Languages

Sep. 24th, 2011 09:32 am
zianuray: (??)
The other day someone asserted that languages such as Quenya and Klingon "aren't real languages because they're made up."

I countered with "But all languages are made up -- either by the people who grow up speaking them such as German, English, and Mandarin or by those who think them up, like Esperanto, COBOL, or Klingon."  


Discuss.
zianuray: (Default)
What's with telling someone you don't like, disagree with, or are angry at "Fuck you!"?  I mean, I'm not gonna fuck someone if I don't like them.  I'm gonna NOT fuck them.  Fucking is fun, and I don't want them to have that much fun, especially not with me!  So why am I gonna tell someone I'm aggavated at to have fun?


Same with "Fuck 'em if they can't take a joke".  If they don't have a sense of humor, why would I waste time with them?



zianuray: (PuppyRub)
A client called and scheduled a Reflexology treatment, so I set up the recliner and got out the cornstarch and made sure my nails were filed properly (that last part is a daily check anyway, but moreso for Reflexology).

She walked in, looked at the recliner, and said "but how are you going to do my back?"

"Ma'am, Reflexology -- which you requested -- is just your feet or hands; what is it you have in mind?"

Turned out she actually wanted Swedish/relaxation massage, but didn't want to get undressed.  So she got the geriatric variety -- lots of ruffle-n-fluff through the garments.  Happy client, and much less effort for me than Reflexology or standard Swedish!  So once we figured out what we were both talking about, it was easy.  :)
zianuray: (Default)
When I took typing (long ago), words were counted as 5 typed characters (including spaces and punctuation). 

Is this still the case? 

When someone says "I wrote another thousand words" they hit the keyboard 5,000 times (not counting fixing typos and such? 

Does anyone use an actual word count for these announcements, which could severely disadvantage the more erudite writers?

**Thanks all, that's what I wanted to know!**

It amazes

Nov. 30th, 2009 05:07 pm
zianuray: (P'd off!  From bw)
and aggravates me that so many published authors pay no attention to spelling or grammar on their blogs (or simply can't spell without an editor and three proofreaders).

[livejournal.com profile] reannon , this does NOT mean you!

WTF????

Oct. 8th, 2009 08:06 pm
zianuray: (moose)
is a "mentee"?  Like a manatee or something?  Yes, I know, it's a new word for "protege`" used by those too lazy to say/type "protege`."  Which is perfectly "cromulent" word and doesn't need to be replaced.
zianuray: (Candle of Willendorf)
[info]theperfumer's LJ, and posted also in her blog here, I hereby question the convention of the "three faces of the god/dess" as used in Wicca/Paganism/Heathenry/whatever practices use these designators.


Four primary directions are recognized (NESW), and four elements (Earth, Air, Fire, Water), guardians, towers, etc...there are more phases of the moon than three (though I'll leave the exact number up to someone else to fuss about; I use 4:  Dark/New, Waxing, Full, and Waning), four seasons, four "solar observances" (Solstices and Equinoxes), four cross-quarter observances....

And there are women, as she points out, who do not fill any role described in the standard Maiden/Mother/Crone conventions.

I've heard reference to "Maiden/Mother/Warrior/Crone" (ala Mercedes Lackey) and "Maiden/Mother/Queen/Crone" (not sure who, but I believe I read it in SageWoman magazine by BBI Media).

What "new" archtype would you suggest for a woman who has not had children (whether by choice or by fate), but who is not yet a Crone?  Surely this does not diminish her nor her contributions to society, though there are certain experiences she will not have and certain lessons she will not learn this time -- but maybe she learned them well her last time on the wheel, and this time is for other lessons.

Warrior, in either the military or the business sense?  Queen, if she remains sovereign in her household (whether a one-person bed-sitter or a mansion teeming with family and/or servants)? 

How about for a woman who has had children, but they are no longer in her household; they have grown up and started their own?  Is she "stuck" with the Mother designation until her Croning, or does she take a new role and title?

And how about men?  Youth, Father, Sage...apply the same arguments, please, and go from there.  If a man chooses to not become a father, surely this does not diminish him, though again, some lessons may be reserved for another incarnation (or already learned).

(cross-posted to [livejournal.com profile] nonfluffypagans )

Here is the specific link to that post -- wow, really good discussion points!

 
zianuray: (Default)
used some terms that struck me as oddly familiar when the show was on TV some decades ago -- 

but it took me awhile to figure out that "critters" was a variant of "creatures" and "vittles" meant "victuals."

Now are these examples of dialect or of something else?  Is it simply mispronunciation?

What are some examples from your family or region?

Gramma generally said "stoop" rather than "front porch stairs" and "steps" rather than "stairs."
zianuray: (celticknot)
Two recent examples:

Sis and I had been discussing my Faire sandals. She asked, "Do you wear them all the time?" Since I was wearing tennyflops(those open-heeled things with the front half like a tennis shoe) at the time, I answered "No," with a tad of puzzlement.

She went OFF on me. Apparrently I was supposed to know she meant "Do you wear them places other than Faire? Shopping, around town, etc?"

*Wailing*

But that's not what she ASKED!

Sophie-at-work asked "What kind of candles do you make?"

"What do you mean?"

"What kind of candles do you make????!!!!?!?!?!"

"Wax with a wick? Dragons and Cats and Wizards Oh My?"



Mary had to intervene to find out she wanted to know if I made jar candles with scents.

*Break for sarcasm*

Why am I not picking up on what people want to know instead of what they are asking? Guess I should have taken that ESP course back in the 80's.

*Back to rant*

GoDs, PeoPle, ASK the Question You WANT ANSWERED!!
zianuray: (whitestar)
I gotta ask.

There's an article in the local paper about victims of a skywalk collapse 25 years ago not being properly memorialized.

There are still articles about "so-and-so died in 9-11 so he is a hero and should be recognized as such."

I've seen Q&A sessions/interviews with these folks that go something like this (generic, of course): 

*********

What did X do to be a hero?


He died.

Why is he a hero?

He was in the building and he died! Why are you picking on him? He's dead! He's a hero!

Well, was he helping someone else get out?  Was he trying to put out a fire?

No, he just went to work and he was killed so now he's a hero!

********

Hmmm.  So if I go to work and die from a heart attack or bad seafood or because a machine broke and I was in the wrong place, 
I'm a hero.  Cool.

I'll go with the notion that these people were in a bad place at a bad time -- but I happen to believe in reincarnation, so my take is that they had some input (before they got these bodies) on how and where and when and why they would die.  Life lessons, and moving up to the next grade if you will.

I do NOT hold with the idea that a hero is anyone who dies in a politically/religiously motivated attack.

I believe that a HERO is someone who does their level best to help others out of the same situation, especially at a cost to them in pain, inconvenience, or their own life, or puts himself at risk to help.  

It has been suggested to me that LEOs , military, and firefighters as a class should not be counted as heroes, since they take oath to go in harm's way; I disagree with this but do think they should be held to higher standards for this reason.

Comments?




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