Business Jargon Really Is Jargon

Growing up in a house full of CPAs* for me meant trying to keep up with conversations in another language that everyone knew and I didn't . You see, I majored in English in college while both my parents and my two sisters are in business. I can tell you about Existentialism, post-modernism, Arthurian Romance, dangling modifiers... But when it comes to business terms, I speak like a little kid. What I mean is that just like tw0-year-olds trying out words for the first time, I made (and continue to make) a lot of mistakes with business jargon to the endless entertainment of my family.
By far the oldest and longest lasting was the name I gave to my temporary retirement account or Roth IRA. My parents started this for me when I was 14 or so. They sat me down and explained what it did and what it would eventually be for. But I had never seen the name of it written, and whenever they said 'Roth' IRA, I thought they were saying Rough IRA, which makes sense somewhat since the Roth IRA is a temporary retirement account or 'rough draft' of the real thing once I get a fulltime job. The best part of this one, though, is that for some reason, I didn't think 'rough' would be spelled 'R-O-U-G-H;' perhaps because rough isn't a very technical term or because I thought it was simply a nice pun on someone's name. For years, I thought the account was a "Ruff IRA."
Another problem I faced in learning business jargon aurally was the speed in which my parents and sisters rattled off the terms. The Standards & Poors index quickly became the Standards & Ponds (afterall, it's just two people's last names; it could be anything--The Stephens and Peters, The Sisco & Puff...). And the last two letters of EBITDA** became an abbreviation for 'Determination' and 'Appreciation.' It made sense to me--interest, (de)preciation, amor something or other. An acronym for charitable qualities, the new motto of the business world: Encouragement, Blessings, Interest, TLC, Determination, and Appreciation. Why not? I dare sare a lot of business men would do well to live by this motto.
The queen of all the faux pas, however, was written in an email I sent to my boss explaining that the editorial he wanted me to buy was about the Stock Market rather than a live market. Without thinking (and without editing my email which one should ALWAYS do), I informed him that the article was about the STALK market...right. And I think I'm going to try for an MBA? Maybe I'd be better off sticking to English.
*CPA: certified public accountant
**EBITDA: Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, amortization