The Etymologicon:
If you are stuck with a young person, someone young at heart or is into anime, cosplay, manga or even Godzilla Minus One, you could start talking to them about the genesis of Godzilla's name. Godzilla was actually born Gojira in the Japanese imagination in 1954, after being pounded with tonnes of American nukes during WW2. When Gojira grew big and went places, especially to Hollywood, he was christened 'Godzilla' to roll smoothly on an Anglophile's tongue. Pretty soon, Godzilla filled the masses' psyche to mean something gargantuan. Godzilla burger was not made from a mutated Japanese life form but denoted a massive burger. Mozilla Firefox intended to be the most prominent web browser after Netscape at its inception.
This book could be a go-to while waiting for an appointment or boarding a flight rather than just watching each other in the lobby. You may risk being taken for a stalker and told, "I don't feel comfortable you looking at me!" You question the commonly held notion that God is perfect in all His creations. You were wondering what He was thinking when He made her. What was He smoking?
A Circular Stroll through the Hidden Connections of the English Language
Author: Mark Forsyth (2011)
This book will excite you if you were one of those, me included, who gets excited knowing things that add minimal value to your mundane day-to-day life. It gives you a false satiety that you are a bigger being for realising some worthless fact. In no imaginable way is it going to improve your life. Perhaps, a transient warm fuzzy feeling when you sigh and say, "Ha. I see, that's what!"
Well, reading is not about passing examinations. Sometimes, it helps you pass that awkward moment in a boring or break the ice with a total stranger when mysteriously transplanted in the company of a haughty visitor that your wife conveniently pushed to you to entertain. These are moments when you find worthless information, a boon that could morph that awkward silence into lighter moments. The danger in this strategy is that your wife's unsavoury friends could change camp to be yours!
You need to know that Hawaii was almost called Sandwich Island. Its natives called it such long before Captain Cook 'discovered' it and showcased it to the rest of the world. Cook wanted to name Hawaii Sandwich Island to honour the Earl of Sandwich. Luckily, Cook died before it could be official. He was killed by the natives. Well, that is what you get when the Native's kindness is reciprocated with diseases and the instigation of fights.
Now, why is Sandwich named Sandwich? Well, this Earl of Sandwich was once a compulsive gambler. In one instance, we went on a gambling spree for two days. The concerned servants packed his meat, vegetables, and such between two pieces of bread and served them to him to cut unnecessary time for dining and serving. For the record, sliced bread did not come till 1928. People found the idea refreshing, and thus came about 'the sandwich'.
This information may be helpful when you start a conversation at a party where you do not like the attendees and want to make them feel stupid. It may also be a valuable tool to extricate yourself from their friends list.
Author: Mark Forsyth (2011)
This book will excite you if you were one of those, me included, who gets excited knowing things that add minimal value to your mundane day-to-day life. It gives you a false satiety that you are a bigger being for realising some worthless fact. In no imaginable way is it going to improve your life. Perhaps, a transient warm fuzzy feeling when you sigh and say, "Ha. I see, that's what!"Well, reading is not about passing examinations. Sometimes, it helps you pass that awkward moment in a boring or break the ice with a total stranger when mysteriously transplanted in the company of a haughty visitor that your wife conveniently pushed to you to entertain. These are moments when you find worthless information, a boon that could morph that awkward silence into lighter moments. The danger in this strategy is that your wife's unsavoury friends could change camp to be yours!
You need to know that Hawaii was almost called Sandwich Island. Its natives called it such long before Captain Cook 'discovered' it and showcased it to the rest of the world. Cook wanted to name Hawaii Sandwich Island to honour the Earl of Sandwich. Luckily, Cook died before it could be official. He was killed by the natives. Well, that is what you get when the Native's kindness is reciprocated with diseases and the instigation of fights.
Now, why is Sandwich named Sandwich? Well, this Earl of Sandwich was once a compulsive gambler. In one instance, we went on a gambling spree for two days. The concerned servants packed his meat, vegetables, and such between two pieces of bread and served them to him to cut unnecessary time for dining and serving. For the record, sliced bread did not come till 1928. People found the idea refreshing, and thus came about 'the sandwich'.
This information may be helpful when you start a conversation at a party where you do not like the attendees and want to make them feel stupid. It may also be a valuable tool to extricate yourself from their friends list.
This book could be a go-to while waiting for an appointment or boarding a flight rather than just watching each other in the lobby. You may risk being taken for a stalker and told, "I don't feel comfortable you looking at me!" You question the commonly held notion that God is perfect in all His creations. You were wondering what He was thinking when He made her. What was He smoking?
P.S. Thanks, Cousin Joe, for this book. Never a dull moment!
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