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Showing posts from September, 2009

Utilize "use" don't use "utilize"

Buzz words drive me batty. In my informal survey of how a word becomes a buzz word, I have mapped out the approximate path below: 1) Find a word most people don't know the meaning of 2) Make sure the meaning has obscurities and shades of meaning which makes it difficult to translate and impossible to explain to second-language learners. 3) Assign some very important value to the word 4) Use it every time you possibly can to convey the utmost importance to your communications

Yum, Yum, Yum,... um...

When we bought our cozy little condo, there was a definite color scheme in place. From the door frame at the front door, through the kitchen, bedroom, and bathroom, anything that could be painted was painted either black or dingy beige. Anything and everything: hinges, electric outlet covers, circuit breaker box (painted shut), phone jacks (painted over), ceilings, cupboard doors and drawer faces. Well, maybe not everything , as the shutters weren't painted shut like they were in the unit across the hall we briefly considered. But needless to say, paint was a top priority as soon as we signed the papers. Now truth be told, you already know the rest of the story because chances are you have at least six stories just like it about choosing paint colors. And I could insert here any obvious statement about paint chips not being entirely reliable and this blog post would be nudged along in the direction I intend it to go. With names like Sparkling Cider , Air of Mint, and Spiced Nect