William Worsworth and others of that generation thought of their fellows as "geese," compiling themselves in long lines and clumps of goosedom [goose dumb], all going in the same direction, much as lemmings (were once rumored to do). More recently, farm folk began lifting their own self-esteem, sorely challenged and often outrightly abused in the modern culture, by promoting Holstein-patterns on black-on-white quiltings, hand paintings, art(ifact) craft arts, and so forth. I note that this has picked up in recent years and really "picked up on" by the culture-at-large. Next, the udder wit began picking up in frequency: driving by country meadows dotted by dairy cattle, someone in a car might say to the other, "I am udderly astonished!" Even as early as when that began my mind started drawing the "geese"/cow [udder] connection, for I saw that the symbol of goosedom was being transferred -- this time "to us" and that the Great We was NOT noticing it. "Why?" I asked. The answer is plain enough: way back and right through until about 1940 (beginning to drop off significantly after the '20s) the goose/goose down/goose feather industry was BIG not only in England but in the United States, France, and so forth; but then it was retrenched by modern technologies that provided substitutes for those fluffy down and others feathers, and ... the meat went out of fashion with the diminishing stock-holdings. [NOTE: the number of gray goose flocks in this country is beginning to make a small comeback as urbanites who tire of the city life are finding their ways to small holdings in the country where they decide that keeping such a flock is something they would like to do, which is to say they a) have NO idea what keeping a flock requires and stumble into it, and b) the present upswing MAY take a down-swing IF they cannot find better markets for the excess birds than their local red fox population and their own tables: we shall see.] Well, the point of all this "observing" and considering is that I am not particularly amused to find Holstein blots on your Utterz® card and to learn that 'Utterz' is just another way of saying "udders." HONK, Honk, honk!
Well, Doc...I guess that seems just about right for the cellphone and the many manners in which it overused and abused in society. Apparently, good taste is not everything.
PS: I am glad to see you ARE keeping up with the 365 program, Mike! That IS the way to begin...but go beyond the bloggerie!
While at Syracuse University -- a sophomore at the time, I seem to recall -- Stephen Crane, who had said something like "Even I can write a better novel than that in ten days!" while talking with classmates about the then-most recently published Emile Zola novel, was challenged to (paraphrase) "Go ahead then!"
Crane left school for ten days and came back with the draft of THE RED BADGE OF COURAGE that was then printed in that same form.
5 comments:
Uttering seems to be going around. I just joined, too. :)
William Worsworth and others of that generation thought of their fellows as "geese," compiling themselves in long lines and clumps of goosedom [goose dumb], all going in the same direction, much as lemmings (were once rumored to do). More recently, farm folk began lifting their own self-esteem, sorely challenged and often outrightly abused in the modern culture, by promoting Holstein-patterns on black-on-white quiltings, hand paintings, art(ifact) craft arts, and so forth. I note that this has picked up in recent years and really "picked up on" by the culture-at-large. Next, the udder wit began picking up in frequency: driving by country meadows dotted by dairy cattle, someone in a car might say to the other, "I am udderly astonished!" Even as early as when that began my mind started drawing the "geese"/cow [udder] connection, for I saw that the symbol of goosedom was being transferred -- this time "to us" and that the Great We was NOT noticing it. "Why?" I asked. The answer is plain enough: way back and right through until about 1940 (beginning to drop off significantly after the '20s) the goose/goose down/goose feather industry was BIG not only in England but in the United States, France, and so forth; but then it was retrenched by modern technologies that provided substitutes for those fluffy down and others feathers, and ... the meat went out of fashion with the diminishing stock-holdings. [NOTE: the number of gray goose flocks in this country is beginning to make a small comeback as urbanites who tire of the city life are finding their ways to small holdings in the country where they decide that keeping such a flock is something they would like to do, which is to say they a) have NO idea what keeping a flock requires and stumble into it, and b) the present upswing MAY take a down-swing IF they cannot find better markets for the excess birds than their local red fox population and their own tables: we shall see.] Well, the point of all this "observing" and considering is that I am not particularly amused to find Holstein blots on your Utterz® card and to learn that 'Utterz' is just another way of saying "udders." HONK, Honk, honk!
Well, Doc...I guess that seems just about right for the cellphone and the many manners in which it overused and abused in society. Apparently, good taste is not everything.
PS: I am glad to see you ARE keeping up with the 365 program, Mike! That IS the way to begin...but go beyond the bloggerie!
Thanks Doc...baby steps!
While at Syracuse University -- a sophomore at the time, I seem to recall -- Stephen Crane, who had said something like "Even I can write a better novel than that in ten days!" while talking with classmates about the then-most recently published Emile Zola novel, was challenged to (paraphrase) "Go ahead then!"
Crane left school for ten days and came back with the draft of THE RED BADGE OF COURAGE that was then printed in that same form.
So much for baby steps, eh?
Fair enough, Doc. Perhaps a leap or two is in order.
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