Oscar Night

I've decided to watch the Red Carpet tonight and then turn off the T.V.  I love the Red Carpet.  In the old days Girl-child and I would watch together and critique all the dresses.  That's probably why she sent me this link.

Why will I not watch the rest of the show?  Too long.  And I haven't seen the movies.  Well, I saw one, but that's not enough to be able to cheer for or rail against winners and losers.

Faith Salie did a piece on actors cleaning up their language for thank-you speeches here.  Probably not a bad idea.  

Here are the speeches the Daily Beast thinks were the best.

And then there are the super long ones too.  Look here for info on Oscar thank-you speeches that were 11 words or less.

Anyway, hope you enjoy Oscar night, however you spend it.

I Did It Again...

I heard about the male model who's been used in an ad campaign for push-up bras, so I searched the Internet a bit and found an article in Slate about him.

Kind of cool and weird and fascinating....

...but when reading the article I noticed they referred to another lingerie ad campaign in Korea using a male rapper, "to hock its goods" (sic)

I actually set up an account so that I could leave a comment. Seriously, do they not have editors any more? Do they just use spell-check and leave it at that?

I know, no one cares, and no one has left a comment on it for a month, so they really don't care, but I just can't seem to help myself.

Rant over.

The Magnum Opus of Palindromes

A Greenward Palindrome

by Barry Duncan

IN WHICH A CONVERSATION WITH TWO U.S. SENATORS ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE EVOLVES QUITE NATURALLY INTO A CELEBRATION OF THE CAMBRIDGE ECO-BOUTIQUE GREENWARD – ITS MISSION, ITS OWNERS, ITS STAFF, ITS INVENTORY, ITS PATRONS, AND ITS SPIRIT – ON THE OCCASION OF ITS THIRD ANNIVERSARY

Won't I note Ben? Oh, still a cold, raw NE. Ergo: two nos. Day as dismal, climate big. Get Sen. (R- OK), sir. One disputes data in “war”? Damn, I do. Oh, retro? Paper a sham, lacks a bite. Mine position won. Kyoto? Negate; J.I.'d abet. Saw one rot. (Sneer.) Gas to low temp. Oh, sad loser, eh? Sit. Ah. We sue re caps, ocean?

Wows, is up: Mural a gem. It still, a ballet, how one in every 3 is awed. Art on!

At 1764 M. A., as I view Otsu, mill at some mags, I gab gab on. Sin. A catnip, a Reknitz on a pup. (Is it paw art?) Sleets? A Totes. “I was, I tote.”

No. No, see? Seeps. We fed ample. He's so PC in a Gro diaper.

(A IPO to CEO? Greed, sir! A fast ego's evil. Slam in a tub! How?)

One do Rei me. Togs. All is soft, safe, no? Rattle. Moth. Asleep.

Store: no BPA. Can I spot SIGG? (Is not a bottle beer, then a refill?!) Listen, a LP tray. (A LP is naive.) Was gift – rats! – late, Mom?

Gab. Keel. So ten, if smart, lug a bare hot pans: To-Go's tiffins (ha! sets!). A Taza tastes...ah! Sniff it. So, got snap? To HER, a bag (ultra-Ms.-fine-to-sleek bag). Mo' metal? Start. Figs? Awe. Via N.? Si. Play. Art.

Planet's ill. Life ran, eh? Tree. (Belt to baton, SIGG is tops in a cap.) Bone rots, peels. Ah, to melt tar, one fast fossil. (L.A.'s got 'em.) I erode now. Oh, but animals live, so get Safari's deer.

Go, ecotopia!

Repaid organic posse? Help! Made few. Speesees on one tot is a wise tot. A steel straw apt: I sip up an oz., tinker, a pint, a can. I, snob? AG bag is game. Most. All. I must owe, I. Visa. Am 46.71. Ta! No? Trade.

Was I 3 yr. even (i. e., now)? Oh, tell. A ball? It's time. Gala! Rumpus!

I, S.W., own a eco space. Reuse what is here sold. A shop. Me. Two lots. A green store. No, waste bad. I? Jet age no toy. Know. No, it is open. I met, I bask. Calm. Ah, S.A., rep a Porter 'hood in MA. Drawn? I? A tad. Set. Upside: no risk, or nest egg. I bet a mil clams, I'd say. Ad.

So now to Greenward: Local. Lit. Shone. Bet on it now.

ACRONYMS, REFERENCES, ABBREVIATIONS, AND SUCH:

Ben = Ben Nelson, Democratic senator from Nebraska.
NE = Nebraska.
Sen. (R-OK), J.I. = James Inhofe, Republican senator from Oklahoma.
Kyoto = The Kyoto Protocol, an international agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Mural a gem = Greenward's brilliant and iconic in-store mural, created by artist Craig Bostick.
1764 M. A. = 1764 Massachusetts Avenue, Greenward's address.
PC = politically correct.
IPO = Initial Public Offering.
CEO = Chief Executive Officer.
BPA = Bisphenol A, a potentially harmful chemical used in the making of plastic.
LP = long-playing vinyl record album.
L.A. = Los Angeles.
oz. = ounce.
S.W. = Scott Walker, owner of Greenward.
S.A. = Simone Alpen, owner of Greenward.
MA = Massachusetts.

COMPANIES AND PRODUCTS I MENTIONED IN ONE WAY OR ANOTHER (and my apologies to those I missed – I'll catch you next time!):
Otsu = Little Otsu Publishing, stationery and greeting cards.
A catnip, a Reknitz on a pup = catnip toys and Reknitz reclaimed cotton dog sweater, both from West Paw Design.
A Totes = Totes Umbrellas.
in a Gro diaper = Gro Baby cloth diapers.
One do Rei me = Toby + Rei, eco-friendly baby clothes and accessories.
SIGG (mentioned twice) = SIGG of Switzerland water bottles.
a LP tray = LP snack tray by Vinylux.
To-Go's tiffins = tiffin set by To-Go Ware.
A Taza = Taza Chocolate, makers of organic, stone ground chocolate.
HER, a bag = HER Design, eco-friendly bags by Helen E. Riegle.
Figs = jewelry by Figs & Ginger.
Via N. = jewelry by Via Nativa.
Safari's deer = Bucky Cardboard Deer Trophy by Cardboard Safari.
Speesees on one tot = Speesees, organic gear for babies and tots.
A steel straw = stainless steel straws from R.S.V.P. International.
AG bag = bag made from upcycled materials by Alchemy Goods.

Copyright 2010
Barry Duncan

link here found it by being on the Mental Floss Water Cooler Ammo email distribution list

Some Linguistic Observations

I was recently in a waiting room where there were quite a few East Africans. I'm always amazed by the fact that no words stand out when I hear Somalis speak. In many languages, even Arabic, there will be a word here or there that recognizable. And so this guy was talking, talking, talking absolutely unintelligible when all of a sudden I hear, "Public swimming pool."

How odd is that? Was he switching languages partway through the conversation or is there no Somali word for public swimming pool? If that's the case is there a word for pool? Swimming? Public?

This is one of the many benefits of knitting. If I'd been reading I probably wouldn't have noticed.

On another day, a day of glorious sunshine, I was drinking coffee and knitting on a bench outside a public library in suburban Hennepin County. There was a group of young men chatting nearby. I couldn't believe my ears - the same conversation I've heard at that bus stop on University and Vandalia a number of times. I always called that bus stop my "Mofo" bus stop because the young men have such a limited vocabulary: Mother F%&*!, N@#%! B#$%* and a few conjunctions. It's universal. What a pity.

In the meantime, Boy-child is learning Finnish. The other day he said they were working on colors, so I asked him what the word for purple is in Finnish. "Violeta," he told me. "Oh!" I replied, "so they didn't have a word and had to borrow it" ... he told me that Finnish color words are limited and yadda yadda. I paused, and said, "Do you think that's true or do you think it's because your teacher is a man?"

I think he took offense. I was serious. What do you think?