Intarweb VUH-lays

When Kris and I purchased my car six years ago, we made the beginner's mistake of walking into a dealership and buying a car off the showroom floor. Not the first time we've done that, but most certainly the last time.

After we had signed the documentation and handed them a check, the salesman handed us a set of keys. The first and second keys were black and could open all the locks on the car. The third key of the set was a grey key. He handed it to us, and told us it was the valet key: it unlocked the doors and started the engine, but wouldn't unlock the truck, nor the glove box.

Except, when he handed us the key, he pronounced the word, VUH-lay. He was handing us the vuh-lay key.

Kris and I looked at each other and cracked up. Since then, we've teased each other about the vuh-lay key. The mispronounciation humours us, much the way I use Intarweb to mock the Internet.

Tragically, the mocking can become an embarrassment, especially when the mispronounciation becomes ingrained in my normal speech.

I couldn't find my regular car key this morning, so I grabbed the valet key to drive my car to the dealership for the back window replacement. When I arrived to talk to the service manager, I asked him if "the vuh-, the vuh-, vuh..." Crap, I couldn't remember how to pronounce the word valet! Crap, crap, crap!

The service guy looked at me. "You mean the VAL-lay key? Yes, that's fine."

As Bella and I walked home, I kept repeating, "VAL-lay. VAL-lay. VAL-lay. The VAL-aaaa key."