It’s at least 12 years since I first heard something described as “meta”. The meaning was not entirely clear. The word comes up occasionally, and although I had an idea of what it means, until now I had never looked it up or used it myself. Last month Kate Nash used the word “meta” during… Continue reading Word of the week: meta
There are signs on some of the busier roads here in West London which read as follows: “Dump rubbish in the street and we’ll fine you up to £400”. The text is laid out rather more dramatically than that, all in upper case, and is printed in different colours and font sizes. It’s on a… Continue reading “Dump Rubbish … and we’ll fine you up to £400”
Some years, during the season of Lent, I make regular visits to the graveyard where my mother is buried. In those years the grave will be made ready for her anniversary, on 10 April, without too much of a rush. Other years, like last year, we only plant new flowers a day or two before… Continue reading Fell asleep, passed, lost, slipped away
Updating Windows 10 is not on any of my lists. If you’re a Windows 10 user may I ask how it’s working for you? Are you happy? I mentioned, in this piece from earlier this month, some issues of my own with a Windows 10 update. I had restarted my laptop, as recommended by both… Continue reading “Let’s cross this one off your list”
What word or words do you use at the end of brief exchanges with people you don’t know? If you pay for something in a shop or bar, what do you say when you get your change or your receipt? If the person who has served you is male, maybe it’s “Cheers mate” or “Thanks… Continue reading Word of the week: man
We are often told that London is a global city. People come from all over the world, to visit and to set up home here. If you travel on our public transport system or walk our streets you will hear scores of languages being spoken. As a Londoner I am happy about all this. I… Continue reading “Reporting anything unusual won’t hurt you”
Earlier this week while driving down the A40 to collect my son from school, through the tunnel under the Hanger Lane Gyratory and past the Hoover Factory, I spent five minutes or more behind a Portuguese truck. It had a sign on the back that read “Veiculo Longo”. It’s a phrase I have seen before,… Continue reading Veiculo Longo
Last week I wrote about compartmentalization, with its 20 letters and 7 syllables. I noted, in this menu piece, that the only other word with 7 syllables that came to mind was homosexuality (13 letters). I’ve discovered another one. It currently features in trailers for various TV and radio programmes being advertised on the BBC:… Continue reading Letters and syllables
How do you spell words like minimize, maximize and theorize? Do you spell them with a “z” or with an “s” (minimise, maximise, theorise)? I’m a “z” man, not an “s” man, and have been for over 30 years. Back in the 1980s someone in publishing explained to me that “z” was closer to the… Continue reading “-ize” and “-ization” or “-ise” and “-isation”
At least one of the following things happens every day of my life: I notice yet another song on TV, radio or a playlist that rhymes “heart” and “apart”; I have to type a whole word on my phone that has not been anticipated by predictive text; I hear someone say “No pressure” in an… Continue reading “No Pressure”
The Compartments 