Apologies; it's been so long since i logged into my blog account that i semi-forgot the password.
This morning, the name Otto came up in conversation (it's the name of one of my great uncles who has particularly gorgeous handwriting due to a seminarian education), and Ryan remembered that the Animaniacs have a song featuring a character by that name. The tune is apparently to the popular German folk song Schnitzelbank, in which things are pointed at, named, and then a catchy chorus is sung. It's pretty badly stuck in my head.
Aglets are what the tips/ends of shoelaces, etc., are called, based on the diminutive for the old French word aguille, or needle. So, "an aglet is like a small needle at the end of a cord", from the wikipedia article.
i got sidetracked by burpees the other night. Along with being the name of one of my favorite mail-order seed companies, burpees are a exercise that are sort of a combined plank/jump. i was curious about the name. As it turns out, the exercise is named after Royal Huddleston Burpee (of course), an American physiologist who developed it in the 1930s/40s as a fitness benchmark for new joiners of the New York YMCA during that time period. Other accounts state that he developed it for the military, as they also used it to test the fitness of recruits. Anyhow, there's some controversy as to whether or not it's to be done in high volume.
On a kinda-related note, there have been several articles based on this science writer's paper concerning where fat goes as your body is utilizing it. Biochemistry FTW.
So i was watching this amazing video that some hikers took while walking across a lake covered in black ice somewhere in the mountains of Slovakia when i clicked over to this joyful video of a guy having a GREAT day ice fishing. Ice fishing is not something i grew up participating in, but it's pretty popular here in Wisconsin. (And a very warm thanks to Brian for patiently explaining various gear to me.)
i came across this remarkable downhill skiing video the other day, and link it here for James (and the rest of you, i suppose).
A close friend and i had an argument over whether or not i can/should call myself a writer, given this blog (and a few other blogs i've done). i argue that no, i can't, because it's neither my training nor something i get paid for, but Rup's position is that i do indeed write, ergo, i am a writer. This infographic supports his position.
A position that i do own (though only when confronted with it by jerks), is that of being a rube, defined as "an unsophisticated person from a rural area". i was explaining this to a friend, and because curious as to the origins. The first thing i turned up was the latin rubus, for blackberry bramble, which didn't make a whole lot of sense. Further research at Dictionary.com traced it to the proper name Reuben, "As a typical name of a farmer, rustic, or country bumpkin, from 1804.", and other places, for instance Snopes, list it as an American slang term, and cite it's use as a safety phrase for traveling carnival workers and actors who would yell "Hey, Rube" to warn of an angry/rowdy crowd situation, as very nicely documented via wikipedia.
Here is an article documenting the fact that Chris Hemsworth and Matt Damon are buddies. i think that's enough for today.
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