Quote of the Day: August 11, 2020
As long as war is regarded as wicked it will always have its fascination. When it is looked upon as vulgar, it will cease to be popular. Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)
As long as war is regarded as wicked it will always have its fascination. When it is looked upon as vulgar, it will cease to be popular. Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)
drudge Definition: (noun) A laborer who is obliged to do menial work. Synonyms: navvy, peon, galley slave Usage: Picking up after my ungrateful kids every day makes me feel like little more than a household drudge. Discuss.
Izaak Walton (1593) A friend and fishing companion of John Donne, Walton wrote one of the most famous and frequently reprinted books in the English language, The Compleat Angler; or, the Contemplative Man’s Recreation. The book not only describes the strategies and techniques of fishing, it also draws a picture of peace and simple virtue that was Walton’s protest against the civil wars taking place at the time. Though the book was first published in 1653, Walton continued to add to it—for how long? More…
I can see the humorous side of things and enjoy the fun when it comes; but look where I will, there seems to me always more sadness than joy in life. Jerome K. Jerome (1859-1927)
coddle Definition: (verb) Treat with excessive indulgence. Synonyms: baby, cocker, cosset, featherbed, mollycoddle, pamper, spoil, indulge Usage: I have warned her not to spoil the children, but she chooses to coddle them anyway. Discuss.
Paul Adrien Maurice Dirac (1902) Dirac was an influential English mathematician and theoretical physicist. In 1928, he published a version of quantum mechanics taking into account the theory of relativity. His theory predicted an antiparticle to the electron, and, in 1932, the positron was discovered. That year, Dirac was appointed to the same University of Cambridge chair once held by Isaac Newton. Likely autistic, Dirac was known for his precise nature and literal view of the world. How did he once introduce his wife? More…
Do not read, as children do, to amuse yourself, or like the ambitious, for the purpose of instruction. No, read in order to live. Gustave Flaubert (1821-1880)
recidivate Definition: (verb) To return to a previous pattern of behavior, especially to return to criminal habits. Synonyms: relapse, retrogress, lapse, regress, fall back Usage: I did not mean to recidivate, but burgling homes is second nature to me. Discuss.
Bronx, NY – Calling the pile up of trash and food waste in neighborhood streets, sidewalks and parks a “public health hazard,” Council Member Fernando today called for the New York City Council’s Committee on Sanitation and Solid Waste Management […]
Emil Nolde (1867) Nolde was a German painter and printmaker. Fervently religious, he often painted supernatural imagery, such as demonic heads and mystic appearances. Impressed by the art he saw on a 1913 expedition to the East Indies, he began to paint brooding landscapes and colorful flowers. As a printmaker, he was noted for his crudely cut, stark black-and-white woodcuts. Though he was an early advocate of the Nazi party, the party condemned his art and forbade him to paint. What did he do instead? More…
Every man is as heaven made him, and sometimes a great deal worse. Miguel de Cervantes (1547-1616)
embolden Definition: (verb) To foster boldness or courage in; encourage. Synonyms: cheer, hearten Usage: Emboldened by the success of his first novel, he started on a second. Discuss.
Lucille Désirée Ball (1911) Ball was the star of the tremendously popular 1950s television show I Love Lucy. Prior to her superstardom, Ball appeared in many B-movies, earning the nickname “Queen of the B’s.” With her rasping voice and a comic persona alternately brassy and feminine, she became the preeminent female star of the early decades of television. She and costar Desi Arnaz, married in real life and on I Love Lucy, divorced after the show ended. In what other shows and films did Ball appear? More…
To kill an error is as good a service as, and sometimes even better than, the establishing of a new truth or fact. Charles Darwin (1809-1882)
dingle Definition: (noun) A small wooded hollow. Synonyms: dell Usage: For no reason but that his fancy led him, he … walked down the grassy sunny slope of the open meadow, and so came to the little dingle. Discuss.
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