May 16, 2024

Wiser’s Wramblings-A Word By Any Other Name is Not the Same

Post-op reporting, grammar galore, wrandom thoughts, and the birds

By Chuck Wiser, I write the words to share what my eyes see and my heart feels

If this piece Wrambles its way into print today it is purely by happenstance. There are several factors that may team up to defeat or at least delay my efforts. I am not completely healed or recovered from my ACDF surgery, wherein they welded three vertebrae together in an attempt to corral the problem of neck pain. It’s pretty bad when you are your own “pain in the neck.” Typing this necessitates turning my head down to look at the keyboard, but which increases the residual pain, and/or makes my neck snap when I return it to looking straight ahead. You may be thinking that, had I learned to type I wouldn’t have to look at the keyboard. Sadly, I did learn typing before device “keyboarding” took over. But, sitting with the laptop, in my lap, pretty much negates or nullifies typing skills.

Spellcheck needs to get a sense of humor or learn to tolerate “literary embellishment.” That previous small, introductory paragraph has three “flags” suggesting corrected word choice(s) replacing those words that I turn into phrases or embellish. One suggestion, suggests changing “in an attempt to,” to merely say, “to.” I likely overdo the use of punctuation but there is a method to my madness. Rather than writing to make this a document containing stiff, business-like, stark, grammatically kosher, terse verbology, I write as if we were talking directly. Conversationally, my comments would ebb and flow with pauses, with which to emphasize certain words or complete thoughts. The only literary textual tools available for these writings are commas and BOLD print.

Once again, I am learning more about what I’m writing as I go. My Alfred State teaching career was, more often than not, conducted the same way. Thrown into, or blessed by, teaching subjects not previously known nor covered in my own educational career, I found myself learning about that subject as I prepared my lessons the night before I presented that subject to the students.

Since so many people often comment on my writings about grammar, I have postponed a grammar topic in my “to be written later” notes several times until the opportunity to write on it comes up. The words, or word combinations, such as “anytime” versus “any time,” and “anymore” versus “any more” have always interested me. There are many word combinations like that, so I wanted to present the term used to describe them. It turns out that there are several different but related terms that identify those, and other, word combinations. Unfortunately, word science offers up overlapping definitions, typical for our language history. The three most common terms related to the creation or composition of words are; Compound Words, Blended Words, and, my favorite, Portmanteau Words. Ironically, or maybe appropriately, Portmanteau is a word made up using the process of making a new word using parts of two separate words to make the new word. For example: Motel is a word created by combining Motor and Hotel. Internet (Interconnected + Network) and Labradoodle (Labrador and Poodle).

Perhaps one of the most common for TV watchers is sitcom created by combining parts of “Situation” and “Comedy.” I guess perhaps my fondness for creating new words would fall into that category as well, but I’ll have to make up my own word as my literary objective is to change the grammatic type of a word, by changing a noun into an action verb. If a word is Portmanteauable, then I guess it could become a candidate for a word creation combination. It could also be described by its compoundability. (Compound + Ability 😉)

Portmanteau is an example of itself in that it combined the word porter (one who carries) and manteau (a cloak). Bodacious is a fun word to use and it was formed by combining Bold and Audacious.

Blended words are now considered part of the Portmanteau category. Some examples listed under the Blended category are; “Brunch” (Breakfast and Lunch), “Emoticon” (Emotion +Icon) and more recently “Sitcom” (Situation + Comedy.)

Compound Words are formed by adding two (or maybe more) existing words together to form a new word. In addition to the “Any…” words used to start this topic a few examples are: Maybe, Toothbrush, Someday, Keyboard, and Daydream. Other examples of Compound Words but which are another category, or sub-category are some that were once known as hyphenated words. Bumble-bee is now bumblebee, ice-cream is ice cream and crybaby was once cry-baby.

As I write this, I have noticed examples of many other, perhaps so common as to be disguised words, such as another (an other) appear. Until you stop to think about it, you never stop to think about it. Mr. Berra would have been proud of the genius statement the likes for which he excelled.

I pause this writing temporarily so I can listen to the train whistle as a nearly extinct train is passing through on the tracks across the river from my dwelling. Reminds me of how much I miss the feeling that the sound brings to me. Pure nostalgia through and through (Note that ou sound).

Onward to the items I had actually targeted for today’s Wramblings, but one more peek (or peak) of grammar. The “ou” sound used in the building of words is very versatile so as to make its spelling sometimes difficult if you just sit down to write it. Pronouncing, and spelling, the word brought isn’t difficult as you ought to be able to figure it out. It’s more difficult to figure out how to spell slough as in; “slough off.” Who in their right mind would have made that word up.

While undergoing physical therapy, trying to recuperate fully from my neck/spine welding procedure, I mentioned to my therapist that I sang as a member of the Genesee Valley Chorus. I learned that she was a singer as well and often does Soprano solos. As we discussed music, I mentioned that I had several published musical pieces, most credit for which is owed to Dave Dunbar, may he rest in peace. I offered to share with her a couple of our songs for which I had spare copies of the music score. After giving them to her at the next session I was humbled and honored when she exclaimed; “and I know the writer.”

I recently bought a new riding mower. Well, actually, I bought three. Unfortunately, you cannot test drive them which would give you a feel for how well they operated. My first was horrible. I took it back to Lowes and they refunded the entire amount in bills. Couldn’t credit my account.

The second, a Cub Cadet from Home Depot had either a bad control circuit or a driver with operator error. I then returned it and visited Lindquist Garage in Bolivar. I got the same exact model as the one from Home Depot but all the functions, functioned. The world certainly is not the same now that Jon Lindquist has passed away.

On a medical note, I have recently read of instances of bird flu, and/or of which pigs can get infected. Maybe it was swine flu instead. I recall an old sarcastic utterance “If pigs could fly.” Good thing they can’t I guess, or they might be falling from the sky as they “flu” over.

“Getting up with the birds” is now more literal than figurative. The Cardinals (still here), Grosbeaks, and Orioles fill our Sunroom days with their splendor. Sadly, because of the apparent infestation of Raccoons, we must bring the Jelly feeders that we put out for the Orioles at night as the racoons will not leave them alone. Bad enough that we must “screen in” our sunflower feeders to keep them out of them…until they manage to break into the feeder cages.