Category: Uncategorized
Guthrie is 13 months old today.
Guthrie is 13 months old today. He has dozens more words, including “cracker” and “baboon,” (acquired after a trip the zoo). We were there again today. He says “baboon!” “BABOON!” when he sees them. And when he sees meerkats. The meerkats don’t mind. The visit to the petting farm was also a big hit. The…
Jinx and padiddle: games we play
My latest column in the Malaysia Star is about the words that go with the games we play when something unexpected happens. Not games of chance, but games of whimsy. … Rituals and superstitions and the words that go with them are a favourite topic on the radio show I co-host. Our listeners can’t get…
Saying it wrong on purpose
My latest column in the Malaysia Star is about words we say wrong on purpose. Update: There’s a lively conversation on this topic now underway at Jason Kottke’s blog. … There are, technically speaking, two Internets. One—Internet2—is used privately by universities, scientists, corporations, and the US government agencies. The other, which we might call the…
Birthday and Easter
The boy had only a little birthday party last Wednesday. We were all three very sick, so we asked our friends to stay away to spare them the misery, although Carol the babysitter wasn’t as lucky. All four of us are recovering, with coughs, runny noses, and general malaise still prevailing. On his birthday, Guthrie…
Nicknames from the Underground: Busharraf, Chillary, and Killadelphia
This is my latest column from the Malaysia Star. … The current political turmoil in Pakistan has turned up a curious bit of slang: Busharraf. It blends the names of Presidents Pervez Musharraf and George W. Bush. It shows that Musharraf is seen by his opponents to be a puppet for American political interests. Nicknames…
Laughing boy goes 1.0!
The boy is another intra-solar-system traveler who’s made a complete revolution around the sun: as of March 19, he’s one year old. Right now he’s got a bit of a cough and we’re hoping it doesn’t spoil the day. A couple of weeks ago we were at the house of our friends Al and Heather,…
Long boy update
The boy turns one year old next week! Lots has changed in a year—he walks and talks, for example—and lots hasn’t—he’s still as loud as a truck and tractor pull. The baby voice is disappearing and the little piping boy voice is becoming more common. He’s been talking since a little after the ten-month mark,…
New slang unpacked
My latest slang column in the Malaysia Star explores some new-found slang. … Over the past few weeks in this space, I’ve shared old slang with you, but now it’s time to look at more recent slang, slang so new it has yet to prove that it will endure. From The Independent in London comes…
UPDATED: Crosswords in Black and White
Weee! I’m at the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament this weekend, co-emceeing the finals and handing out awards. See me and my radio partner with Will Shortz here. UPDATE: More photos here.
Find me in American Way Magazine
My radio co-host and I were featured in American Way magazine this month.