Wednesday Overnight Open Thread – 08/24/2022

STREET ART

I am a fan of clever street art, and this is literally “street art.” The canvas for artist Jim Bachor in Chicago is potholes, which he fills with mosaics. Here are a few of his works:

There are more photos at the link.

HAPPY CHANGE OF SEASONS

What do you consider to be the date or milestone for when the change of seasons from Summer to Fall starts?

Obviously, the Fall Equinox in late September is the astronomical first day of Fall. Meteorologists consider September 1 the first day of Fall. For some it’s Labor Day, or the first college football game, or the start of school.

As for me, it’s when the first apples of the new crop arrive. I love apples, but by the time summer rolls around, what’s still available in stores isn’t very good. Improved varietals and improved storage techniques still can’t overcome the quality difference between aged apples and fresh apples.

The Blue Ridge Mountains of northern Georgia is an apple-growing region, and being so far south, the new crop of apples starts arriving in mid-August.

My wife and I made a road trip to those mountains last weekend and loaded up on a couple baskets of new crop Ginger Golds and Honeycrisps. They are mighty good. I’m not normally a fan of Honeycrisps, as they usually seem to have a slight taste of pine sol to them, but these ones are fantastic. Maybe it’s the “terroir” of Georgia mountain soil versus that of Washington State.

IN MY KANSAS MOUNTAIN HOME

Name a US mountain range and geography buffs can tell you which states are covered by that range. For instance, the Ozarks are located in Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and…Kansas?

The Ozarks Studies Institute has an official map of the Ozarks. It includes Cape Girardeau, part of northeast Oklahoma and a sliver of southeast Kansas.

Southeast Kansas?

Time to start planning that mountain getaway to Galena!

FULFILLING NOAA’s QUOTA FOR NAMED TROPICAL STORMS

We are now in peak hurricane season for the Atlantic Ocean, which lasts from August 20 to September 20 each year. So far there have been no hurricanes, nor anything close. According to the experts, this is either because of global warming, or despite global warming. Or both. Because science, of course.

But there have been three named “tropical storms.” Global Warming alarmists like to hype the increased number of named tropical storms as proof of climate change. Thus, there is demand for more named storms, which NOAA dutifully provides.

Two of this year’s three named storms would not have been considered actual tropical storms before the weather became so politicized. Tropical Storm Bonnie was an unorganized storm with squalls up to 50 mph as it moved ashore. It was a named storm for less than one day. Tropical Storm Colin had gusts up to 40 mph as it moved ashore in South Carolina. It was a named tropical storm for only a few hours.

When it comes to defining tropical storms, maximum sustained winds have pretty much given way to “strongest gust” so as to ensure more named storms. NOAA is no different than the CDC nowadays - another federal agency that has shed all legitimacy in pursuit of a political agenda.

WORDS YOU’VE READ BUT DON’T KNOW HOW TO PRONOUNCE (aka “Eppitomes”)

In a recent ONT, Weird Dave posted this funny tweet, and it hit home with me for a couple reasons.

One reason is that I have humiliated myself on a couple of occasions this way. I was actually mispronouncing ”hover” well into my college years. I still remember the embarrassment when it was pointed out to me that it is not pronounced “HOE-vurr.” Another was “prevalent” which I pronounced “pree-VALE-unt” well beyond an age which I should have known better. In my defense, why is prevalent pronounced so differently than “prevail” and “prevailing”?

Along with a co-worker some years ago, I became a big fan of words that people read but don’t know how to pronounce. We compiled a list of our favorites that we heard in the workplace, and we started calling them “EPP-i-tomes” in tribute to another co-worker who liked to use the word “epitome” but didn’t know how to pronounce it correctly. (e.g. “This report is the eppitome of sloppy work.”)

That list has long since been lost, but I still remember some of my favorites, including ”WHERE-WITH-ull” (wherewithal); ”CEN-truh-PETE-ull” (centripetal); and ”Perry-feral” (peripheral).

What are some of your favorite eppitomes?

MRS. THROCKMORTON - WORDSMITH

Many of you have become fans of Mrs. Throckmorton’s creative wordsmithing. I am very pleased to announce that she has accidentally created yet another word that is a welcome addition to the English language - ”efflusive”

She was recounting a conversation that she had with a person who was passionate, yet insincere. My wife described this person as “efflusive.” That is a perfect term for someone who effusively spews verbal effluent.

GRAMMAR PEEVE

Staying on the subject of words…

If the plural of “Attorney General” is “Attorneys General, then why isn’t the singular, possessive form “Attorney’s General”? Is attorney the noun or isn’t it?

Also, what is the plural possessive? Attorneys General’s? Attorneys’ General?

Bah. I’m going to keep typing the plural form of Attorney General as “Attorney Generals” unless/until Ace’s layers and layers of editors make me stop.

NO FRILLS SEATING

Air travel is kind of miserable these days, isn’t it? All seats are now no-frills, it seems.

Here’s a classic old Carol Burnett skit where she is a stewardess on a flight in which Tim Conway chose to save a few dollars by sitting in the “no frills” section.

UNSURPRISING STATISTICS

This statistic illustrates the ongoing economic devastation that blue cities have inflicted upon themselves. It’s tragic what this has done to so many small business folk who owned restaurants.

THROCKMORTON’S FIRST LAW OF LIVE MUSIC: IF THERE’S AN UPRIGHT BASS IN THE BAND, IT’S PROBABLY GOING TO BE GOOD

Did any of y’all know that late, great bluegrass musician Jerry Garcia was once part of a rock & roll band too? It was a little group named “The Grateful Dead” that only cracked the Top-40 once. Who knew? I reckon I’ll have to check their music out some time.

Anyhow, I love the acoustic music that Garcia did with the group Old And In the Way. Here’s Mr. Garcia performing a bluegrass classic.

”Shady Grove” - Jerry Garcia & David Grisman

Tonight’s overnight thread has been brought to you by Empaths.

Thanks again to the horde for letting me play host tonight. Please feel free to offer any helpful feedback, insults, or tips at buck.throckmorton at protonmail dot com

posted by Buck Throckmorton at 09:57 PM

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