and vocabulary--In the valise thread-- you said you were too mean to by food and beer on a train-- I take it you find the prices too dear?

In US mean could be used in a mathematical sense--(mid point-- not "average of a set of values"-- but the midpoint of a set of values (mean salaries in NYC are 40% higher than national average*) or else:
To have in mind, (what do you mean by that remark?) and
Harsh or negative (Mean streets, or mean task master)
but almost never in the sense of frugal--

like wise, expensive things are never dear-- (sweet hearts are dear-- and some times expensive, too)

*a statement i recently read-- proving Twain's axiom-- "There are 3 kinds of lies-- lies, damn lies and statistics."


my other obsession