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
CONTRASTING VIEWS THIRTY YEARS AGO
“AS ENGINEERING EDITOR,” I BEGAN, “I TAUGHT KIM REYNOLDS everything I knew about road testing. And, as Road Test Editor, he’s learned even more on his own.” This and the … Continue reading
CROWS COUNT
IN TEACHING MATH FOR ELEMENTARY TEACHERS, I oft shared the tale of a farmer plagued by crows feasting on his crops. The corvids weren’t fooled by a scarecrow. And they’d … Continue reading
Simanaitis Says 