Last week I went to the dentist and he finished the visit saying 'See you in a year'. My response was 'Well, a year will pass in a trice'. This was a phrase that he'd never heard and I had to translate for him. Later that day I read an article on Language trends run in mysterious 14-year cycles. I concluded – because the dentist is much younger than me - that 'In a trice' is neither in the current cycle nor several past ones.
Then someone sent me a Guide to learning Mandarin–the civil servants' language. 'It is no accident that Whitehall officials are known as Mandarins. Their language is often as hard to understand as anything spoken in Beijing.' The guide has 11 lessons, the first opening with 'Mandarins always appear straightforward, friendly and helpful when offering an opinion, asking you to do something, and so on. Do not be taken in! The following translations will help you understand what they really mean.'
Here's one example 'Draft Please! means: Graft for hours producing a coherent and impressive letter so that I can fulfil my teacher-fantasy by needlessly amending it.'
The 10th lesson in the Guide is a masterclass by Lord Butler written in 2004. So, if the language of the Civil Service runs in 14 year cycles we can expect a revised lesson soon.