word ).
If the question is things “only” old people say, you have to exclude phrases old people say that were repopularized through media.
“Heavy” (meaning important, grave)
For example this is a really quotable line from Back to the Future, so kids would pick it up.
40 year old movies are not really a major influence on slang & pop culture…
I’ve started saying “beyond the pale” and “copacetic” after playing Disco Elysium
Dad gum
I couldn’t remember the song title Pink Pony Club and called it Hoke Pokey Unicorn the other day… so that
My dad called rootbeer floats “boston coolers” and called BigBoy’s restaurants “Manners”
Im trying to keep boston coolers alive.
“Do you want to go to the pictures?”
‘Like watching a monkey try to fuck a football’
‘About as useful as a wooden dick on a sawhorse’
Etc.
“moderate Republicans”
What should I do with my savings today?
The other day someone told me “bamboozle” is something only old people say
