Whatever happened to "You're welcome" and why is the new “Thank you “here ya go..”!!!

The once mandatory phrase has been replaced by annoyingly casual responses, to which I say: No, thanks!

This subject has been a pet peeve of mine so long that I was shocked when I used my own terminology to “Google” the question “Whatever happened to You’re Welcome” that up-popped so many responses with the exact phrase that I couldn’t read them all. So, I have elected to copy and paste parts of an article by Matt Zoller Seitz, a Salon contributor. . Follow him on Twitter at mattzollerseitz.

Like so, my never-ending question of “Whatever happened to “Thank You” as well, reaches a sore spot with me and when my turn came to be a contributor of this newsletter, I knew exactly what I would write about. The following is an excerpt from my Google search. Please feel free to go online and read it in it’s entirety. It is so fitting that I could have written it myself…Jean Easterling

So I go to the corner Rite-Aid and buy some batteries, paper towels and shampoo. The clerk bags the goods, hands me my change (coins wrapped inside the receipt and bills in a sweaty, dumpling-like wad) and says, "Here ya go." "Thank you," I say. His response: "Not a problem."

A couple hours later, I order lunch at a restaurant. The server brings the food and as she sets it on the table, I say, "Thank you."

"No problem!" she replies. What ever happened to "You're welcome"?

Yes, I know, this is a tiny thing to obsess over. But it irritates me to an extent that cannot be captured in print without the use of capital letters, boldface, italics and multiple exclamation points, none of which would make it past Salon's copy desk. In an ideal world I'd convey my passion by teleporting Jack Nicholson into the room with you so that he could screw his face into a mask of constipated rage, half-clench his fingers as if he were about to strangle somebody, and growl the phrase with the impotent fury it requires: What ever happened to "You're welcome"?

Am I crazy, or have you noticed this, too? Does it throw you off balance just a bit, and make you wonder — as I sometimes wonder — whether "You're welcome" was once common, or whether you only imagined it was common and are only now waking up to the harsh reality that the rest of the civilized world collectively considers "You're welcome" to be a quaint but useless locution — a verbal affectation akin to filling one's everyday speech with obsolete vernacular like "Right on!" or "cockamamie" and "daddy-o"? (Luckily I found allies among friends and family, and at the New York Observer.

Maybe it's my fault. Maybe I create little hothouses in which annoyance can flower by habitually blurting out "Thank you" to people who, as representatives of the commercial establishment, should be thanking me first. But the disappearance of "You're welcome" is a phenomenon not confined to commercial transactions. Just the other day I saw a young man hold open a door for a woman. Woman: "Thank you." Man: "Not a problem."

Since I began irritating friends with this complaint a few weeks ago, I've been informed by people who sincerely believe they have my best interests at heart that language and culture are forever evolving — that certain phrases supplant other phrases, the replacement phrases serve the same function as the originals, and if you let this organic process bug you, you're overcomplicating your life and perhaps contributing to the onset of high blood pressure, kidney stones and whatnot.

They might be right. But that doesn't change the fact that I can't remember the last time I heard "You're welcome" in any daily context save an exchange with familiar, like-minded people who believe, as I do, stubbornly and perhaps irrationally, that "Thank you" should be answered by "You're welcome."

What's my problem with "No problem"? Maybe it's my cranky suspicions that the phrase implies an imposition on the part of the person saying, "Thank you."

"No problem" translates as, "What I did for you was not the sacrifice you so charmingly believe it to be. I hereby release you to get on with your day, blessedly free of guilt."

In other words, "No problem" reverses the terms of the transaction. Rather than your doing a favor for an establishment by shopping there, suddenly the establishment is doing you a favor by having its employees help you, then reassuring you that it was no big deal, seeing as how you were already in the store and all.

I'm similarly annoyed by the man who told that woman it was not a problem to hold the door for her. His response, like the various clerk-server responses mentioned above, reverses the historically accepted terms of a routine encounter. It was once expected that gentlemen would always open doors for ladies because the gesture was more than a gesture. It was a puny vestige of chivalry, a token of appreciation toward the gender that does the whole human race a favor by carrying life inside of it. In this context, "No problem" translates as: "Don't worry, holding that door didn't cost me anything but a few seconds of my life and a handful of glucose molecules — so carry on, lady!"

Branding

Now that you’ve taken the steps to brand your business with custom embroidered clothing, be mindful of these items to keep their appearance fresh and prolong garment life!

Instructions for Washing Embroidered Garments
For best results, turn garment inside out and wash in warm water with a mild detergent.
Do not add bleaching agents such as chlorine, peroxide or sodium carbonate. Certain threads are bleach resistant, but not foolproof!
Do not line dry. Garments should be tumble dried at warm setting.
Never leave damp or wet embroidered articles folded or stuck together
Never wring out any embroidered articles.
Never leave embroidered articles soaking in water.
Garments or linen that may be commercially laundered should ALWAYS be embroidered with polyester thread!
If the first laundering of a new garment is done in cool or cold water, leftover dye particles from the thread may remain on the fabric. This does not mean the article is ruined. Rewash in warm water. The remaining particles will wash out.