Queresote's recent activity
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Comment on Babel Lecture 2022 with Stephen Fry: 'What we have here is a failure to communicate' (17/06/22) in ~humanities.languages
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Comment on Linguaphiles of Tildes: where do you get your words? in ~humanities.languages
Queresote (edited )LinkHello, and thank you for posing this question. I enjoyed seeing the replies (and the resources. Yoink!) from the linguists. I am not a linguist. I do have a casual interest in Philology, Rhetoric,...Hello, and thank you for posing this question. I enjoyed seeing the replies (and the resources. Yoink!) from the linguists. I am not a linguist. I do have a casual interest in Philology, Rhetoric, and Oratory, though. So my answers may be radically different and faux pas in official circles.
There is the boring way (which I've done many times). This is where I'll read a dictionary cover-to-cover to look for exciting words/find gaps in my language, or blind-pick a page and focus on using one word for the day. It's a fun way to discover words, but good luck slipping myasthenia gravis into casual conversation. When I encounter hazardous terrain linguistically, I also use Sisson's word and expression locater, A Browser's Dictionary by John Ciardi, and Speaker's Lifetime Library by Leonard and Thelma Spinard. Some of these resources are more effective than others, but they all tend to get me over that hump.
Second, and something I picked up from Joseph Tsar's video on speaking articulately, is that we tend to think in the terms of what we experience. (Think of the Tetris Dream Effect.) So like Krellor, DavesWorld, and boxer_dogs_dance said, read. Read a variety of books from different authors, times, and places. You'll go far this way. I prefer translations of Ancient Greek, Latin, or Japanese philosophical works for concepts and sentence structure, and mid-to-post WWII books (1939-51) for words. Memoirs and Sci-Fi are my go-to's.
More importantly than just books, consume your broader media in a way that will expose you to new words and phrases. Try watching "old movies". Watch Casablanca (not even for new words. Just watch it.) Learning words is easy, retaining them not so much. When we consume endless media (especially short-span content with instant dopamine rewards) it pushes the good stuff (like delectable new words) out of our brain. So avoid consuming meaningless short-term content in great quantities; Ideally don't watch it at all, but I'll forgive the human element.
I keep history's greatest speeches on my phone to listen to when I'm looking for that kind of kick. Here are those resources for you: archive.org | Greatest Speeches of the 20th Century, americanrhetoric.com | Top Ten Speeches.
Do you keep lists of words that you review and learn about? Do you make effort to include your newly found words in writing or conversation?
Yes, my list is aptly titled "Personal Glossary of Words: Found and Remembered". I incorporate these words where it's appropriate to do so (this is key) in casual conversation. Studying the structure of conversation and how to communicate well will accomplish a lot for you here. I'd say treat words like wine. Save the rarer, limited words for special occasions (or save a few to enjoy to yourself.)
If you want a handful of my favorite words from my collection, I'll add a few for you. Some may seem simple, but I love them all.
corollary, efficacious, idiosyncratic, internecine, picayune, prosody, pontificate, reticence, tryst, and vicissitudes.
When I record the words, I'll mark the work they came from, the page#/season:episode, and the date of addition. So 'Picayune' came from page 28 of My Share of the Task by Gen. Stanley McChrystal, and Tryst came from iZombie Season 1: Episode 8. I also mark when I find the same word in other books with a special notation specific to "repeated finding of words already listed in glossary." It's a good time.
What an essay, good luck with your word-finding! I'll leave you with a latin phrase as well. Scientia Non Olet, it's a small play on pecunia non olet, but it essentially means that the place that you got the knowledge from doesn't matter as much as the value of the knowledge itself, so don't worry if your word comes from iZombie or some obscure text assigned to a college reading class. Both are valid.
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Comment on Linguaphiles of Tildes: where do you get your words? in ~humanities.languages
Queresote Link ParentI will certainly check out Stephen Pinker's works. After reading The Professor and the Madman (and other selected writings) I can't go back to any dictionary other than the OED. It may just be in...I will certainly check out Stephen Pinker's works.
After reading The Professor and the Madman (and other selected writings) I can't go back to any dictionary other than the OED. It may just be in your wheelhouse.
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Comment on Linguaphiles of Tildes: where do you get your words? in ~humanities.languages
Queresote Link ParentI suppose it's a little late to mention now, since the translation project was completed, but the Book of Magical Charms is an excellent resource for dissecting Latin (to keep up competencies)....I suppose it's a little late to mention now, since the translation project was completed, but the Book of Magical Charms is an excellent resource for dissecting Latin (to keep up competencies). There is a new project on transcribing postcards, but no Latin that I've seen yet, only cursive. With schoolchildren not being taught cursive, the project has a certain air of… quick necessity to it.
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Comment on The rise of the multi-hyphenate in ~creative
Queresote Link ParentDisco Elysium is one of the very few games that has made me feel stupid throughout°, but in a good way. ○: I haven't finished, but your comment has been a sign from the universe to endure and make...This was a good read after beating Disco Elysium finally.
Disco Elysium is one of the very few games that has made me feel stupid throughout°, but in a good way.
○: I haven't finished, but your comment has been a sign from the universe to endure and make it to the end.
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Comment on The rise of the multi-hyphenate in ~creative
Queresote Link ParentInstinctual reaction: I think that self-referring as a multi-hyphenate feels similar to people calling themselves an "intellectual" or a "content creator". It's… sanitized. Also, it feels like a...Instinctual reaction: I think that self-referring as a multi-hyphenate feels similar to people calling themselves an "intellectual" or a "content creator". It's… sanitized. Also, it feels like a corporate 'industry plant'-style idea injected into the social environment to get people more used to the idea of having to hold several jobs to make ends meet.
I'll have to ponder over this for some time, because I do see some goods to the label (for those who dig labels). But, gun-to-my-head decision, I'm averse to it.
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Comment on The elite college students who can’t read books in ~humanities
Queresote Link ParentThis opened up a memory for me that had long disappeared. I read nearly to the same degree, but for a long time I did read what were considered "the right" books. In fourth-fifth grade I was...Because I wasn't reading "the right" books.
This opened up a memory for me that had long disappeared. I read nearly to the same degree, but for a long time I did read what were considered "the right" books. In fourth-fifth grade I was reading College Level, and breezing through these books. I truly and genuinely enjoyed them. But one day, I saw a book I really wanted to read. I picked it out, went up to the librarian, and was told I wasn't allowed to read it because it was below my reading level. It was an 11th-grade reading level book.
I continued to read, but that incident took the magic out of the experience.
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Comment on Welcome to the world of competitive squirrel cookery in ~food
Queresote Link ParentAs bad as it sounds, after watching Gordon Ramsey's Uncharted show where he tried Peruvian cuisine, I've wanted to eat a guinea pig. I know how bad it sounds, but look how good they look! ⚠️...As bad as it sounds, after watching Gordon Ramsey's Uncharted show where he tried Peruvian cuisine, I've wanted to eat a guinea pig. I know how bad it sounds, but look how good they look!
⚠️ Content Warning: Link contains animal carcasses
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Comment on Where does punctuation come from?! in ~humanities.languages
Queresote (edited )Link ParentEdit: To add, this is my favorite resource for unicode charts. Keep in mind that some charts have been turned into emojis, such as Supplemental Symbols and Pictographs. These were my thoughts as...Edit: To add, this is my favorite resource for unicode charts. Keep in mind that some charts have been turned into emojis, such as Supplemental Symbols and Pictographs.
Sadness overwhelms me.
These were my thoughts as well when I first discovered that better punctuation existed, but I basically couldn't use it.
Here, have a rhetorical question mark '⸮' (reverse question mark) to ease your suffering.
As far as the rest goes, I substitute with alchemical symbols or mathematical sumbols. I've never had issues with double meanings using alchemy, yet.
'🝳' I use alchemical half ounce as an expression of Doubt. Multiple contexts for use.
In the past I've used '⧙–⦚' or '⧛–⧚' to replace the SpongeBob meme talk, or denote heavy sarcasm. So instead of:
"dOnT wAlK bArEfOoT oN hArDwOoD fLoOrS", it's just "⧛Don't walk barefoot on hardwood floors.⧚"Just some considerations. These used are not official or even used by a group of people, it's just me and those struggling in their want to understand me.
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Comment on Where does punctuation come from?! in ~humanities.languages
Queresote Link ParentApologies for replying so far into the future, but your enthusiasm for the interrobang reminded me of a similar experience I had: The irony mark. Unfortunately it was never adopted outside of...- Exemplary
Apologies for replying so far into the future, but your enthusiasm for the interrobang reminded me of a similar experience I had: The irony mark. Unfortunately it was never adopted outside of small circles, and never got the love it deserved, along with these gents.
The non-use of these symbols in a modern context, along with dingbats and dinkuses has led to countless frustration for me.
There was so much more life to this beautiful language I love, but simplification for the sake of standardization has ruined us. I went so far as to make my own dingbats for my Obsidian MD vaults, but Samsung withdrew unicode support for a lot of the unicode libraries, and didn't give access to add them back in their latest phones.
I'm stuck using Alchemical Symbols to depict tone and notation in my personal notes, which makes me feel like a wizard, but makes me look like a loon.
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Comment on TV Tuesdays Free Talk in ~tv
Queresote LinkRecommendation: FROM I've been following this show since season one, and it's good. It's labeled as "science fiction horror", and I think that's an accurate label. There are monsters, reality and...Any shows you want to recommend or are hyped about?
Recommendation: FROM I've been following this show since season one, and it's good. It's labeled as "science fiction horror", and I think that's an accurate label. There are monsters, reality and time(?) distortion/manipulation. But there are also elements of family, love, and sacrifice that makes the show feel human.
I haven't watched Season Three yet, because it's MGM+ right now, but judging from the previews, it's going to be just as good as the first two.
Content warning: the show does have graphic imagery concerning the deceased in states of decomposition, blood & guts, addiction, and child death (offscreen).
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Comment on Sandra Newman's "Julia" in ~books
Queresote Link ParentI just finished reading 1984 for the first time night before last, so this recommendation could not have come at a better time for me. A decent-sized subsection of my personal notes on the book...I just finished reading 1984 for the first time night before last, so this recommendation could not have come at a better time for me.
A decent-sized subsection of my personal notes on the book are a criticism of what I'd describe as the gratuitous imagery of rape in the story, especially early on.
I understand that one of the core aspects of The Party's system in Oceania is sexual repression as another way of control, so an individual's feelings around it may be different than my own. But if I were a woman, and I asked, "What did you think of me?" and the guy answered, " I wanted to rape you and bludgeon you with a brick," I'd probably run.
I'd say hopefully this book alleviates some of the misery I got reading 1984, but knowing my experiences with the lore so far, I think this next one is going to be a doozy.
There is a deep love in my heart for this man. I like this snippet of his interview in which he discusses God.
I hope that someday I can be as full of wisdom as he is, and less full of myself.