Why is it some words and phrases out there are pleasant to hear, while others just grate on the nerve like fingernails scratching against chalk? Am I the only person who has such a passion for certain words and a disdain for others? I surely am not. Let’s look at some of these words, expressions — bon mots — shall we?
We celebrate writing on this WordPunk blog — and we do love our new iPhone 3G — even though the White Apple of Death drives us nuts daily. One of the invaluable assets for the iPhone 3G is the Apps Store. I spent $100.00USD to buy several dictionaries for use on my iPhone 3G. In this review, I will look up one of my favorite words — “semiotic” — and one of my favorite people — “Clinton” — to see what results are returned. You do not need an internet connection to use any of these dictionaries. All definitions are installed on your iPhone 3G.
Janna is fond of replying to the question — “Do you want the bad news first or the good news first?” — by saying “There is no bad or good, you have to deal with it all.”
That’s an incredibly mature way of dealing with life.
I am not quite so mature.
I always prefer the Bad News first because that is obviously the most conditional and powerful cudgel the teller of the news hopes use to influence your behavior: Get the chit out of the way so you can enjoy the cream.
Is a writer an author or just a fixer?
Is it possible words can go wrong?
Or is only the one who fixes words against each other to blame if context and meaning are skewed in understanding?
How can we possibly begin to comprehend each other in the language of a common tongue if words can have different meanings based on position in a sentence and the character of the fixer?
Do words ever have a proper ending? Or do they just eternally float in space waiting for new interpretations, inspirations and analysis by boring minds?
When, exactly, did “Hey!” replace “Hi!” as a standard greeting?
I think I’ve been using “Hey!” for “Hi!” for at least five years — but I’m not sure of the when or why.
Was there some sea change in a cultural colloquialism I missed?
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