THE VENICE GRAND PRIX
NO, NOT A GONDOLA RACE. And not in Italy, but in Venice, California, March 17, 1915. What’s more, I learned about this Venice Grand Prix by leafing through the Winter … Continue reading
CC Me—And Be Thankful for Cамиздат
AN OLD-TIME RADIO REFERENCE got me thinking of carbon paper. (What’s ‘carbon paper,’ Grandpa?) Here are selected tidbits gleaned from one place or another. Carbon Paper. Wikipedia notes, “Carbon paper (originally carbonic … Continue reading
CAN YOU WHISPER ME NOW?
“STAND WITH YOUR EAR UP AGAINST THE TILE WORK in the domed intersection of walkways on the lower floor of Grand Central Terminal,” Atlas Obscura describes, “and you’ll discover a … Continue reading
RENOVATING MICHIGAN CENTRAL
A DETROIT BUILDING EVERY BIT AS ICONIC as New York City’s Grand Central is humming again. Today’s rejuvenated Michigan Central will be more than a railroad station. As described in … Continue reading
(NON-POLITICAL) PARTY LINES AND OTHER TELEPHONIC CURIOSITIES PART 2
YESTERDAY’S PHONE ACTIVITIES WERE local calls with the likes of Lum and Abner and Fibber McGee and Molly. Telephone operators played important (if sometimes unspoken) roles. Today in Part 2 … Continue reading
(NON-POLITICAL) PARTY LINES AND OTHER TELEPHONIC CURIOSITIES PART 1
MY ATTRACTION TO SIRIUSXM “RadioClassics” offers me regular encounters with telephonic curiosities long gone in these days of smart phones. Here, in Parts 1 and 2 today and tomorrow, are … Continue reading
[sic] [sic]
NO DOUBT YOU RECOGNIZE THE BRACKETED “[sic],” the citer stressing that the word, even though exactly as cited, is incorrect: “My county [sic], ’tis of thee.” It’s a good way … Continue reading
AS NOTEWORTHY AS “SEE ALSO”
I WAS RESEARCHING “AS THE BISHOP SAID to the actress” only to find that SimanaitisSays had already cited this thought-provoking phrase. However, one source for it was Brewer’s Dictionary of … Continue reading
WEALTHIEST COUNTRIES?
SO WHO’S GOT THE MOST DOUGH? In one simple answer, it depends. Wealthiest in Gross Domestic Product? In GDP/capita? In any other measure defined by something or other? This calls … Continue reading
HUMPTY DUMPTY—LINGUIST EXTRAORDINAIRE
EXPLAINING WORDS LIKE “SLITHY” AND “MIMSY” to Alice, Humpty Dumpty says, “You see it’s like a portmanteau—there are two meanings packed up into one word.” And, of course, Alice would … Continue reading
Simanaitis Says 