Category: Misc
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The Gary Matthews Anagrams
Wordsmith.org quotes a supposed sage as saying, “All the life’s wisdom can be found in anagrams. Anagrams never lie.” Is this so? Can we really learn hidden truth by rearranging the letters of a name or phrase? I had to find out! For me, a natural place to start was with my dear departed mom. Her…
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Crock-pot Turkey: Best Ever!
For the juiciest, tastiest, tenderest turkey you’ll ever enjoy — bake it in a crock-pot! Here’s how. Cheri and I taught ourselves this trick, this past Thanksgiving. We acted on pure impulse. Nothing wrong with turkeys we’ve baked before, for ourselves and family. But we were in a mood for something more. We ransacked the Internet for turkey…
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Hoth’s Deadly Crystal Lattice Creature
If you’re a fan of Star Wars VÂ (The Empire Strikes Back), you’ll remember two featured creatures: the tauntaun, a snow lizard ridden by Luke Skywalker; and the wampa, a white-furred predator of amazing stealth and power. Both are denizens of the ice planet Hoth, a one-time Rebel outpost. You probably won’t remember the crystal lattice…
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The SAE Anagrams
Let’s see — how many words and phrases can we find in “Sigma Alpha Epsilon”? It’s a timely question, now that this national college fraternity (SAE for short) is back in the news: It’s taking heat for running its parties on a “White Girls Only” basis. This won’t help it recover from last March’s viral video…
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Supermoon Eclipse: What They’re Not Telling You
Blood moon. Supermoon. Total lunar eclipse. When these effects coincide (as they will Sunday evening, 10:11 p.m. Eastern time), itâs a very Big Deal. For all the scientific reasons youâre already hearing everywhere. And one non-scientific, personal reason youâll hear á´É´ĘĘ from me. First, the science: ⌠Total lunar eclipse: The earth comes directly between the…
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One Word: Vasty
Glendower: âI can call spirits from the vasty deep.â Hotspur: âWhy, so can I, or so can any man. But will they come when you do call for them?â (Shakespeare, Kɪɴɢ Há´É´ĘĘ á´Ęá´ Fá´á´Ęá´Ę, Pá´Ęá´ I, Act 3, Scene 1) This famous passage was my introduction to the word âvastyâ. I came across it while…
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Treating Friends Like Enemies
We all naturally want to keep our enemies in the dark. But why should we expect to improve outcomes by keeping our ŇĘÉŞá´É´á´ s á´É´á´ sá´á´á´á´Ęá´á´Ęs in the dark? Even in dealing with enemies, this impulse isnât always smart. But what sense can it ever make in our relations with supposed allies? Sense or nonsense, it happens…
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One Word: Disinterested
Disinterested is a word I find most interesting. Not á´É´ĘĘ because itâs so often misused. (Although it is — like âcompriseâ and so many more.) No, âdisinterestedâ fascinates me because it expresses a subtle, absolutely indispensable concept about which we need to think and talk. And because I canât think of any equivalent word we…
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One Word: Worth a Thousand Pictures
Does anyone else feel oppressed by the âtyranny of picturesâ? I do, and Iâm fighting back with a new series of posts about words I love. Words that interest, fascinate, and delight me; words that (for me) carry depths of meaning mere pictures canât duplicate. One article per word — posted á´ĄÉŞá´Ęá´á´á´ á´ÉŞá´á´á´Ęá´s. Hereâs why…
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Lubuntu: Linux Even Leaner!
Recently I wrote that desktop Linux is now a practical alternative to Windows. Especially Windows XP, for which Microsoft has discontinued support and security updates. I based this suggestion on my delightful experience with Ubuntu Linux — the most popular of many Linux variants. (It has so many because itâs open-source freeware. Anyone can customize…
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Desktop Linux: Ready for Prime Time!
Linux, the free, open-source operating computer operating system, is ready for everyday desktop computing. Desktop Linux has been a long time coming. But at last, you can ditch Microsoft Windows. Or you can run it side by side with Linux, if you aren’t ready to cut the cord. Either way, you no longer are a…
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Real Names Are Highly Overrated!
Google recently reversed its “real names” requirement for members of its Google Plus social network. Good call, Google — and good riddance. It’s about time! In the Internet’s early days, being online was all about anonymity. You could create a mask. You could hide behind it in cyberspace. You could be — or appear to…