Early Risers.

[trisonic]

......with a drop of malt vinegar.

 

Best, Pete.

[Barry O]

First sprout stalk bought - if I eat these may be able to avoid them on Christmas day!

[martin_wynne]

......with a drop of malt vinegar.

 

Not vinegar! Cook them in the microwave with an equal quantity of chopped apple. Marvellous -- and 2 of your 5 in one go.

[trisonic]

Sounds a bit too exotic for a former North Londoner (born Highbury, lived until 5, Stoke Newington), Martin!

 

My old Mum always put a dash of Malt Vinegar on them after cooking. My Wife, who is Italian, insists on roasting the poor things....

 

Just for a change we are the ones getting dreary weather... Rain yesterday, rain today - a bit less tomorrow then heavy on Monday. Quite rare to get a string of days like that.

 

Best, Pete.

Edited December 8, 2012 by trisonic

[DDolfelin]

"if I eat these may be able to avoid them on Christmas day! "

 

Top tip: Make friends with someone who owns a horse (or a goat etc.,).

[The Stationmaster]

er...

 

-----------------------

Usage notes

 

The English plural forums is preferred to the Latin plural fora in normal English usage.

• Ref: Modern English Usage, 2nd Edition, ed. Sir Ernest Gowers, Oxford 1968 (article '-um', p.658).
  
• Also, "The Oxford Dictionary of American Usage and Style," by Bryan A. Garner. Berkley Books, 2000, (p. 156).
  

-----------------------

 

 

Martin.

 

Added to which we have 'Chrimbo' - 'British informal usage for Christmas', in use since the 1920s according to the OED (n.b. note difference in spelling from 'crimbo' which in its proper usage means something totally different). It (Chrimbo) was incidentally in common usage back in my schooldays - but by then it had been around for over 30 years so not too surprising.

 

And carrying on the linguistic theme here's an interesting one - what is the plural form of agenda?

 

Anyway with all that left to gently simmer good morning all, and a bright sunny one here - so far. Apart from instructions to 'make room in the study' I'm not at all sure what the weekend is likely to bring forth although 'tidy the dining room' still lurks in the background (and can carry on lurking as far as I'm concerned , I know it will have to come, but in my own time).

 

Ah and I can attest to DD's excellent packaging skills - a parcel from him in my direction survived the depredations of whatever the Royal Mail now calls itself nowadays with no problems at all whereas some of my lad's Ebay purchases look as if the package was used in a game of kick the parcel, and have suffered accordingly although the contents usually seem to have survived the ordeal.

 

Have a nice day one and all.

[martin_wynne]

And carrying on the linguistic theme here's an interesting one - what is the plural form of agenda?

 

Hi Mike.

 

Agendas:

 

------------------------------

 

Usage note:

 

Agenda, “things to be done,” is the plural of the Latin gerund agendum and is used today in the sense “a plan or list of matters to be acted upon.”

 

In that sense it is treated as a singular noun; its plural is usually agendas: "The agendas of last year's meetings are printed in the official minutes".

 

The singular agendum, meaning “an item on an agenda,” is rare.

 

-----------------------------------------

[DDolfelin]

Thanks, Mike.

 

I'm having to hover over the computer for a while as items are ending in quick succession.

Someone has to answer the silly important last minute questions.

 

Learning things as I sit here:

Did you know that Nuthatches can hold more than one sunflower seed in their beaks/throats?

Just watched one fly off with five.

The 12" feeder, filled this morning is over half empty.

[colin penfold]

 

I've just been reminded that we've got a new postman. Our previous one went off and opened a barber's shop.

 

Aah, parting is such sweet sorrow

[colin penfold]

My understanding is that you use the correct Latin plural only when the word has the original Latin meaning: forum n. [an open square , marketplace]. The original meaning derives from: foris adv. [situated out of doors , outside, without], the essential element being something in the open air.

 

I doubt the Romans had much knowledge of internet discussion boards.

 

When the Latin word has been appropriated for a modern meaning, the plural is formed in the standard way for the relevant language: forum, forums.

 

The same applies to native English words with new meanings -- the plural of computer mouse is computer mouses.

 

Martin.

 

p.s. and to be strictly correct -- OO should be 00 (numeric).

 

Here's the rub though Martin. The reason internet fora are called internet forums in the first place is that the location Forum was the place where the Romans went to discuss affairs of state, meet their friends and generally gossip. That's why the description forum was applied to internet chat areas (and before them various newsletters, magazines and newspapers) in the first place, surely? You cannot separate the two.

 

Here's my particular gripe "windows is starting" NO!!!!!!!!! "windows ARE starting" It's still a plural!!!!

 

I will now duck, but as this is a rail forum I shall make it the full Mallard.

 

Have a good day everybody

[shortliner]

I have to admit that the only one that really drives me bananas is the split infinitive - Startreks " To boldly go" is a prime example.

[DDolfelin]

A banana split then.

[iL Dottore]

iD's Preferred Sprout Recipe:

 

1) Wash and trim sprouts.

2) With a knife, make a slight "X" shaped cut in the bottom of each stem.

3) Place in steamer, sprinkle with pink salt (Himalayan Rock Salt) and a grinding of white pepper.

4) Steam until "al dente (This will mean that the tip of a sharp knife will meet just a little resistance when piercing a sprout).

5) While sprouts are steaming, melt a good sized knob of butter and in it sweat a clove of garlic (pushed through a garlic press)

6) Drain sprouts and toss in the garlic butter

7) Taste and adjust seasoning.

8] Place in porcelain serving bowl, decorate with strips of lemon zest

9) Open a bottle of favourite drink, tip sprouts into wastebin.

 

iD

Edited December 8, 2012 by iL Dottore

[NGT6 1315]

Except for step 9, that's pretty much how I do sprouts, Doc!

[colin penfold]

brilliant advice on the sprouts iD but you are three months too late. They should have gone into boiling water at the end of August

[BoD]

I just jump straight to step 9.

Saves time.

[NGT6 1315]

Thought for the afternoon: Would a soup lover's four-wheeled motor vehicle have to be called a stock car?

[DDolfelin]

Agree - SWMBO's frequent question - "Where are the sprouts?"

My reply is the same as for broccoli - "In the horse".

[Sidecar Racer]

May I start by wishing a good afternoon to one and all .

 

I've had a busy morning with a trip to the PO with things , a nice breaskfast in the cafe, followed by a

short shopping collection .

 

Now I'm back and was looking forward to some good gossip , but I have had nothing but educational

postings , be it grammer or spelling and then into the realms of culinary expertise , this is just not on as

it's giving me a headache .

 

Yours , Disgruntled of Somerset . Going to find a No 9 .

[DDolfelin]

Thanks for the bid, Mike.

[colin penfold]

Thought for the afternoon: Would a soup lover's four-wheeled motor vehicle have to be called a stock car?

 

and a dutch corned beef lover would no doubt have a hashback

[NGT6 1315]

And a revolutionary would be driving a coupé d'état.

Edited December 8, 2012 by 1216 025

[iL Dottore]

... Yours , Disgruntled of Somerset . Going to find a No 9 .

What, I shudder to ask, is a No.9?

 

iD

 

p.s. out of purely academic interest, do you dis your gruntle (or gruntle your dis for that matter) differently in Somerset to, say, Dorset or Yorkshire?

Edited December 8, 2012 by iL Dottore

[The Stationmaster]

What, I shudder to ask, is a No.9?

iD

 

As far as I', concerned this is No.9 (the last streak I copped)

http://www.freefoto.com/preview/36-06-3/LNER-Class-A4-4488-Union-of-South-Africa

[martin_wynne]

You cannot separate the two.

 

I can if I want to.

 

The Romans had no knowledge of an internet chat room. If you describe it as a "forum" it cannot therefore be a Latin word. In that context it's an English word, and the plural is forums, as for other English words. The fact that we copied it from Latin doesn't make it a Latin word if we give it a meaning unknown to the Romans.

 

Here's my particular gripe "windows is starting" NO!!!!!!!!! "windows ARE starting" It's still a plural!!!!

 

Windows^TM with a capital W is the name of a product and therefore singular. If you have two Windows computers you haves two Windowses.

 

Martin.