Useless Sharing

I've complained to the Twitterverse that I need a highlighter for so many things I read and then try to share.  Sure, in so many cases the article is enough; but in a lot of other cases, there is one sentence I really want people to read and my guess is, they'll miss it.  They'll let me down and miss it. 

Even worse is to know they read the sentence and didn't get it.  Usually I see that sentence as what should be the real thesis of the article, the antithesis of the article, or very amusing (usually, it's very amusing).

The whole problem with sharing anything is that upon sharing it, there's a good chance no one will read it.  If they do, they read the first few sentences only.  If they do read the whole thing, I'm damn impressed.  But I worry they missed the details.  Isn't there a saying that the devil is in the details?  Well, it's true.  If you miss the one funny sentence, the one line that makes a difference, what have you got?  Just a damn boring article your brain didn't process.  It's okay, we all do it.  I've also missed so many really important things while I was busy laughing at a bad pun no one else got, not even the writer/speaker. 

Want to know some science about reading articles?  Check out THIS article.  (I shared that article, it was serious and hilarious, and in true form, you haven't read far enough here to know to read that one).

Anyway, enough whining.  My whole point is that I'm sharing two things that either no one will get or no one will read.  Whatever, that's fine.  Break my heart and don't even try.

Both found at xkcd.com (with many thanks to @ibificus for introducing me to all the great comics).



http://xkcd.com/55/ This is my Valentine.

What If? What if we flew a plane in space?  I am absolutely in love with What If?...you don't even have to know me well enough to know why.  It's smart stuff with a lot of humor.  I wonder how many people start to read it and get bogged down with all those devilish details and miss out on so much of the humor.  Anyway, it's great, go check it out.  Also, follow @WhatIfNumbers on Twitter.

Chet the Jet

I recommend books all the time that people probably end up hating and wondering why I'd even bother reading let alone recommending! But one of the books I once recommended to my brother was Dog On It by Spencer Quinn, seemingly enjoyed by all. My mom and both my brothers read it. Since then, and to my utmost delight, I found the blog by Chet the Jet (hero of the book, a dog named Chet). I also follow Chet on Twitter! Anyway, the new book is out, Thereby Hangs A Tail.

I chose to mention this because I was reading today's blog which made me chortle aloud at work, thus giving away the fact I wasn't actually working. [People don't laugh at work in this industry]. So it goes, Chet arrives home and realizes that there have been trespassers. I'm on edge with anticipation as to who might have been on his property...

...I followed the scents: squirrel, bird, the mailman, toad, and several of my guys, including – Iggy?

...I have to laugh, that's just exactly what a dog would do; get everyone up in arms thinking some one is at the door or breaking into the house, you charge through rooms at the ready to find, but what, really?, that's just a squirrel taunting you with it's tail! Ohhhhh Dogs!

Anyway, good books, go read!

SMART ASS
WHAT AM I?

I am a form of dance.

I have companies throughout the world.

My lead dancers are called principals.

I have five main positions.

Edgar Degas’ paintings of me are well known.

The Nutcracker and Swan Lake are among my popular works.

Mikhail Baryshnikov is one of my most famous dancers.

My apparel can include tutus and toe shoes.

[easy peasy japanesy...and on that note, Mike, you were right, it was Degas...interesting that we just had that conversation yesterday]

WORDS

febrile: marked or caused by fever; feverish. This word, along with fever, are derived from the Latin word febris, meaning a fever.

confabulate: 1.:to talk informally; chat. 2. to hold a discussion; to confer. 3.:to fill in gaps in memory by fabrication. Confabulate, fabulous, and fable are all derivatives of the Latin word fabula meaning "conversation" or "story" depending on the usage.

kinesics: a systematic study of the relationship between nonlinguistic body motions (as blushes, shrugs, and eye movement) and communication. The formal study of "body language" is believed to have begun with the publishing of Ray Birdshistell's book Introduction to Kinesics in 1952.

Book of Lost Things

I just finished a lovely book, The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly. It was a great book with much taken from myths, folklore, and fairy tales. I have to admit that the ending was my favorite part. I won't share it, but will tell you that it has elements of well dressed talking animals [one of my bigger fears]; twisted fairy tales that end not quite like you expect yet the tales all end in some way that you some how did expect; the ending is sad and yet you smile by the shear happiness of it all. I recommend it indeed. On that note, I also think that @ibificus, @Emmet, and @FrankieP would rather enjoy it. First, well dressed talking animals. Second, great imagery for the mind that I think the likes of those fellas would appreciate. Third, it's twisted, and those three seem to like that which is twisted [or I assume since that what I gather from Twitter]!

WHERE AM I?

I am a North American city in the Rocky Mountains.

I am a stylish ski resort for the rich and famous.

I was once a rich silver mining center.

I am in Colorado.

I am located on the Roaring Fork River.

I share my name with a variety of tree.

I am the site of a music festival each summer.

John Denver moved here in the 1970s.

[Not quite so easy today]

WORD

passel: a large number or amount. [This word is similar to the words cuss and bust with respect that it comes from a "linguistic idiosyncrasy" where there is a loss of sound of "r" after a vowel and before a consonant in the middle of a word. curse-cuss; burst-bust]

NabloPoNo Day 17 Post 14 - Reading Time Vomit

A story I promised...



I was about 6 years old in First grade. My mom was pregnant with my younger brother Drew, and for a period of time she was in the hospital with complications. [Please keep in mind that this was back in the day when hospitals kept a person for more than one day, and to me it seemed like an eternity, but could have been no more than a week perhaps]. I was very much a mama's girl and tried to stay attached to one of her legs at all times. There were a few times we were detached, one of which was school. After dragging me down the hall while I sobbed, she'd lob me through the classroom door and run as fast as she could out of my sight. Once in the classroom I seemed to calm myself enough to at least focus on getting to the end of the day.

I never enjoyed reading much at the age of 5-19, but I knew I had to learn so I tried for a few moments each day. The teacher, whose name I no longer know how to spell, would break us into groups and we'd each take our turn sitting in a circle around the teacher reading our few lines in the text book. I don't know how or when or why it would happen, but every day, EVERY SINGLE DAY, I would vomit! The got book covered, my clothes got littered, and the stench went every where! I would be sent to the Principal's office (who had my Aunt on speed dial since this was the routine); and from what I understand, my classmates grew to hate the pine scented absorbent that was sprinkled over my mess for cleaning.

Ah, those where the days!

...word...
raise: Parent or parents; the people who raised you.

In use: I am having Thanksgiving dinner with the raise this year.