Tuesday, July 16, 2002

ARE HOT WOMEN ALWAYS COOL?

The language my students use...and young people, in general, interests me.
When they like something, when they approve of something, they say "cool."

But they also describe sexy young women as "hot" as in "that babe is really hot!"

So the question arises, is it cool to be "hot"? And if so, what does that mean?
Does the term have anything to do with sexual excitement, when people become
all hot and bothered...

Often, if we don't like something, we say it is "not so hot." For example, if someone
asks you about a party that was kind of dull, you might say it was "not so hot."

Or, answering the question, "how was your date?" you might say, "not so hot."
But "not so hot" is close to cool...does that mean "not so hot" is better than
"good"?