Let’s have a little fun and look at how skittles can add a little pizazz to everyday language. Because I often struggle to articulate the swirling mass of thoughts tangled up inside my brain, I am constantly looking for ways to help me express myself. Connections and pictures pop into my head and they provide clarity as well as immense enjoyment. So I thought I’d share one of these connections/pictures that I’ve been having fun with lately.
Here are 3 ways to use Skittles in everyday conversation.
"How are you doing? Fine, and you?"
I’m starting with my favorite way to use skittles in conversation. Because I work from home and Zoom calls are the primary way of communicating with coworkers and clients, I have seen an exponential increase in the greeting, “How are you?” I get incredibly bored with sameness, so I decided that the usual “Fine. How are you?” was not going to cut it. I began brainstorming ways of answering this question honestly, but with a little more tomfoolery mixed in. A standby favorite is the skittle rating system. It goes something like this:
- Red – Awesome! Because this is the tastiest flavor, a red skittle day means it’s pretty epic.
- Green – Pretty good! I’m always happy to reach for a green skittle and this kind of day is an overall great day.
- Purple – Decent. It’s not my first choice, but still tasty. The day is probably a mix of some not so great things and some good stuff.
- Yellow – Fair to middling. There may be reasons for it being less than satisfactory, or it might be due to a general feeling of, “meh”.
- Orange – Don’t ask. The grossest flavor in my opinion, and it represents a similar sort of day. I’d get back in bed if I could.
The only issue with this system that I’ve found is that everyone’s rating system will be a little different based on their favorite skittle flavor, so a little explanation helps clarify things. The conversation could sound something like this, “Hi, how’s your day going?”
“It’s a red skittle day! I found $100 in my coat pocket, my cat learned to use the toilet, and I lost 5 pounds.” Another response could be, “It’s an orange skittle day, but it’s Monday, so what do I expect?” It’s a great way to connect with people with a little more honesty while not letting things get too heavy or personal.
Get Your Skittles Lined Up
This one just popped out by accident the other day when I was talking about getting myself organized and ready for a task. My husband inspired this saying with his obsessive attention to details. When he eats Skittles (or any other colorful, multiflavored candy), he sorts by color first and then lines everything up with all the S’s going in the same direction. When it’s time to eat them, he starts with the color group that makes his lines uneven, so that there is always an even number of each color. This is the ultimate act of taking stock, and making a plan to systematically take care of something. The satisfaction in lining up skittles before eating them reminds me of how much better I feel when I do the same thing for both the mundane and important things in my life. So, the next time I need to get organized, I’m going to “get my skittles lined up.”
Verb It
I know there are a ton of grammar purists that hate the practice of turning nouns into verbs. But there is something so fun and creative about finding new ways to express yourself, even if they aren’t fully accepted as correct grammar yet. And one of the wonderful things about using words in nontraditional and creative ways is that the definition is still fluid and can mean whatever you want. To “skittle” something… That can mean so many things. One could “skittle over there” (as in hurry over somewhere). Or it could be something like, “that got all skittled up.” Or how about, “skittle your horizons” (try new things).
Turning “Skittles” into a verb is extra fun because it’s gone all the way from being a proper noun – a specific brand of a particular sort of candy to having all sorts of uses and meanings. Oh the possibilities!
I know this little exercise may seem a little weird and maybe pointless, but finding joy in simple silly things can make a big difference. I’m going to keep searching for ways to express myself that also make me smile. I encourage you to do the same!
