Date: Saturday, February 19th, 2011
Word of the Day: libation(ly\BAY\shun); the act of pouring a liquid, (usually wine,) either on the ground or on a victim in sacrifice to some deity; also, the wine, or liquid thus poured out
Weight: two hundred and twenty-four (224) pounds
Goal: lose one hundred (100) pounds
Pounds to lose: ninety-two (92)
Waist Size: forty-three (43) inches
Days until Royal Wedding:
Rowing Duration: thirty-five (35) minutes, one (1) second
Here it is Saturday and I'm sure that alot of you have been up for awhile doing activities and chores, alas, I have just got up recently, I've done my rowing, but that is about it.
Zac told me that he though my post of yesterday was one of my better ones, I guess he likes a good chuckle, okay Lily, don't be so picky, Zac likes a chuckle!
My sister Judy and I are going to North York to the Centre for Performing Arts to see the musical "South Pacific" again this afternoon, I sure hope it is as good as the first time we saw it, but, usually nothing is as good as you remember it.
I have a headache this morning that is bothering me, I don't usually get headaches and this one seems to be a doozie!
The add-on "In the News" offers new insight into Bear Hibernation today, which is something a little different from the usual things I write about. An in-depth study of hibernating bears has revealed some surprising facts about the biological changes they undergo while in this inactive state. (I think that is how I'm going to refer my rest time from now on, I'll tell people that I'm hibernating.)
Unlike small mammals, hibernating bears experience only a moderate reduction in body temperature, yet their metabolisms plummet much more dramatically, to just twenty-five (25) percent of their normal rate. In addition, bears' heart rates drop so low that ten (10) to twenty (20) seconds can pass between beats. Understanding how bears survive with such low amounts of oxygen could help improve treatments for heart attack and stroke.
Did any of you see Dateline on television last night? It featured the story or Russell Williams, the ex-Colonel of Canada who disgraced us all with committing murder on two (2) women and burgled homes to remove women's articles of clothing. Gosh, this story still gives me the goose bumps on how someone could lead such a double life!!!!
I need to call my kids in Florida today. It has been awhile since I last spoke to Sally, Jessie and Raphael and I miss them greatly.
Looks like one of my idols, Oprah Winfrey, is in for some more bad press. A dead baby has been found at Oprah's school in South Africa.
Thank you to all of those of you who included Elizabeth Taylor in your prayers. It is being reported that Miss Taylor seems to be improving, let's all hope that Liz makes a full recovery, she is, after all, one of the last stars from The Golden Age of Hollywood.
Few constructions cause as much consternation for editors as that in which a contrast is represented with the phrase “not only, . . but.” The solution to garbled syntax in such constructions is simple but bears repeating, so multiple sample sentences follow. But before we go any further, note not only that a comma following “not only” is unnecessary but also that also (or too or as well) is essential after but.
At its most basic, the erroneous sentence structure you will see played out in several variations here is “(Subject) (this) (verb) and (that).” The correct sequence is “(Subject) (verb) (this) and (that).”
1. “I not only knew where this person was shopping and how much he or she was spending, but the exact time of each transaction.”
For such a sentence to exhibit proper parallel structure, the verb following the subject must precede “not only” so that it applies to both parallel phrases, or the verb must be repeated. In the latter case, the sentence would read, “I not only knew where this person was shopping and how much he or she was spending; I also knew the exact time of each transaction." This solution is correct but cumbersome. (I was tempted to write “not only correct but also cumbersome,” but one is favorable and the other unfavorable, so introducing parallel structure seems inappropriate.)
For clarity and simplicity, try this: “I knew not only where this person was shopping and how much he or she was spending but also the exact time of each transaction.”
2. “When the United Kingdom went through its mad cow mess, it had to bury not just the dead animals that had gotten sick, but had to change its butchering methods.”
That’s a clumsy (and erroneous) attempt to provide the verb twice. It’s far more elegant to compose the sentence so that a single had is strong enough: “When the United Kingdom went through its mad cow mess, it had to not only bury the dead animals that had gotten sick but also change its butchering methods.”
3. “Their drinking may not only reflect difficulties in sleeping and calming down, but the fact that their parents provided a chaotic and inconsistent home environment.”
This sentence almost sounds right, but may, the verb that precedes “not only,” is an auxiliary, or helper, verb; it’s playing second banana to reflect, which must also precede “not only”: “Their drinking may reflect not only difficulties in sleeping and calming down but also the fact that their parents provided a chaotic and inconsistent home environment.”
4. “Extended-stay lodging may not only fulfill a practical purpose but an emotional one.”
The error is most easily seen in sentences such as this one, in which the “but (also)” phrase is brief and noisily clatters to the floor, unsupported by the sentence structure: “Extended-stay lodging may fulfill not only a practical purpose but also an emotional one.”
5. “They understood that the devastation was not solely about the lack of water, but about the way the land had been used.”
This sentence, in which solely stands in for only, places the “not only” element correctly, but, again, the comma is extraneous, and an inserted also is not: “They understood that the devastation was not solely about the lack of water but also about the way the land had been used.”
Well, dear Reader, it is time for me to get some breakfast, shower, shave, find the theatre-tickets and then dress in my finest outfit to go and see the musical "South Pacific." For those of you not going to the theatre today, the Turner Classic Movie (TCM) channel is showing a honey of a movie this morning, "Captains Courageous" with Mr. Spencer Tracy in an Oscar-winning role, enjoy it, and the weekend.
Topics coming soon:
Art
Image by Getty Images via @daylife
Politics
Cartoons
Word of the Day: libation(ly\BAY\shun); the act of pouring a liquid, (usually wine,) either on the ground or on a victim in sacrifice to some deity; also, the wine, or liquid thus poured out
Weight: two hundred and twenty-four (224) pounds
Goal: lose one hundred (100) pounds
Pounds to lose: ninety-two (92)
Waist Size: forty-three (43) inches
Days until Royal Wedding:
Rowing Duration: thirty-five (35) minutes, one (1) second
Here it is Saturday and I'm sure that alot of you have been up for awhile doing activities and chores, alas, I have just got up recently, I've done my rowing, but that is about it.
Zac told me that he though my post of yesterday was one of my better ones, I guess he likes a good chuckle, okay Lily, don't be so picky, Zac likes a chuckle!
My sister Judy and I are going to North York to the Centre for Performing Arts to see the musical "South Pacific" again this afternoon, I sure hope it is as good as the first time we saw it, but, usually nothing is as good as you remember it.
I have a headache this morning that is bothering me, I don't usually get headaches and this one seems to be a doozie!
The add-on "In the News" offers new insight into Bear Hibernation today, which is something a little different from the usual things I write about. An in-depth study of hibernating bears has revealed some surprising facts about the biological changes they undergo while in this inactive state. (I think that is how I'm going to refer my rest time from now on, I'll tell people that I'm hibernating.)
Unlike small mammals, hibernating bears experience only a moderate reduction in body temperature, yet their metabolisms plummet much more dramatically, to just twenty-five (25) percent of their normal rate. In addition, bears' heart rates drop so low that ten (10) to twenty (20) seconds can pass between beats. Understanding how bears survive with such low amounts of oxygen could help improve treatments for heart attack and stroke.
Did any of you see Dateline on television last night? It featured the story or Russell Williams, the ex-Colonel of Canada who disgraced us all with committing murder on two (2) women and burgled homes to remove women's articles of clothing. Gosh, this story still gives me the goose bumps on how someone could lead such a double life!!!!
I need to call my kids in Florida today. It has been awhile since I last spoke to Sally, Jessie and Raphael and I miss them greatly.
Looks like one of my idols, Oprah Winfrey, is in for some more bad press. A dead baby has been found at Oprah's school in South Africa.
Thank you to all of those of you who included Elizabeth Taylor in your prayers. It is being reported that Miss Taylor seems to be improving, let's all hope that Liz makes a full recovery, she is, after all, one of the last stars from The Golden Age of Hollywood.
Few constructions cause as much consternation for editors as that in which a contrast is represented with the phrase “not only, . . but.” The solution to garbled syntax in such constructions is simple but bears repeating, so multiple sample sentences follow. But before we go any further, note not only that a comma following “not only” is unnecessary but also that also (or too or as well) is essential after but.
At its most basic, the erroneous sentence structure you will see played out in several variations here is “(Subject) (this) (verb) and (that).” The correct sequence is “(Subject) (verb) (this) and (that).”
1. “I not only knew where this person was shopping and how much he or she was spending, but the exact time of each transaction.”
For such a sentence to exhibit proper parallel structure, the verb following the subject must precede “not only” so that it applies to both parallel phrases, or the verb must be repeated. In the latter case, the sentence would read, “I not only knew where this person was shopping and how much he or she was spending; I also knew the exact time of each transaction." This solution is correct but cumbersome. (I was tempted to write “not only correct but also cumbersome,” but one is favorable and the other unfavorable, so introducing parallel structure seems inappropriate.)
For clarity and simplicity, try this: “I knew not only where this person was shopping and how much he or she was spending but also the exact time of each transaction.”
2. “When the United Kingdom went through its mad cow mess, it had to bury not just the dead animals that had gotten sick, but had to change its butchering methods.”
That’s a clumsy (and erroneous) attempt to provide the verb twice. It’s far more elegant to compose the sentence so that a single had is strong enough: “When the United Kingdom went through its mad cow mess, it had to not only bury the dead animals that had gotten sick but also change its butchering methods.”
3. “Their drinking may not only reflect difficulties in sleeping and calming down, but the fact that their parents provided a chaotic and inconsistent home environment.”
This sentence almost sounds right, but may, the verb that precedes “not only,” is an auxiliary, or helper, verb; it’s playing second banana to reflect, which must also precede “not only”: “Their drinking may reflect not only difficulties in sleeping and calming down but also the fact that their parents provided a chaotic and inconsistent home environment.”
4. “Extended-stay lodging may not only fulfill a practical purpose but an emotional one.”
The error is most easily seen in sentences such as this one, in which the “but (also)” phrase is brief and noisily clatters to the floor, unsupported by the sentence structure: “Extended-stay lodging may fulfill not only a practical purpose but also an emotional one.”
5. “They understood that the devastation was not solely about the lack of water, but about the way the land had been used.”
This sentence, in which solely stands in for only, places the “not only” element correctly, but, again, the comma is extraneous, and an inserted also is not: “They understood that the devastation was not solely about the lack of water but also about the way the land had been used.”
Well, dear Reader, it is time for me to get some breakfast, shower, shave, find the theatre-tickets and then dress in my finest outfit to go and see the musical "South Pacific." For those of you not going to the theatre today, the Turner Classic Movie (TCM) channel is showing a honey of a movie this morning, "Captains Courageous" with Mr. Spencer Tracy in an Oscar-winning role, enjoy it, and the weekend.
Topics coming soon:
Art
Image by Getty Images via @daylifePolitics
Cartoons
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