I am weirded out ...

[ORChick]

... by this very polite young man who is doing some work for us, and keeps saying "Yes Ma'am" . I am doing my best, but I find it really strange. I appreciate that he is being polite, and that he is about a third my age, and realize it isn't a bad thing. But still .... I am a West Coast girl, born and bred; have only lived about 6 of my almost 60 years away from the West Coast, and none of that time in the Southern states. I don't think this young man is from the South either; I would guess that he is more an Oregonian than I am. I thank his parents for raising a polite, hard working young man. But .... d**n it .... I'm not old enough (only 59 ) to be Ma'am!

I equate *ma'am* with the Southern states. Nothing wrong with that, but it seems strange to my Western ears. How about you? How do you feel about being *Ma'am-ed* or *Sir-ed*, and at what age does it seem no longer strange? Or is it not strange at all, and just the way things ought to be?

I have to confess that I find it more pleasant than being called by my first name by someone I hardly know, but still, its just a little weird.

 

[abifae]

I say "ma'am" and "sir" and get weirded out by people who get mad at me for it. Just basic manners

 

[k0xxx]

When I was in my twenties and starting a new job, the boss who was in his fifties, asked that I stop saying "sir" to him. I told him that I would try, but it's hard to stop something that was beat into you for eighteen years.

I'm 53, and it does feel weird when a young adult says "sir" to me now. I just go with it and take it as a badge of honor for having survived for this long.

 

[sunsaver]

I live in the south, and it's very common here, especially among younger people addressing older people or their boss. I use it sometimes, especially in dealing with government or Law Enforcement. "Yes sir, Officer." It is a sigh of respect and good upbringing. His parents raised him right, and you should not be concerned about it. Now that i am older, i try to use mostly surnames: "Yes Mrs. Jones. What else do you need me to fix, Mrs. Jones?" My regular customers are more like friends, and i do call them by their first names.

 

[ORChick]

Oh, please don't think I am upset with him, or would say anything negative. I think it is rather charming in its way, just strange to me.

When I was in boarding school in Ireland I, along with all the other students, called all the male teachers *Sir*; it was some months before I even knew the real names of some of them. The women were all *Miss* or *Mrs* So and so. When I returned to California I was dumbfounded to find that several of my teachers wanted to be called by their first names!

Maybe it is time that I get used to the fact that I am getting older? Now, that is a depressing thought

 

[sunsaver]

The first time i had a young man call me sir, i felt old. I went home and shaved off all the salt and pepper. It took off about ten years!

 

[abifae]

LOL OR!!! You aren't old. It's just manners

I didn't think you were upset, but it amused me thoroughly. I think it all depends on how you grow up. If "ma'am" is the generic polite term or if it is only used towards authority.

 

[Lady Henevere]

Here in SoCal, "ma'am" and "sir" are pretty much only used sarcastically; "Yes, ma'am" means, "I'll do it because you're forcing me to, but I sure won't like it." I saw a judge once yell at a guy for calling her ma'am ("It's 'your honor,' and you would do best not to forget that.").

 

[dragonlaurel]

Lots of people grew up calling people their parents age, or older, Mam or Sir. So it makes them feel old when somebody says it to them. I'll admit I'd rather be called Miss, if they don't know my name. Just vanity there.
fixed typo

 

[sunsaver]

Anyone with a brain knows that it's "Your Honor", but sarcasm? How does respect and good manners get twisted into sarcasm at the California border?