Pleasantly Surprised

A good friend and I were sitting across from each other at brunch when, after she took a bite out of her ceviche dish, said in an emphatic voice: "Heh, I'm pleasantly surprised!" Not unless she had tried ceviche before could she have reacted that way - it was believable.

"Pleasantly surprised." It's such a sweet phrase. Oft spoken, oft heard, and perhaps often taken for granted and often used incorrectly. An oxymoron of sorts: 'pleasant' denotes something of tranquil delight while 'surprised' elicits shocked exclamation.

When did it become such a commonly used phrase? Try Googling it and you'll come up with nil. I guess it is what it is...and to be honest, I am happy with that explanation for this idiom.

It works in any conversation (conventional or not). It works when you least expect to use it. But perhaps the best way to describe it is that it works...like magic. =)


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