Posted on 07/05/2012 4:36:02 AM PDT by secret garden
In order that we might all raise the level of discourse and expand our language abilities, here is the daily post of "Word for the Day".
mumpsimus \MUHMP-suh-muhs\ , noun
1. Adherence to or persistence in an erroneous use of language, memorization, practice, belief, etc., out of habit or obstinacy.
2. A person who persists in a mistaken expression or practice.
Example sentences:
"I profess, my good lady," replied I, "that had any one but you made such a declaration, I should have thought it as capricious as that of the clergyman, who, without vindicating his false reading, preferred, from habit's sake, his old Mumpsimus...
-- Sir Walter Scott, The Talisman
Mr. Burgess, who sticks (I fancy) to his old mumpsimus, thought that the other gentleman might have given the canoe a shove to get it clear of the lock…
-- Ronald A. Knox, The Footsteps at the Lock
Etymology:
Mumpsimus comes from a story (perhaps first told by Erasmus) about an illiterate priest who mispronounced a word while reciting the liturgy. The priest refused to change the word, even when he was corrected.
The sentence must, in some way, relate to the news of the day. The Review threads are linked for your edification. ;-)
Practice makes perfect.....post on....
Review Thread One: Word For The Day, Thursday 11/14/02: Raffish (Be SURE to check out posts #92 and #111 on this thread!)
Review Thread Two: Word For The Day, Tuesday 1/14/03: Roister
Review Thread Three: Word For The Day, Tuesday 1/28/03: Obdurate
WFB's attempt to emulate us ; ) No pushing at the door please!
LOL. I just laughed and sneezed at the same time. I think that’s happend to all of us, at least once.
No, it was perfect weather. It rained for about 2 hours last evening, so everything was nice and wet. Only had one shell fail to rise and explode at eye level.
Took the dog out at about 1 AM and you could still smell gunpowder outside. The smell of freedom.
Oh my, what a lovely word
For the lexicon of Obama-
He demonstrates mumpsimus
With every speech and drama
His command of misinformation
Is there for us all to see-
When he claims to create jobs
I have to howl with glee
So does he also make the rain
And cause the wind to blow?
The only job that he does well
Is the one that begins with snow...
A+ for you. I’m finally back inside, after the trip to the county courthouse to line up my dates for jury duty. The only choice I had was Thanksgiving week. I’m thinking most of those cases might get dismissed. It is 105 out there and too hot to do anything.
Thank you! We’re lucky today-only 95-and there may be rain by the weekend.
A couple of weeks ago, my neighbor up the hill mentioned that they were going to adopt another dog to keep their poodle company in the house while they are at work, which I took to mean that they would be getting another less than 30 lb dog. He just came by to return a book I loaned him to read, and the poodle, who was in the cab of the truck started barking and wagging because I always give him treats-as a huge gray head with yellow eyes popped up right over him, leaned out the window, licked my face, smiled and drooled on my hand.
Their new dog is a huge, lovely gray female mastiff they got from a rescue place outside Austin. She is a bit less than 2 years old, and a darling-she ate treats from my hand just as politely as the poodle does, just a bit slobbery. My neighbor said she’d been living in a condo in Austin, so she hangs in the house with the poodle and is very well mannered and gentle with their 3 cats, as well.
I mentioned that I’d heard what I thought was another neighbor’s bullmastiff baying last night when I took Husky girl out, when here were lots of fireworks going off, and asked if that was his mastiff barking instead. He said no, that she had been cowering with the poodle between the couch and wall the whole time there were fireworks going off.
Mastiffs are such sweet dogs (except with intruders), but that bark of theirs is one hell of a scary sound-hound of the Baskervilles...
I don’t think I’ve ever encountered a mastiff. What is her name? I hope it’s something petite and feminine, LOL!
I’m getting disgusted with hockey players lately. One of our players who was marginal at best during the play-offs is opting for arbitration and don’t get me started on Suter ditching us for more money. If he had just admitted, with a new baby and his heavy travel schedule, that it would be better for their family to be closer to his wife’s family for help and support, everyone would have agreed. But it was all about the money and being with his buddy Parise. I think Ryan is forgetting that he is signing a long-term deal with the same owner who completely gutted our team a few years ago and hung everyone out to dry. And I tweeted the same to him too.
Jules wasn’t happy about the noise but he was distracted by little pieces of treats. He is way more of a barkybutt schnauzer than the other two. He’s also ridiculously strong, I was playing tug of war with a toy while laying on the couch and honestly he almost pulled me off! At our party yesterday we had my BIL and niece bring their little yorkie and yorkie-poo to entertain Jules and chan. They got along fine though Jules was five times their size. I hate when people pick up their dogs bc then Jules was just agitating for them to be put down. I’m trying to remember who else did that but it annoys the hell out of me bc I have to sit there and continually reprimand my dog to not jump, not bark, not agitate, when if they’d just put their little purse dog down Jules would sniff him a bit and then walk away. But the allure of having it held up high like that makes him furious. Note to owners of purse dogs aka HOBBES. Don’t worry no ones going to eat your widdle precious!
They just had an episode covering that issue on Dogs in the City last night, with Hubbell Yoda, a blind foo-foo dog she pushed around in a stroller. She learned that if you give dogs a chance to just sniff each other, they work things out amicably.
Husky girl does not get frantic about fireworks, as long as she is inside and can be close to me, and will only go outside when they are going off if she can be on a leash, glued to my side, to do her business and get back in NOW.
Last night, she and I both pricked up our ears at a soft rustling and low snarl we heard in the woods across the road-It made Husky girl start growling and I think that is what the bullmastiff was barking at-it also raised the hair on my neck, so I’m pretty sure it was the mountain lion, disturbed by the noise and smell of fireworks. The dog and I decamped with haste into the house.
The doggie’s name is Venus-I didn’t ask, but I’m guessing that is the name her original owner gave her-maybe because mastiffs are the descendants of the Roman guard dogs-can’t think of any other reason to give a huge dog like that such a name, even if she is very pretty. They are on the “bad dog” list, but like most of the dogs on it, if treated firmly and with affection, given lots of the attention they require, they are fine family pets. Just don’t let strangers approach them alone, because they may get mauled. I think the dog in “Peter Pan” that guarded the children (Nana?) was a mastiff.
I’ve always had a special love for large guard dogs-all but two of my dogs have been on the infamous vicious dog list-a chow and two german shepherds (my very favorite dog breed). None of those dogs were even so much as growly to our family, including cats, but some people were terrified of them. The same is true of my daughter’s fawn staffordshire terrier, who likes to sit in chairs with people.
Sounds like Jules behaved in typical doggie fashion-I was told by the obedience school people when I got my first german shepherd never to do that pick up thing with any small living creature-including a human (my daughter was a little one then)-in front of the dog, lest a tragedy happen-it is like the dog is either jealous or thinks it is a treat...
They’d coexisted peacefully for the duration this was at the very end. Megan is not that way with maxwell the yorkie poo but the BIL turns his purse dogs into absolutely unsocialized freaks! They told us at puppy k that there’s a window early on where you need to expose puppies to diff people and other dogs.
The optimum period is 8-12 weeks for socialization for dogs and cats but they can learn after that. It just takes longer to be absorbed. Yes, I actually had a class in Companion Animal Behavior as a college senior course. It was one of my favorite and most useful ones, in the long run.
Max is NOT amused.
have you taken up hairdressing since you have gotten him? ; )
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