ENJOYING THE HUMOR OF FRAN LEBOWITZ
CULTURAL SATIRIST Fran Lebowitz has been called a latter-day Dorothy Parker. Here are some of my favorite examples of Lebowitz’s wit gleaned from here and there. Lebowitz and Algebra. According … Continue reading
TALE OF THE CHEROKEE PHOENIX
THE CHEROKEE PHOENIX was the first Native American newspaper printed in its own language. Its story begins with the Cherokee polymath Sequoyah in 1821 and, with a lamentable hiatus, continues … Continue reading
ETIMOLOGIA PER I NOSTRI TEMPI
A REPORT FROM coronavirus-stricken Northern Italy contains a plea to eschew the time-honored Italian tradition of furbizia, the artful evasion of government directives of everything from income tax to traffic … Continue reading
AN AERO ENGINEER PHILOSOPHER PART 2
THERE WAS APPARENTLY a time when philosopher-to-be Ludvig Wittgenstein had nary a thought on existential propositions. Mechanical engineering diploma in hand, Wittgenstein had an immediate goal of earning a doctorate … Continue reading
AN AERO ENGINEER PHILOSOPHER PART 1
WERE IT NOT for London Review of Books, I wouldn’t have known that philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein had the “childhood dream of becoming the greatest aviator since Orville and Wilber Wright.” … Continue reading
THE SCOTTISH PLAY PART 2
NEVER, EVER utter the word “Macbeth” in a theater. Unless, of course, you’re acting a role in the play of that name. Tidbits yesterday in Part 1 suggested the origin … Continue reading
THE SCOTTISH PLAY PART 1
THE WORD “MACBETH” is never, ever uttered in a theater, except when performing in the Shakespeare play. To avoid the curse, it must always be referred to as “The Scottish … Continue reading
ETYMOLOGY: PURGE, PERJURY
TWO SIMILARLY SOUNDING, albeit distinctly different words, “purge” and “perjury,” are related these days, what with the article “Vindman, Sondland Removed As Trump Purges Impeachment Witnesses,” by Roberta Rampton, Amita … Continue reading
ETYMOLOGY: GANG, GANGSTER
GIVEN THAT WE have a gangster as president (attempted extortion, obstruction of justice, witness intimidation, “take her out,” …), the word and its root “gang” belong in my series of … Continue reading
FOUR AND TWENTY, FOUR TWENTIES + NINETEEN, FOUR AND TWO-AND-A-HALF TWENTIES FORTY OR FIGHT! PART 2
YESTERDAY, WE dealt with four and twenty blackbirds in one way and another. (Don’t ask.) Today in Part 2, we see how German, French, and Danish languages handle counting. You’ll … Continue reading
Simanaitis Says 