I’m flummoxed!

The Joys of the British Dialect

Last weekend I spent some time at the central train station in Philly waiting for a friend and her family. The train was late, and as I waited, I couldn’t help but overhear the sheer number of European accents.

I don’t know if rail travel is more common in Europe (I suspect it is), but there were almost 50–50 percent of American English dialects to European accents.
Since my knowledge of German, Spanish, French, or any other European language is shoddy at best, the only one where I could pick up on what anyone else was saying was British English.

I love British English. And yes, I know there are many dialects around the country. Geordie, compared to a posh accent, sounds nothing alike. But I love them all. I love expressions like “mind the gap” instead of “watch your step.” It makes it sound like getting off a train is much more of a lovely adventure than a literal next step in getting to work that day. I also love when the Brits say things like “I’m not quite keen” instead of “oh, hell no” or “I don’t want to do that.”

So imagine my delight when, while waiting for my friend, I hear a woman nearby say, “I’m a bit flummoxed.” Sad to say, I didn’t quite catch why she was flummoxed but flummoxed is just not a word you hear on the American streets. I’m confused - yes. I don’t understand what is going on - yes. I’m a bit flummoxed - not at all.

And so there I stood in the middle of our main train station, grinning because someone…