ON FAITH, FANCY, POETRY, LOVE, AND ROMANCE
IN 1897 VIRGINIA O’HANLON WROTE a letter to The Sun, a New York City newspaper: “Dear Editor: I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends say there is … Continue reading
ETYMOLOGY: EIGENGRAU—AND OTHER STUFF HERE AND THERE
I LEARNED AN OPTICAL TERM from the WordDaily website that jogged my memory in other ways: The word “eigengrau” defines “the dark gray color seen by the eyes in perfect … Continue reading
GRANDPA IS HEP
I AM INHERENTLY HEP, STRIVING TO BE au courant with our English language, from Beowulf to Chaucer to, like, y’know, jive talk. Being grandfather of two teens, I read with … Continue reading
ETYMOLOGICAL FUN
WORDS ENTER A LANGUAGE BY A VARIETY OF MEANS: onomatopoeia (identifying a sound), evolution (derived from an earlier word), immigration (imported from another language), and, adding to the fun, downright … Continue reading
MAURO CALDI, PILOTA STRAORDINARIO
THE OCTOBER 2023 ISSUE OF Classic & Sports Cars introduced me to the motoring comics of Denis Lapière (writer), Michel Constant (illustrator) and wife Béa who colors Michel’s illos. Amazon … Continue reading
ALPHABETS, SYMBOLS, AND OTHER SQUIGGLY STUFF
ONE OF MY MORNING RITUALS, after 6:00 a.m. Pacific BBC World Service and a final reading/editing of the day’s SimanaitisSays, is Voice of America News. Each day VOA includes its … Continue reading
WORDS WE DON’T HAVE, BUT MAYBE COULD USE
I’M HAPPY TO ADD FOREIGN WORDS TO ENGLISH especially with their nuances. One of my favorites is Schadenfreude, from the German “enjoyment obtained from the troubles of others.” A source … Continue reading
HURRAH FOR THE WORD NERDS
ONE OF THE SPIFFS of The New York Times Book Review is learning just enough about a book so you won’t feel culturally deprived in not reading it. On the … Continue reading
CURSIVE REDUX
TEN YEARS AGO, SIMANAITISSAYS was less than a year old when it asked pessimistically “Is Cursive Dead Yet?” Optimist that I am today, I’m happy to report, along with KTLA5, … Continue reading
HOW DO YOU SAY THAT IN MID-ATLANTIC?
KATHARINE HEPBURN OR ORSON WELLES would have known. And, being as I am into old movies, I recognize this artificial accent as its name suggests sort of a mix of … Continue reading
Simanaitis Says 