-
Ralph Tubbs
Good morning! Back in 1939, there was a World’s Fair in New York City that featured two iconic structures: the Trylon and the Perisphere. They were huge, impressive, and had no function other than attracting people to attend the fair. The Perisphere was a big ball, and the Trylon was a spire, and they did Continue reading
-
Omens, auspicious and ominous
An omen is a sign or portent about some future happening. It might be a good omen or it might be a bad omen — the word “omen” is neutral. But if “omen” is neutral, why does “ominous,” which is simply something foretold by an omen, always have a negative connotation? Whatever the reason, this Continue reading
-
January 8 Birthdays
Everybody’s heard of superintendents. Among other things, they manage apartment buildings, at least in the US. But how about just plain intendants? They’re not underlings to the superintendents; they were government officials in the French, Portuguese, and Spanish monarchies, and Jean Talon was one of them. He was born January 8, 1626, and became the Continue reading
-
Post and Mail
You go to the post office to mail a letter. Your mail is delivered by a postal worker, who works for the Post Office, and might drive a mail truck. There are publications called things like The New York Post, others called The Daily Mail, and some that cover all the bases like The Post Continue reading
-
What’s in a name?
Hare blinked at Dog. “What did you say they call you?” “Daisy,” said Dog, idly scratching an itchy spot. “I don’t get it,” said Hare, “a daisy is a flower. In fact, there are some right over there in the meadow.” “I know,” said Dog. “But it’s just one of those things they do. My Continue reading
-
Doubts and redoubts
“Redoubtable” is a bit of an odd word. It looks like it ought to mean somebody or something you doubted before and now you realize you should doubt again. For example, you might expect to use it this way: “in spite of my worry about whether that bridge was safe, I made it across. But Continue reading
-
Schooner
A “schooner” is both a kind of ship and a kind of beer glass. Nobody really seems to know which came first. For that matter, nobody really seems sure where the word came from in the first place. Mysterious origins aside, serving beer in “schooners” has a fairly complicated history in England. It seems there Continue reading
-
A new favorite
1 “That is the worst idea I’ve ever heard,” said Magpie. “But maybe it would work,” said Squirrel. “It would be very nice to…” “No,” said Magpie, “it wouldn’t. The whole thing is more complicated than you realize. And besides, you can get away with taking things that are already thrown out, but now you’re Continue reading
-
Over and under the whelm
You can be overwhelmed, and since the 1950s you can also be underwhelmed. But it’s been quite a long time since you — or anything else — has been simply whelmed. Although in fact, people haven’t been whelmed all that often. “Whelm” used to be a common word; it was used in medieval England to Continue reading
-
The Bear Necessities
Otter and Muskrat were showing off their new hobby to everyone. It was a little raft, and they were sailing it around Beaver’s pond. “Ahoy!” called Otter to everyone gathered on the shore. “Avast! Keelhaul! Six points off the starboard bow!” “What’s he talking about?” asked Squirrel. “He’s just yelling all the sailing words he Continue reading
About Me
I’m Pete Harbeson, a writer located near Boston, Massachusetts. In addition to writing my own content, I’ve learned to translate for my loquacious and opinionated pup Chocolate Bossypaws. I shouldn’t be surprised, but she mostly speaks in doggerel. You can find her contributions tagged with Chocolatiana.
Check out my other blog, Techlimitics, where I’m grappling with the nature of simplicity.
Privacy policy
No trackers, no ads, no data collected or saved.
Contact
peterharbeson@me.com