a tense relationship

The opposite of Open is Close and if I open or close a box in the past it is past tense, Opened or Closed. So why when I own a business is it Open or Closed? The tenses are not congruent. When we are open it is true that we are open currently. It may have been closed in the past but too it is close now. Close now is not closed it is close. Right?

weekdays

I wear black pants every weekday. What does this mean? It is different than if I were to say I wear black pants every day. But they are all week days. So who decided that there were week days and not week days? But you know what I mean when I say the first. So is a week really only five days in length? I suppose it can be argued to that point. And while I am on the subject it seems only right to call it the “weekends.” There are two of them. Yes they do touch each other, but there are still two of them, and sense they aren’t week days I am going to call them peak days. Most people amongst the masses look forward to these two days. One is a peak play or get-everything-that-you-need-to-done-in day and the other is naturally the peak day of spirituality. It is great. Two days that the world definitely could not do without. So why are they not weekdays?

think to yourself

Is there any other kind? You often hear “…I thought to myself…” and I wonder if there is any other kind. I even say it myself! If you think about something you are obviously thinking about it to yourself, it would be rather difficult to think something to another person. You can definitely think about another person but you can’t think to another person. Our thoughts are our own so why in English do we say that we thought to ourselves? It is proper to differentiate between those we speak to by adding a pronoun and where better suited a proper noun but to think is not to speak. Thinking hopefully comes before speaking. I suppose that collectively a group of individuals can think on a subject and that is what we are differentiating in the case of thought. But in that case we would be ‘thinking with.’ One would not say that he is thinking to a group of friends, he would say that he was thinking with a group of friends. So why do we say we think to ourselves? Is it proper? I think it is redundant.

four, floor & flour

The letters o-u can make both the “ow” sound and the ō sound. Why is it that four says ‘for’ and flour says ‘flower’? All you are doing is adding an “L.” And to think that a person floating down a stream is not a flow-er! What is going on here, I haven’t even made it to the thought that the word floor has the double ‘O’ which every first-grader knows makes the “ooooo” sound in words like food. This only goes to show that American’s not only enjoy braking rules (or is it rools), they seem to look (luke; wait a minute, double ‘O’ can’t make too different sounds too!) for new ones to make up just to break them. Maybe that is not what it proves (proov’s) but it seems to show that we enjoy to complicate things. If you take our and put an 'F' in front of it you get four but that 'f' now magically changes the way the 'our' sounds, add an "fl" and we are back to 'our' again. It is a good thing we do not teach kids all these words at once so that they have time to forget some of the rules before learning the next word.

read the following line out loud as fast as you can; it's a killer.
our, hour, four, flour, floor, flower, slower, flow?

punctuation

I have said previously that words are materials with which we build. I wish to take that as my basis for the topic of punctuation. Punctuation seems to me to be the element that brings those sentences, those paragraphs to life. Not just that but can you imagine reading with no punctuation. I have actually done this and it is not very easy. Several of my brothers in writing letters fail to punctuate so in attempting to read meaning may get lost, or worse, misinterpreted. Every individual has his or her unique style of thinking and consequently his or her unique style of both writing and reading. The way we create sentences is derived from the way we think. Because I think up sentences different from the way that even my brother may think up sentences punctuation is the key, the cipher if you will used to comprehend that sentence. True also is the fact that a sentence can take on an entirely different meaning if punctuated differently. Now, I am by no means an English major, in fact English was one of two least favorite subjects throughout high school. However, even though I am not very schooled in the art of punctuation it seems to me a not to difficult task to punctuate my thoughts. I know I mess up but it is better to try and fail than to not have it there at all. Punctuation is the top hat on the Frosty of words. It’s the pixie dust to their happy thoughts. It does something magical to them. It transforms them. It brings them to life.

fun with words

Building things with words? I can build things with words! I enjoy building things. Though I have never been a big fan of reading or writing I realize something- writing is building. It is building things with words. Not only is it building sentences but it is building stories, characters, plots, ideas. It is great. You should try it; thinking of it as building makes it so much more fun.

grammar

I have no idea why I am posting about grammar I am hardly qualified on the subject; I have been speaking the language for about 22 years now so here it goes. I threw an amazing going away party for 2007 the other day. To many it was a New Year's Eve party but to me it was a Celebration for 2007, the amazing year that it was. Many people that evening and the following day were liberal in their offering me a Happy New Year and for that I thank them. The end of one year and the beginning of a next is a wonderful time to reflect and to start afresh, keeping in mind that that can be done whenever such a thing is needed. Perhaps one goal for some at this time could be that of grammar. Now correct me if I am wrong but, some might wish a Happy New Years upon some one. Please refrain from doing this. Instead these individuals might be obliged to wish a Happy New Year to associates. Countless others may have the opportunity this year to attend a New Year's Eve party at which they may offer a New Year's toast or wish someone a blessed New Year's Day or complement the host on a wonderful New Year's Eve party. These people may be met with funny faces if at the stroke of midnight or the drop of a ball they scream out Happy New Year's! That could be an embarrassing experience so to prevent such an occurrence it may do these people well to touch up on their grammar this year. I know that I will be. One grammar tip that I may offer is that in an interjection or subject change it is proper to say anyway, not anyways; that will get you every time if you are not careful.

Happy New Year everybody.