Polymath (n): A person who has extensive knowledge in many different areas
Well here we are again, caught in the grip of January. The weather outside is cold and gray, we don’t have the holidays to look forward to, and we’re all back at work. At least I have ensured that my area won’t be getting any more snow this year (by buying some new snow boots) Read More …
Ever since I was young, I have been a voracious reader. That is partially why I have so much trivia to share with this newsletter. But I got my start like pretty much every other English reader – by learning the alphabet. The alphabet is one of those ubiquitous things we take for granted. Sure, Read More …
Anybody who has studied some etymology can tell you that there are lots of words and phrases out there with somewhat counterintuitive origins. There are many words we take for granted which did not exist in our language at some point. In some cases, these words are the result of other words taking on new Read More …
Ahhh, schadenfreude. Is there anything better than seeing someone overconfident in their success suddenly be crushed by their own hubris? To stand spectator and say “look at them, hoisted by their own petard”? But that is a rather strange turn of phrase, isn’t it? It’s one of those sayings that seems to be rather common Read More …
A common sight here in some parts of the Pacific Northwest is raccoons roaming around at night. They roam around, scavenging for food, sometimes getting into people’s trash. Native to almost all of North and Central America, they have also been introduced to parts of Europe and Japan. In some places, they are such a Read More …