From the monthly archives:

July 2010

OLD SPICE: who would have guessed?

July 21, 2010

For several years I have been using men’s grooming items from an upscale company.  They were costly, but I really enjoyed the scent, and I received comments frequently about it.  I watched the prices go up, the products change, the packaging change, and the prices go up again. One day I was shopping in the [...]

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NOES: the plural form of the word “no”

July 20, 2010

In a recent article I read the report of someone who was making the case that the Republicans in Congress are the” Party of No!” It is a  criticism which we have heard numerous times over the past eighteen months of the Obama administration.  Clearly, it is a technique decided upon and organized by the [...]

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PLAIGIARISM: using someone else’s material without their permission

July 19, 2010

This week I am participating in the open-to-the-public portions of a Writer’s Workshop being held at Brown University.   The theme is Writing Creative Non-Fiction.  That may seem like an oxymoron, if you understand that non-fiction is factual reporting.  Being creative might seem like a departure from the facts. However, in last night’s panel the writers [...]

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PRIMARY: the selection process within a political party by which potential candidates attain party nomination

July 18, 2010

We have entered that season of a mid-term election when we begin to sort out the potential candidates for office.  Prior to this a huge number of people have thrown their names into the hat as a test to see what kind of response they get.  Now we see them pulling out, having determined that [...]

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VITUPERATIVE: Using, containing, or marked by harshly abusive censure.

July 17, 2010

Over the past couple of days the media has been filled with commentary on the recorded “conversation”  allegedly between actor Mel Gibson and his ex-lover.  In highly-emotional situations like this, particularly in the entertainment industry, it is best to be cautious about jumping to conclusions about the veracity of the charges and counter-charges. Consequently, I [...]

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EDIT OUT: erase

July 16, 2010

Editing an article is usually a refreshing endeavor.  There’s something positive about discovering a typo, a bad construction, or a mis-spelled word and being able to correct it before clicking on  that “publish” key.  Knowing that I have avoided the embarrassment of a glaring error is not only a relief; it carries with it a [...]

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NOTA BENE: note well

July 15, 2010

My friend and mentor, Julie Roads, sent me the term nota bene a couple of weeks ago. It is Latin, and means “note well.” She suggested that it was a term worth noting (pun intended.) I’ve always thought of it as one of those foreign language terms that one might drop in an article to [...]

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ANACHRONISM: belonging to an earlier time

July 14, 2010

This week it was announced that the PT Cruiser, the retro car of the Chrysler Corporation was going out of production.  It was a creative, cute vehicle for a short period of time, but, like most anachronistic constructions, its tenure was limited.  I, like many, was fascinated with the Cruiser when it was introduced in [...]

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LEBRON JAMES: Tempest in a teapot

July 13, 2010

Why not?  Everyone else seems to have an opinion!  I’m proud of myself for holding off for all these days and letting others vent before me.  Maybe it’s because I could care less about professional basketball.  Yes, even the Celtics, who I might feel better about if they pronounced their name properly.  But I thought [...]

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BONDAGE: subjected to a powerful authority

July 12, 2010

Just when we thought the U.S. Congress was on the verge of passing a somewhat-bipartisan bill limiting the banking industry, it appears that the banking lobby has exerted its pressure on needed Members.  The banking lobby having spent millions of dollars to fight this proposed regulation bill, several Republicans and a few Democrats who were [...]

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