Words, words, words; words are some of my favourite things.
Words inform:
Words delight:
Words elicit laughter:
Words tell us what you believe in:
Words reassure:
Words instruct:
This post is for Weekly Geeks: 2011 – 9 which is titled, “That word we never use.“
This week’s challenge has four parts:
1 – I would like to make you all parents and send you over to Save The Word.org to look at all the words that are either not being used enough or are due for a cull probably within the next couple of years. Adopt a word.
As you can see in the photo above, the word I adopted was gelicide which is a noun. It means a frost and is used in the following sentence so that you all can get a sense of what gelicide means.
Those poor garden gnomes – they’ll die from gelicide if we don’t bring them inside.
I encourage you all to rush over and adopt a word – it was a fun and rewarding experience.
.
2 – What is your pet peeve word? – The word that makes you grind your teeth with either it’s over use or being used out of context.
I have no pet peeve word per say but grit my teeth every time some one misuses the plural, that is, they write sister’s when they mean sisters.
.
3 – What is a word you adore, or a word that you feel is not used enough. Irrespective of meaning or even era it’s a word that you just love.
The word I adore I have not been able to find in any dictionary. That word is sundelightful – I fell in love with it the minute I read it in a book. I wish I could link to the book but it’s been decades since I discovered the word and forgot the referenced book.
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4 – Lastly what is your opinion on word culling or the rise in “text speak” that’s happening now.
I’m in favour of words so I have no problem with new and evolving languages. I wish I was better at learning languages as I love to pepper my speech with foreign words but will only do so if I can explain the foreign word or phrase that I am using.
Words, words, words: I love words. When I went back to school in my thirties (shh – I’m old, aged, ancient, decrepit, experienced, mature, geriatric, antique) I discovered the multi-volume print edition of the OED. I could spend hours sitting and exploring all the words stored within. This is something I covet; I want to own the print version of the OED. Does anyone have a spare $1, 595.00 + (today’s price) that they do not need and could give to me?
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Why do I Blog? I blog because I am a writer. I am in love with words. Like Miss Ramona Quimby in the movie Ramona and Beezus, I delight in playing with words and making up or discovering new ones. Ramona’s new word of terrifical is sundelightful in my opinion.
Ideally, I blog weekly – every Sunday, usually. (Sorry not this week – what with working yesterday and than walking home in the cold I did nothing last night expect watch a sappy movie).
I see myself as a columnist. I write weekly. I give an opinion. I tell you what life is like for a middle-aged, solitary, first world feminist. I write about my past, present and future. I write about my dreams and aspirations. I write about my failures. I am hard to categorize. I don’t fit in any one box easily.
If I could find someone to pay me to write this type of weekly column, in real life, it would be miraculous.
Here and now, though, I try to paint pictures with words. I am a writer.
I am a writer. I paint with words; words, words, words. (She goes on maniacally).
New words, practical words, fun words, strange words. When words alone will not convey what I am trying to say or if I need more words to convey a meaning, I put in links. Links to me are like footnotes; so far, in this post, I’ve given you three links that will tell you more about the subjects I’m telling you about.
But, we are visual creatures.
Pictures enhance an experience. It puts us all on the same page, quickly and easily. When I write Lilac what do you see? For me, Lilacs are always lilac in colour. If I post a picture alongside the words, you know this without me having to use a thousand words to explain one concept. You visualize what I want you to visualize.
That’s part of the problem – concepts and abstractions. I know what I mean but I can’t always explain it with words alone. Try to picture my confusion; as the first and third pictures in the post do. Try to picture a hiding place which is what I was photographing in the second picture.
Picture this: a crisp morning walk in December. The Holiday lights are on display as most houses stay decorated to around January 15th which is when the Orthodox celebrations are ending. I am out for a morning walk. I have forgotten my camera. I regret this because ever since I’ve bought my digital camera I’ve been seeing things differently. I’ve been seeing visually. Snow is no longer just a word, it’s also light, shadow, and colour.
I’m losing you. What does all this have to do with blogging, with writing words?
Look at all those words up there after my last picture. It’s a big block of words, isn’t it?
Maybe we need another picture here. Maybe we need some experimentation.
Can you tell what this picture is? I could explain it with words but how about a clearer picture instead:
Now, you can see what the subject of the picture is. It’s a nativity scene. I am learning how to take better pictures by experimenting, with flash and light and other settings. I’m learning to enjoy my camera the way I enjoy words.
I’m enjoying my camera and I find this strange. I have always been a word person not a picture person.
That enjoyment is a gift. It enhances my life. It enhances my writing. It enhances my blog. It enhances my pictures, by improving them like with the nativity scenes above or by giving me different ways to look at the same scene as with these last two pictures. Which picture of Santa do you like best?
My blog statistics are slowly growing. I get twice as many hits now as when I started blogging over two years ago.
I try not to live or die by the hit. I’ll admit to momentary panic when my stats counter read 6 viewers on Saturday, Dec 18th. But numbers that low are lonely blips on my stats viewer. These days I average around 20 to 40 visitors every day. Which I feel is pretty good considering I only post once a week.
Could I blog without pictures? Could I trust that the images my words bring forth from you are as important as my own images? Yes, yes I could.
It wouldn’t be as much fun for me. I wouldn’t get to experiment and grow.
I am a writer. I am a writer willing to grow and change and experiment.
I am a writer learning how to use photos to enhance my words.
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Blogging: Don’t Forget the Camera
January 31, 2011 at 2:30 pm (Blogging, Book Commentary, Movie Commentary) (Beverly Cleary, blogging, cameras, experimentation, footnotes, growth, links, photography, Ramona Quimby, sundelightful, terrifical, The Lost Valentine, writing)
Why do I Blog? I blog because I am a writer. I am in love with words. Like Miss Ramona Quimby in the movie Ramona and Beezus, I delight in playing with words and making up or discovering new ones. Ramona’s new word of terrifical is sundelightful in my opinion.
Ideally, I blog weekly – every Sunday, usually. (Sorry not this week – what with working yesterday and than walking home in the cold I did nothing last night expect watch a sappy movie).
I see myself as a columnist. I write weekly. I give an opinion. I tell you what life is like for a middle-aged, solitary, first world feminist. I write about my past, present and future. I write about my dreams and aspirations. I write about my failures. I am hard to categorize. I don’t fit in any one box easily.
If I could find someone to pay me to write this type of weekly column, in real life, it would be miraculous.
Here and now, though, I try to paint pictures with words. I am a writer.
I am a writer. I paint with words; words, words, words. (She goes on maniacally).
New words, practical words, fun words, strange words. When words alone will not convey what I am trying to say or if I need more words to convey a meaning, I put in links. Links to me are like footnotes; so far, in this post, I’ve given you three links that will tell you more about the subjects I’m telling you about.
But, we are visual creatures.
Pictures enhance an experience. It puts us all on the same page, quickly and easily. When I write Lilac what do you see? For me, Lilacs are always lilac in colour. If I post a picture alongside the words, you know this without me having to use a thousand words to explain one concept. You visualize what I want you to visualize.
That’s part of the problem – concepts and abstractions. I know what I mean but I can’t always explain it with words alone. Try to picture my confusion; as the first and third pictures in the post do. Try to picture a hiding place which is what I was photographing in the second picture.
Picture this: a crisp morning walk in December. The Holiday lights are on display as most houses stay decorated to around January 15th which is when the Orthodox celebrations are ending. I am out for a morning walk. I have forgotten my camera. I regret this because ever since I’ve bought my digital camera I’ve been seeing things differently. I’ve been seeing visually. Snow is no longer just a word, it’s also light, shadow, and colour.
I’m losing you. What does all this have to do with blogging, with writing words?
Look at all those words up there after my last picture. It’s a big block of words, isn’t it?
Maybe we need another picture here. Maybe we need some experimentation.
Can you tell what this picture is? I could explain it with words but how about a clearer picture instead:
Now, you can see what the subject of the picture is. It’s a nativity scene. I am learning how to take better pictures by experimenting, with flash and light and other settings. I’m learning to enjoy my camera the way I enjoy words.
I’m enjoying my camera and I find this strange. I have always been a word person not a picture person.
That enjoyment is a gift. It enhances my life. It enhances my writing. It enhances my blog. It enhances my pictures, by improving them like with the nativity scenes above or by giving me different ways to look at the same scene as with these last two pictures. Which picture of Santa do you like best?
My blog statistics are slowly growing. I get twice as many hits now as when I started blogging over two years ago.
I try not to live or die by the hit. I’ll admit to momentary panic when my stats counter read 6 viewers on Saturday, Dec 18th. But numbers that low are lonely blips on my stats viewer. These days I average around 20 to 40 visitors every day. Which I feel is pretty good considering I only post once a week.
Could I blog without pictures? Could I trust that the images my words bring forth from you are as important as my own images? Yes, yes I could.
It wouldn’t be as much fun for me. I wouldn’t get to experiment and grow.
I am a writer. I am a writer willing to grow and change and experiment.
I am a writer learning how to use photos to enhance my words.
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