something shiny 

A phrase used to explain a personal lapse in memory, coordination and/or good judgment by falsely attributing it to the phenomenon of being distracted by bright, pretty things (i.e. diamonds, fancy cars, jewelry, "bling", etc.), especially where the desire is to make light of it; often used in conjunction with a list of actions or other phrases like blah-blah-blah or yada yada yada; a take-off of the concept that blonds are distracted by "something shiny"

Dave: Hey, what's the name of that song you
told me I gotta download?

Pete: Yeah, the song is called, uh...
um... ooo, sorry, something shiny...

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Sorry I flaked on going out with you guys, but I started sorting my DVDs, blah-blah-blah, something shiny, and next thing I knew, it was 3am!

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It was humiliating! One minute, I'm walking through the mall; blah-blah-blah, something shiny, & next thing I know, I'm doing a face-plant off the bottom of the escalator!!

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I was sticking to my diet, making great progress. But the night I was home alone studying, that extra-large, extreme combo pizza was calling to me. I was reading my textbook, taking notes...something shiny...and suddenly, all that was left was a pile of crusts!

something shiny by psalm27sjb December 28, 2007