I always thought abattoir was one of the funniest words in English. I keep thinking it is like boudoir, kind of both fancy and naughty, because there is nothing about it that has anything to do with the English translation, so if you didn't know it could literally mean anything. This is not always the case. The French word arte does not mean some random thing. But if no one told you and you didn't look it up you could easily never know what abatoir means. Also you could easily go your whole life without using it. I think people use it as a euphemism for slaughterhouse. But we have a perfectly good word, so abattoir is basically superfluous.
Of course I already did that, Gene! I've now checked and confirmed that Xi is indeed pronounced "chee". So I'll restate my question this way: what does "cheep" have to do with "blindly following"?
Depends on who's pronouncing it. While many English speakers say "she," purists note it's slightly softer and more front-of-mouth than the English word. "Chee" is closer to the sound of the pinyin letter x in Mandarin, which, as you note, is a different sound entirely.
Nice of you to ask...I think. Apart from being over educated, I'm still not quite sure what I want to be when I grow up so, I've done a lot of stuff. I thus know a lot (some of it even useful) and know a good many who know more. More of a library that would likely put the Dewey Decimal System through its paces, rather than a librarian.
And yes, thanks for asking. There is an actual subfield of applied psychology called "traffic psychology" and is a formal discipline centered in Europe with academic programs, government roles, and EU‑level coordination. Here (that would be the U.S. of A) we, not surprisingly, still tend to lean on engineering solutions for say, the "Weingarten-Manteuffel Effect" while the Europeans believe that driver behavior — not just road design --- say forcing those exhibiting "Weingarten-Manteuffel" to go around traffic circles several times before being allowed back on a road — is the core safety problem. Anyway --- what traffic psychology tells us is that different personality traits reliably predict different vehicle behaviors — not stereotypes about gender or identity, but measurable psychological patterns. For example:
+ High Sensation‑Seeking / High Extraversion: these drivers treat the vehicle as a thrill device.
+ High Conscientiousness: the vehicle as a responsibility.
+ High Neuroticism / Anxiety‑Prone: drivers treat their vehicle as a stress amplifier.
+ High Agreeableness: the vehicle as a social space.
+ High Dominance / Low Agreeableness: the Yugo as a territorial extension of self.
+ High Openness to Experience: a four-wheel tool for exploration.
So, yes (thanks again for asking...) people don’t just drive their vehicles — they perform themselves through them. And speaking of the act of parallel parking, one study/survey found the confidence level in attempting it varied by region in the U.S. of A.
"Patellall" is just begging for a third layer to the portmanteau: "A book written by a government insider disclosing how an absolute jackass of a boss kneecapped a once-respected agency."
I have a different form of what you call scotoma. My visual field goes wibbly-wobbly. Parts of it shimmer a little like the oil film on a puddle. No pain. Lasts 15 - 20 minutes. The only medical person who really listened to my tale said it sounded like a migraine aura without the migraine. Melissa.warner3@a2q.com.
When the bumping question first came up, I asked the room whether you would bump if there were somebody sitting the car to be bumped (the bumpee, if you will). I wouldn't, and Hortense's experience is a good example of why I wouldn't. But another question: If you were sitting in your car and another car, in the act of parking, bumped YOU, would you be offended? annoyed? outraged? amused?
Bumper tales: I once lightly tapped the bumper of the car parked behind me as I manoeuvred to leave. About to drive off, I realized that there was a person in its passenger seat, so I got out, walked around the car and scrutinized the front bumper of the car I'd lightly tapped, noting that it looked fine to me, and then addressed the person in the car, apologizing for tapping the bumper but noting that there did not seem to me any damage. In the car was the owner's mother; she called her daughter to come and deal with this. The daughter came out and was extremely friendly and courteous and agreed with me that there was no harm done. We shook hands and I was about to leave when she squatted down and found that the round metal logo-disk in the grille seemed to be slightly pushed in, like by a millimeter (I think it was a Saab). Oh dear god, I thought: here we go. And indeed, there followed an exchange of names and phone numbers, phone calls, consultations with her mechanics, all in the most tremendously friendly and curteous tone. I ended up shelling out something like $200 to fix--if indeed it was fixed--a tiny flaw that may or may not have been inflicted by my rear bumper. Her car sat lower to the ground than mine. Seething, I wrote her a check on the assumption that just getting it over with would be the best course. It was the hyperbolic friendliness of her tone while taking egregious advantage of the situation that really got me.
And: re optical migraines: it was one of those that furnished the only time the internet actually helped me with a medical problem. It was in both eyes, which made me realize that it was not just an ocular problem and so I deftly concluded that I must be having a stroke. Before calling an ambulance I tried describing the phenomenon into Google, and thus immediately realized it was not dangerous. In all other circumstances googling symptoms is suicidal.
If must have been a long time ago, because the last time SAAB had something approximating a metal disk logo in the grill was during the 1969-1973 model run. And the grill had to be metal. Any engine grill from recent decades would have cracked, because they're all plastic.
Well, it is unlikely that you would bump into a SAAB these days. General Motors killed the brand in 2011. The number of SAABs on the road gets smaller every year. I drive one of the few remaining on the road.
In the old days, I think Pat uploaded something like a Word file to Facebook with the results. Once, I was interested to find it. I added a short entry at the bottom on my great talent, then told her what I had done. It’s a playful thing we used to do at the Internet consulting firm. I’m pretty sure she fixed it. Also pretty sure she didnt appreciate it.
To be fair Gene, you did mention repeatedly backing into and forwarding into the adjacent cars while parallel parking to shimmy yourself into that spot. I don’t think anyone imagined you going all demolition derby on them, but IMO it’s still quite rude and probably illegal.
Hey, Greg. Not to belabor a point, but I note you live in Falls Church, a suburb with many free public parking lots. To me, though, the real issue is "damage." If you lightly tap a bumper, you are causing no damage. What's the big deal?
My favorite this week was "Dorothy Parker Brothers". Great poem!
ABBAttoir resulted in a spit take. Out-of-the-box creativity.
I always thought abattoir was one of the funniest words in English. I keep thinking it is like boudoir, kind of both fancy and naughty, because there is nothing about it that has anything to do with the English translation, so if you didn't know it could literally mean anything. This is not always the case. The French word arte does not mean some random thing. But if no one told you and you didn't look it up you could easily never know what abatoir means. Also you could easily go your whole life without using it. I think people use it as a euphemism for slaughterhouse. But we have a perfectly good word, so abattoir is basically superfluous.
Rubiocon was my favorite- one of those clever and true at the same time nuggets.
Kafkamamie really made me laugh, though I loved the inventiveness of both Xip and Dorothy Parker Brothers.
My favorite is Warhallmark.
Could someone please explain today's winner to me? I'm sure it can't be that obscure, but somehow I'm not getting it.
Think about how "Xi" is pronounced.
Of course I already did that, Gene! I've now checked and confirmed that Xi is indeed pronounced "chee". So I'll restate my question this way: what does "cheep" have to do with "blindly following"?
it is heard as "she."
Okay, got it now. Thanks.
Depends on who's pronouncing it. While many English speakers say "she," purists note it's slightly softer and more front-of-mouth than the English word. "Chee" is closer to the sound of the pinyin letter x in Mandarin, which, as you note, is a different sound entirely.
DoGG, I am amazed at your breadth of knowledge! Are you a librarian?
Nice of you to ask...I think. Apart from being over educated, I'm still not quite sure what I want to be when I grow up so, I've done a lot of stuff. I thus know a lot (some of it even useful) and know a good many who know more. More of a library that would likely put the Dewey Decimal System through its paces, rather than a librarian.
Sheep
Putinkerbell was definitely clever and funny, just a little too on the dark mark.
Wow. Some people don't seem to distinguish between "touch" and "strike."
And yes, thanks for asking. There is an actual subfield of applied psychology called "traffic psychology" and is a formal discipline centered in Europe with academic programs, government roles, and EU‑level coordination. Here (that would be the U.S. of A) we, not surprisingly, still tend to lean on engineering solutions for say, the "Weingarten-Manteuffel Effect" while the Europeans believe that driver behavior — not just road design --- say forcing those exhibiting "Weingarten-Manteuffel" to go around traffic circles several times before being allowed back on a road — is the core safety problem. Anyway --- what traffic psychology tells us is that different personality traits reliably predict different vehicle behaviors — not stereotypes about gender or identity, but measurable psychological patterns. For example:
+ High Sensation‑Seeking / High Extraversion: these drivers treat the vehicle as a thrill device.
+ High Conscientiousness: the vehicle as a responsibility.
+ High Neuroticism / Anxiety‑Prone: drivers treat their vehicle as a stress amplifier.
+ High Agreeableness: the vehicle as a social space.
+ High Dominance / Low Agreeableness: the Yugo as a territorial extension of self.
+ High Openness to Experience: a four-wheel tool for exploration.
So, yes (thanks again for asking...) people don’t just drive their vehicles — they perform themselves through them. And speaking of the act of parallel parking, one study/survey found the confidence level in attempting it varied by region in the U.S. of A.
https://cdn.thezebra.com/zfront/media/production/images/states-where-driver.format-jpeg.jpegquality-70.width-960.jpg
"Patellall" is just begging for a third layer to the portmanteau: "A book written by a government insider disclosing how an absolute jackass of a boss kneecapped a once-respected agency."
I have a different form of what you call scotoma. My visual field goes wibbly-wobbly. Parts of it shimmer a little like the oil film on a puddle. No pain. Lasts 15 - 20 minutes. The only medical person who really listened to my tale said it sounded like a migraine aura without the migraine. Melissa.warner3@a2q.com.
In today's news, political appointees at Treasury are pushing for a Donald Trump $250 bill.
https://www.cnn.com/2026/05/28/politics/bill-currency-trump-250
In case you're wondering, Sharpie fine point permanent orange markers are available for $1.98 at Walmart
When the bumping question first came up, I asked the room whether you would bump if there were somebody sitting the car to be bumped (the bumpee, if you will). I wouldn't, and Hortense's experience is a good example of why I wouldn't. But another question: If you were sitting in your car and another car, in the act of parking, bumped YOU, would you be offended? annoyed? outraged? amused?
offended? annoyed? outraged? amused?
Or? -- whiplash! whiplash!
Bumper tales: I once lightly tapped the bumper of the car parked behind me as I manoeuvred to leave. About to drive off, I realized that there was a person in its passenger seat, so I got out, walked around the car and scrutinized the front bumper of the car I'd lightly tapped, noting that it looked fine to me, and then addressed the person in the car, apologizing for tapping the bumper but noting that there did not seem to me any damage. In the car was the owner's mother; she called her daughter to come and deal with this. The daughter came out and was extremely friendly and courteous and agreed with me that there was no harm done. We shook hands and I was about to leave when she squatted down and found that the round metal logo-disk in the grille seemed to be slightly pushed in, like by a millimeter (I think it was a Saab). Oh dear god, I thought: here we go. And indeed, there followed an exchange of names and phone numbers, phone calls, consultations with her mechanics, all in the most tremendously friendly and curteous tone. I ended up shelling out something like $200 to fix--if indeed it was fixed--a tiny flaw that may or may not have been inflicted by my rear bumper. Her car sat lower to the ground than mine. Seething, I wrote her a check on the assumption that just getting it over with would be the best course. It was the hyperbolic friendliness of her tone while taking egregious advantage of the situation that really got me.
And: re optical migraines: it was one of those that furnished the only time the internet actually helped me with a medical problem. It was in both eyes, which made me realize that it was not just an ocular problem and so I deftly concluded that I must be having a stroke. Before calling an ambulance I tried describing the phenomenon into Google, and thus immediately realized it was not dangerous. In all other circumstances googling symptoms is suicidal.
If must have been a long time ago, because the last time SAAB had something approximating a metal disk logo in the grill was during the 1969-1973 model run. And the grill had to be metal. Any engine grill from recent decades would have cracked, because they're all plastic.
If it's in both eyes (at the same time), I think it's not an ocular migraine, so you might still have cause for concern.
Well it was years ago, so I'm hoping it was just a one-off.
Well, it is unlikely that you would bump into a SAAB these days. General Motors killed the brand in 2011. The number of SAABs on the road gets smaller every year. I drive one of the few remaining on the road.
That too was years ago. They were indeed, and doubtless still are, nice cars, but that one I could have done without.
In the old days, I think Pat uploaded something like a Word file to Facebook with the results. Once, I was interested to find it. I added a short entry at the bottom on my great talent, then told her what I had done. It’s a playful thing we used to do at the Internet consulting firm. I’m pretty sure she fixed it. Also pretty sure she didnt appreciate it.
You did what?
To be fair Gene, you did mention repeatedly backing into and forwarding into the adjacent cars while parallel parking to shimmy yourself into that spot. I don’t think anyone imagined you going all demolition derby on them, but IMO it’s still quite rude and probably illegal.
Hey, Greg. Not to belabor a point, but I note you live in Falls Church, a suburb with many free public parking lots. To me, though, the real issue is "damage." If you lightly tap a bumper, you are causing no damage. What's the big deal?
Scofflaw!