Sunday is International "Talk Like a Pirate Day," and 6abc.com has what you need to get in the spirit!
The internationally recognized holiday was created by a couple of guys named John Baur and Mark Summers 15 years ago. As they tell their tale, on the
official website of International Talk Like a Pirate Day:
Once upon a time -- on June 6, 1995, to be precise -- we were playing racquetball, not well but gamely. It wasn't our intention to become "the pirate guys." Truth to tell, it wasn't really our intention to become anything, except perhaps a tad thinner and healthier, and if you could see our photos, you'd know how THAT turned out. As we flailed away, we called out friendly encouragement to each other -"Damn, you bastard!" and "Oh, jeez, my hamstring!" for instance - as shots caromed away, unimpeded by our wildly swung rackets...
Anyway, whoever let out the first "Arrr!" started something. One thing led to another. "That be a fine cannonade," one said, to be followed by "Now watch as I fire a broadside straight into your yardarm!" and other such helpful phrases.
Now, thanks to technology it's easier to talk like a pirate than it ever was before.
In addition to web sites that list pirate terms, some online destinations have settings that will let you automatically translate them into pirate-speak; there's Google search and Facebook just to name two. (To change your Facebook settings, you need to log on, go into your account settings and select "English (pirate)" from the list).
Technology is also making it so you can give any website the once-over through pirate glasses. One such site is http://translate-pirate.com.
And if you're worried about your travels on the internet high-seas being a bit risky, security software maker Avast is living up to the pirate-spirit of its name. You can opt in for a feature on the software through September that display its interface in the pirate tongue. So you can have some of the seas' greatest scalliwags defend your computer from viruses and spam.
So enjoy and make it a great pirate weekend, with pirate versions of stories for all our Bizarre News!
