|
Post by marysgurl on Jan 26, 2006 2:21:41 GMT -5
Not at all.
|
|
|
Post by quettalee on Jan 27, 2006 6:41:37 GMT -5
Lake Superior State University Banished Words List “PASS THE SAVINGS ON TO YOU!”
This “breaking news” just in: Lake Superior State University releases its 31st annual List of Words and Phrases Banished from the Queen's English for Mis-Use, Over-Use and General Uselessness.
It was during a New Year's party 30 years ago when LSSU Public Relations Director Bill Rabe and some colleagues cooked up a whimsical idea to banish overused words and phrases. On Jan. 1, 1976, with “tongue firmly in cheek,” Rabe took his first crack at it. Much to the delight (or chagrin) of word enthusiasts everywhere, the list endures into a fourth decade.
Through the years, LSSU has received thousands of nominations for its “all-time” list of banished words and phrases, which now stands at nearly 800. This year's list is culled from almost 2,000 nominations received mostly through the University's Web site. Word-watchers target pet peeves from everyday speech, as well as from the news, fields of education, technology, advertising, politics, and more. A committee makes a final cut in late December. The list is released on New Year's Day.
So pour out that last glass of eggnog, “hunker down” with a “person of interest” and enjoy the 2006 list, which is guaranteed “97% fat-free.”
SURREAL – One part opiate of the masses, 13 parts overuse. Oddly, news anchor and television small talk is becoming more surreal. “Dreams are surreal, not daily adjectives.” – Tracy from Murray, Ky.
HUNKER DOWN – To brace oneself, in anticipation of media onslaught. Trotted out in reports about everything from politics to hurricanes. “I have a hankering to ban all of this hunkering.” – Kate Rabe Forgach, Fort Collins, Colo.
PERSON OF INTEREST – Found within the context of legal commentary, but seldom encountered at cocktail parties. “People with guns want to talk with you.” – Melissa Carroll from Greensboro, NC. “Does this mean the rest of us are too boring to deal with?” – Patricia Johnson from Mechanicsville, Va.
COMMUNITY OF LEARNERS – A five-dollar phrase on a nickel-errand. Value-added into many higher education mission statements. “Not to be confused with ‘school.'” – Jim Howard from Mishawa, Ind.
UP OR DOWN VOTE – A casualty of today's partisanship. No discussion on this one; the committee just tossed a coin. “I see a bright future for ex-senators as elevator operators.” — Allan Dregseth, Fargo, ND.
BREAKING NEWS – Once it stopped presses. Now it's a lower-intestinal condition brought about by eating dinner during newscasts. “Now they have to interrupt my supper to tell me that Katie Holmes is pregnant.” — Michael Raczko, Swanton, Ohio.
DESIGNER BREED – Many nominators consider this a bastardization of dog breeding. It may be a good line to use on angry neighbors when an un-neutered dog escapes. “When you mate a miniature schnauzer to a toy poodle, it's not a ‘Schnoodle,' it's a mongrel.” – George Bullerjahn, Bowling Green, Ohio.
FEMA – Dedicated to the memory of a great federal agency consigned to the ash heap of parody. “If they don't do anything, we don't need their acronym.” – Josh Hamilton, Tucson, Ariz.
FIRST-TIME CALLER – Preamble often heard on talk radio. “I am serious in asking: who in any universe gives a care?” – Miguel McCormick, Orlando, Fla.
PASS THE SAVINGS ON TO YOU! – Marketing catch phrase that became a lost-leader long ago. “Read: Pass the markup along to you.” – C. W. Estes, Roanoke, Tex.
97% FAT FREE – Adventures in delusion. “Still has 3% fat . . . accept it.” – Andrew Clucas, Canberra, Australia.
AN ACCIDENT THAT DIDN'T HAVE TO HAPPEN – Best-laid mayhem. “This means some accidents need to happen, for whatever reason, I can't figure.” — Thomas Price, Orlando, Fla.
JUNK SCIENCE – Banished from the Marketplace of Ideas. “It's not scientists who are using this phrase so much as the people who practice junk politics.” – Ron LaLonde, Inuvik, Northwest Territories, Canada.
GIT-ER-DONE – (Any of its variations) It's overdone. “There's no escaping it. It's everywhere, from TV to T-shirts,” says Amanda Tikkanen of LaGrange, Ind. “Please tell me when we're done with this one.”
DAWG – No designer breed here. Someone should wash out this Spot. “Even parents are starting to use it!” – complains Mrs. Swartz's Fifth Grade Class in Church Road, Va. “This is species confusion.” – Rob Bowers, Santa Clara, Calif. “Don't call me ‘dawg'! I'm not your pet!” – Michael Swartz, Albuquerque, NM.
TALKING POINTS – Cover your ears! “Topics which will please those you want to impress.” – Michele Mooney, Van Nuys, Calif. Joe Wonsetler of Swanton, Ohio, believes the phrase was created after PR staffers stopped attending seminars on how to put a positive ‘spin' on their press releases.
HOLIDAY TREE – Many salvoes were fired during this past season's “war on Christmas.” At the risk of jumping into the breach, the committee feels that “Holiday tree” is a silly name for what most folks hold as a Christmas tree, no matter your preference of religion. Thank goodness we all agree on the first day of winter.
LSSU accepts nominations for the List of Banished Words throughout the year. To submit your nomination for the 2007 list, go to www.lssu.edu/banished. Lake Superior State University is Michigan's smallest public university with an enrollment of approximately 3,000 students. It is known for its personal attention to students in academic programs such as fisheries and wildlife management, engineering, robotics, teacher education, nursing, geology, business management, fire science, criminal justice and athletic training. For admissions information, visit our web site at www.lssu.edu/admissions.
|
|
|
Post by marysgurl on Jan 27, 2006 8:49:10 GMT -5
That is cool, baby!
Thank the Gods that the majority of us that frequent these parts maintain an absolute hodge-podge of whimsical & totally fresh "words & phrases & clauses"!
Gammers, I suspect we'll see your name on that list this time next year with a few additions of your own...perhaps we should start a thread....??
|
|
|
Post by gams on Jan 27, 2006 11:00:01 GMT -5
That is cool, ILB. So cool, I had to post it at the other site.
I received an e-mail that cracked me up; proving the need for properly placed punctuation, and how innocent words and misspellings can project meaning other than their intent.
The Fasting & Prayer Conference includes meals. ---------------------------------------------------------------- The sermon this morning: "Jesus Walks on the Water." The sermon tonight: "Searching for Jesus." ------------------------------------------------------------- Ladies, don't forget the rummage sale. It's a chance to get rid of those things not worth keeping around the house. Bring your husbands. ---------------------------------------------------------------- The peacemaking meeting scheduled for today has been canceled due to a conflict. --------------------------------------------------------------- Don't let worry kill you off - let the Church help. --------------------------------------------------------------- Miss Charlene Mason sang "I will not pass this way again," giving obvious pleasure to the congregation. -------------------------------------------------------------- For those of you who have children and don't know it, we have a nursery downstairs. --------------------------------------------------------------- Next Thursday there will be tryouts for the choir. They need all the help they can get. ---------------------------------------------------------------- The Rector will preach his farewell message after which the choir will sing: "Break Forth Into Joy." ------------- ------- ------------------------------------------- Irving Benson and Jessie Carter were married on October 24 in the church. So ends a friendship that began in their school days. --------------------------------------------------------------- A bean supper will be held on Tuesday evening in the church hall. Music will follow. ------- -------------------------------------------------------- At the evening service tonight, the sermon topic will be "What Is Hell?" Come early and listen to our choir practice. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Eight new choir robes are currently needed due to the addition of several new members and to the deterioration of some older ones. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Scouts are saving aluminum cans, bottles and other items to be recycled. Proceeds will be used to cripple children. ---------------------------------------- ------- ---------------- Please place your donation in the envelope along with the deceased person you want remembered. ----------------------------------------------------------------- The church will host an evening of fine dining, super entertainment and gracious hostility. ------------------------------------------------- -------------- Potluck supper Sunday at 5:00 PM - prayer and medication to follow. ---------------------------------------------------------------- The ladies of the Church have cast off clothing of every kind. They may be seen in the basement on Friday afternoon. ----------------------------------------------------------------- This evening at 7 PM there will be a hymn singing in the park across from the Church. Bring a blanket and come prepared to sin. -------------------------------------------------------------- Ladies Bible Study will be held Thursday morning at 10 AM. All ladies are invited to lunch in the Fellowship Hall after the B. S. is done. ----------------------------------------------------------------- The pastor would appreciate it if the ladies of the congregation would lend him their electric girdles for the pancake breakfast next Sunday. -------------------------------------------- -------------------- Low Self Esteem Support Group will meet Thursday at 7 PM. Please use the back door. --------------------------------------------------------------- The eighth-graders will be presenting Shakespeare's Hamlet in the Church basement Friday at 7 PM. The congregation is invited to attend this tragedy. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Weight Watchers will meet at 7 PM at the First Presbyterian Church. Please use large double door at the side entrance. -----------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
Post by quettalee on Jan 27, 2006 15:06:58 GMT -5
that was toooo funny gams!!!!
|
|
|
Post by gams on Jan 31, 2006 10:31:59 GMT -5
LMAO, Marysgurl. I found this in my book of word origins and had to pass it along.
It seems the name "gammers", in use today in rural England, is a respectful term of address for an elderly woman. It probably originated from the word "grandmother".
Damn - approaching middle age maybe, but elderly? BOLL.
And I'm a long, long way off from being a grandmother.
|
|
|
Post by marysgurl on Feb 1, 2006 1:26:01 GMT -5
Well....I guess I shall have to find another pet name...my pet! And yes, you seem a very long way off from grandmotherhood!
|
|
|
Post by gams on Feb 1, 2006 8:14:16 GMT -5
No, no, no, MG. I like when you call me Gammers with a capital "g", (proper gammer being such an important thing, you know). Just thought it kind of funny.
And I do feel elderly here and there. Shoulder and arm all messed up, knees aching from the up and down temperatures, and I hobble around like a old woman of late.
HA!!! An old woman hauling ass down the trail on wheels. Off to catch the glide here in a few.
|
|
|
Post by marysgurl on Feb 1, 2006 9:13:03 GMT -5
Morning, Gammers...are you still here or already back?
I just got in from work....loooonnnng night....love the OT.
|
|
|
Post by gams on Feb 1, 2006 9:19:05 GMT -5
Nah, not back. I haven't left. Sigh. Not enough time to ski, come home and shower, before I have to be out the door again. Slow moving child my downfall this morning.
Tired, I bet, from your long night? Over-time though - yes, I'd love some of that right about now. Rest your weary head, MG. Sleep well when you get there.
Later Sweets.
|
|
|
Post by quettalee on Feb 1, 2006 19:18:51 GMT -5
Aoccdrnig to rscheearch at Cmabrigde uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteres are at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a tatol mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae we do not raed ervey lteter by it slef but the wrod as a wlohe.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at an Elingsh uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht frist and lsat ltteer is at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a toatl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae we do not raed ervey lteter by it slef but the wrod as a wlohe. ceehiro.
Origins: This little bit of intriguing linguistic trivia stormed through inboxes in September 2003. That the order of letters within words is relatively unimportant to reading comprehension as long as the first and last letters are in their proper places seems to be self-evident, as demonstrated by the ability of nearly everyone who came across this item to understand what it said (although this is a very general application — results may vary when different types of words and contexts are used), but was there really a university study to this effect?
|
|
|
Post by quettalee on Feb 1, 2006 19:26:11 GMT -5
For five years, Webster's New International Dictionary mistakenly included an entry for dord, a word which did not exist. Status: True.
Origins: Given the tremendous amount of detailed information that must be assembled and managed in producing the average dictionary, it's a testament to the skill and care of those who compile and edit those reference works that errors don't creep into them more often than they do.
Dictionary-makers do make mistakes from time to time though, and one of the more famous errors was the appearance of the ghost word dord in the second edition of Webster's New International Dictionary in 1934. Dord was listed on page 771, between the entries for Dorcopsis (a type of small kangaroo) and doré (golden in color), as a noun meaning density in the fields of Physics and Chemistry:
But dord was truly a ghost word: a spirit entry that was not part of the English language, and for which Webster's offered no etymology or example of use. So how did this linguistic specter come to haunt the dictionary?
In the first edition of Webster's, entries for abbreviations and words had been intermingled -- the abbreviation lb (for "pound"), for example, would be found immediately after the entry for the word lazy. In the second edition, however, abbreviations were supposed to be collected in a separate section at the back of the dictionary. In 1931, a card had been prepared bearing the notation "D or d, cont/ density" to indicate that the next edition of the dictionary should include additional definitions for D and d as abbreviations of the word density. Somehow the card became misdirected during the editorial process and landed in the "words" pile rather than the "abbreviations" pile. The "D or d" notation ended up being set as the single word dord, a synonym for density. As Philip Babcock Gove, editor-in-chief of the third edition of Webster's New International Dictionary wrote in a 1954 article:
As soon as someone else entered the pronunciation, dord was given the slap on the back that sent breath into its being. Whether the etymologist ever got a chance to stifle it, there is no evidence. It simply has no etymology. Thereafter, only a proofreader had final opportunity at the word, but as the proof passed under his scrutiny he was at the moment not so alert and suspicious as usual. Not until five years later did an editor note the out-of-place entry for dord and set in motion the process that exorcised this spectral entry from future printings. The ghost word was banished from Webster's with hardly anyone's having noticed its presence, but it continued to rematerialize in the dictionaries of careless compilers for years afterwards.
Last updated: 21 June 2001
The URL for this page is www.snopes.com/language/mistakes/dord.htm Click here to e-mail this page to a friend Urban Legends Reference Pages © 1995-2003 by Barbara and David P. Mikkelson This material may not be reproduced without permission
|
|
|
Post by marysgurl on Feb 6, 2006 8:17:23 GMT -5
Topic: Funeral Service Education Week Funeral Service Education Week has rolled around once again. In previous years, we've talked about how the original undertaker was simply someone who undertook a project. Over time, that word came to be applied to folks whose business it is to prepare the dead for burial and to arrange and manage funerals; by the turn of the 20th century, undertaker had been joined by the synonymous mortician and funeral director. This year, we mark Funeral Service Education Week by telling the tale of two other terms from the funeral industry, terms that, at least to the public, are often interchangeable: coffin and casket. Coffin—which originally meant "basket; chest; case" and which comes from the same Latin ancestor that gave English the word coffer—was long the word of choice for a term naming "a box or chest for burying a corpse." The word casket is a century older than coffin. Its Middle French linguistic ancestor meant "small case"; indeed, the original (and still current) meaning of casket names "a small case or box." To funeral directors, however, casket names a burial case with a rectangular design; coffin is applied to one with a more traditional tapered shape. Around the turn of the last century, funeral directors began promoting the word casket as preferable to coffin. Why? Perhaps because they considered casket euphemistic; perhaps because caskets tend to be a tad fancier than coffins. I decided to add my two cents & pop in sarcophagus. MW describes it as limestone used for coffins; flesh-eating stone; or a large stone coffin. Which means when Gabster is pulling Xena along in her "sarcophagus", (The Quest) the usage is not correct. Looks more like it's made of a beautiful wood of some kind.
|
|
|
Post by gams on Feb 6, 2006 16:18:35 GMT -5
Just couldn't resist looking up "dord" in all of my Webster's, (I have four). Dang, it doesn't appear in any of them.
MG - I thought sarcophaguses, sarcophagui - what the heck would be the plural anyway - were caskets that had the image of the deceased on the lid. Probably a common misconception, (or at least one the Xena people made too), due to the Egyptian sarcophagusues, sarcophagui? Flesh eating stone? Creepy.
|
|
|
Post by marysgurl on Feb 7, 2006 21:28:31 GMT -5
Topic: Words from Dickens
English novelist Charles Dickens was born on this date in 1812. Dickens' style lives on in the adjective Dickensian, meaning characterized by humor and pathos in the portrayal of odd, often extravagant and picturesque character types, usually from the lower economic strata of 19th-century English society. Dickens based a number of his characters on real people. Sometimes his fictionalizing got him into trouble; other times—as with Wilkins Micawber and Mrs. Nickleby—it led scholars to study the past.
Mrs. Nickleby is the mother of Nicholas Nickleby. She is absentminded, snobbish, and does not properly look after her children following the financial ruin (and death) of her husband. The harshness of Mrs. Nickleby is balanced by the goodness of Wilkins Micawber (a character in David Copperfield). A mentor to young David, Micawber is an improvident but kind man.
For the models of Mrs. Nickleby and Mr. Micawber, scholars turned to the life of young Charles Dickens. When he was twelve, his father was sent to debtor's prison, and Charles was put to work in a factory. After the father's release, Mrs. Dickens insisted Charles remain in the factory, but was eventually overruled by Mr. Dickens. Charles' resentment of his mother and love for his father were immortalized in the characters of Mrs. Nickleby and Wilkins Micawber. Micawber itself became a byword for one who is poor but lives in optimistic expectation of better fortune.
|
|
|
Post by marysgurl on Feb 13, 2006 10:19:08 GMT -5
Topic: American Gothic
American artist Grant Wood was born on this date in 1892. Wood is best remembered for a painting first exhibited in 1930, during the Depression. Wood used oil on beaverboard to depict a farmer (holding a pitchfork) and his daughter; the pair stand in front of a white farmhouse whose curved second floor window is visible. That painting, of course, is American Gothic, and it remains one of the most famous (and most parodied) pieces of American art. The American part of the title is easy to understand: the house itself is American (it still stands in Eldon, Iowa), and the couple are iconic Americans.
But where does the Gothic fit in? In addition to its historic application, Gothic has plenty of other senses too. It can mean fantastic, unreal, extravagant, and baroque; it can mean uncouth; primitive; barbarous; uncivilized; it can mean savage; ferocious; and it can mean romantic in style as opposed to classical.
So what did the artist intend by his use of the word Gothic? Grant Wood had traveled to Europe and was undoubtedly familiar with the once-popular gothic style which tends toward naturalism and which features an austere verticality. Add to that the fact that the window in the painting is Gothic right down to its pointed arch.
|
|
|
Post by marysgurl on Feb 14, 2006 12:00:52 GMT -5
Topic: Words of love This Valentine's Day we're looking at some terms of love of interest to word-lovers of every stripe. For the religious sorts, we can point to the Sanskrit Bhakti, which names "religious devotion" or "love directed toward a personal deity." That Hindu term contrasts with the Greek agape, used by Christians to refer to (among other things) both "Christian brotherly love in its highest manifestation" and "the love of God for man." Agape is itself often contrasted with eros, another Greek term used for "aspiring, self-fulfilling love often having a sensuous quality." The concept of Eros, as conceived in Plato's philosophy, referred to "a fundamental creative impulse" that shared that same sensual element. That's the sort of love celebrated by so many today. Talking about love and Plato leads us down the path to platonic love. These days, platonic love usually refers to "a close relationship between two persons in which sexual desire is nonexistent or has been suppressed or sublimated." The way the Greek philosopher saw things, platonic love is that which ascends from passion for the individual to contemplation of the universal and ideal.
|
|
|
Post by marysgurl on Feb 19, 2006 13:48:03 GMT -5
Topic: Words from the years
Listeners were quick to respond to our invitation to send in a particular year whose word history interested them. Many folks requested years identified as personally memorable because of births or other significant events. Unfortunately, listing all the words that first appeared in print in the years 1926, '32, '44, '55, '57, '58, '69, '85, and '97 would take us the better part of a week. And that's just reading the hundreds of words aloud!
So instead we'll look at each individual year on later programs. Today we'll pass along a word or two from our collection to see how those terms evoke the year that was.
Nineteen-ninety-seven, the most recent year under the microscope, marked the first known print appearance of dot-commer; 1985—that's going back 21 years—was the year crack house and Internet with a capital "I" first appeared in print. 'Sixty-nine was the year of the limousine liberal, and '58 of both conventional wisdom and hairspray. Fifty-seven was the birth year of the noun skydiving and the adjective bananas.
Nineteen-fifty-five gave us both biological clock and big bang theory; and 1944, the terms wire service and zero-sum. Nineteen-thirty-two was the year of the bobby pin and the seat belt. And finally, 1926 gave us big band and driver's license.
|
|
|
Post by marysgurl on Feb 23, 2006 9:35:53 GMT -5
The Word of the Day for February 23 is:
epistolary • \ih-PIST-uh-lair-ee\ • adjective 1 : of, relating to, or suitable to a letter *2 : contained in or carried on by letters 3 : written in the form of a series of letters
Example sentence: Pen pals Walter and Iris kept their epistolary relationship alive for 20 years before finally meeting in person.
Did you know? "Epistolary" is formed from the noun "epistle," which refers to a composition written in the form of a letter to a particular person or group. In its original sense, "epistle" refers to one of the 21 letters (such as those from the apostle Paul) found in the New Testament. Dating from the 13th century, "epistle" came to English via Anglo-French and Latin from the Greek noun "epistolç," meaning "message" or "letter." "Epistolç," in turn, came from the verb "epistellein," meaning "to send to" or "to send from." "Epistolary" appeared in English four centuries after "epistle" and can be used to describe something that is contained in a letter (as in "epistolary greetings") or composed of letters (as in "an epistolary novel").
|
|
|
Post by marysgurl on Feb 23, 2006 9:37:40 GMT -5
"Epistolary"...rolls off the tongue quite nicely.
|
|