| Prior Date | Back to Archive Index | Next Date |
|
WITandWISDOM(tm) - October 2, 2000 ~~~~~~~ THOUGHTS: "Do just once what others say you can't do, and you will never pay attention to their limitations again." - James R. Cook Source: Awesome Quotes, www.coolnewsletters.com via http://www.witandwisdom.org ~~~~~~~ SPECIAL THOUGHTS: RULES FOR THE ROAD. . . Make friends with freedom and uncertainty. Cry during movies. Swing as high as you can on a swing by moonlight. Do it for love. Take lots of naps. Give money away. Do it now. The money will follow. Believe in magic. Laugh a lot. Celebrate every gorgeous moment. Read every day. Giggle with children. Listen to those older than you are. Entertain your inner child. Get wet. Write more letters. Source: The Funnies, andychaps_the-funnies-subscribe@egroups.com via http://www.witandwisdom.org ~~~~~~~ THIS & THAT: VOCABULARY BUILDER ACCORDIONATED (ah kor' de on ay tid) adj. Being able to drive and refold a road map at the same time. AQUADEXTROUS (ak wa deks' trus) adj. Possessing the ability to turn the bathtub faucet on and off with your toes. CARPERPETUATION (kar' pur pet u a shun) n. The act, when vacuuming, of running over a string or a piece of lint at least a dozen times, reaching over and picking it up, examining it, then putting it back down to give the vacuum one more chance. DISCONFECT (dis kon fekt') v. To sterilize the piece of candy you dropped on the floor by blowing on it, somehow assuming this will "remove" all the germs. ELBONICS (el bon' iks) n. The actions of two people maneuvering for one armrest in a Movie Theater or airplane. FRUST (frust) n. The small line of debris that refuses to be swept onto the dust pan and keeps backing a person across the room until he finally decides to give up and sweep it under the rug. LACTOMANGULATION (lak' to man gyu lay' shun) n. Manhandling the "open here" spout on a milk container so badly that one has to resort to the "illegal" side. PEPPIER (pehp ee ay') n. The waiter at a fancy restaurant whose sole purpose seems to be walking around asking diners if they want ground pepper. PETROPHOBIC (pet ro fob' ik) adj. One who is embarrassed to undress in front of a household pet. PHONESIA (fo nee' zhuh) n. The affliction of dialing a phone number and forgetting whom you were calling just as they answer. PUPKUS (pup' kus) n. The moist residue left on a window after a dog presses its nose to it. TELECRASTINATION (tel e kras tin ay' shun) n. The act of always letting the phone ring at least twice before you pick it up, even when you're only six inches away. Submitted by Alice Bryan ~~~~~~~ KEEP SMILING: A lady who was expecting her fourth child was exhausted and very short of patience with her brood. Her five-year-old looked at her thoughtfully and said, "Well, Mom. I don't know what you're going to do. You keep having babies - and you know that they turn into kids. Source: The Funnies, andychaps_the-funnies- subscribe@egroups.com via http://www.witandwisdom.org ~~~~~~~ TRIVIA: Why do we call limitations on how late we can stay out a "curfew?" When I was a teenager I called such limitations "unjust." I also thought the word "curfew" sounded weird. What could it have originally meant? A few dogs? But the word makes a lot of sense once you know what it was in the original French. An English word since the 13th century, curfew evolved from the French couvrefeu, which means, "cover the fire." Throughout Europe in the Middle Ages, a town official rang a bell at a designated hour in the evening warning all citizens that it was time to put out their fires. The danger of a few wayward sparks from an unattended hearth was too great to let these flames burn through the night. Once the fires went out it was bedtime and activities ceased for the day. From: the Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology Source: MailBits.com Copyright (c) 1998-2000. All rights reserved. Trivia-subscribe@mailbits.com via http://www.witandwisdom.org |