Where does Irony come from?  That's a question one finds on google.  As a question, it seem odd - how could a word come from something or a place as though it is a person.   And there is a definition where irony as an adjective means "of or resembling iron" - that's from the late 14th century. Wikipedia's entry is the most quoted: " The term irony has its roots in the Greek comic character Eiron, a clever underdog who by his wit repeatedly triumphs over the boastful character Alazon."  The meaning is: "figure of speech in which the intended meaning is the opposite of the literal meaning" (usually covert sarcasm under a serious or friendly pretense), c. 1500, from Latin ironia, from Greek eironeia "dissimulation, assumed ignorance," Irony is much beloved by critical literature authors.  There are many articles on its history and the types of irony.  Irony is beloved by everyone. One article is titled irony - the opposite of wrinkly.   I thought there might be history's great examples of irony. And there are lots.  Here's 135 of the most ironic things that have happened - the list was compiled by BoredPanda voters up-voting the entries, and is based on pictures.  Some are most enjoyable.  Click on the link HERE.   Some ironies for the day: What's ironic about the Bible?  It is the most shoplifted book in America. Charlie Chaplin once entered a "charlie Chaplin walk" contest and came in 20thy. Researchers say that duct tape should never be used for sealing ducts.   I am looking through the archives for a particular picture and found the train layout from near Portland.  A big building completely full of trains, planes, and various models.  It was quite the experience. Read more daily posts here: marilyncornwellblogspot.com Purchase works here: Fine Art America- marilyncornwell.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.ca

Oct 16 2022 - Whatever

 

Whatever as a slang term means "whatever you say" , "I don't care what you say" or "what will be will be". The term is used either to dismiss a previous statement and express indifference or in affirmation of a previous statement as "whatever will be will be".An interjection of "whatever" can be considered offensive and impolite or it can be considered affirming. In the late 20th century and early 21st century, the word became a sentence in its own right; in effect an interjection, often but not always, used as a passive-aggressive conversational blocking tool, leaving the responder without a convincing retort. We turn to the original definition of whatever, as we found a wonderful Whatever It TakesJoke:   An Expensive Suit A man who just died is delivered to the mortuary wearing an expensive, expertly tailored black suit. The mortician asks the deceased’s wife how she would like the body dressed. He points out that the man does look good in the black suit he is already wearing. The widow, however, says that she always thought her husband looked his best in blue, and that she wants him in a blue suit.  She gives the mortician a blank check and says, “I don’t care what it costs, but please have my husband in a blue suit for the viewing.” The woman returns the next day for the wake. To her delight, she finds her husband dressed in a gorgeous blue suit with a subtle chalk stripe; the suit fits him perfectly. She says to the mortician, “Whatever this cost, I’m very satisfied. You did an excellent job and I’m very grateful. How much did you spend?” To her astonishment, the mortician presents her with the blank check. “There’s no charge,” he says. “No, really, I must compensate you for the cost of that exquisite blue suit!” the woman says. “Honestly, ma’am,” the mortician says, “It cost nothing. You see, a deceased gentleman of about your husband’s size was brought in shortly after you left yesterday, and he was wearing an attractive blue suit. I asked his wife if she minded him going to his grave wearing a black suit instead, and she said it made no difference as long as he looked nice.  Then it was just a matter of switching the heads.” I think the conclusion of a cynic could be "Whatever". A nice day for trains.

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Oct 6 2022 - Most Unique

 

How many variations of unique are there?  Given the definition says "being the only one of its kind; unlike anything else,"  my expectation is none. There are no adjectives to the adjective.  I just saw Bing use the phrase "most unique", so got to wondering how far down the evolutionary path we've gone with this word.  "Truly unique shows up in Collins Dictionary - "You use truly to emphasize that something has all the features or qualities of a particular thing, or is the case to the fullest possible extent.   This is a turn of phrase that is seen in newspaper reporting.  All the examples come from news articles.   There are lots of occurrences of Truly Unique - Disc Golf, a Gift Shop, laser-engraving business,  pasta, beauty boutique.   Unique is a synonym to distinctive, so could something be truly distinctive?  Distinctive's definition -"clearly marking a person or a thing as different from others.  It turns out that there is no "truly distinctive" in Collins Dictionary.  Instead, there is highly distinctive in Collins Dictionary.   Again the examples cited come from news articles. And you can find the two used together - I guess it brings extra emphasis -  "A unique and highly distinctive sofa."   How do you catch a unique rabbit? Unique up on it. How do you catch a tame one? Tame way. Unique up on it. I met a girl named Unique today. She has a twin sister.

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Jan 12 2022 - A Fishy Story

 

The Globe and Mail had a story on page 2 yesterday - Goldfish learn to drive a robotic car on land.  You can go HERE to see the video of the goldfish.  This is the NBC story with the video and the story starts with this joke: Two fish are in a tank and one says, "Do you know how to drive this thing?" The camera in the “fish-operated vehicle” uses motion sensing technology to send a signal to one of its four wheels whenever a fish swims close to a side of the fish tank. Over time the fish learned that their movements would correspond to the movements of the vehicle. The Globe says:  Some fish are smarter than others.  This brings to mind the mention of the popular myth that a goldfish's memory lasts only a few seconds.  It reminds us of misinformation and disinformation that Snopes is in pursuit of reducing. While Snopes does not address the 3 second attention span of Goldfish, others do. From live science magazine HERE:  "In reality, goldfish have such impressive memories, they're often used as a common model for studying memory and learning in fishes, Brown said. As a result, "there are thousands of studies [on goldfish] that show fish have excellent memories," Brown said. "And the rate of which these studies are being published is growing exponentially." There is always something Snopes has on hand.  Here's their fact-checking item on goldfish:  A 9-pound “goldfish” was caught in a South Carolina lake during a routine electrofishing survey.  TRUE And compare that with a 280-pound catfish caught in Italy in 2015.  There are enough photos of that one to look like it is true.  Two goldfish are in a tank. One turns to the other and says “It’s a bit wet in here” The other says “Wow! A talking fish!” A man walks into a cafe with a goldfish under his arm He asks the owner “do you sell fish cakes?” The owner says no The man says “That’s a shame. It’s his birthday today.”   A railroad scene from Gerry's layout.

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Mar 11 2021 - One Liners

 

I thought a one-liner joke was one line.  It says it is a short joke or witty remark.  Is there a shortest joke?   There is a record for the most jokes in one minute.  I found George Valentine achieved an amazing number in 2014 with 62 jokes in one minute. He was 76 years old.  His favourite short joke is "obesity cures wrinkles".  He has mastered the art of jokes that are between two and four words.  Can you imagine being this creative and inventive?  He said it was just a hobby and he didn't do this full-time. He says he's penned more than 100,000 one-liners in 64 years.  They include:  "familiarity breeds", "rowing is oarsmen", "friendly fire isn't" and "teachers have class".   But this was in his own video and doesn't count as a qualified record in the Guinness Book of Records. But another British person, Clive Greenaway, holds the Guinness world record with 26 jokes told in one minute.  One of the key rules states that the jokes told must draw a reaction or laugh from the audience.    That's a lot to me.  We'd have to be able to understand what he says, respond quickly and he's on to the next joke.  I haven't found the most famous one-liner.     Aren't these incredible trees on this railroad layout. Purchase at: FAA - marilyncornwellart.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.ca

This is the Compliment Day

This is National Compliment Day, an unofficial holiday. Kathy Chamberlin of Hopkinton, NH and Debby Hoffman of Concord, NH created National Compliment Day in 1998. It is not World Compliment Day - that is proposed for March 1st in the Netherlands where they propose to create the "Most Positive Day in the World." Do we know the top compliments?  Do we have them ready for today, the big occasion? Here is a refresher with the 15 compliments.  This comes from lifehack.org 1. You are nothing less than special. 2. You are one of a kind. 3. You always make people smile. 4. You are always there for me. 5. You always see the bright side (of things). 6. You would make/you are a beautiful mother/father. 7. You always throw a great party. 8. You are the best friend/ mother/ father/ wife/ husband/ partner anyone could ask for. 9. You never cease to amaze me (spoken in a positive light). 10. You set such a great example for others. 11. You raise the bar. 12. You always go the extra mile. 13. You are always willing to lend a hand. 14. You walk the talk. 15. You have a heart of gold. These model layouts come from the Pasadena conference in 2013.

Let's Take the Easter Train

Wake Up on the Bright Side There are a number of Easter Train rides available in the United States and other countries. For example, there is an Easter Train in Vancouver's Stanley Park and the Durango & Silverton has Snoopy the Easter Beagle.  Today, though, we are in search of unusual Easter traditions.  We know about pickles and spider webs as decorations on Christmas Trees. What unusual traditions are there for Easter? "The French town of Haux serves a giant omelet made with over 4,500 eggs in the main square. This custom dates back to the early 19th century when Napoleon, who loved omelets, stopped in Haux to eat one. He allegedly liked his so much that he ordered the locals to gather their eggs and make a giant omelet for his entire army the following day." "On Good Friday in Bermuda, locals fly homemade kites. The tradition is believed to have started when a teacher from the British Army tried to explain Christ’s ascension to heaven to his Sunday school class. When the children had difficulty understanding the concept, he made a kite, traditionally shaped like a cross, to illustrate the story." "In the U.S., the President hosts an annual Easter Egg Roll on Easter Monday. The tradition dates back to 1878 when children first rolled dyed hard-boiled eggs down the White House lawn."

Mountain Transport

It is a train day - well it's about a railroad first, and then I seem to notice the scenes all have animals - the first has the pen of cattle , the second has the cart at the left and the horses in front of the building, and the third has an arrival on a horse.  This layout has a lot of stories packed into each scene of a western railroad town.

Train Catch-Up - Sundance Details

Hi everyone,
I want to share more photos of the Sundance layout.  You've seen many images of it, and it was at the Kansas City Narrow Gauge Convention a few weeks ago.  Here are the detail moments that make it such an astonishing display.

More Model Trains

Everyone seems to love the pictures of model trains.  Here are a few more today…including one that shows the set-up of a layout.