actually

have you noticed that we all say "actually" way too much? i wouldn't go so far as to say the word is content-free, but it's almost always extraneous. it's actually a little cruel to point this out because once you are made aware of it, it becomes horribly distracting. where did this come from? why do we all do it? and why did me and a close friend independently discover this a week apart? are we getting worse?

i see the makings of a great drinking game for 30-somethings. it seems like we spend a lot of time sitting around sharing semi-factual tidbits where "actually" is liberally applied for emphasis to make our stories sound more interesting. if we had to drink every time we said it, our parties might actually get a bit more crazy.