Opinions sought

[twirlgrrl]

Why do people say "going on" when giving their age? Like "I'm 22 going on 23?"

Comments

[slinksgirl.livejournal.com]

Because we all secretly want to be like Liesl, minus the nazi boyfriend.

[slinksgirl.livejournal.com]

OH, and i think I am going to start telling people that I am 29-going-on-21.

[twirlgrrl.livejournal.com]

LOL FOREVER

"I know that I'm naive..."

[eac.livejournal.com]

As opposed to "I know that my boyfriend is a Nazi murderer?" ;)

[twirlgrrl.livejournal.com]

Ha ha, I never even thought of that interpretation before.

P.S. Thanks for the call, sorry about my lameness in so far not returning it.

[eac.livejournal.com]

:) No harm, no foul on returning phone calls.

[roseredhoofbeat.livejournal.com]

I always read it as "closer to that than my current age". Like, you're over the halfway point.

[f1ymetothemoon.livejournal.com]

This.

[twirlgrrl.livejournal.com]

Wow! That never even occurred to me. Thanks!

[twobadmice.livejournal.com]

Time travelers and therefore insistent on precision.

Not "just 23", but almost 24?.

[twirlgrrl.livejournal.com]

I can't believe I never thought of this before.

[kindsis.livejournal.com]

Yep, I've always thought that too--if you say "going on" it means nearer to that age than your current age. I think it is silly to say this about oneself if you are just close to your birthday (unless you are a kid); however I do use this phrase sometimes for describing others, such as; "She is 13 going on 30" meaning she acts like a 30-year-old, but is really only 13.

[twirlgrrl.livejournal.com]

Well that's the thing, I don't mind "13 going on 30" because I know what it means, and it's a useful turn of phrase.

I feel silly for not ever suspecting that "12 going on 13" could mean "almost 13." But you know what? I think it's a silly thing to say.