Tuesday, January 07, 2014

Wednesday Hodpodge

It's time for Wednesday Hodgepodge. Go over to Joyce's blog to see other answers.

1. Every January 1st since 1976 Lake Superior University has published a list of words they'd like to see banished from the Queen's English.  Words may be banished due to misuse, overuse or just general uselessness (go here to read more about how the words were chosen).  Here are the words/phrases they'd like to see banished in 2014-selfie, twerk/twerking, hashtag, Twittersphere, Mr. Mom, T-bone, ____on steroids, the suffixes-ageddon, and -pocalypse added to anything and everything, from the world of politics the words-intellectually/morally bankrupt and Obamacare, and from the world of sports the words-adversity and fan base Which of these words/phrases would you most like to see banished from everyday speech and why? Is there a word not on the list you'd like to add? How about twerk, it sounds like a strange word. I'll admit I don't really think of words to get rid of, that just sounds wrong. It reminds me of 1984 by George Orwell, where they're creating a new language, Newspeak, and they are getting rid of words:
"It's a beautiful thing, the destruction of words. Of course the great wastage is in the verbs and adjectives, but there are hundreds of nouns that can be got rid of as well. It isn't only the synonyms; there are also the antonyms. After all, what justification is there for a word which is simply the opposite of some other word? A word contains its opposite in itself. Take 'good', for instance, If you have a word like 'good', what need is there for a word like 'bad'? 'Ungood' will do just as well--better, because it's an exact opposite, which the other is not. Or again, if you want a stronger version of 'good', what sense is there in having a whole string of vague useless words like 'excellent' and 'splendid' and all the rest of them? 'Plusgood' covers the meaning, or 'doublegood' if you want something stronger still. Of course we use those forms already, but in the final version of Newspeak there'll be nothing else. In the end the whole notion of goodness and badness will be covered by only six words -- in reality, only one word. Don't you see the beauty of that, Winston?"
Wow, that was kinda out there, sorry that's just what popped in my head when I read the question.
 2. What one unfinished project nags at you begging to be completed in this new year? Cleaning out/downsizing my apartment/getting another job/new apartment. I'm going to have to move this year. I'm trying to get my head around it. Unfortunately, to afford an apartment, I will need to find another job. I hope to get one that works around my library schedule, but I don't think that's feasible. I'm trying to sort through my stuff and get closer to getting rid of things. I'd really like to bury my head in the sand and ignore it, but that won't make anything better.
That was way more than one, but that's what's sitting on my mind right now.
3. When did you last have a bowl of soup? What kind? Homemade or from a can? What's your favorite soup? My brother made soup for Christmas dinner. It was something I wouldn't have tried in a restaurant. There were leeks, artichoke hearts, and potatoes. After it cooked for awhile, he got out a stick blender and mixed it up. It was very good. I like chowders, I like the thickness of them, I feel I'm getting more out of them because of the thickness.
4. Snowed in, snowed under, snow job...which one most applies to your life in recent days, figuratively speaking. None of the above. How about something along the lines of being blown away? Monday the high was -11 with a wind chill of -40. Normally, I'd take the cold over snow, but the wind chill lately has been well into the negatives with temperatures barely above zero and I'm getting quite sick of it. My forecast says we'll be into the 30's by the end of the week, but I'm not sure I believe it.
5. What's the funniest movie you've ever seen, or at least one of the funniest? Movies seem to be so funny the first time I watch them, but every subsequent viewing is not as good, but I love Planes, Trains and Automobiles, that one never gets old. We watch it every Thanksgiving, and it never fails to entertain. Come to think of it, any movie with John Candy always hits the spot.
6.  In general, would you say you're clumsy? Not in general, I'm really good at misjudging spaces. If there's a small space between something, I seem to run into things, but otherwise, not so much. Of course, I bruised my finger yesterday, opening a roll of quarters, so maybe I am.
7. Elvis Presley was born on Hodgepodge Day (January 8th) back in 1935.  Are you an Elvis fan?  What's your favorite Elvis tune? If that's too hard, which Elvis tune do you dislike the least?  Click here for a list of his songs. No
8. Insert your own random thought here. My mom and I were supposed to go to an antique store on Sunday, but because it was very cold, we didn't go. I know I'm supposed to be downsizing/not buying new things, but I really want some vintage buttons. I also want to just get away to an antique store and get lost in it. But, I'm going to be working every day until the 18th, so that's not going to happen.

10 comments:

Unknown said...

Argh! Why didn't I think of Planes Trains and Automobiles. LOVE THAT MOVIE! Just like you we watch it every Thanksgiving. On the year's that we don't visit relatives we love to eat our dinner while watching it. Otherwise we watch it when we get home from visiting people.

Melissa
http://mommyismessy.blogspot.com/2014/01/hodgepodge.html

Rebecca Jo said...

we lost an amazing comedian in John Candy - he was great.

I hate that the cold is keeping us all inside. WHERE'S SPRING?!?!??!

Rebecca Jo said...

PS - that soup sounds AMAZING!!

Barbara said...

I hope the cold air leaves your area soon so you can fit in that trip to an antique store. Even with downsizing, I think you can get those buttons you want! :o)

Barbara said...

I hope the cold air leaves your area soon so you can fit in that trip to an antique store. Even with downsizing, I think you can get those buttons you want! :o)

Tami AKA My Kid's Mom said...

Hope you get to so antiquing soon.

Theresa said...

I seem to get bruises from trying to squeeze between things too! I always blame it on bad spacial skills though, it sounds better ;)

Cherie said...

I agree that in the midst of downsizing, buttons could be a workable solution. Good luck getting out of the deep freeze.

Joyce said...

John Candy was hilarious. We watched Stripes again recently, and he's so funny in that one too. Good luck with the apartment and job challenges! Hoping the perfect thing comes along for you!

Becoming Mrs. Draino said...

Why are you moving out of your apartment? Buttons everywhere.....Can I have the recipe for the soup, it sounds divine. You are not the only one living in an arctic circle, it has been so cold here in the windy city.