thereisnoperfect Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 When people sneeze, I've mostly managed to switch from "bless you" to "gesundheit." But I developed the habit, as a Christian, of using "thank god" as a generic response to good news or relief. At the time, it was not only socially appropriate but pious--pointing to god as the author of all good things, etc. But now I don't credit god that way (or have any confidence that god is there), so I don't like saying it. But I do sometimes want to say "That is very good to hear and I feel gratitude toward the combination of circumstances that led to this news." But I can't imagine a mouthful like that coming from a real human in real conversation. It'd be a stretch putting it into Sheldon Cooper's mouth on a sitcom. Anybody found a good alternative? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
◊ crazyguy123 ◊ Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 One could always try, "Thank the universe" or "Thank the FSM". I haven't actually replaced the phrase "thank god" with anything for myself, since I never actually used it, but I have a couple of ideas for what could be used in its place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Marty Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 I am half Estonian, so I use their word "tervis", which means to your good health. I believe this is the same as what gesundheit means. If I am in company that wouldn't know what tervis means (most people) I simply do not say anything. It felt weird at first, but nobody has ever said "excuse me, I just sneezed. Shouldn't you say something to me?" Lol, when you think about it, it really is silly to say anything to someone for a sneeze. I sometimes say "oh my Zeus" to illustrate how stupid saying omg is, but I must admit I say god and jesus christ an awful lot. I think it was a Family Guy episode where Brian says "Oh your god!" and I thought that was really funny but have yet to use it in general public... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FreeThinkerNZ Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 I generally say "that's great!" or "well done" or "that was lucky" or "phew". If I'm in the right sort of company I say "thank fuck!" 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Super Moderator TheRedneckProfessor Posted June 13, 2014 Super Moderator Share Posted June 13, 2014 Like Marty, we usually use a phrase from another language when dealing with a sneeze. In our case, we use the Russian phrase that basically means "Health to you". I've also been known to say "Science save you" instead of "god bless you". So far as "thank god" goes, there's nothing wrong with thanking coincidence if that is what it actually is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roz Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 Bingo, got em, hell yeah, F yeah, well done, nice one and allah hu ackbar? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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