Words to Ponder

I was doing a brain twist this morning, which is part of my waking up the brain routine,and ran into an interesting word that was in none of my dictionaries. Most of them are older as it seems useless to replace them when so many words appear almost on a daily basis,plus it is easier to just look things up online. The word was 'plimp' and it was describing a well dressed man is what it said in the puzzle,so of course I had to see if it was indeed a real word and it is but I found nothing that agreed exactly  with that definition. In the Urban Dictionary it means: Playa mixed with pimp,also a man with old school ways that thinks his ways are compelling.
Next word up is one that has always bothered me,substantial. First of all the prefix sub means under or below and following that logic that would mean something that was substantial was below stantial,two problems with that, first problem is stantial is not a word,the second problem is substantial means: abundant,ample having substance. I guess it is just one of those weird English words that has no explanation for why it doesn't make sense.
The next is a word that to my knowledge doesn't exist but probably should,that word would be hyperdysfunctional,or perhaps extra dysfunctional as there are people that the word dysfunctional just doesn't began to cover.

Gull Wing

Here is an example of how my brain goes into protection mode...when I woke up in the middle of the night my mind rather than get into the grief gear that would no doubt prevent sleep for the rest of the night immediately said,"Hey,how do gull wing doors work in tight parking?" It had seemed to me at the time that you would need almost 2 vertical or diagonal parking spaces. With that thought to ponder I was back to sleep in no time,however the question was still with me this morning,so here's what I found out.
In 1952 Mercedes pioneered the gull wing door,which has hinges at the roof instead of the side of the vehicle. In 1939 Jean Bugatti designed the papillon (butterfly) door which is slightly different in its architecture than the gull wing. The best known of the gull wings are the BricklinSV1 from the 70's and the DeLorean from the 80's. Now for the answer to my early morning pondering...the gull wing require very little side clearance to open and allow better entry and exit than conventional doors. The downside is that should the car roll and come to rest on its roof,exit by the doors wouldn't be possible. I don't know about the rest of you,but this was news to me,and I can't wait to check it out next time I see a rig with gull wing doors.

Fast Forward

People have been posting goodbyes on my friends facebook page and that got me to thinking what if...We had a fast forward feature kind of similar to A Christmas Carol when he sees the ghost of Christmas future. It would certainly be an asset in decision making,but maybe that would make it too easy. One of the most heart wrenching posts was from one of her 16 year old twin granddaughters,it was quite lengthy but I am going to include the first few lines as it gives you an idea of what I am talking about and how if my friend could have fast forwarded and read some of the posts she might have been given pause about her drug usage.
OH nanny...I just don't understand why you have to be gone forever. You were suppose to be with us forever when you are getting really old,not right now,it was to soon for you to go forever and I know your up there watching me and all of us and I know you regret leaving us,I know if you could see me crying and my heart is broken..,

I know there are mistakes in this but cut the kid some slack,she just lost her Nanny.

Sick Humor

I hope this doesn't offend anyone but I have been thinking a lot about my friend that died of the prescription drug OD,and I think that she was in huge denial about how much she used,not only to anyone that might notice but to herself as well. Then I started thinking about how when a person is in their teen years they pretty much think they are bulletproof,and that nothing bad will ever happen to them...okay,so here is where it gets sick. I thought I bet she was surprised when she woke up dead! Which of course doesn't make much sense but I don't think anyone really expects me to make sense,for the most part. I related this thought to a reader and also a friend of the deceased and she seemed to think that she would have been mad rather than surprised,now that I tossed both theories out there I will leave it to you readers to decide for yourselves.

Weird Stuff

I was beginning to think I was losing my mind as I kept thinking my friend that just died would be calling or I would see her some where,or maybe even she would drop by,then I would stop myself and say that ain't going to be happening but then the next thing I know I would be back to those same thoughts. I decided it was time to take a look online and see if I could get a handle on this,the following is what I found and it offers at least a glimmer of hope that I am not slipping down the slope of sanity.
The 5 stages of grief are,denial,anger,bargaining,depression,and acceptance,though not everyone goes through them in the same order or necessarily goes through all of them. There were lengthy descriptions of each and several sites offering mostly the same thing. I think the first day I was firmly in the anger/pain stage as there was nothing I could have done to prevent it,and anger at her for getting into the position that would eventually take her life. Today with all my thoughts of her calling or pulling up or even checking for her car in front of the beauty salon she used indicate that I am in the denial stage. I have lost people in my life many times but I think it gets harder as you age,maybe just closer to home? I am not looking forward to going through all the stages and sometimes looping back through some of them for what could be up to 8 months,but then again what are a persons options? I hope this isn't so personal as to be objectionable but it does feel a bit better to get it out some.

Black Friday

The day after Thanksgiving in the U.S. most retailers open extremely early to kick off the Christmas shopping season,similar to Boxing Day in the Commonwealth Nations. It is the busiest shopping day of the year. The phrase Black Friday originated in Philadelphia,coined by police and bus and taxi drivers to describe the heavy pedestrian and vehicular traffic that occurred the day after Thanksgiving. The term started around 1966 and started seeing broader use around 1975. An alternative definition is that this day is when retailers turn a profit,or are "in the black".
It is Black Friday to me for a different reason,my friend that I wrote about in October that had the problem with prescription drugs died in her sleep last night. Even knowing it was coming it is still a shock and I only wish I could have stopped it from happening,but that was just not meant to be, she was firmly dug in with her habit. Let's just hope that she is at peace now.

Food Coma

I am afraid that I am still under the l-tryptofan coma from the turkey,odd how a simple amino acid can knock a person out like that but it always hits me particularly hard. With any luck I won't get into the leftovers too much tomorrow and can resume life as normal,or rather as normal as it ever is for me. Hope every one enjoyed their day.

Holiday Weeks...or Weaks?

What is it about holiday weeks that upsets my internal calendar? It makes me think I am either a day ahead or a day behind,this week I think it is already Thursday and if it was that would be too bad for me as my Turkey is not cooked or cooking so at least on some level I must know what day it is. I love a turkey dinner,but only want one once a year I guess because with the leftovers I get ODed on turkey. I hope everyone enjoys their Thanksgiving tomorrow,except those of you in different parts of the world that don't have that holiday,or if you have something similar it is on a different day and likely a different month. There was quite a storm yesterday that ended up knocking the power out here for 5 hours,though it must still be out in other areas as the neighbor that works for the power company hasn't been home for 2 days,let's hope he makes it home for Turkey Day. We are fortunate that the storm hit before the holiday so we will have power restored and everyone can enjoy their meal.

A Couple of Tidbits

The weather was so nasty today I wasn't even tempted to try to walk with Uma,I would have been soaked in a couple of minutes,so instead I went to the weight room at the local pool to use a treadmill,which brings me to the first tidbit for the day.Treadmills were devised by an English civil engineer named Sir William Cubitt in the early 1800's at the time they were called tread wheels and were used to reform stubborn and idle convicts. They would tread on the 24 spokes of a large paddle wheel similar to a modern StairMaster. As the spokes turned,the gears were used to pump water or crush grains,hence the eventual name treadmill. It was abandoned in the late 19th century for being too cruel. The treadmill made a comeback in the 1960's when the benefits of aerobic exercise were discovered.
The 2nd tidbit of the day is totally unrelated but something I have wanted to include for some time but never found a spot where it fit in...not that those kind of things usually bother me! It is flavors of Pepsi outside the U.S. some of the ones I found were Ice Cucumber,Ice Cream,Baobab,and Yogurt (also known as Pepsi White). This lead me to want to know what Baobab was,from what I found the tree that produces the fruit only grows in certain areas of Africa and has a tangy taste of Carmel pear with a hint of grapefruit. All I can say at this point is to each their own...I think I will stick with water!

Truth or?

Truth seems like such a simple concept but I have come to the conclusion that it is far from simple. Some people are so accomplished at avoiding the truth that it seems truthful,I guess it could be a testament to their acting skills. I would like to share a few quotes about truth at this time to give you some food for thought.
All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover them. -Galileo
The truth is incontrovertible,malice may attack it,ignorance may deride it,but in the end,there it is. -Winston Churchill
Be so true to thyself as thou not be false to others. -Francis Bacon
'Tis strange-but true;for truth is always strange;stranger than fiction. -Lord Byron
A thing is not necessarily true because a man dies for it. -Oscar Wilde
Truth is never pure,and rarely simple. -Oscar Wilde

In Practice

It was brought to my attention that an important part was left out of my blog from yesterday,and I felt it necessary to share with the truly paranoid of you...you know who you are! If you are in private practice you don't want anyone to know what you are practicing and presumably go to lengths to keep that privacy,now that I actually put that out there it is a pretty scary thought. I am thinking that I don't really want to deal with any ones private practice,and just from that thought alone I could go in several different directions, so at this point I will leave you to your own devices.

Practice?

The word practice as applied to professions has always puzzled me. Personally I don't want to go to someone about a medical problem,or even a legal problem if they are only practicing,I want them to know how! It just seems like a backward phrase for those particular professions considering all the years of schooling they go through before they can begin their practice. Before I sat down here today to write this I was going to try to get to the bottom of why it is referred to as practicing but found out after nearly an hour of trying that I wasn't any closer to an answer than I was when I started. The two dictionary terms I found that applied are as follows,but once again shed no light on the real question at hand.
Practice
1. to do repeated exercises for proficiency
2. to pursue a profession actively
Is it just me,or does this seem to leave out something?

Lunatic Fringe

This is the lyrics to a song I have always enjoyed and wanted to share with you as further proof that I am not paranoid,they really are out to get me (us)! You can also listen to it if you are not familiar with it on youtube,it is by Red Rider.
Lunatic Fringe
I know you're out there
You're in hiding
And you hold your meetings
I can hear you coming
We know what you're after
We're wise to you this time
We won't let you kill the laughter.
Lunatic Fringe
In the twilight's last gleaming
This is open season
But you won't get too far
'Cause you gotta blame someone
For your own confusion
But I'm on guard this time
Against your final solution
We can hear you coming
No you're not going to win this time
We can hear the footsteps
Out along the walkway
Lunatic Fringe
We all know you're out there
Can you feel the resistance?
Can you feel the thunder?

Cereal Killer

I was reading an interesting thing earlier today about why the small bits of cereal end up in the bottom of the cereal box instead of on the top where one would expect them to be since they are lighter. It even has a name,"Muesli Effect" the same effect can also be found in containers of mixed nuts only there it is called the "Brazil Nut Effect". This has actually been studied since the 1930's by cereal physicists as it defies logic,seemingly the larger heavier pieces should sink and the lighter pieces should rise to the surface. There are a couple of theories why this happens one is that the larger pieces float on top of the smaller granules which act like a liquid,another is percolation where the smaller grains trickle down or "fluid drag". There is a cure for this dilemma and that is simply shaking the box from side to side while holding it in an upright position. There you have it, if you enjoy your cereal properly mixed now you know how to achieve that mixture,I am not a big cereal eater myself but I found it interesting anyway,and thought I would pass it along.

Childproof?

If ever there was an oxymoron it would be the word childproof,because as a general rule children are the only ones that can open childproof things without too much of a problem. The amazing thing to me is the things that they put the childproof closures on and the things that they don't. I currently have a bottle of mouthwash with a childproof top,okay first of all if you have children and want them to use the mouthwash/dental rinse wouldn't you want them to be able to do it on there own? Not to mention that mouthwash isn't all that dangerous,sure it is far from a health drink but I don't think many kids would drink enough of it to do much if any harm. The curious thing to me is most of the cleaning products don't have childproof tops and small amounts of them can be lethal. The bottom line though isn't which things should or should not have childproof opening but why is it the problem of the manufacturer? As a parent a person should have enough sense to both keep an eye on children and store things that are a potential hazard where they are not readily available to the children,but once again a few fools have made it a problem for the masses.

Faulty Equipment

For some reason I am still not adjusted to the time change and it is getting annoying waking up an hour earlier than I need to every morning. I like the morning hours because of the sense of peace,but when it is still dark out it just isn't the same. It has been over a week since the time changed back and that seems like more than adequate time for the adjustment...so what I am thinking is that my internal clock is on the blink and I have no clue where the reset button is. If anyone has this information I hope you will see fit to share it with me before I drop in my tracks. It wasn't this difficult to adjust when I traveled to Australia,of course that was around a decade ago so that may have something to do with it. Hey! Maybe my internal clock has been communicating with the appliances like my one atomic clock does and that is the problem! Stranger things have happened.

Better Today

I was feeling a little empty or down yesterday which happens to me when I finish a book by an author I really enjoy,or for that matter just a book I really enjoy. It is like having a friend come to visit and how you feel when it is time for them to leave,like a piece is missing. In contrast on the rare occasion that I get a book that I really don't enjoy reading, it is like having an annoying relative that came to visit and stayed too long finally leaving! I know you are probably thinking why does she finish a book if she isn't enjoying it,and the answer is I just can't seem to give up on them, I keep on reading in hope that I will be rewarded in the end but I don't find that to be the case often. When I don't like a book most of the way through it seldom can redeem itself by the end or maybe after investing that much time I end up with an attitude that prevents the enjoyment? I will have to think on that,not that it makes much of a difference in the grand scheme of things.

11/22/63

I feel like I want to comment on this newest of Stephen King's works,for anyone that remembers that date,or rather is old enough to recall that era it is filled with nostalgia that makes you yearn for those simpler times. That of course is not all, it also contains all the things one comes to expect of The Master and more. Not much more that I can say without accidentally including a spoiler and I wouldn't want to do that,so I will just say that I highly recommend it. If there is anyone else that has read it let me know what you think,of course I should remind you that I don't get your comments unless you become a follower of the site,and I would love to hear from more of my readers.

Superstitious

I had unfurled Uma for our walk today and as I was putting her on the front porch to dry I started belittling myself for being superstitious about bringing her inside to dry which would entail the old open umbrella in the house superstition,and silly as it might be I always figure it is better to not tempt fate. From that point the rest was all downhill,I had to see what kind of basis this belief came from.
Ancient Egyptians believed the umbrella to have magical powers as they protected them from the sun god (Ra),to open them inside would be offensive to the sun god.
Another theory is the umbrella was a protection against life's storms and to open one inside would cause the households guardian spirts to leave in anger.
Scientifically the storing of a damp or wet umbrella inside could cause it to spontaneously combust,and that would be very unlucky!

Geese

In the past the geese have always flown over my house on their way south,though this year I haven't heard more than a couple of flocks and wonder if they have for some reason changed their flight path or if it is something else. I know that when they fly that the bird that is flying the point position of the V is always changing as it is quite hard to fly in that position for long as it is also the place where the resistance is the greatest,what I don't understand since the whole flying south thing is so strenuous is why the honk the whole while. It seems like to me that would only raise the difficulty level of and already difficult venture. It doesn't seem like they would need to be in constant communication since they have visual contact,but not being a goose this remains somewhat of a mystery to me. If anyone does know why they do this could you please share that information with me.
 I would like to again thank my readers and add for those of you that might be curious that I have picked up a couple of readers in Sweden and also the UK and the Russian readers seem to remain constant,thanks for your interest.

Stan the Dog

We had a trivia question this morning at Curves that had us all laughing our heads off. It was about Stan the dog,and what was the first thing he didn't see after he got his contact lenses...the answer was the car that hit him. That might seem like kind of sick humor and probably is, but the part we found so funny was not that the poor dog got run over,but that he was wearing contact lenses. I had never heard of contact lenses for pets until this morning,but when I went to check it out online,sure enough they make them,and not only for dogs but for cats and horses as well. The thing we all found so funny was imagining the dog putting the contacts in and taking them out,and how would he squeeze the little bottles of wetting solution and the rest of the accouterments that go with the whole contact lenses  routine,and now I find myself thinking the same about cats and horses.How would they be tested to see what kind of correction their eyes needed? I can see the dogs eye chart...Okay,tell me how many cats you see. I realize that these things are more than likely supposed to be performed by the owners,but even at that I have a hard time picturing it happening.What happens if they get a piece of dirt or sand in their eye,do they point at it and hope you aren't too busy to fix it? Here is a scene for you to imagine...you just get out of bed in the morning and want to get your morning coffee going,but the dog really needs to go outside so you put your need for caffeine aside and put the dogs contacts in. I could go on an on amusing myself with all the different scenarios this topic brought to mind,but I won't at the risk of boring you. Hope you got a chuckle out of it as well!

There I Go Thinking Again

Those of you that have been reading this blog from the start will remember my sidekick Uma the umbrella. I thought I found an interesting tidbit to share with you about the name Uma,but when I went to verify that could find no support. I had stumbled across a piece telling me that the Japanese word for horse was Uma,I was pretty excited at the discovery until of course it turned out to be nothing but hot air. I have been wondering where I read it in the first place so I could go back there and correct them,but can't seem to retrace my steps which makes me wonder if I dreamt it,I am known for my vivid dreams.
Something I did come across in the book I am reading and didn't remember at all about the Kennedy assassination was that the assassin,Lee Harvey Oswald was married to a beautiful Russian woman named Marina. He was apparently quite abusive to her and at first she testified that he was guilty of the murder but then later recanted that testimony. I was young at the time and am coming across a lot I either didn't know or didn't remember and I am sure some of you weren't even born yet at the time (1963),and will keep you posted if anything else I think might be of interest comes up.

Road Signs

First of all I would like to tell anyone that was concerned that the time space continuum problem has been repaired and I was able to pick the book I have been somewhat patiently waiting for today,as it says in the book "Life can turn on a dime".
On my way to purchase the book (11/22/63) I drove past one of my favorite road signs as it always makes me chuckle,it says Draw Bridge and even though I know they are talking about a drawbridge I always want to get out a drawing pad and pencil and draw a bridge. Am I the only one that looks at things like that? Or am I just really easily amused?

Solitaire

I got to thinking about how life is what you make out of it and playing the hand you are dealt which for some reason I had always thought of as a hand of poker. You could apply that adage to any card game I suppose but the more I thought about it the more apt it seemed that the game in question should be solitaire because it doesn't depend on what other people play so that would make it more like a life situation. When one plays solitaire the choices you make throughout the game have an impact on the way it ultimately plays out,whether you win or lose. Simple adjustments to the cards can make all the difference between winning a hand or losing which is also true about life choices. I am not talking about cheating but just the moving of cards that can free up a game for you and the same is true with decisions one make in life,that with slight tweaking things can turn out for the better. On the other hand I could be all wet!

What Kind of Person Are You?

I have been thinking about this for a couple of days and it seems like people center their lives around drama,horror,romance,other,or none of the above. I would have to say I would be in the horror category as I enjoy being scared and I love to scare people...one of my greatest joys is sneaking up on someone that is sitting quietly and startling them,I will have to start being more careful about that since my friends are all getting older. My favorite of all time is when someone was waiting behind a door to scare me not realizing I was already in the room,you should have seen their face when I casually asked what they thought they were doing,and I am sure their feet left the floor by at least 6 inches.
You also have people that are addicted to drama and even the smallest problem in their life becomes a major crises,these people also seem to like to attend funerals. The romantics on the other hand take an almost opposite approach to life and seem to look at everything through rose colored glasses,which is okay until reality bites you in the butt. I am sure there are numerous other categories and even sub-categories but I just wanted to touch on the basics,and I am not even sure why I wanted to do that!
Once again thanks for your time and interest,and those of you in Russia must be passing the word as my audience there is growing and again I thank you.

Slip Sliding Away

I am having problems with time being slippery again,only this time it might be the worst of all. I got a newsletter in my inbox yesterday from a women's workout group,(I won't mention which one it might be,but it does start with Curves!) Are you with me so far? From here it gets a little hard to follow...in the newsletter was a calendar for November with the dates for Zumba and the closures for the month,pretty straight forward you would think until I noticed that after the 7th it was the 5th where one would expect to find the 8th,normally this wouldn't be a big deal but the 8th of November is the date for the new Stephen King book to be released that is where the problem arose. If there isn't an 8th this month will the book not be released? What about future months? Will they all have the 5th following the 7th? I intend to go and try to buy the book on the 5th? as I really am looking forward to this one,its title is 11/22/63 and is about a man that travels back in time to the Kennedy assassination with the master's touch on it I am thinking it will be an excellent read and should have some tidbits of history as well. 

Fashion Plate

Anyone that knows me also knows that a fashion plate is the last word one would use to describe me. I find that whole fashion concept a bit bizzare and when I do take time to notice how people are dressed it only confirms my thoughts. Most of the time I am left scratching my head wondering how anyone came up with some of the ideas,not to mention what people are thinking when they buy and wear them without any apparent thought to how that particular style might look on them,from what I see mostly it is far from flattering. The expense is another thing,I can think of so many things to spend money on that mean more to me than stylish clothes that I probably wouldn't like anyway. It all seems a bit superfical to me,are they trying to present a person that is different from who they really are? Or are they so used to going with the flow that they don't think about simply dressing the way that makes them the most comfortable? To me comfort is what clothes are all about,warmer when the weather is cooler and cooler when the weather is warm,other than that I fail to see the point.

Serendipity

I just had to mention the book I am reading was going on the same way I was in the blog about Politically Correct only it was about Christmas and how you are supposed to not say Merry Christmas as it might be offensive to some people,I only wish I could quote it for you but with the laws about that sort of thing I would just as soon not chance it.
As I was doing dishes earlier I remembered what my mother used to always tell us girls,"If you get your stomach wet when you do dishes you aren't ready to get married". I haven't checked with the other 2 but I still get my stomach wet and none of us are married at this time nor do any of us intend to be as far as I know.
I would also like to thank my readers that reside outside of the USA,there are 6 of you in Russia,2 in Germany,1 France,1 Romania,2 Indonesia and 1 in Brazil,I appreciate your interest and hope you find some entertainment in my ramblings.

The American Dream

I have been wondering since I posted "Balancing Act" whatever happened to the American Dream? I don't know if we were brainwashed to want to be successful and own our homes,though that is never 100% true in any thing,not everyone will want the same thing yet I think it is safe to say that for the most part our generation gave it their best effort. In more recent times the young couples either make purchases well beyond their buying power or they don't even make an attempt at having anything. This in turn makes me think about the economy and how it got into such a sad state. When I was first in the market to buy a home they really made sure you were going to be able to pay for it and now they just seem to give anyone a shot at a mortgage whether they are already in debt up to their ears or not,and never even mind the government bailing out businesses,when did that become their duty? I just feel like people are encouraged at some point to over extend themselves and  they don't seem to even know they are doing it...How did it all happen? Have I been asleep for several years and missed many many memos that would have told me this would be happening? 

Names that go with jobs...or not

I think first I need to explain how I got on this bent,I kept hearing a commercial on the radio for a car dealer by the name of Gouge,since it was on the radio I have no idea if that is really how his name is spelled but I thought if it were me and I was trying to sell something I wouldn't use that name. Then that lead me to think of other names that go with jobs and others not so much. I will just list them now and let you decide.
Hurt-physical therapy
Payne-dentist
Boyle-dermatologist
Barber-hair stylist
Parker-valet
Burns-pyromaniac
Carpenter-carpenter
Pierce-tattoo artist/body piercing
Butcher-butcher
Gardner-gardener
Cook-cook/chef
Baker-pastry chef/bakery worker
Taylor-clothing designer
Banks-finance
Hindman-proctologist
Lawlis-criminal
Webb-arachnophobic
Price-sales
And lastly this one I had a call for way back in the mid 70's when I was working for the phone company in directory assistance. I was laughing so hard I had to pass the call to a supervisor.
Dr. Bonebreak-orthopedic surgeon!