not olive, but she walks like this sometimes.
is it a crab? is it a cat? what is it doing?
CRABWISE!
KRAB-wiyz
Part of speech: adverb
Origin: English, 20th century
Definition: To, toward, or from the side, typically in an awkward way.
Examples in a sentence:
“Roberto moved crabwise without taking his eyes off the dodgeball.”
“My cat only moves crabwise if she knows I’m going to try to give her a pill.”
—
“some things cannot be changed. you cannot teach a crab to walk straight.”
-aristophanes
yesterday was my favorite day of the week for crosswords
sunday paper delivered at home
weekend puzzle inside
waiting to challenge me
my personal process may include
a tiny bit (iota) of cursing (*&@^) at times
until that ‘aha’ (eureka moment) arrives.
—
word of the day:
cruciverbalist
cru-sih-Ver-be-list
part of speech: noun
origin: american english, mid 1970s
definition: a person who enjoys or is skilled at crosswords.
example in a sentence:
“my mother, the cruciverbalist, still receives the daily newspaper so she can solve the crossword with her pen.”
—
“just got excited at a crossword clue that was ‘cheese lovers’ and was like ooh,
there’s a name for people like me it turns out it was: mice.“
-word porn
one of my fav films
these are my people.
word of the week
you never know when you might need this
it could be just the perfect word to describe your circumstances.
—
image credit – gary larson, the far side
sometimes finding good words is a walk in the park.
—
“good words are worth much, and cost little.”
-george herbert
—
gallup park in winter, ann arbor, mi, usa
The word “huh” packs a lot of meaning into just one syllable. When we use it, we might be expressing confusion, asking for clarification, or requesting that a statement be repeated. We’re also communicating so concisely there’s hardly a break in the conversation, making “huh” the politest kind of interruption.
No wonder, then, that the word “huh” appears in multiple languages. In fact, according to a recent study in the journal PLOS ONE, linguists have found that the word is used to express confusion not only in related language families, but across multiple, independently developed languages. The researchers, who recently won an Ig Nobel Prize honoring their study, argued that “huh?” is so common it may actually be universal.
According to New York Magazine, the researchers studied conversational use of the word “huh” in 10 different languages, including English, Icelandic, Murrinh-Patha (from Australia), and Cha’palaa (from Ecuador). Though these languages don’t share an origin, they still employ “huh” in much the same way.
The researchers believe that the widespread use of the word “huh” is an example of convergent evolution. In each language, “huh” developed independently, but was shaped by similar environmental or linguistic pressures—for example, the need for a relatively polite way to signal confusion. According to the study, the word “fulfills a crucial need shared by all languages –the efficient signaling of problems of hearing and understanding.”
“Huh” is not an innate human sound, like a grunt or emotional cry, the researchers say. Rather, it’s learned, taught to children, and passed down linguistically from generation to generation. According to researchers, its universality is a result of its important conversational function. Most of us probably take the word “huh” for granted—or don’t even think of it as a word at all—but according to researchers, that’s exactly why it’s so important: It doesn’t draw attention to itself.
—
“before I came here I was confused about this subject.
having listened to your lecture I am still confused. but on a higher level.”
-enrico fermi
—
Source Credit: New York Magazine, Photo credit: Animal Channel
animal planet
“I only know that I know nothing”
― Socrates
—
source credit: bbc
when i stopped by my favorite coney island restaurant to pick up a giant greek salad
(in detroit, coney dogs and greek food under one roof are a restaurant tradition)
something on their monday special sign stuck out
while the words ‘coney island’ were displayed on 3 signs all around it
and coney island is a part of the restaurant’s name
the special somehow became ‘cony‘ dog monday.
i know how hard it is to be your own editor
and i am easily amused
but it just struck me as really funny
that no one noticed
it’s the most popular item they sell.
—
“my spelling is wobbly. it’s good spelling but it wobbles, and the letters get in the wrong places.”
-A. A. Milne
loving my new journals and so looking forward to filling them
—
“language allows us to reach out to people, to touch them with our innermost fears, hopes, disappointments, victories.
to reach out to people we’ll never meet.
it’s the greatest legacy you could ever leave your children or your loved ones:
the history of how you felt.”
-simon van booy
“read to your children all of the time
novels and nursery rhymes
autobiographies, even the newspaper
it doesn’t matter; it’s quality time
because once upon a time
we grew up on stories in the voices in which they were told
we need words to hold us and the world to behold us
for us to truly know our souls.”
-taylor mali
—
in honor of world nursery rhyme week
—
image credit: 1930s vintage etsy art
word of the day: twitterpated
part of speech: adjective
origin: American English, 1940s
Examples of twitterpated in a sentence:
“‘Nearly everybody gets twitterpated in the springtime.’ — Bambi (1942)”
“The family is all twitterpated as they pace around the waiting room for the announcement of the new baby.”
When was the last time you were twitterpated?
—
“words, words, mere words, no matter from the heart.”
-william shakespeare
I didn't have my glasses on.... 