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~ The Write Way ~

Friday 6 April 2001

Washing Powders

Greetings,

I heard an Earnest Young Thing on the radio yesterday, exhorting me to try some new washing powder... or was it a headache powder? I was only half-listening, (as one is wont to do) when I suddenly sat up and shook my head in wonder.

I had to listen intently to make sure I'd heard correctly ... and sure enough on the second running of this ad (do they do that where you are, too? Run the same ad twice in each ad break? Doesn't it drive you batty? I just refuse to buy those products - on principle), I heard it again:

"Try Whammo Powder," said the aforementioned EYT, "nothing gets rid of that stubborn pain faster than Whammo!:"

And I thought, "Well, at last! Truth in advertising!" (To be honest, it may have been "...that stubborn stain ..." I was in such a state of wondrous bemusement that I didn't listen to the rest of the ad.)

I love these unintentional bloopers - they provide hours of fun for the whole family ... like my favourite, "Try our hot pies. You'll never get better!"

Here are some more:

Red Tape Holds up New Bridge

Dealers Will Hear Car Talk at Noon

Kids Make Nutritious Snacks

Chef Throws His Heart into Helping Feed Needy

Grandmother of Eight Makes Hole in One

Cars Killing 110 a Day, Let's Resolve to do Better

The moral of the story, Boys and Girls?

Engage brain before putting digit to keyboard. Look at your words from every angle, check that the punctuation is in the right place and the words are in the right order.

There's a wonderful example of the way punctuation can completely change the meaning of words in a previous newsletter. Refresh your memory and promise faithfully that you'll never underestimate the power of punctuation again!

For those of you who share your home, your lives and your credit card with someone who is still studying, here's a great maths site that Hamish found: http://www.mathsonline.co.nz There's a fee to register for all the resources, but they also have sample pages that provide some great problems, quizzes etc. Remember, there are links to other excellent maths pages here: http://www.write101.com/maths.htm

This week's quiz:

I have to confess I've cheated this week. I found these terrific quizzes by Tony Augarde here and thought they were so good I just had to pass them along :)

1. Which two rhyming words together could mean a weird idea?
2. Remove some letters from the word "observe" to make another word which means observe.
3. Add a word for an appeal to a word meaning definite to make enjoyment.
4. Think of four anagrams of the word "lameness"
5. Which famous word game was invented in the 1930s by an unemployed architect named Alfred Butts?
6. Which word is the opposite of "dislike" and also the opposite of "plain"?
7. Reverse a quick swallow to make a stopper.
8. Gypsies got that name because they were thought to come from which country?
9. Which word contains the letters OKKEE together?
10. Which six letter word includes four letter "e"s?

Here's one of those great little tests that put my tiny brain into overdrive ... I can never work out just how they know! It takes less than a minute to do and you'll get a smile from it. Blame my son for passing this along:

Work this out as you read. Be sure you don't read the bottom until you've worked it out!

1. First of all, pick the number of times a week that you would like to have chocolate (try for more than once but less than 10)

2. Multiply this number by 2 (just to be bold)

3. Add 5 (for Sunday)

4. Multiply it by 50 ... it's OK .... I'll wait while you get the calculator................

5. If you have already had your birthday this year add 1751.... If you haven't, add 1750 .........

6. Now subtract the four digit year that you were born (if you remember).

You should now have a three digit number ....

7. The first digit of this was your original number (i.e., how many times you want to have chocolate each week).

The next two numbers are your age.

This is the only year (2001) this particular calculation will ever work - clever isn't it?

Here are some more of these weird tests.

Last week's quiz:

Explain the following idiomatic expressions:

1. To bite the dust: to be hit and fall down; to die
2. To nip in the bud: to stop a problem/change etc before it starts
3. In hot water: in trouble
4. Throw a spanner into the works: to cause trouble; to put obstacles in the path of something
5. Cool as a cucumber: suave
6. Run with the hare and hunt with the hounds: to try to be on both sides on an argument, cause etc.
7. A feather in your cap: an achievement that brings recognition
8. Bury the hatchet: to call a truce; forget differences and stop fighting
9. Hands down: an obvious winner/result
10. Bring home the bacon: earn a living; support the family

And these are Leo's answers:

1. To bite the dust - Finish eating a sandwich after it has fallen on the ground

2. Nip in the bud - Swim in a tank of Budweiser beer

3. In hot water - Relaxing in the spa

4. To throw a spanner in the works - Add giant sausage on the barbie that reaches end to end.

5. Cool as a cucumber - Spiteful remark about the gentleman dressed in the lime green leisure suit

6. To run with the hare and hunt with the hounds - Participate in fun run with the HashHound Harriers - Notorious drinking group that has a running problem.

7. A feather in one's cap - Drag queen at the annual gay parade

8. To bury the hatchet - Act done by man who hates splitting fire wood.

9. Hands down - Term used by young people who delight in walking along with hands in each others hip pockets.

10.Bring home the bacon - Introducing obese girlfriend to parents

Hmmm ... if you have any "improved explanations" for idioms (these or others) feel free to send them along :)

Last week's Word of the Week was "yethhounds," which Bart Berlin has seen elsewhere, with a more disturbing definition:

"In Webster's Second Unabridged, yethhound is defined as the transmigrating souls of dead unbaptized babies."

Isn't that sad? I think the definition from last week is much more fun.

Here's a t'riffic site if you love word games - there's something for everyone and every level of ability! http://www.boardgame.co.uk/submenus/freeonli.htm (Leo found this site.)

Word of the week: Sicarian (n) A murderer. More specifically, an assassin. "You'll find 3B an interesting class this year, Carruthers. Very multicultural. There are some Lebanese, a couple of Croatians and Serbs . . . watch out for the two Irish kids - they're from opposite sides in Ulster . . . there's a Calabrian and a Sicilian. . . as for the others, they're mainly sicarians, I think." (Hall of Superior Words)

(That tickles my funny bone ...)

Tautologies of the week: advance warning

This week's Latin phrase is apropos absolutely nothing in particular:

Interdum feror cupidine partium magnarum Europae vincendarum. (Sometimes I get this urge to conquer large parts of Europe.)

in-TER-doom FEY-ohr kyoo-pid-EE-nee PART-ee-oom mag-NAR-oom yoo-ROH-peye vin-ken-DAR-oom

Remember, the -oo is pronounced like 'cook.'

An extra little note on pronunciation: if the second last syllable has an "i" in it and doesn't end in a consonant, the stress is usually moved back one syllable.

e.g. partium is pronounced PART-ee-oom (and not part-EE-oom as you would expect).

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Regards,

Jennifer

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