Mignon Fogarty

Grammar Girl. Podcaster. New York Times bestselling author. Quick and Dirty Tips founder. Bad skier. California. she/her

#AmWriting 8/20 Grammar Girl podcast
#AmReading A Court of Thorns and Roses (Maas)

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grammargirl_at_zirk.us@mostr.pub

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Last Notes

2024-08-19 20:24:58

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@npub19hk…najs That's great!

2024-08-02 14:23:11

Here's a question for people who use WhatsApp more than I do: What do you call it when you record an audio message and send it to someone through the chat?
Is it a voice message? A voice chat? A voice memo? Something else? 1/2

2024-05-17 22:03:35

We only smelled gas in the basement, but they wanted to inspect the whole house, and I swear there was a brief moment where I thought “My house is so messy, I’d rather die in a fire than have them traipse through my whole house!” I console myself that they’ve probably seen worse.

2024-03-12 23:25:10

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@npub1h74…42de Go get 'em!

2024-03-12 19:11:15

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@npub16m2…vj2a You bet! I love it.

2024-01-26 14:09:13

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@npub1xfh…awf9 @npub1esg…tkua How weird! Do you know anything else about this "rewrite your paper" service?
Are they rewriting things that were written by AI in the first place, or are they rewriting their own writing?

2024-01-18 21:37:08

Off the top of my head, podcast transcripts are good because they:
— Are Important for accessibility.
— Are required for your podcast to be used in a classroom.
— Can help you get more exposure if people find them through search.
— Can make your content easier to share. (If you have a friend you know won't listen to a podcast, you can still send the info.)
— Provide an entry point for people who aren't ready to commit to listening.
What else?
#podcasting

2024-01-18 02:05:17

I may need a lava lamp to replace the Christmas tree. The house feels dark and dreary.

2024-01-04 01:46:24

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@npub17e6…jtul Interesting. I imagined that it would vary by location.
If you have time, what does an adult literacy volunteer do? What helps the most?

2024-01-03 18:13:52

I could hardly believe that statistic I just reposted was true: more than half of U.S. adults 16 to 74 read at below a 6th grade level?
But I checked, and Snopes says it's true. https://www.snopes.com/news/2022/08/02/us-literacy-rate/
How discouraging and infuriating.

2023-12-24 20:23:45

I am enjoying "Murder in HR" while I cook today thanks to @npub17lj…x7hw and his @npub1qdj…5saz recommendation.
https://www.murderinhr.com/
#AudioDramaSunday

2023-10-22 16:53:41

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@npub1sjy…087h Haha. Thank you for thinking of me (I guess). :)
I hope at least the extra words added accuracy. That would be better than a bad translation that changed the meaning.

2023-10-22 16:38:26

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@npub1ecm…stjx I'm sure the trees love it! I'm glad to hear you like them.
We have a combined washer-dryer (which I love) in our garage, and we have a rain-barrel-type system hooked up to it to collect the water from the drying cycle.
We just have to remember to physically move the hose to the barrel. Then I have to drain the water into a bucket to take outside. (It sounds like more of a hassle than it is. We reclaim ~3-5 gallons of water per load of laundry.)

2023-10-22 15:27:48

young people age 18 to 29
-->
adults under 30
#amediting

2023-10-22 15:00:05

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@npub1fvv…yw2w If you asked that question on Twitter, I'm surprised anyone said yes. If that's what they think, why are they still there?

2023-10-22 14:19:41

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@npub1ecm…stjx I am! I plan to put in rain barrels when we landscape. Outside of my garden, the yard is essentially just bark. But when we eventually have plants, we'll want more water for them.

2023-10-22 14:17:21

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@npub1r55…w4zz It's a great trick. I do that with almost everything I write.

2023-10-21 14:50:02

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@npub12xr…psum Cute outfit!

2023-10-20 22:28:56

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@npub1r2j…04mh
I've never heard that nuance for "concur" (but I've never really thought about it either).
The only usage note I could find on the word was about what prepositions to use it with (e.g., "He concurs with the opinion).
This is a note in Merriam-Webster:
"CONCUR often implies approval of someone else's statement or decision.
[example] if my wife concurs, it's a deal"
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/concur

2023-10-04 14:59:27

Here's how I'm finding ChatGPT useful in a weird way:
1. I try to get it to write the description for a podcast episode.
2. It spits out hyperbolic vomit.
3. I think, "WTF"?
4. But then I actually write something better than I would have come up with on my own.
I don't know what's going on. Somehow it inspires me or focuses my thinking to have to slog through its wrongness?
Maybe as someone who works alone, I find it nice to have even a lousy writing partner.

2023-10-03 03:07:32

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@npub1wna…a85t Good one.

2023-10-03 03:07:22

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@npub17l8…9efk Good point.

2023-10-03 02:50:24

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@npub10p7…kvwv Adding them to my list!

2023-10-03 02:32:35

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@npub1tgt…68dp Interesting! Thank you.

2023-10-03 02:31:27

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@npub1qm8…gyw7 Yes, some of it can happen when you move text around between platforms.
I have problems with curly and straight quotation marks when I paste text between Google Docs and Apple Pages. It's a sign to investigate more if you aren't sure of the source — certainly not an absolute sign of plagiarism.

2023-10-02 21:58:52

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@npub1un6…zfv6 Ah, thank you! That's helpful.

2023-10-01 15:20:33

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@npub1v9h…cgug Thank you! That kind of problem came up too! I forget what the point was, but in the first draft, early in the book I had written something one way, and near the end of the book, I had talked about the style choice and made the opposite recommendation.
The copy editor caught it.

2023-09-30 23:07:19

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@npub16q2…e7ya He thinks he had seen it in passing, but never much thought about what it meant or why it was there.

2023-09-27 19:19:47

I sometimes take surveys for fun (I know; I'm weird), and I often come across #BadSurveyQuestions.
Yesterday, in a survey that seemed to be a student project, I was asked questions about how I heat and cool my house.
I don't have air conditioning, but a number of questions forced me to answer as if I do. For example, it asked what month I switch from heating to cooling, and there was no n/a option.

2023-09-27 19:15:22

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@npub1cr2…q039 User testing is so important!

2023-09-27 18:39:18

I've never heard people say "whom of which," but apparently it's a thing.
Linguists are studying it, and what's fascinating is that it follows its own grammatical rules.
h/t @npub18uh…7xlx
https://news.mit.edu/2023/whom-which-trend-linguistics-0927

2023-09-27 18:37:41

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@npub18uh…7xlx Fascinating!

2023-09-27 18:32:04

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@npub10p7…kvwv Wow. It took me a loooong time to see the error.

2023-09-27 16:33:18

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@npub18uh…7xlx Interesting!

2023-09-26 00:05:21

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I will also tweak my prompt.
I was worried about telling it to "delete obvious filler words like 'uh' and 'um.'" It seemed like it decided that more and more text was "obvious filler words." But on the other hand, it did it fine for a few pages.
6/x

2023-09-25 23:58:06

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And I definitely wouldn't use AI to clean up transcription without that "compare documents" step to see every single change it made.
5/x

2023-09-25 23:57:41

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I've heard AI handles smaller amounts of text better, so I will try again with one page at a time.
There's a point at which it's faster just to do it the old way, but cleaning up transcription is tedious and time-consuming, so it could still be faster to use AI one page at a time.
4/x

2023-09-25 23:57:24

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I absolutely love how weird AI is. It fails in such unexpected ways (at least to me).
Why would it be fine for a few pages and then go rogue?
It's tempting to assign feelings to it. It was tired. It thought the paragraph was boring, etc. But I know that's wrong.
3/x

2023-09-25 23:56:59

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I used "compare documents" in Google Docs to see every change, and it was totally fine for the first 3 pages — great, in fact.
And then it went completely off the rails. It started deleting whole sentences, and by page 14, it was deleting half the text on the page!
2/x

2023-09-25 23:56:32

I had the most amazing AI fail this afternoon!
I had a pretty rough transcript of an interview, so I fed it into Claude (and AI that can handle a lot of text), and I gave it a prompt to clean up the transcript (fix punctuation, capitalization, delete obvious filler words like "um," etc.)
1/x

2023-09-23 21:53:48

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@npub1p02…r5uf I found it! The Oxford English Dictionary has that use going back to 1920.
https://cdn.masto.host/zirkus/media_attachments/files/111/116/680/534/871/956/original/85d8a206c94c10a8.png

2023-09-23 19:41:31

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@npub1p02…r5uf I can't say I've never heard that construction, but it does sound uncommon to me. I'll try to remember to look in the OED when I'm back at my computer.

2023-09-21 15:44:06

If you have to be alone, the beach is a good place to be.
https://cdn.masto.host/zirkus/media_attachments/files/111/103/892/004/101/773/original/64a10e8f4bd92801.jpeg

2023-09-20 18:58:36

Fabulous reminder for podcasters from @npub16jw…gx3q in the Sounds Profitable newsletter this morning:
"The most persuadable segment of non-listeners available to us want something to listen to while they drive, or walk, or clean house. They want to hear radio programs on demand. And they want something to keep them company."
https://soundsprofitable.com/
#podcasting

2023-09-20 15:46:16

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@npub1adm…jcrj Same here. I've lost so many bookmarks in various platforms over the years. Part of me recognizes that I didn't need them, but I also mourn the random delights I have forgotten and will never see again.

2023-09-20 15:25:28

Is anyone still using Post.News? Back in May it stopped recognizing my log-in, but I checked it on a lark this morning and now it works.
If you're there and using it, say hello.
https://post.news/@/grammargirl

2023-09-19 02:41:57

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@npub1k3z…xs23 I limited it to people who live alone because I thought too many people would consider their housemate's phone to be a backup, and I wanted to exclude that scenario.

2023-09-18 15:55:40

One of the reasons I ran the poll yesterday about what you use as a backup in case your cell phone goes out is that I was curious how it would differ between people on Mastodon and people on LinkedIn.
As I expected, people on Mastodon are more likely to have some kind of backup. Only 43% here said they have nothing, compared to 61% at LinkedIn.
https://cdn.masto.host/zirkus/media_attachments/files/111/086/947/347/011/146/original/593cceb582b9a053.png
https://cdn.masto.host/zirkus/media_attachments/files/111/086/947/324/679/966/original/046ff7f74b082134.png

2023-09-18 15:46:41

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@npub1lql…962z Yes! One thing I absolutely love about doing courses for LinkedIn is that there are so many ways to get them free.

2023-09-18 15:17:44

FREE WRITING COURSE!
I talk a lot about my new LinkedIn Learning courses, but LinkedIn is so happy with my original course they just updated the graphics!
More than 200,000 people have watched it and have bookmarked nearly 100,000 of the individual videos.
If you haven't already taken the course, now is a great time to check it out.
Access it through my LinkedIn post to get 24 hours to watch it free.
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/grammargirl_free-writing-course-notice-i-talk-a-lot-activity-7109550121951924224-_lYY?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

2023-09-17 15:21:52

Sorry, I'm going to redo that poll because I realized the wording isn't getting at what I want to understand.

2023-09-17 15:10:35

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@npub1ecm…stjx @npub10uk…tf7d @npub1cr2…wps8 Thanks! I used a plastic dental pick and pulled out what looked like a small amount of fuzz, and it has worked twice now.
So with six days left on the warranty, I'm trying to decide whether to call it fixed or send it in for repairs.

2023-09-17 01:05:21

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@npub1d0s…egda Pat and I were just talking about that last night!

2023-09-15 19:26:57

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@npub1jaj…54mc Great post!
Perhaps ironically, the thing that helped me realize work emergencies could often wait was getting myself a second full-time job as a professor for a few years. My QDT emergencies sometimes had to wait while I was teaching for hours at a time, and I learned that, wow, the world didn't end, our business didn't fail, and usually people weren't even annoyed with me.

2023-09-15 18:19:19

If you want a podcast to listen to while you cook or work out this weekend, I bet you'll like my interview with Steve Kleinedler, who managed the usage panel at the American Heritage Dictionary!
We talked about why usage questions are still relevant, who gets to decide what matters, and why some words become accepted ("contact" as a verb) and some likely never will ("irregardless").
APPLE PODCASTS: https://applepodcasts.com/GrammarGirl
SPOTIFY: https://spoti.fi/454uDte
TRANSCRIPT: https://grammar-girl.simplecast.com/episodes/steve-kleinedler/transcript
https://cdn.masto.host/zirkus/media_attachments/files/111/070/531/328/175/115/original/342dc80e14d02b5a.png

2023-09-15 14:06:44

I just accidentally clicked on an ad. Pray for me.

2023-09-11 13:37:17

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@npub1flv…ctq0 How fun! (And I didn’t take this badly in any way.)

2023-09-11 01:30:51

I just came across another interesting word from the "ped-" root: "pajamas"!
It literally means "leg clothing" in the Persian "paejamah," and that "pae-" goes back to the "ped-" root.
How fun that such disparate words as "pajamas," "pejorative," "pedicure," and "pawn" (foot soldier) are all related.
You can find many more at https://www.etymonline.com/word/*ped-
https://zirk.us/@grammargirl/110935631144260407
#etymology

2023-09-09 17:04:57

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Now I'm looking at three-year-old newsletters thinking, "You know, this might be interesting to read."
Time to go for a walk!

2023-09-09 16:23:52

Cleaning out my inbox and finally admitting I'm not going to read email newsletters from two years ago.
Also, yes, I do have a deadline coming up fast. Why do you ask?
#WriterLife

2023-09-07 01:01:54

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@npub1esh…5fqz I signed up for Watch Duty 3 or 4 weeks ago (I believe on your recommendation), and I've been really impressed with how it works.

2023-09-06 20:37:41

Why has the blog post I scheduled not gone live?!?!
Oh ... it's not October?
Being a month ahead on my podcast is great for reducing stress, but it has also completely messed with my sense of time.

2023-09-06 19:00:49

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@npub1etn…6q4t Yes!

2023-09-06 18:55:50

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@npub18c3…l29k https://www.axios.com/2023/09/06/covid-19-school-cases-summer-surge

2023-09-06 17:47:01

Argg. So infuriating.
The risk of long COVID is ~10%.
The risk of lung cancer in smokers is ~10%.
If you wouldn't smoke, you should take COVID seriously too.
I know multiple people with long COVID. You don't want it.
I'm sure some will quibble about the exact numbers (well actually 6%!, well actually 20%!), but the point is that getting COVID is definitely not a no-risk thing.
[Alt Text: 69% say contracting COVID poses small or no risk to their health and well-being.]
https://cdn.masto.host/zirkus/media_attachments/files/111/019/408/941/188/386/original/7e315fa3752c8301.png

2023-09-05 15:35:47

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@npub132u…7kcm Agreed! AI transcription is vastly better than it was a year ago, but it also still needs a human editor. I probably spend half as much time editing transcripts as I used to.
#podcasting

2023-09-05 15:33:00

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@npub1p4y…l8vj Yes, they're talking about one episode of a podcast.

2023-09-05 15:30:03

"At the time, Gimlet shows typically cost $75,000 to $250,000 an episode" 👀
https://www.wsj.com/business/media/spotify-podcast-gimlet-harry-meghan-kardashian-59866a5d
#podcasting
https://cdn.masto.host/zirkus/media_attachments/files/111/013/243/212/812/314/original/5d3cc67591d9e6bc.png

2023-09-05 00:38:23

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@npub1fvv…yw2w Oh, and theory number 3 (Sorry to unload, I've been thinking about this a lot lately!): They are discriminated against far more often than I am, so to them, what's going on at Twitter is just more of the same, and not nearly as shocking as it is to me.

2023-09-05 00:33:35

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@npub1fvv…yw2w I have two theories:
1. It's actually not that many, but they stick in my mind because of the surprise.
2. Giving up your platform and building a new one is hard, and their lives are already harder than mine, so expecting them to make such a big sacrifice doesn't acknowledge their situation. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

2023-09-05 00:30:53

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@npub1fvv…yw2w Another example of something that has been confusing me more and more lately: why are so many of my acquaintances who seem most likely to be harmed by Twitter's actions the ones who are also still posting there all day? My gay and Jewish acquaintances. My acquaintances with trans kids. I don't get it (but it feels rude to ask).

2023-09-03 20:13:01

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@npub1ezn…5el5 @npub1t8h…akgm 🤣

2023-09-03 19:58:54

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@npub1t8h…akgm I have not yet read up on all the vegetable-washing possibilities!

2023-09-03 19:58:07

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@npub1t8h…akgm No, I usually just soak in plain water a couple of times and each time I also swish it around a few times as if I were hand washing clothes.

2023-09-03 19:13:32

I enjoying watching critters in my yard.
But also, note to self: Wash your lettuce as if a squirrel rubbed it's butt on it.
#gardening

2023-09-03 15:43:18

Surprising beauty in the middle of the road on our walk this morning.
https://cdn.masto.host/zirkus/media_attachments/files/111/001/973/102/423/622/original/d5999032c0c29916.jpeg

2023-09-02 20:40:59

Over breakfast I complained to my husband about not having enough time to do all my work, and over lunch I tried to convince him to start a new project with me, and apparently I am making his eye twitch.

2023-09-01 23:50:52

I've started playing the piano again, and it feels like I'm using parts of my brain I haven't used in forever, and it's a bit like juggling:
Oh my god, what's my left hand doing?! OH MY GOD, quick, switch, what's my right hand doing?! OH MY GOD, QUICK, QUICK, SWITCH, SWITCH what's my right hand doing?! Repeat. (But fun.)

2023-09-01 21:06:59

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@npub17qu…4zw7 Cool! I spent hours and hours trying to incorporate her work into my semantic satiation episode, but the piece got too long and I couldn't make it work. I'm looking forward to listening to the Radiolab episode now!

2023-09-01 20:29:59

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@npub1esn…9306 No, actually. Now I have to look into Chicken, Alaska!

2023-09-01 20:15:44

One reason I love having guest writers for the Grammar Girl podcast is they come up with ideas and anecdotes I never would.
This time, a writer in the Midwest has an idea for a fabulous language-related story about how a small town got its name.
I can't wait for you to hear it in a couple of months!

2023-09-01 14:51:02

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@npub10mw…xxep Thanks for the gift link!

2023-09-01 14:44:40

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@npub1cel…mafc I named that particular list "long-term work projects." 🤣

2023-09-01 02:18:19

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Maybe I'll go wild and incorporate some browser tabs!

2023-09-01 01:40:52

Every once in a while my processes get out of control and my email inbox ends up overflowing with message of me telling myself to do different things.
This is one of those times.
I need to breathe for a minute and move it all to a paper to-do list.

2023-08-31 01:50:20

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@npub1znz…8l64 100% this!

2023-08-31 01:11:05

CNN has a story about a meteor lighting up the Colorado sky, and the story has a compilation of videos from doorbell cams across the state.
It's fascinating to think about tracking the progress of a meteor using all these cams, and it also makes me think there something fun here for a sci-fi story about UFOs.
https://www.cnn.com/videos/us/2023/08/29/meteor-fireball-colorado-cp-orig-kj.cnn#:~:text=A%20meteor%20lit%20up%20portions,doorbell%20cameras%20across%20the%20state.
#scifi

2023-08-31 00:39:21

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@npub16l4…ks0n "A slab of tinnies" for a case of canned beer? How fun! I do love Australians' tendency to make everything sound cute with a "y" sound on the end.

2023-08-31 00:24:21

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@npub16l4…ks0n It seems to be regional. If you click through I wrote about the map and what I could determine about the regionality of "call in," "call out," etc.

2023-08-30 22:59:06

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@npub1tqv…3xdh BTW, I asked a couple of your questions in my interview with Steve Kleinedler. I'll try to remember to tag you when it's live.

2023-08-30 22:58:22

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@npub1tqv…3xdh Yup, the operations ceased in 2017 or 2018. Nobody knows how long the website will continue to be online, but we're glad it is even if it hasn't kept with the times.

2023-08-30 21:19:30

Fun pictures from Burning Man via the Reno Gazette-Journal.
https://www.rgj.com/picture-gallery/life/2023/08/30/wild-and-colorful-outfits-of-burning-man-just-dont-call-them-costumes/70719670007/

2023-08-30 17:59:58

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@npub16j3…qpnj I was super excited about the "vinegar" etymology too!

2023-08-30 17:16:01

"Anxious" and "eager" have different meanings but are often confused. Plus, attitudes about these two words are changing, so it's important to be careful. https://www.quickanddirtytips.com/articles/anxious-or-eager/

2023-08-30 16:00:04

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@npub13sd…shmt Cool! I've never heard "bang out sick."

2023-08-30 15:55:13

A news story today talks about a judge "calling out sick."
Some people say "call in sick," others say "call out sick," and still others say "call off sick."
I wrote about it last year.
https://www.quickanddirtytips.com/articles/call-in-sick-or-call-out-sick/
https://cdn.masto.host/zirkus/media_attachments/files/110/979/368/874/747/123/original/9a89077fda3df7de.png

2023-08-29 17:14:56

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@npub1etn…6q4t I'm still sore in lots of places this morning, but I'm especially relieved that my back and wrist seem fine. I can still sit at my desk and type. :)

2023-08-26 19:13:45

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@npub1g57…y839 Barbara McClintock discovered transposase, an enzyme essential for genetic engineering, and nobody believed her for many years.
She eventually won the Nobel Prize.
https://www.nobelprize.org/womenwhochangedscience/stories/barbara-mcclintock

2023-08-25 16:11:22

I follow #COVID news pretty closely, and this WaPo article had a few details I hadn't heard yet about BA.2.86. #ba286
https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2023/08/25/covid-variant-ba-2-86-pirola/
Also new to me, from this STAT article, the plan in the US for new boosters is once a year, with immunocompromised and people >65 able to get a second shot each year.
https://www.statnews.com/2023/08/25/us-health-officials-lay-out-plans-covid-rsv-flu/

2023-08-25 13:02:57

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@npub1ecm…stjx Glad to see you got it!