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The Write Way 16 August 2002 It's Ekka Time! Greetings, Yes, Folks, it's Ekka time ... those few heady days when the bush comes to town!
I imagine that most countries have a similar tradition - ours is the Royal (Why "Royal" in 2002???) Queensland Show or Exhibition or Ekka ... and it's been around since 1875. Now, don't scoff, those of you who daily walk past buildings that have been standing for centuries - that's a long time for us. Each state here has its own version of the Ekka and, corny as they are, they're fun. Apart from all the tacky sideshows, there are some must-see exhibitions. My favourites (when I was a slip of a girl) were the amazing fruit and vegetable displays. These were massive "pictures" (anything from 20 to 30 metres [that's 60 to 90 feet] long and wide) - of farm houses, animals, people, landscapes and so on - all made from different agricultural products (fruit, vegies, wool, wheat, honey etc) that stretched around the sides of huge exhibition halls. Each district of the state creates one from its primary produce and I used to wander around wide-eyed at the woolly horses galloping through fields of carrot grass; houses made from honeycomb and pineapples; people with pumpkin heads, bean jackets and so on ... Another favourite was the Cake Pavilion - the things those country women can do with icing! My least favourite was always the hoof-and-hook display ... I hated looking into the big, brown eyes of those beautiful animals, knowing what was in store for them after the beef cattle judging ... (shudder). Now I remember why we don't eat much meat. Another essential ingredient of any visit to one of these Shows is the (for want of a better word) "food." There's nothing quite like standing in a queue on a windy winter's day (and it's always windy in August!) after trekking around the exhibits, sniffing the enticing aroma of hot food ... Aah ... No trip to the Ekka is complete without partaking of the House Specialty ... the Dagwood Dog! This is a battered, deep-fried frankfurt on a stick that's dunked in tomato sauce and then handed to you ... They're actually quite obscene looking ... and loaded with cholesterol (all the wrong types) and nitrasamines (or whatever those horrid carcinogenic smokey chemicals are). And they have more numbers than you can count but they're delicious ... while you're waiting in the line. Like so much in this funny old life we lead, they're far better in the anticipation than in the realisation! So there's no need to be jealous when you read about us chomping our way through the odd Dog or two. Hmm ... or would you be envious instead? Do these two terms confuse you, too? Jealous means "apprehensive or vengeful out of fear of being replaced by someone else." It can also mean "watchful," "anxiously suspicious," "zealous," or "expecting complete devotion." The word comes from the Latin zelus meaning 'emulation or zeal.' Envy means "to bear a grudge toward someone due to coveting what that person has or enjoys" and "the longing for something someone else has and the resulting ill will because of another's advantages." It also comes from the Latin (are you surprised?) This time from the word invidere meaning 'to look askance at.' So, you'd more likely be envious, having a feeling of grudging admiration and desire to have something (a Dagwood Dog on a stick) possessed by another (me) and you'd be wishing it were you standing in the wind about to overload your arteries ... or not. Having said all that, these days the two terms are practically synonymous - but at least you now have a starting point when it comes to opting for one or t'other. I used this last week in my other newsletter and thought you'd get a giggle from it, too. Dave Wagner found this business tip: In the
wake of the Exxon/Mobil deal and the AOL/Time Warner implode, I wanted to make a
few close friends aware of the next expected mergers so you can get in on the
ground floor and make some BIG bucks. Watch for Chuckle ... This week's quiz: Each list below consists of four words. Three of them are related in meaning – find the odd word: 1. bewilder perplex obfuscate clarify 2. redolent fortuitous suggestive fragrant 3. ramification convergence branch consequences 4. sweet syrupy sour saccharine 5. vicissitude change similarity variance 6. model example platitude paradigm 7. ruminate think ponder skim 8. hopeful optimistic shameful sanguine 9. vicarious direct personal own 10. sophisticated worldly suave urbane Thank you for your continued support for the newsletter. Here's how you can add your tuppence worth (or 30 cents' worth!) 1. Pay by PayPal:
2. Click here to subscribe for a full year OR 3. Use your credit card on my secure order form: http://www.write101.com/fund.htm (You can also access the PayPal subscription link from this page if the link above didn't work for you. With PayPal, you can use your credit card, PayPal account or pay online using your own cheque account.) OR 4. Send a cheque: http://www.write101.com/fund.htm Here's a little ditty that Albert found and passed along ... can't think why he thought I'd be interested in this ... it might appeal to some of you ... God, grant me the
senility to forget the people I never liked anyway, the good fortune to run into
the ones I do, and the eyesight to tell the difference. Now that I'm
older (but refuse to grow up), here's what I've discovered: 1.
I started out with nothing, and I still have most of it. 2.
My wild oats have turned into prunes and All Bran. 3.
I finally got my head together; now my body is falling apart. 4.
Funny, I don't remember being absent minded... 4.
Funny, I don't remember being absent minded... 5.
If all is not lost, where is it? 6.
It is easier to get older than it is to get wiser. 7.
The only time the world beats a path to your door is when you're in
the bathroom. 8.
If God wanted me to touch my toes, he would have put them on my knees. 9.
It's not hard to meet expenses... they're everywhere. 10.
These days, I spend a lot of time thinking about the hereafter...I go
somewhere to get something and then wonder what I'm hereafter. Isn't that a hoot? I love it ... OK ... maybe I CAN relate to a couple of these ... Last week's quiz: Dr. Yule's 16 Word
Spelling Test Last week's reference to light bulbs reminded Holliday of this: Just read your How
Many Internet Newsgroup Subscribers Does It Take to Screw Just goes to show that there's no longer any such thing as a 'throw-away' line! Feel free to drop by the FOTA board: http://pub37.bravenet.com/forum/show.php?usernum=3170114826 Thanks to everyone who's left a message and stuck a pin on the map - it's never too late ... http://pub37.bravenet.com/guestmap/view.php?usernum=3170114826 A Little Something Extra One of the greatest hurdles many writers face is finding something to write about! "People often want to know where ideas for writing come from. The book shelves and magazine racks are full of writers who have had a flash of inspiration at some stage in their life and have turned it into something workable ..." Read Victoria Purdie's article on how to find your inspiration: http://www.write101.com/purdie.htm Word of the week: Nef (n) Ornamental stand in shape of ship for holding salt or cutlery. Go grab your nefs and let's party! Tautology of the week: Don't know about you, but I've had enough oxymorons (oxymora?) for a while ... how about going back to tautologies for a bit? (Maybe I should have said "reverting back" ...) Here's one: please RSVP This week's Latin phrase will be useful for those of you who DID understand all the discoveries Albert found: Capillamentum? Haudquaquam conieci esse! (A wig? I never would have guessed!) Regards, Jennifer Click here to subscribe for the next year: To unsubscribe from this list, send a blank email to: mailto:WritingTips-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com or go to the web site, at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/WritingTips This menu will also let you change your subscription between digest and normal mode. |
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