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Maybe it's because I slept late this weekend and missed the announcement, but when did everything become an "experience?"

I read something the other day that examined the growing length and complexity of restaurant menus. A half dozen restaurateurs and chefs used the words "dining experience" to describe what, to me, always has been simply "going out to eat." I guess when you have a "dining experience," it costs more than if you're just going to a restaurant for dinner with some friends. Certainly, the tip is going to be larger so the waiter is going to enjoy a better "gratuity experience."

Then I began noticing how frequently the word shows up where it never has appeared before, describing things in ways that never would occur to me.

A movie critic wrote about a "film-going experience" he'd had; he probably thought that sounded a lot more authoritative and grand than simply saying "I went to a movie." Ordinary proles go to movies, but the film critic sitting two rows behind me is having an "experience" watching the same lousy flick while we each eat overpriced popcorn.

Suddenly, experiences are everywhere.

In an article about a retail chain that had just remodelled all of its stores, an executive explained that the company spent several million dollars because it wanted to "enhance the shopping experience" for customers. The CEO of an airline was on a newscast last night talking about steps his company was adding to "the flying experience" of its passengers. I've made some purchases on eBay, which thoughtfully reminds me whenever I log in just how much fun the "eBay experience" can be. I received an e-mail this morning from a book store telling me that it is dedicated to making my "reading experience" more pleasurable and meaningful.

Apparently, it's not enough anymore just to buy a new book to read, I must have a "reading experience." If I like the book and offer it to a neighbour, I guess I'm inviting them to have their own "reading experience." But if I don't like the book and toss it out halfway through, did I have a "bad reading experience" or did it morph into a "recycling experience"?

Maybe because of the Internet, cable channels in the hundreds, and on-demand everything including acquaintances who know each other only through chat rooms and e-mail, we have to label anything an experience because nothing is a genuine experience anymore. It represents a kind of "language creep," where glossed-up words and phrases are used to make the mundane seem meaningful.

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