Category Archives: language
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Scunners, Squeamishness, and Biting Wax Tadpoles
Leave a commentJuly 4, 2017 by libroshombre
LIBRARIAN COLUMN Contact Greg Hill, 4790-4344 June 8, 2017 The public library’s such an endless source of unexpectedly interesting factoids. …
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Humpty, Pied, and Krazy
2May 9, 2017 by libroshombre
Some words seem made to go together, and the ones that actually do become “portmanteaus.” A portmanteau’s a large, stiff-sided …
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OLLI, Yancey, and X
Leave a commentMay 3, 2017 by libroshombre
The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI), one of Fairbanks’ intellectual jewels like our public library, offers a wide array …
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Patrons, Volkswagens, and Metaphors
Leave a commentJanuary 24, 2017 by libroshombre
The “word” of the year for 2016 is “dumpster fire,” according to the American Dialectic Society (ADS). A recent …
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Thumbs, Purring Hyoids, and Zsa Zsa Gabor
Leave a commentDecember 28, 2016 by libroshombre
We should feed our cat “as much as it will eat in thirty minutes, twice a day,” says a book …
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Gobbling, Garbling, and Gobbledygook
Leave a commentDecember 16, 2016 by libroshombre
Why can’t we all get along? After all, every human on Earth is related. A research group at Germany’s …
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Anu, Noah, and Beverly
Leave a commentDecember 2, 2016 by libroshombre
The term “culprit” has been on my mind since I lost most of a recent powerpoint presentation due to …
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Stupidity, Waxed Tadpoles, and the Alamo
Leave a commentNovember 16, 2016 by libroshombre
A few years ago Australian journalist Ali Clarke wrote about the “six degrees of dumbness.” These included being born …
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Sherman, Grant, and the Library of America
Leave a commentSeptember 27, 2016 by libroshombre
A 1990 New York Times review of “Memoirs of General W.T. Sherman” spoke of how “Ulysses S. Grant and …
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Hepburn, Thatcher, and the Great Vowel Shift
Leave a commentAugust 14, 2016 by libroshombre
Katherine Hepburn once said, “To keep your character intact you cannot stoop to filthy acts. It makes it easier …
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