Good
evening, 919 Gang. Later on in this post you will read one person's nomination
for words and phrases which should be eliminated. But photos can be clichés,
too. As I scroll the wires, I read stories about the stock market, and they are
often accompanied by photos of traders on the stock exchange floor. (Newspapers
sometimes do this, too.) The photos have no significance. There are always
traders on the floor -- up market or down. And if these people are so
important, why aren't they named in the captions? Some editors feel every story
needs a photo, even if the photo is meaningless. I suspect some of our photog
members recall similar wastes of space.
-----------------------------------------------------
BOB ELLEDGE writes:
I haven't see this in and post-game
write-ups yet, but ESPN pointed out that on KC's missed almost game-ending
field goal, the Chargers had an extra man on the right side of the defensive
line, which should have resulted in a 5-yard penalty, rekick, and the likely
inclusion of the Steelers into the playoffs instead.
However, as I still hold a grudge
against the NFL for the holy roller debacle -- followed closely by Ed Hoculi in
Denver a few years back -- that's just too damn bad.
REBER: That uncalled infraction was reported in
the U-T sports section Monday. There were several things about that game that
told me the Chargers were just destined to win, no matter how poorly they
played. But I will take the win.
------------------------------------------------------
DAVID FARMER writes:
The company that manages our savings
has decided that Hinda and I are worthy of their preferred client website. It
lists special deals on Lexuses, Jaguars, cruises, elite small hotels of the
world, etc. In other words, products that we buy at least once a week.
The offer that really caught my eye
was the Reserved Global Wine Club. For only $199 a month, we could taste many
different premium wines (and maybe even some cheese and crackers). I don't know
if this would take place in a nice restaurant, or only at our kitchen table.
I'll have to find out.
The price covers just six months of
membership, but we would receive the seventh month free. I'm going to tell
Hinda what a great deal this is, because the regular price for seven months is
$1,393.
On the other hand, we could buy about
150 bottles of our usual $8 wines by sticking with the Farmer Global Wine Club.
(Don't bother to apply: membership is strictly limited to two aficionados.)
I'm still wondering what made me and
Hinda worthy of our elite status. Maybe our advisers have discovered that we
positively turn up our noses at Two-Buck Chuck from Trader Joe's.
----------------------------------------------------------
DAVID
OGUL writes:
Preston Turegano, I love you, (OK,
maybe not) but that Monday item on Loren Nancarrow showed a lack of class.
----------------------------------------------------------
RICK SMITH writes:
David Farmer's reference to the
athletic categories of his day were known as "exponents". The A's
were reserved for the varsity. The use of exponents in high school sports in
San Diego went out in the late 'sixties. Teams then fielded varsity and junior
varsity squads, although there were "sophomore" teams in some
leagues. And a happy, happy, 50th to you, Reber. Oh, shimminy!
REBER: I continue to receive congratulations on our 50th anniversary. And I
appreciate them all, although I suspect most people don't care to read them.
DON
SEVRENS writes:
Congratulations to you and Mary, a
half-century is quite a record.
Jeannie and I are not far behind. We
plan to celebrate our 50th in June with a destination dinner at a favorite
restaurant, Sogno di Vino in Poulsbo, Wash.
----------------------------------------------------------
DAVID FARMER forwards:
Words
for the Dumpster
By
TIMOTHY EGAN
WITH the last tick of 2013, let’s
throw out the most annoying, overused and abused words of the year. A few of
these terms, “twerking” or “stay classy,” die a natural death when someone like
John McCain starts using them — the aural equivalent of a comb-over. Others
need a push.
Many of these words originated in the
food world and would have been perfectly fine had they not migrated to the
general population. Some came out of mid-management office talk. What these
hapless clichés have in common is this: They have been so diluted by misuse
that they’ve lost their meaning. And like bad holiday sweaters and Sarah Palin
outrage, the following list is highly selective. To the Dumpster:
ARTISAN Once the legitimate
term for cheese makers with alternative grooming habits and creative body art,
this word has been co-opted by all the wrong people selling all the wrong
products. Toilet-cleaning chemicals. Convenience store “food” with pull dates
measured in decades. This is what happens when farmers’ markets fail to sue for
copyright infringement.
BRAND A close second to
artisan, used as a verb and a noun for self-promotion. It sprang from corporate
marketing, and then went viral after every 9-year-old with a Facebook page or a
Twitter handle began obsessing over how to shape random life events into a
monetized narrative. It’s bad enough that politicians worry about their brand.
But prisoners?
GLUTEN-FREE It’s a public
service to warn the less than 1 percent of the population who suffer from
celiac disease that bakery products might contain something that could make
them sick. But putting this label on things that have no connection is a
cynical corporate play for clueless consumers who buy something simply because
they think it’s healthy. Red Bull boasts of being gluten-free. So is paint
thinner.
WHATEVER Long ago, “whatever”
was a cover for inexpressive ignorance — Hitler invaded Poland and then,
whatever. Now this word reigns as a facile dismissive: I know it’s
Mother’s Day, but whatever. For the fifth year in a row, “whatever” was
just rated the nation’s most annoying word in a survey done by the Marist
Institute for Public Opinion, beating out the hardy perennials “like” and “you
know” and “just saying.”
24/7 No longer a byword for helpful
availability, 24/7 evokes bad hours, poor pay and some customer service rep in
India trying to explain an HDMI cable at 3 a.m. My bank is 24/7, or so they
say; after a half-hour discussion with someone from this stellar institution,
the “associate” said I should Google the problem. Well, yes, because Google is
24/7 in the only way that this term makes sense: It’s robotic.
END OF THE DAY A counter,
seemingly, to the above dreary infinity. But think again: There is no end to
the way that “end of the day” has been used to signify anything but a close of
business. No doubt, the rise of 24/7 has made end of the day impossible, at
least in the news and public affairs cycle. President Obama is a chronic abuser
of “end of the day.” Most recently, he used it to describe how his health care
law would be viewed. Raises the question: What day are you talking about?
WORLD-CLASS Makes the list
because Donald Trump, who is decidedly not, has almost single-handedly run it
into the ground. All of his casinos, golf courses, hotels and other
concentrators of showy square-footage are world class, even those that ended up
in bankruptcy. He is also self-declared in that realm. “I am the evidence,” he said,
attacking wind turbines in Scotland that threaten his golf interests. “I am a
world-class expert in tourism.” He promised that his world-class private
investigators in Hawaii would expose the shocking truth of President Obama’s
birth. A better use for them would be back in Scotland, on the Loch Ness case.
BEST PRACTICES Just below
“world-class” in the category of crutch words used to enhance mundane tasks. As
a rule, if you can imagine anyone in office casual using a particular term in a
presentation, it’s best to keep it under the fluorescent lights of a meeting
room. By some peculiar osmosis, what happens in management seminars keeps
infecting normal speech. I asked my neighbor what kind of tomatoes to grow this
year, and she went on a long discussion of “botanical best practices.” I put
potatoes in the ground.
A final thought: I’m as guilty as
anyone in letting these banish-worthy words get into print. This column is both
artisan and gluten-free, an extension of my brand in a 24/7 environment full of
world-class competitors. Whatever. At the end of the day, I’ll try to use best
practices and resolve to do better.
In that spirit, I renew an earlier
objection to “literally.” It’s become the most overused of phony emphasis
words, as in I went to the store, and they were out of kumquats — I mean,
they were literally out of kumquats!
REBER: And I would add "all
natural" and "chemical free." There is nothing in this world (with
the possible exception of sunshine) that is not chemical. And instead of
labeling something "all natural" please just tell me if it is
"unnatural." I can't even imagine what that would be. Speaking of phrases
that should be banned, check out this:
NOEL OSMENT forwards:
I thought this might cheer us up.
TIM
WILSON forwards:
A fascinating look at abandoned places
around the world:
GENE CIECHANOWSKI forwards:
It was started by two brothers as a
place to show their hobby, it started growing by leaps & bounds. Soon they
were joined by other "Model Railroad Clubs" and other craftsmen. Some
were electricians, model makers, carpenters, computer programmers. One thing
led to another.
This was about five years ago. One of
the breweries came and furnished all of the tables and chairs, serving counter.
etc.
Their latest finished area is the
airport. Planes look like they are flying and landing.
TIM
WILSON
forwards:
A rare WW II warbird takes to the sky
once again, after four years of loving restoration:
P.O.
Box 2239
Ramona,
CA 92065
U.S.A.
