Triskaidekaphobia
(tris-ky-dek-uh-FO-be-uh) noun Fear of the number 13. [from Greek treiskaideka (thirteen), from
treis (three) +kai (and) + deka (ten) + phobia (fear).] I’ve
always liked the sound of this word and the way it feels on my tongue as I say
it. It’s something about the flowing of
the Tr, Sk, and K sounds that makes me feel like my fore-tongue and back-tongue
are skipping in my mouth. Hmm, that
reason almost sounds like something Calvin would say to Hobbes. I love that cartoon panel, and the philosophy
of both of them. I found another word
and tongue-stumbled over it a few times before I got it correctly said. It takes a bit of thinking and planning when
you start to pronounce it. Do not be
discouraged, it will trip off your tongue like peanut butter! Perspicaciousness
(puhr-spi-KAY-shuhs-nes) noun. Keeness
of perception and discernment. [From
Latin perspicere (to see through), from per- (through) + -spicere, combining
form of specere (to look). Ultimately
from the Indo-European root spek- (to observe), which is also the ancestor of
such words as: suspect, spectrum, bishop
(literally an overseer), espionage, despise, telescope, spectator, speculum,
and spectacles.
A young engineer was leaving the office at 5:45 p.m. He found the CEO standing in front of a
shredder with a piece of paper in his hand.
“Listen,” said the CEO, “this is a very sensitive and important document
and my secretary is not here. Can you
make this thing work?” “Certainly, “said
the young engineer. He turned on the
machine, inserted the paper, and pressed the start button. “Excellent, excellent!!” said the CEO as his
paper disappeared inside the machine. “I
just need one copy, thank you,” he said. The lesson here is: Never, never, ever assume that your boss
knows what they’re doing.
"The reason the plural of GOOSE is GEESE, but the
plural of moose is not meese is because goose derives from an ancient Germanic
word undergoing strong declension (the changing in the form of the word), in
the patter of foot/feet and tooth/teeth, where in oo is
mutated to ee. However, 'moose' is a Native American word added to
the English lexicon only some 400 years ago, and lacks the etymological reason
to be pluralized in that way." Alrighty then!! So, is the plural of
PAPOOSE, papeese or papooses? And, if the plural of HOUSE is HOUSES, why
isn't the plural of MOUSE mouses? I wonder about these things, y'all.
Life can be a bit unfair at times. I recently was
talking to a professional trying to sort out some issues and move on. The
professional told me, "When times seem too tough to deal with, take a step
back and look at the situation." I told them I'd done that, but
still felt a bit defeated. Then, they said, "Well, when you feel defeated, but want to conquer that, take a step
forward." I thought for a moment and said, "So, to sum up your
advice: when feeling defeated take a step back; when wanting to conquer
it, take a step forward. Alrighty then!!! Seems I'm doing the
cha-cha and when in doubt just DANCE!!" The person told me they
thought I was going to be all right.
I was reading an article about things some bosses do which
make their employees want to quit. BANG!!! An illuminated light bulb when
off in my memory. I had one job which I enjoyed, but my boss was a
troll. At my evaluation meeting with the manager of the company, his
written evaluation of me was presented. She read it and asked me to
explain why he reported his observations. I told her, "He says I'm
often late. He is the one often late because I always arrive 30-45 minutes
early. He says I dress too professionally. I'm in a professional
position so I believe I should appear the part, and besides, my appearance
looks better than the dirty sweats he wears. He says I'm too observant
and it makes some uncomfortable including him. They are uncomfortable
because they know they're doing something wrong and have been seen doing
it. He says I knew too much about other clients who aren't mine. In
the initial job interview, he told me I am expected to know about ALL the
clients and their challenges in this place, as well as mine." There
was a bit of silence, my boss was red-faced and uneasy. The manager of
the company told him he may leave because she wanted to talk to me. He
left muttering. I was asked if all I said was true and why would I say so
much against him. I told her it was and that I'd rather be teaching than
to have a supervisor as hypocritical and unprofessional as he; this was my last
day. I, also, told her that I knew in two days I would be back to teaching
because I'd been contacted by a school for a long-term teaching position. I
learned a few days later that he was relieved of his
"services". "Truth is hate to those who hate the
truth."
I was shopping at Walmart when a person came up to me and
tried to move into my area. When I told them I was in that place, they
proceeded to be rude and abrasive. I just watched their mouth and waited
for my opportunity to tell them what was. Finally they
stopped talking. I smiled and said, "I don't know how you can
pronounce the very few words in your entire vocabulary with your summer
teeth----summer there, summer not." As the person was processing (well, I think
that’s what the brain activity was doing), I then got the items I was looking
at and moved on.
Living isn’t measured in years. It’s measured in moments---the good ones and
the not-so-good ones; the laughter and the tears; the “hurrah”s and the “oh
crap”s. The ones we treasure are like
smoke in a gentle breeze---seen and then drifting away. The sum of all our choices makes up who we
are.
“Time is: Too slow
for those who wait, Too swift for those who fear, Too long for those who
grieve, Too short for those who rejoice, But for those who love---Time is
Eternity.” Henry van Dyke
I decided to stop by Aint Daisy’s to check on her. She’d been a bit under the weather. As I approached the front door, I could hear
a familiar voice talking to her. I
knocked and was invited in. “Come on in
here, chile. Set yer self down and I’ll
fix us all some pie and tea.” She
excused herself and went into the kitchen.
I asked Betty Jo how she was and how the family was. She started telling me all sorts of things
(actually bragging) about each child (I knew those kids). Aint Daisy came in with a tray of pie and tea
and sat it down on the coffee table.
Betty Jo continued her chatter (bragging tales) as she ate her pie and
sipped her tea. I looked at Aint Daisy,
she just smiled at me and continued to eat and sip. Betty Jo mentioned she had to go do something
important (more bragging) and didn’t want to be late. She said her good-bye and thank you; then,
left. I looked at Aint Daisy and asked,
“We know 90% of what she said was just the opposite of what really is. Why does she do that?” Aint Daisy smiled. “Chile, sometimes the real is too much t’
bear for some folks. Betty Jo is
that. It don’t dawn on her that we know
her actions tell us more than her words.
My Mama always said, ‘Understand folks by their actions, and you’ll
never be fooled by their words.’” She
smiled, again, with a twinkle in her eyes.
Ahhh, more wisdom from the Lady of the holler and her mama.
Brenduhh came over to tell me her opinion of how I looked in
a flowered dress I’d bought. I put it on
and greeted her as she came through the open door. “Well, hi there, Trude. How are you today?” she asked. “I bought this dress and wonder what you
think of it on me. So, tell me, please,”
I said. Brenduhh has a way with words
that can be a bit confusing and non-committal at times. “Hmmm, turn around and let me see the
back. O.K. turn back around. I think the dress is pretty with all the
flowers. You wear them well. In fact, I just love seeing all the flowers in
a garden in one place with all 12 rows stretched out.” I think that was her “tactful” way of telling
me the Burpee’s flower catalog had nothing on my dress’s display with me in
it. The dress became a blouse later that
day.
Ohhhhh, I found a new word to use (if I can remember it)!!! NEPHELOCOCCYGIA: The act of seeking and finding shapes in
clouds. Now to help you pronounce this
word: Neh-fell-o-cox-see-gia . Enjoy spitting this one out at a party.
As with everyone, I was having a rather difficult day with my feelings. I shared my discouragement with a dear friend after she said, with love, “Wanna share what’s going on?” I told her, “So many things. I usually have it all together when in actuality, today, I feel like my “together” is more like dried PLAYDOUGH on the floor and in a shag carpet. It sits there crumbled, stepped on, being sworn at by a distraught mother, and useless. It’s getting to be stink bug season, and they want to come into MY house causing me to question God’s rationale as to why He created them, other than to annoy me and stink up my vacuum. My left hip hurts due to Arthur-I-Is who came uninvited two or three weeks ago and won’t leave when I tell him to. So, with gnawing discomfort I’m impeded in movement which distresses me, and I swear, and I know God heard me and put another black check by my name and moved me up on the ‘nasty mouth, naughty girl’ list.” She said words of comfort, but what made me laugh out loud was her, “Oh sweetie, you crack me up with your way to plow through it all and describe it causing me to reel with laughter.”
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