I personally don't have a problem with "me" in a construction with a subject and no predicate, like "It's Rachel and me," any more than I do with "Who's there?" "It's me." Certainly not in a conversational setting.
Where it's really wrong is to use "me" as a subject before a predicate: "Rachel and me (or "Me and Rachel") went to the store." Most people know not to do that.
More common is for people to say "They gave it to Rachel and I" -- probably from overcorrecting to the previous mistake. That's a no-no in any context. Also wrong: "They gave it to Rachel and myself." "Myself" is for things you do /yourself./
But wait there's more...of the same. Pronouns connected by coordinating conjunctions such as “and” or “or” should be put in the same case that a lone pronoun would have in the same position. So the application of the rule to “I” vs. “me” is exactly the same as the application to “we” vs. “us”, “he” vs. “him”, “she” vs. “her”, and “they” vs. “them.”
The Jan 21 prediction about Linda McMahon becoming Secy of State was my favorite. Maybe I just enjoyed the vision of Marco Rubio taking a chair to the head.
The judges failed to share this prediction, which is looking more and more possible by the minute... "Canada becomes 51st state followed by Mexico, Greenland, and Jupiter."
I couldn't bear too much of the Sinatra thing. It was pretty sappy. But at the time it was made, antisemitism was a lot more publicly palatable (I can't say how it is received in private circles of assholes these days). So pounding people, especially children, over the head with how prejudice makes them Nazis, and Nazis are the enemy, made a lot of sense.
The worst part about the Sinatra thing was leaving out those good old Americans setting up internment camps for Japanese citizens after Pearl Harbor. Selective pap is worse than general pap.
Yeah, you have a feeling that he wouldn't be lecturing the kid to be nice to Yoshi down the street. But Tim makes a good point that antisemitism was unashamedly widespread at the time; many neighborhoods still had restrictive covenants preventing sales of houses to Jews as well as to Blacks.
"The House I Live In" has a much resemblance to reality as a funhouse has to a house. The movie is brought to you by those wonderful people who brought you the Japanese Internment Camps.
Jonathan Jensen's suggestion of CEOs deciding that body armor is the best business practice rings true. Especially if they can get cool Iron Man-looking armor. Although I expect ti would actually be graphite-fiber composite construction for light weight and modernity. Now, before you get all huffy with me: I am quite aware that graphite fiber composite is strong but brittle, prone to catastrophic failure under pressure, and not a good choice for stopping bullets. Obviously, it will have to be a multi-layer construction, with shock-dissipating gel layers between the rigid plates. I'm not a materials scientist, but I'm also not an idiot.
There's something vaguely disreputable about buying, and in fact, partaking of reputable moonshine. The whole point originally was the thrill of the real possibility of taking your life in your own hands with lead and methanol poisoning, to say nothing of cheating the "revenoorers" out of tax revenue. Simply numbing your mouth and the rest of your alimentary canal for several hours --- especially disconcerting at its continuously used lowest end --- these days is child's play by comparison.
"Good question. You should have told the tot that it was largely because sex is hilarious"
This brings to mind that back in the 70s while I was attending a religious affiliated college (now a University), the student president managed to arrange, as a guest speaker, Chris Miller. Yes, THAT Chris Miller of National Lampoon fame. At the beginning of his "speech," he said that he was told that there needed to be some "socially redeeming value" to it. He then followed with, "IF there is any, it's that is sex funny, and the answer is yes." After which he proceeded to read some his stories form the National Lampoon, including, "Night of the Seven Fires", "Pinto's First Lay" and I forget the titles, but the one about a clown at child's birthday party and the one about the phone company trying to collect it's bill in which after unscrewing the speaker part of the phone, a pair lips appear.
The faculty did NOT remain for the entirety of the "speech," even though the sex WAS funny.
Wait...what? Are Invites 103 and 104 déjà vu all over again...again? Or am I somehow puzzling over their descriptions like assembly instructions translated from the Chinese? So, let me get this straight (or not, as the case may be) --- out of seasonal kindness, you're offering a chance to lose in the same Invite at least twice more in some instances? Rubbing it in a bit, doncha think? Or is more a matter of: "We got the good stuff out of the way. Let's see what else is left we can use as filler?"
It's just one more chance per contest. Week 103 is for the first half of the year and Week 104 is for the second. You can re-enter entries you thought got a raw deal the first time around or write new ones. A good source of fresh material can be entries based on recent events that occurred after the original contests.
Ah, that would explain it. I keep entering the wrong week. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. However, just to make it more sporting (and at least encourage paid subscription renewals), the winning Losers of any week should be disqualified from those weeks in the déjà vu all over again competitions. Afterall, this isn't just fun and games.
None of the Czar's children were married at the time of their execution by the Bolsheviks in 1918. Felix Yusupov was married to Princess Irina Alexandrova, who was Czar Nicholas II's niece. But your contention that they were all useless aristocrats is still accurate. Felix lived to 1967, Irina to 1970, and their marriage was a happy one, at least according to Wikipedia.
I was right, however, that Olga despised Yusupov. She just wasn't MARRIED to him. She wrote this to her father, the Czar: "Felix is a 'downright civilian,' dressed all in brown, walked to and fro about the room, searching in some bookcases with magazines and virtually doing nothing; an utterly unpleasant impression he makes—a man idling in such times,"
Sounds like he was an introvert in an extroverted family. Or he just liked to read and she wasn't used to that in her family. Her parents weren't exactly geniuses, thus they were able to fall for the smelly conman Rasputin.
A thought struck me (and no, I did not sustain a concussion...) reading the prophecies, many of which may sadly prove not to be fanciful, that we need far more forced jollity. Sure we've had Christmas, Hanukkah is still alight and Kwanzaa starts today, but with us all primed and ready, I think we need more holidays. Maybe a formal “Regifting Day.” It's time this custom was moved out of the shadows and given its due. Possibly, a U.S. version of the U.K.'s “Boxing Day” when, in the great American tradition of single-issue concern --- we give each other empty boxes as a symbol of our guilt and feigned disgust for holiday excesses --- and a complete disregard for the environment. And how about “Lost Christmas Sock” week, where you meet with fellow recipients to match those uh... colorful Christmas socks you got the year before and managed to lose one of. Certainly the contestants of "It's Funny You Should Say That" (formerly, "The Invitational") can come up with others.
Report from Week 50, in which you were asked to come up with a new federal holiday between Presidents' Day and Memorial Day.
Fifth Runner-Up: DISGRUNTLED POSTAL WORKER DAY Date: First Monday in April. How observed: Fired postal workers come in to seek revenge, only to find that everyone is at home due to the new holiday. (Paul Kondis, Alexandria)
Fourth Runner-Up: PMS DAY Date: Just before one of those days in March. Observed: Tell off someone who supposedly loves you but who has inconsiderately hurt you deeply. You have license to use phrases such as "If you don't know, I am not going to tell you" and may routinely begin sentences with "If you think for one moment that . . ." (Chuck Smith, Woodbridge)
Third Runner-Up: MALE RIGHTS DAY Date: Whenever they want. Observed: However they choose. (Linda K. Malcolm, Silver Spring)
Second Runner-Up: FEMALE POWER DAY Date: Some crappy day in February that nobody ever remembers. Observed: Running errands and catching up on the laundry. (Linda K. Malcolm, Silver Spring)
First Runner-Up: NATIONAL CULTURAL ILLITERACY DAY Date: The Ides of March, the day Sid Caesar was murdered. Observed: People gather at designated places to discuss why most Americans don't know such simple things as the title of Geoffrey Chaucer's last opera, the name of the artist who painted the "1812" Overture, and the date World War I broke out in Luxembourg. (Thomas Edward Knibb, Walkersville)
And the Winner of animals made of cow dung:
PALINDROME AWARENESS DAY Date: 4/9/94. How observed: Gag; Poop; Step on no pets. (Laura M. Clairmont, Centreville)
Honorable Mentions:
SOCIAL SECURITY DAY Date: May 9. Observed: Children costumed as elderly people go door to door asking for cash "entitlements." (Peyton Coyner, Afton, Va.)
DEPENDENCE DAY Date: The Fourth of April. Observed: Constituents write to their congressmen to ask when taxes are due, how to apply for Social Security and where to buy postage stamps. (Don Maclean, Burke)
RELIGIOUS FREEDOM DAY Date: May 16, James Madison's birthday. Observed: You visit the homes of Jehovah's Witnesses and urge them to convert to your religion. (Jane Paulkovich, Burtonsville)
JEFFREY DAHMER DAY Date: Feb. 29. Observed: Eat your heart out. (Laura M. Clairmont, Centreville)
PALM MONDAY Date: March 28. Observed: Hire a lobbyist to grease a public official's hand. (Don Maclean, Burke)
NATIONAL CHILDREN'S EAR INFECTION DAY Date: The day the round-trip tickets become nonrefundable. Observed: Buying a round of amoxicillin for the house. (Bruce W. Alter, Springfield)
MAY ONE DAY Date: May 1. Observed: Doing all the fun things you've been promising yourself during the past year: "I may one day have time to do that." (Kathy Weisse, Sykesville)
WHISTLEBLOWER APPRECIATION DAY Date: April 1. Observed: Federal employees get a holiday. Agency management uses the day to install new hidden recording devices at whistleblowers' workstations. (Sarah Worcester, Bowie)
GROUNDHOG ANNIHILATION DAY Date: March 16, six weeks after Groundhog Day. Observed: Everyone seeks revenge for bad winter weather by declaring open season on groundhogs. (Chris Rooney, Blacksburg)
DAYLIGHT SAVINGS DAY Date: The first Monday in April. Observed: You cut off the end of your blanket, and sew it onto the other end to lengthen it. (Susan Wenger, Montgomery Village.)
PRESIDENTIAL ASSASSINATION DAY Date: April 14. Observed: Northerners go to the theater and hide under a seat. Southerners run into a barn and burn it down. (Elden Carnahan, Laurel)
NON-GEOCENTRIC LIFE FORMS APPRECIATION DAY Date: Variable. Observed: Celebrated so as not to marginalize individuals born elsewhere in the solar system. If inhabitants of Mercury are so honored, this holiday has the additional attraction of recurring every 88 days. (Elden Carnahan, Laurel)
NATIONAL PERJURER DAY Date: I really don't remember. Observed: I'm not sure. (Chuck Smith, Woodbridge)
REAL ESTATE TAX ASSESSORS DAY Date: Third Monday in April. Observed: Small furry animals are shaved, equipped with miniature three-piece suits and clipboards, then hacked into small pieces and fed, bit by bit, to packs of ravening wolves. (Kate Koutsavlis, taxing authority withheld by request)
BIRTH GIVING DAY Date: Third Sunday in March, nine months after Father's Day. Observed: Flushing any extra savings down the toilet. (Kevin Cuddihy, Blacksburg)
DAR DAY Date: April 19, the anniversary of the battles of Lexington & Concord. Observed: Open a vein to see who has the bluest blood. Tea and tourniquets to follow. (Robert Schoeberlein, Baltimore)
NATIONAL BUREAUCRATS DAY Date: A weekday between March 15 and April 15, the exact day to be determined each year by an interagency committee; however, the holiday may not fall on the same date more than once every five years except in the case of leap years, when it shall fall on the same date as the year before. In the event the committee cannot reach a consensus on the date, the holiday may be skipped unless the year number is odd, in which case the date shall be March 16. Observed: Watch the delayed C-SPAN coverage of the committee deliberations to set the date.
DIVERSITY DAY Date: May 1. Observed: In public gatherings, heterosexual males of Western European descent are stripped and flogged with rolled copies of The Washington Post. (Tod Butler, Kensington)
I personally don't have a problem with "me" in a construction with a subject and no predicate, like "It's Rachel and me," any more than I do with "Who's there?" "It's me." Certainly not in a conversational setting.
Where it's really wrong is to use "me" as a subject before a predicate: "Rachel and me (or "Me and Rachel") went to the store." Most people know not to do that.
More common is for people to say "They gave it to Rachel and I" -- probably from overcorrecting to the previous mistake. That's a no-no in any context. Also wrong: "They gave it to Rachel and myself." "Myself" is for things you do /yourself./
I think “myself” is properly used as a noun in apposition.
Yes, but not as the subject of the sentence. It’s fine to say, for emphasis, “I myself put the gift into her hands.”
But wait there's more...of the same. Pronouns connected by coordinating conjunctions such as “and” or “or” should be put in the same case that a lone pronoun would have in the same position. So the application of the rule to “I” vs. “me” is exactly the same as the application to “we” vs. “us”, “he” vs. “him”, “she” vs. “her”, and “they” vs. “them.”
I loved Lynda Hoover's comment for March about Trump at the National's home opener!
Same. Such a belly laugh.
The Jan 21 prediction about Linda McMahon becoming Secy of State was my favorite. Maybe I just enjoyed the vision of Marco Rubio taking a chair to the head.
The judges failed to share this prediction, which is looking more and more possible by the minute... "Canada becomes 51st state followed by Mexico, Greenland, and Jupiter."
I couldn't bear too much of the Sinatra thing. It was pretty sappy. But at the time it was made, antisemitism was a lot more publicly palatable (I can't say how it is received in private circles of assholes these days). So pounding people, especially children, over the head with how prejudice makes them Nazis, and Nazis are the enemy, made a lot of sense.
The worst part about the Sinatra thing was leaving out those good old Americans setting up internment camps for Japanese citizens after Pearl Harbor. Selective pap is worse than general pap.
Yeah, you have a feeling that he wouldn't be lecturing the kid to be nice to Yoshi down the street. But Tim makes a good point that antisemitism was unashamedly widespread at the time; many neighborhoods still had restrictive covenants preventing sales of houses to Jews as well as to Blacks.
Faves this week included Mark's St. Patrick's Day, Jeff's Easter Egg Roll, Steve's Joe Biden debate, and Duncan's Mariah Carey.
I chuckled at Sam’s Mangione Modeling calendar. I wondered if I had a connection to him, having lived in Maplewood and having gone to Penn.
"The House I Live In" has a much resemblance to reality as a funhouse has to a house. The movie is brought to you by those wonderful people who brought you the Japanese Internment Camps.
Jonathan Jensen's suggestion of CEOs deciding that body armor is the best business practice rings true. Especially if they can get cool Iron Man-looking armor. Although I expect ti would actually be graphite-fiber composite construction for light weight and modernity. Now, before you get all huffy with me: I am quite aware that graphite fiber composite is strong but brittle, prone to catastrophic failure under pressure, and not a good choice for stopping bullets. Obviously, it will have to be a multi-layer construction, with shock-dissipating gel layers between the rigid plates. I'm not a materials scientist, but I'm also not an idiot.
Also, these suits will be single-use. Every time it takes a bullet, swap to the next one in the closet.
There's something vaguely disreputable about buying, and in fact, partaking of reputable moonshine. The whole point originally was the thrill of the real possibility of taking your life in your own hands with lead and methanol poisoning, to say nothing of cheating the "revenoorers" out of tax revenue. Simply numbing your mouth and the rest of your alimentary canal for several hours --- especially disconcerting at its continuously used lowest end --- these days is child's play by comparison.
"Good question. You should have told the tot that it was largely because sex is hilarious"
This brings to mind that back in the 70s while I was attending a religious affiliated college (now a University), the student president managed to arrange, as a guest speaker, Chris Miller. Yes, THAT Chris Miller of National Lampoon fame. At the beginning of his "speech," he said that he was told that there needed to be some "socially redeeming value" to it. He then followed with, "IF there is any, it's that is sex funny, and the answer is yes." After which he proceeded to read some his stories form the National Lampoon, including, "Night of the Seven Fires", "Pinto's First Lay" and I forget the titles, but the one about a clown at child's birthday party and the one about the phone company trying to collect it's bill in which after unscrewing the speaker part of the phone, a pair lips appear.
The faculty did NOT remain for the entirety of the "speech," even though the sex WAS funny.
"If you don't get it, you don't get it" has the equivalent depth of profundity that "It is what it is" carries.
They both make baby Jesus cry and make me think very dark thoughts of the messenger.
Wait...what? Are Invites 103 and 104 déjà vu all over again...again? Or am I somehow puzzling over their descriptions like assembly instructions translated from the Chinese? So, let me get this straight (or not, as the case may be) --- out of seasonal kindness, you're offering a chance to lose in the same Invite at least twice more in some instances? Rubbing it in a bit, doncha think? Or is more a matter of: "We got the good stuff out of the way. Let's see what else is left we can use as filler?"
It's just one more chance per contest. Week 103 is for the first half of the year and Week 104 is for the second. You can re-enter entries you thought got a raw deal the first time around or write new ones. A good source of fresh material can be entries based on recent events that occurred after the original contests.
Ah, that would explain it. I keep entering the wrong week. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. However, just to make it more sporting (and at least encourage paid subscription renewals), the winning Losers of any week should be disqualified from those weeks in the déjà vu all over again competitions. Afterall, this isn't just fun and games.
None of the Czar's children were married at the time of their execution by the Bolsheviks in 1918. Felix Yusupov was married to Princess Irina Alexandrova, who was Czar Nicholas II's niece. But your contention that they were all useless aristocrats is still accurate. Felix lived to 1967, Irina to 1970, and their marriage was a happy one, at least according to Wikipedia.
Ah, rats. You are right.
I was right, however, that Olga despised Yusupov. She just wasn't MARRIED to him. She wrote this to her father, the Czar: "Felix is a 'downright civilian,' dressed all in brown, walked to and fro about the room, searching in some bookcases with magazines and virtually doing nothing; an utterly unpleasant impression he makes—a man idling in such times,"
Sounds like he was an introvert in an extroverted family. Or he just liked to read and she wasn't used to that in her family. Her parents weren't exactly geniuses, thus they were able to fall for the smelly conman Rasputin.
A thought struck me (and no, I did not sustain a concussion...) reading the prophecies, many of which may sadly prove not to be fanciful, that we need far more forced jollity. Sure we've had Christmas, Hanukkah is still alight and Kwanzaa starts today, but with us all primed and ready, I think we need more holidays. Maybe a formal “Regifting Day.” It's time this custom was moved out of the shadows and given its due. Possibly, a U.S. version of the U.K.'s “Boxing Day” when, in the great American tradition of single-issue concern --- we give each other empty boxes as a symbol of our guilt and feigned disgust for holiday excesses --- and a complete disregard for the environment. And how about “Lost Christmas Sock” week, where you meet with fellow recipients to match those uh... colorful Christmas socks you got the year before and managed to lose one of. Certainly the contestants of "It's Funny You Should Say That" (formerly, "The Invitational") can come up with others.
Report from Week 50, in which you were asked to come up with a new federal holiday between Presidents' Day and Memorial Day.
Fifth Runner-Up: DISGRUNTLED POSTAL WORKER DAY Date: First Monday in April. How observed: Fired postal workers come in to seek revenge, only to find that everyone is at home due to the new holiday. (Paul Kondis, Alexandria)
Fourth Runner-Up: PMS DAY Date: Just before one of those days in March. Observed: Tell off someone who supposedly loves you but who has inconsiderately hurt you deeply. You have license to use phrases such as "If you don't know, I am not going to tell you" and may routinely begin sentences with "If you think for one moment that . . ." (Chuck Smith, Woodbridge)
Third Runner-Up: MALE RIGHTS DAY Date: Whenever they want. Observed: However they choose. (Linda K. Malcolm, Silver Spring)
Second Runner-Up: FEMALE POWER DAY Date: Some crappy day in February that nobody ever remembers. Observed: Running errands and catching up on the laundry. (Linda K. Malcolm, Silver Spring)
First Runner-Up: NATIONAL CULTURAL ILLITERACY DAY Date: The Ides of March, the day Sid Caesar was murdered. Observed: People gather at designated places to discuss why most Americans don't know such simple things as the title of Geoffrey Chaucer's last opera, the name of the artist who painted the "1812" Overture, and the date World War I broke out in Luxembourg. (Thomas Edward Knibb, Walkersville)
And the Winner of animals made of cow dung:
PALINDROME AWARENESS DAY Date: 4/9/94. How observed: Gag; Poop; Step on no pets. (Laura M. Clairmont, Centreville)
Honorable Mentions:
SOCIAL SECURITY DAY Date: May 9. Observed: Children costumed as elderly people go door to door asking for cash "entitlements." (Peyton Coyner, Afton, Va.)
DEPENDENCE DAY Date: The Fourth of April. Observed: Constituents write to their congressmen to ask when taxes are due, how to apply for Social Security and where to buy postage stamps. (Don Maclean, Burke)
RELIGIOUS FREEDOM DAY Date: May 16, James Madison's birthday. Observed: You visit the homes of Jehovah's Witnesses and urge them to convert to your religion. (Jane Paulkovich, Burtonsville)
JEFFREY DAHMER DAY Date: Feb. 29. Observed: Eat your heart out. (Laura M. Clairmont, Centreville)
PALM MONDAY Date: March 28. Observed: Hire a lobbyist to grease a public official's hand. (Don Maclean, Burke)
NATIONAL CHILDREN'S EAR INFECTION DAY Date: The day the round-trip tickets become nonrefundable. Observed: Buying a round of amoxicillin for the house. (Bruce W. Alter, Springfield)
MAY ONE DAY Date: May 1. Observed: Doing all the fun things you've been promising yourself during the past year: "I may one day have time to do that." (Kathy Weisse, Sykesville)
WHISTLEBLOWER APPRECIATION DAY Date: April 1. Observed: Federal employees get a holiday. Agency management uses the day to install new hidden recording devices at whistleblowers' workstations. (Sarah Worcester, Bowie)
GROUNDHOG ANNIHILATION DAY Date: March 16, six weeks after Groundhog Day. Observed: Everyone seeks revenge for bad winter weather by declaring open season on groundhogs. (Chris Rooney, Blacksburg)
DAYLIGHT SAVINGS DAY Date: The first Monday in April. Observed: You cut off the end of your blanket, and sew it onto the other end to lengthen it. (Susan Wenger, Montgomery Village.)
PRESIDENTIAL ASSASSINATION DAY Date: April 14. Observed: Northerners go to the theater and hide under a seat. Southerners run into a barn and burn it down. (Elden Carnahan, Laurel)
NON-GEOCENTRIC LIFE FORMS APPRECIATION DAY Date: Variable. Observed: Celebrated so as not to marginalize individuals born elsewhere in the solar system. If inhabitants of Mercury are so honored, this holiday has the additional attraction of recurring every 88 days. (Elden Carnahan, Laurel)
NATIONAL PERJURER DAY Date: I really don't remember. Observed: I'm not sure. (Chuck Smith, Woodbridge)
REAL ESTATE TAX ASSESSORS DAY Date: Third Monday in April. Observed: Small furry animals are shaved, equipped with miniature three-piece suits and clipboards, then hacked into small pieces and fed, bit by bit, to packs of ravening wolves. (Kate Koutsavlis, taxing authority withheld by request)
BIRTH GIVING DAY Date: Third Sunday in March, nine months after Father's Day. Observed: Flushing any extra savings down the toilet. (Kevin Cuddihy, Blacksburg)
DAR DAY Date: April 19, the anniversary of the battles of Lexington & Concord. Observed: Open a vein to see who has the bluest blood. Tea and tourniquets to follow. (Robert Schoeberlein, Baltimore)
NATIONAL BUREAUCRATS DAY Date: A weekday between March 15 and April 15, the exact day to be determined each year by an interagency committee; however, the holiday may not fall on the same date more than once every five years except in the case of leap years, when it shall fall on the same date as the year before. In the event the committee cannot reach a consensus on the date, the holiday may be skipped unless the year number is odd, in which case the date shall be March 16. Observed: Watch the delayed C-SPAN coverage of the committee deliberations to set the date.
DIVERSITY DAY Date: May 1. Observed: In public gatherings, heterosexual males of Western European descent are stripped and flogged with rolled copies of The Washington Post. (Tod Butler, Kensington)
Ah but Pat, sadly nothing during the days of comfort and joy when we are primed for maximum jollity or similar.
And upon opening the empty box the recipient would say "You shouldn't have." To which the giver could respond "I didn't."
(Courtesy of Zippy on 12/25... Putting the No in Noel.)