the literal simile

Like David Cross, one of my biggest pet peeves is the misuse of the word literally. It seems like it's getting worse lately, but I have noticed a new variant: Using literally in a way that is technically correct, but sounds incorrect, and is wholly unnecessary. This happens when someone says something akin to literally like.  Example: "We were going so fast, it was literally like we were flying " Well, you didn't claim to actually be flying, so yeah, I guess it is feasible that it was literally like you were flying. But that is called a simile, which is kinda sorta the opposite concept of literally. They cancel each other out and make my brain hurt. People who preface figurative speech with a literal qualifier need a gonad punch. But not literally.

Also, if you think I'm being nit-picky, wait until Wifey takes the ol'  red marker to this post. I live in a grammatical gulag.