Wordsmith.org: the magic of words

Wordsmith Talk

About Us | What's New | Search | Site Map | Contact Us  

Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
Page 1 of 2 1 2
#125209 03/14/04 10:17 PM
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 619
G
grapho Offline OP
addict
OP Offline
addict
G
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 619
I was in the process of bidding a fond farewell to the few of you who have not urgently, or, at least, overtly urgently, desired it when someone described me in a PM as a "gadfly".

I have never been called a "gadfly" before so I consulted a dictionary.

"Any of various flies, especially of the family Tabanidae, that bite or annoy livestock and other animals."

And then it suddenly dawned on me!

"What better place for a gadfly to 'follow his bliss' than right here where he's already making a nuisance of himself?"

A gadfly is no more than a gnat
But at least he can be true to that.


I have finally come to my senses.

I am home where I belong.

"We shall not cease from exploration. And the end of all our exploration shall be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time." T. S. Eliot. Animal Farm.









#125210 03/14/04 10:22 PM
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 7,210
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 7,210
err, welcome back?

watch out for the flypaper...



formerly known as etaoin...
#125211 03/14/04 10:52 PM
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 5,400
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 5,400
a million years ago, back in the dark ages, i read a book, original written and published in italian, called The Gadfly--it was loaned to me by a friend, (and i dutifully returned it!) now i wish i was a bookkeeper!

does anyone know this book? it was a story of political civil disobience.. (set in modern european country--set in ? 1950's? early? (there were cars and highways.. so its at least last century!)

the book overwhelmed me at times.. i hardly remember a line, and yet as a whole, i remember it vividly.
(other books have effected me that way.. Steps-- and The painted Bird--horror stories.. that keep me mesmerized and under their spell--and repelled me, and frightened me with every word.)


#125212 03/14/04 11:48 PM
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 1,475
J
veteran
Offline
veteran
J
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 1,475
The Gadfly was published in 1897 and was written by Ethel Lilian Voynich who was the wife of the owner of the exceedingly strange Voynich MS, which he donated to Harvard's Bieneke library.

http://www.voynich.nu/
http://members.aol.com/zetaomega/voypage.htm
http://www.dcc.unicamp.br/~stolfi/voynich/

Nobody has ever figured out what language this MS is written in, or indeed if it is written in a language. (Cf. the Codex Seraphinus.)

http://www.io.com/~iareth/codindx.html

The Gadfly is in the public domain and is available online:

http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/webbin/gutbook/lookup?num=3431

It was a big hit in the Soviet Union.



#125213 03/15/04 01:33 PM
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 5,400
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 5,400
thanks!


#125214 03/17/04 02:53 PM
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 619
G
grapho Offline OP
addict
OP Offline
addict
G
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 619
thanks!

Gnats never get any fan mail, de Troy.

Re: "A gnat is a slugger's biggest fan."

If you want to swing at a gnat
You're gonna need more than a bat.


Folklore has it that you can catch more gadflies with honey ... but they actually prefer carrots.



#125215 03/17/04 03:16 PM
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858
W
wwh Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
W
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858
Egad, Fly!
We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.

Little Gidding V
Four Quartets
T.S. Eliot (1943)

Who knows what "Little Gidding V" means?
Edit: I found it:
Little Gidding is a village in Cambridgeshire visited by Eliot in 1936. It was the home of a religious community established in 1626. In 1633 Charles I visited the community; in 1646 he returned, fleeing Parliamentary troops who broke up the community

Full of sound and fury, a tale told by an Eliot.

#125216 03/17/04 03:38 PM
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 619
G
grapho Offline OP
addict
OP Offline
addict
G
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 619
Who knows what "Little Gidding V" means?

He's the great-grandson of "Little Gidding Two-shoes".


#125217 03/17/04 03:48 PM
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 3,467
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 3,467
Whose name derived from a Florida Island.

Two-shoes Cay, Archie, Two-shoes Cay.

Does that make me hittable???



TEd
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 619
G
grapho Offline OP
addict
OP Offline
addict
G
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 619
Does that make me hittable???

No, but it might make you biteable.

Truth is, you just hit one outta the park.

I only chase fly balls.



Page 1 of 2 1 2

Moderated by  Jackie 

Link Copied to Clipboard
Forum Statistics
Forums16
Topics13,913
Posts229,580
Members9,187
Most Online3,341
Dec 9th, 2011
Newest Members
Karin, JeffMackwood, artguitar, Jim_W, Rdbuffalo
9,187 Registered Users
Who's Online Now
0 members (), 332 guests, and 0 robots.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Top Posters(30 Days)
Top Posters
wwh 13,858
Faldage 13,803
Jackie 11,613
wofahulicodoc 10,713
tsuwm 10,542
LukeJavan8 9,931
AnnaStrophic 6,511
Wordwind 6,296
of troy 5,400
Disclaimer: Wordsmith.org is not responsible for views expressed on this site. Use of this forum is at your own risk and liability - you agree to hold Wordsmith.org and its associates harmless as a condition of using it.

Home | Today's Word | Yesterday's Word | Subscribe | FAQ | Archives | Search | Feedback
Wordsmith Talk | Wordsmith Chat

© 1994-2024 Wordsmith

Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5