Tag Archives: #language

Out

Posted on February 25, 2021 by d4vid

As Americans talking about America, we always seem to use “back” when we talk about the East (“back East”) but we use “out” when we talk about the West (“out West”).  Some vestigial frontier mentality, I expect.

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Goat

Posted on February 8, 2021 by d4vid

Human communication is so beautifully weird.  I love how the term “Greatest of All Time” evolved into “G.O.A.T.” which, in turn, evolved into just an emoji of an actual goat.

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Cinquecento

Posted on November 10, 2019 by d4vid

This year marks the 500th anniversary of the death of Leonardo da Vinci, who started his career working in Milan.  The period of the Italian Renaissance in the 1500s is referred to as the cinquecento meaning “the five hundreds”.

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Cinese

Posted on November 9, 2019 by d4vid

Inadvertently, found myself in Milan’s Chinatown.  All over the place, I kept seeing the character for “rice” and a character found in the word for “magnolia” or “orchid”.  Didn’t realize what they meant until I read 米兰 out loud:  Mǐlán! … Continue reading →

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Gelato

Posted on November 9, 2019 by d4vid

I’m on vacation in Northern Italy. I had a wonderful Italian moment just minutes after arriving here. Deplaning in Milan in the pre-dawn cold, we were herded onto buses to take us to the terminal.  A dad standing near me … Continue reading →

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Ruby

Posted on July 18, 2019 by d4vid

For the first time in, like, twenty years I’ve learned a brand new HTML tag!  In my blog, I’ve always done translations like this… 小河马 (xiǎo hémǎ or “little river horse”) With the set of <ruby> tags, I could do … Continue reading →

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Phoenix

Posted on June 9, 2019 by d4vid

Okay, yes. I saw Dark Phoenix in the theater. More out of resignation and for a sense of closure more than anything else. However, this Chinese poster almost makes up for the movie itself. Hope that’s a comfort to Chris … Continue reading →

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Cyclothymia

Posted on May 5, 2019 by d4vid

A wise therapist I saw for many years once mentioned—almost in passing—that I was “cyclothymic”.  I didn’t really grok what he was saying at the time and I’m not sure what made me think to look it up now, but … Continue reading →

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Monger

Posted on April 21, 2019 by d4vid

Watching Game of Thrones, I realized there are really only four kinds of -mongers you ever hear about: cheese fish whore war Such an odd, specific collection.

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Destruction

Posted on April 15, 2019 by d4vid

Tempus edax, homo edacior “Time destroys, man destroys more”  

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Doctor

Posted on March 20, 2019 by d4vid

I stumbled on these strange but lovely Chinese Dr. Who posters. Apparently, the Chinese title is 神秘博士 (Shénmì Bóshì) which translates to something like “Mysterious Doctor”!

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Oink

Posted on February 5, 2019 by d4vid

恭喜发财!  新年快乐! Today is Lunar New Year and, according to the Chinese zodiac, the start of the Year of the Pig! According to the Chinese myth, animals raced to the Jade Emperor’s call and the order in which they arrived are … Continue reading →

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Remembrance

Posted on February 2, 2019 by d4vid

At one point, Kvothe from The Kingkiller Chronicle says he has been given “a memory so clean and sharp I have to be careful not to cut myself sometimes.” Mnemosyne was the Greek goddess of memory.  She was daughter of the Titans … Continue reading →

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Gigerpunk

Posted on February 1, 2019 by d4vid

I was quibbling with coworkers over lunch as to the definition of cyberpunk.  I said that it was marked by dystopia, a film noir aesthetic, and technology filtering down to a criminal underworld.  But a couple of guys insisted that … Continue reading →

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Verbing

Posted on January 5, 2019 by d4vid
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