Author Archives: Kathy

Sounds

Posted on August 27, 2025 by Kathy

I learned two etymologies from my new favorite YouTube Channel, The Salisbury Organist, created by a young Brit named Ben Maton. Actually, one I was reminded of, and the other I learned from Ben. Ben’s videos include a lot of … Continue reading →

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Panning Dwight Garner’s Pan

Posted on August 21, 2025 by Kathy

Dwight Garner begins his recent New York Times review of Ron Chernow’s biography Mark Twain with this inelegant simile: the book “squats over Twain’s career like a McMansion.” McMansion typically connotes size, ostentation, and a lack of style. I’ll grant … Continue reading →

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The Movie’s as Good as the Book! (And Vice Versa!)

Posted on July 23, 2025 by Kathy

Self-described grammar nerd Ellen Jovin came to town last week with her husband, Brandt Johnson, and their film Rebel with a Clause. A large, appreciative audience at the Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque enjoyed the movie and the Q & … Continue reading →

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Sym and Em

Posted on June 25, 2025 by Kathy

Yiyun Li’s recent memoir, Things in Nature Merely Grow, made it onto my book group’s (I should say, “one of my book groups’ lists”) 2025-2026 reading list, and I’ve been thinking about it in respect to a request to discuss … Continue reading →

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If Doggies Could Write

Posted on June 18, 2025 by Kathy

I learned recently that the GED test has dropped its poetry section, which used to be included in the reading portion, called Reasoning Through Language Arts. Which reminds me that my parents were amused, back in the sixties, at the … Continue reading →

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Success!

Posted on June 14, 2025 by Kathy

I’m very happy to report that the young man I called Andre (see previous post) has earned his GED by passing the science portion of the test. No doubt his success was due to my facility with the work-energy theorem … Continue reading →

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Laws of Motion

Posted on June 6, 2025 by Kathy

To protect his privacy, I’ll call him Andre and just say that he hails from a French-speaking African country. I’d guess that Andre is in his mid to late twenties. Last month, I worked with Andre in the GED tutoring … Continue reading →

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Whose Right Is It, Anyway?

Posted on May 20, 2025 by Kathy

The weeds are my sweet spot, etymologically speaking, and so we’re wading in. The subject is a constitutional principle that came up in the news today. In a Senate hearing, Kristi Noem, the head of Homeland Security in the Trump … Continue reading →

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Fan Mail, Reversed

Posted on May 18, 2025 by Kathy

Circa September, 1976, I received an astonishing postcard in the mail. Its handwriting was unfamiliar, the postmark said “Bellingham, Washington,” and it was signed, apparently, by Annie Dillard, my favorite writer. Or certainly one of the top five. I knew … Continue reading →

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Arabic Words in the News!

Posted on May 17, 2025 by Kathy

The English word tariff dates from the late sixteenth century. It referred to an arithmetical table or an official list of custom duties and derived from the Italian tariffa, meaning “a price or assessment.” That word came from the Latin … Continue reading →

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