Contentious Conflagration

I contend that many contemporary and constitutional words begin with the prefix: con. This is convenient and continental.

Contentious -- argumentative

Conflagration -- huge fire

Congratulations! You made it all the way through this contemptuous article.

Courageous Comfort

Comfort. Where did this word come from? I predict Latin. Com--with, and Fort--strength.

Yet Comfort seems to have more softness than strength.

Courage comes from Latin, too. Cour--heart. So courage comes from the heart. Another syllable you wouldn't expect. Have a heart means to be sympathetic, not to be brave!

The etymology shows how people have changed. They used to think wisdom and knowledge were housed in the heart, but for hundreds of years, it moved to the Brain. Now it is moving back again. Did it move? Are we moving towards thinking more with the heart, than the brain? Eckart tolle would say it is necessary if the human race wants to survive!

Are you a Philolog, too?

From the online etymology dictionary:

Philology
late 14c., "love of learning," from L. philologia "love of learning, love of letters, love of study, literary culture," from Gk. philologia "love of discussion, learning, and literature; studiousness," from philo- "loving" (see philo-) + logos "word, speech" (see logos). Meaning "science of language" is first attested 1716 (philologue "linguist" is from 1590s; philologer "linguistic scholar" is from 1650s); this confusing secondary sense has not been popular in the U.S., where linguistics is preferred. Related: Philological.

A philologist is someone who studies philology and is an expert in history and linguistics.

A Philolog is a lover of words, and speech, like me!

That is how I got the title.

Transparent or Invisible?

So many coaches are advising entrepreneurs to be "transparent." This means that you should be open and honest, and not hide anything from your potential clients.

So what's difference between transparent and invisible?

Transparent is good. Even Eckhart Tolle recommends it. He says to become transparent and allow emotions to move through you and not take you over.

Invisible is not good. That means that people ignore you, even when you are right in front of them.

Transparent means light shines through you. Invisible means people see through you.

They are synonymous, but "transparent" has taken on some new connotations. And it is cool to be transparent!

Fight Fire with Fire?

I thought the saying was You can't fight fire with fire, but they can and do. It's been a common practice since the old west, when they burned underbrush so there wouldn't be much flammable debris to prolong a fire. And more recently, when they detenate dynamite to remove oxygen from the fire, which extinguishes it. Shakespear mentions "be fire with fire" in a play about King John, written in the 16th Century.

The closest reference was more recent.  US author Henry Tappan's 1852 reminiscence A Step from the New World to the Old, and Back Again:

Smoking was universal among the men; generally cigars, not fine Havanas, but made of Dutch tobacco, and to me not very agreeable. I had some Havanas with me, and so I lighted one to make an atmosphere for myself: as the trappers on the prairies fight fire with fire, so I fought tobacco with tobacco.

But it still makes more sense to me that you can't fight fire with fire. I think it is more effective to fight fire with its opposite, water. There are many instances of the backfire thing, back firing, meaning althoughit was intended to quell the fire, it only exacerbated it!

Surge or Splurge

The Dictionary is telling me to spend money! This is the advice I got: You should allow yourself to splurge once in a while!

Splash
splurge
spend
surge

How are these words related?!
Splurge means to spend extravagantly or ostentatiously. Wow! 2 more extravagant words!

The word splurge was first used around 1830, and may be a combination of spend and surge. Perhaps spend and urge?

But where did the lovely L come from. This is an unusual combination of letters, S-P-L, with an interesting sound. Onomatopeia gives us "splash" which sounds like a wave crashing on some rocks.

Splurge is the word of the day as I heard it somewhere this morning...

Although I do not consider myself extravagant, I do get the urge to splurge once in a while!

Magnetic or Mesmerizing

I feel exultant today, Sunday, October 7! I attended the Bagel Talk Toastmasters Club this morning at 9:30 AM. I was one of the 3 speakers scheduled for today. The word of the day was "exultant."

My speech was entitled, Franz Anton Mesmer, A Magnetic Personality.

Mesmer was a doctor in France, in the 18th century. He developed his own healing methods, using magnets and iron rods, based on his theory of "Animal Magnetism." He believed that all living things contain an invisible magnetic fluid and any blockage of this fluid would cause disease.

Although he called his method "Animal Magnetism," his followers referred to it as "mesmerism," and coined the word "mesmerize." So I'm puzzled as to whether to call him a Magnetic Personality or a Mesmerizing Personality. Wouldn't it be redundant to say Mesmerizing Mesmer? It makes the origin of the word more apparent, and is more mellifluous than "Magnetic Mesmer." Which do you prefer, magnetic or mesmerizing?

exultant -- jubilant.

magnetic -- attractive.

mesmerizing -- enchanting, entrancing, charismatic.

Wow! ABUNDANCE!

WOW! I got 11 VIEWS for this blog a few days ago.

What will bring more readers?

Bad words?

I've got one: vile.

I like this word. One syllable, but so very distasteful. Just saying it, twists your face and lips into a snarl, or maybe an expression of pure disgust. The facial expression actually gives you the meaning. I'm not sure if there are many other words like this....

Please comment if you know of one. Thanks!

Skirmishes

Skirmish is an unusual word. It means disruption or disagreement. Hens may have a skirmish with each other.

Squirm kinda sounds like it, but they have different origins. must be Latin.

Reminiscing

As I drink my tea, gazing out the window, I ponder the differences between reminiscing and merely remembering.

Reminiscing conjures romantic images of the past.

while remembering seems commonplace, like something you do everyday.

Re-membering means to put the pieces together, like a puzzle. (recollect is a synonym for remember.)

Reminiscing is more like lounging on a hammock...

I am doing a presentation about Memory Enhancement with Hypnosis on August 11. Maybe if we call them remincences instead of memories...

Quench or Quell

Quench your thirst. You don't hear that word in any other context. It means to satisfy with water. It means to extinguish. One synonym would be "quell."

Quell means to 1 put an end to something, usually in a forceful way. 2. pacify or suppress bad feeling: to allay a disturbing feeling or thought in a reassuring way.

Question: where do these "QU" words come from? Apparently they come from Middle or Old English from Old High German.

Another interesting synonym: squelch.

Squelch!

I hope I have been able to quench, quell, and squelch your curiosity about these words!

If you want to Quell the Hot Flash, I have a video coming soon!

The Fourth of July

Happy Independence Day!!!

I look forward to hearing the song, Firework, by Katy Perry as the brilliant sparks explode in the sky tonight.

You're a firework!

Enjoy!

What time is it?

The answer to the above question is, "now." I am reading The Power of Now by Eckharte Tolle.  It's a bit challenging to write a review for this book. ET says he spent 2 years in bliss, while he was homeless, after 30 years of depression and anxiety. People began to notice how peaceful he was and started asking him questions. He then became a spiritual advisor, while studying philosophy and religion. He also made of book out of the questions and answers. It's challenging, because he is attempting to write a book to lead others into the blissful state of enlightment. The subtitle is: a Guide to Enlightenment. It is written in question and answer format.
Here are some brilliant quotations from the book:

The time is now. What else is there?

Surrender to what is. Say yes to life and see how life suddenly starts working for you rather than against you!

Each chapter contains one subject, like consciousness, or how to become more present. There are so many profound statements, it is not easy to read. Even though he is speaking about how thoughts can be minimized in order to maximize happiness, joy and peace, I really have to think to comprehend his wisdom. So, do not buy this book if you do not like to think. But if you want a guide to Enlightenment, this is it.  It's hard to describe in words what this book is really about. It is more of a manual designed to show you how to process the information without too many words... it's ironic, but he succeeds in describing the ineffable with words like Being and Presence.

I highly recommend it, in book form or CD or even kindle!



I'm sure I will post many more amazing quotations in the near future.

Terse Memoirs

I have become fascinated by the 6 word autobiographies...

I think mine is: Eat, Drink, Pray, Love. Read. Workout.

Or maybe: I read books, sleep, eat, read.

Or maybe: Workout in the morning, read, sleep.

Used to be: Work, eat, read, eat, sleep, repeat.

I do love to read. And somehow, though I tend to be brief, I keep coming up with 7 or 8 words instead of six.

Eat, Drink, Pray, Love, Read, Give thanks.

Only six words is not enough.

(I like this exercise.)

I am reader, writer, hypnotist, philolog.

Feel free to post your 6 word epitaph below!

Are you a Cougar?

Hey! I know my birthday is coming, but what is this?

I got some interesting emails today:

Cougar Dating was the subject of one, and Senior People Meet.

Come on!

Oh, here's one that looks promising... Millionaire Hookups Online!!!

Happy Birthday to me!

Are you a Knave?

There aren't many words in English which start with "KN." I've been wondering where the K comes from in Knave, Knight, Knack, Knicknack, Knee, and Knife. They seem superflous somhow, but then again, without the K, they look very strange: nave, nack, nee, nife, and night.
Knight has a lot of silent letters. It should really be spelled "nite."

Browsing thru these words I see that they come from Old High German.

Knave means a male servant, or a tricky deceitful person. I love the synonyms: rapscallion and scoundrel!

Call me naive, but at least I'm not a knave!

Hearty Laughter

Is is hearty or hardy? I know they are both adjectives. The are synonyms as well as homonyms. They both mean robust.

So when I say hardy belly laughter is an aerobic exercise, should I say Hearty instead?

I guess I could use either one since they are synonymous, yet I will choose Hearty, because hearty laughter is good for the heart. Hearty has a few other meanings, too, which make it a bit more complex, because it also means exuberant.

I wish you a Happy Father's Day and a hardy heart!

Succumb and Success

Succumb is an interesting word. I would have to guess it comes from Latin. It means to yield or to give in to overwhelming desire. I like the way it shares the first 4 letters with the word success.

I'm going to write something about how to succumb to success on Musinglog.blogspot.com.

C U there!

Veer right

I'm not sure, but I think my GPS says "veer" right or left sometimes, not just "turn." Veer is a strange little monosyllablic word. I wonder where it came from?

The web tells me that it means turn suddenly, change direction, swerve, and it comes from Old French!

I also see turn clockwise, as a definition, but my GPS said veer left, when it wanted me to make a U-Turn on US 19. That was definitely a counter-clockwise turn.

I learned something today, I thought it meant a slight turn, not a sharp turn!

Scoff

I scoff at fear!

Scoff is a weird, harsh little word. It almost sounds like a cough, which should be spelled coff.

More about spelling later!

Maximal Exposure

Wow, how nice to know where my readers are! Blogger has a new dashboard and I love it!

Thank you for reading! Thank you for following me. You are the BEST!

I like this word: maxim. It is from Latin and related to maximal and maximum.

A maxim is a brief statement of truth. Here is a great synonym from the
greek language: aphorism.

Maximal: adjective, the highest.

Maximum: noun, the largest amount.

Remuneration

Remuneration is a very good word to ruminate about.

Remuneration means payment. but it has that re- in front so it repeats. "Muni" means money or government. Interesting spelling. A little rearrangement brings us to renumeration. Does this mean renumbering? maybe reprioritizing? It's not in my spell checker. It's not in my dictionary, however, renumber is, as well as reorder.

Recompense is a synonym for remunerate.

Reinforce means to strengthen or increase.

Ruminate means to chew on mentally. It's synonymous with meditate. Well, not exactly. Depends on what kind of meditation you prefer.

Remuneration reinforces itself. Realize that remuneration rebounds and returns, so remuneration is like karma: what goes around comes around!.

Juvenile adjectives

I was trying unsuccessfully to think of adjectives that start with the letter J.

Now I can name some:
Jade, jazzy, jumpy, junky, jerky, jilted, jiggling, or would it be jiggly?  and juvenile.

Do words that start with G, but sound like J count?
Germy, ginfilled, German, germaine, generous...

Cantankerous Cacophony

I'm feeling cantankerous today. What cacophony! I's a word which is not too common, but so relevant.

Cantankerous means cranky, irritable, irascible. It is from Latin, I predict. Wait, the origin of this word is much more interesting than I thot. It comes from some alteration or mispronunciation of a Middle English word for troublemaker, which probably came from a French word for contrarian. The opposite of cantankerous is easy-going.

Cacophony means harsh disharmonious (unharmonious?) noise, as opposed to a symphony which is harmonious music. It comes from Greek, caco means bad and phone means noise.

May all you encounters today be harmonious and non-cantankerous!

crazy words

Crazy is kindof a crazy word. Only 2 syllables short. It contains the letter Z, which is under-utilized in our language. And it contains Y used as a vowel. Also quite unusual.

Crazy means insane, eccentric, or mad.

It can also be used as an intensifier as in She's crazy mean.

It can be used as a compliment, too. That's crazy cool!

Just a few of my crazy thoughts. I'm done now.

Delightful Surprise

Is a delightful surprise or a surprising delight? It works both ways.

Peaceful Rest or Restful Peace? Same difference.

How weird is that?! Same difference? That's definitely an oxymoron.

Rest Assured

Today I was wondering what the difference was between ensure and insure. They have something in common, the root "sure."

The Bing dictionary defines insure thusly:

cover something with insurance: to agree formally that, for a sum of money paid to a company, the company will pay compensation or costs if a particular harm or loss occurs to somebody or something

protect against risk: to get protection from something undesirable that might happen, usually by making contingency plans or taking precautionary or preventive measures

Thus "ensure" is a synonym for insure, but insure also has the meaning of Paying for insurance on something.

And what about assure?

1. convince somebody: to convince somebody of something
2. make somebody confident: to overcome somebody's doubt or disbelief about something
3. make something certain: to make something certain to happen

You can be sure, I am liking these BING definitions!

Good Counsel

Today I am intrigued by the words counsel and council.

Counsel is a verb and it means to advise.

Council is a noun and means a official group of people.

Words that sound the same are called homophones.

Would you like a Booth?

I think this is an utterly ridiculous word: booth. BOOth. Sometimes I go in to a restaurant and they ask, would you like a booth or a table. I like booths beter, but I am reluctant to say the word. The more you think about it, the more absurd it seems. It even looks absurd. Come to think of it absurd is rather awkward, too. But the MOST awkward word is definitely: awkward. How many other words have two Ws in them? not many!

absurd -- adj. weird, strange.
awkward -- adj. not graceful, off-balance.
booth-- n. a table against a wall with bench seats instead of separate chairs; int. what a ghost who lisps shouts at you.

Maybe next year I'll be a ghost for Halloween and lisp, "BOOth" to the candy donors.