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 4 of 11 1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11
#47725 11/14/01 12:33 AM
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
W
Carpal Tunnel
OP Offline
Carpal Tunnel
W
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
Rapunzel: I hope you receive or find the answer to your question. I was about to go to bed, but wanted to read the last post, which was yours. It reminded me of the nursery rhyme:

Ride a cock-horse to Banbury Cross,
To see a fine lady upon a white horse;
With rings on her fingers and bells on her toes
She shall have music wherever she goes.


...just a tangent, but thought you might enjoy this while thinking about cymbals on a traveler's feet, whether symbolic or otherwise...

Oh, and another footnote from Mrs. Byrne:

rasorial adj. -- habitually scratching the ground in search of food.

Bon soir,
DubDub

#47726 11/14/01 02:53 AM
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 866
old hand
Offline
old hand
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 866
The columns at The Devils Causeway in Ireland (and elsewhere basaltic flows are found) are a product of the lava's cooling. The cracks occur at right angles to the top and bottom of the flow and form columns that are inevitably six sided. The hexagonal cross-section reflects the fact the dominant stresses in the cooling rock are planar, parallel with the flow's surface.

The columns in the cliffs behind Bombo beach at Kiama on the New South Wales south coast occur in a rock unit with the charming name of the "Bumbo Latite"! Latite is a cousin-brother of basalt. A little further south, one of the columns has fallen out of a flow that protrudes into the sea. This forms "The Little Blowhole" - lots of fun to drop things into just as the swell rushes up the underside of the flow!!

stales


#47727 11/14/01 02:56 AM
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 866
old hand
Offline
old hand
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 866
howsabout the CRS version: "plates" (of meat).

stales


#47728 11/14/01 03:12 AM
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 4,189
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 4,189
ruby slippers

No...that's Rhuby Slippers around here!


#47729 11/14/01 04:22 AM
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 3,065
B
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
B
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 3,065
If you don't toe the line you'll get the boot.

Bingley


Bingley
#47730 11/14/01 12:49 PM
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
W
Carpal Tunnel
OP Offline
Carpal Tunnel
W
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
Now, if something's useless, it's bootless..

And I just learned something: We're familiar with a pirate's booty, but I didn't realize that the baby slipper was spelled differently: bootee or bootie. So, three spellings for the cost of one on the Scrabble board!

And, since we're got the Achilles' heel mentioned in a post above, we can't forget the elevator boots used in Greek theatre: kothurnos--but my spelling is incorrect here. Can anyone help?

WW


#47731 11/14/01 02:02 PM
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 2,204
R
Pooh-Bah
Offline
Pooh-Bah
R
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 2,204
Rhuby Slippers

Personally, being a Londoner, I wear daisy roots

And, at the end of a long day, standing beside at me barrer, me dogs really kill me, and I'm glad to put me feet up!


#47732 11/14/01 02:44 PM
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 10,542
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 10,542
bill, I'd forgotten(!) that there is an english word that's sort of related to those 'wit of the staircase' words. afterwit is given by Mrs. Byrne as the locking of the barn door after the cows have gone or, less prosaically, knowledge that is gained too late to do any good.

this seems like a perfectly good word to bring out of obs. and apply to our concept.

#47733 11/14/01 03:57 PM
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858
W
wwh Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
W
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858
Dear tsuwm: Afterwit has merit of compactness. Latewit might be possible. Josepha was having a bad day with the locking the barn after the cows are gone . Cows are put in stanchions, which close comfortably behind their heads, allowing them to eat the grain that is the enticement to submit to the restraint, while awaiting milking. Reminds me of joke of farmer who was refused marital privileges during spat with wife. One of the cows had stanchion closure defective. Farmer started to urinate in manure trough behind that cow. The sudden noise startled the cow, so she started to back out of stall. Farmer grasped her tail to prevent this. Just then the wife entered barn, and would never accept farmer's explanation of what his two hands were doing.


#47734 11/15/01 01:46 AM
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
W
Carpal Tunnel
OP Offline
Carpal Tunnel
W
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
Smart too late...

What do you call the sum of a long column of figures?


Page 4 of 11 1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11

Moderated by  Jackie 

Link Copied to Clipboard
Forum Statistics
Forums16
Topics13,913
Posts229,652
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 (), 195 guests, and 3 robots.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Top Posters(30 Days)
Top Posters
wwh 13,858
Faldage 13,803
Jackie 11,613
wofahulicodoc 10,758
tsuwm 10,542
LukeJavan8 9,936
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