Presidents’ Day is upon us once again, and once again it makes me think about apostrophes and men’s shirt sleeve sizes.
Presidents' Day has been around long enough now that there can be fully developed individuals with the right to vote and drink who know nothing of the historical observance of separate holidays to celebrate the birth of President Washington and the birth of President Lincoln.
As a kid, these days were easy to spot on a calender. Whoever made calendars in that era was way ahead of their time, because each holiday had an "icon" on the date, wordlessly telling the calendar viewer what the holiday was about. February 12th was the celebration of Lincoln's birthday, and there was a picture of Lincoln, somewhat like what's been on the penny (huh?) since 1909. For Washington's birthday, February 22, there was a picture that looked something like George in that that Gilbert Stuart painting
These icon were colorful. They could almost be likened to the mosaics that were used in the New York City subway (and can still be found) to depict stops and a major landmark to people who might not be able to read English.
Calendars today are somewhat more global. The companies that produce them I'm sure are distributing them in different countries. How else to explain my knowledge of holidays in New Zealand, or Canada. And there are no more "icons."
The forces that have given us Presidents' Day have been making the effort to combine the two birthdays into a single holiday, always observed on a Monday, for quite some time. What has now emerged fairly consistently, is a single holiday that accomplishes two observances. Since the holiday was never a revenue generator for the greeting card industry, there was no anti-combination lobbying from that sector.
So, here we are. In February, looking forward to another Presidents' Day, and another Presidents' Day weekend.
Apostrophes have always been a challenge to anyone who tries to follow rules for writing English. There can be a lot of teeth gnashing over trying to remember the proper use and placement of that elevated comma, that realistically doesn't even change the pronunciation of the word it floats over.
Say Presidents' Day without seeing an apostrophe, and then say it when you see one. Big difference, right? No.
Lynne Truss, in her informative and entertaining book Eats, Shoots and Leaves devotes an entire chapter to the back-story and use of apostrophes. Ms. Truss wrote a book on grammar that became a best-seller, a stunning achievement. She explains, "the word in Greek means 'turning away,' and hence 'omission.' In classical texts it was used to mark dropped letters."
And there we have it. Dropped letters. Words that are contractions (combinations) make use of apostrophes, and a holiday that drops in effect two separate holidays and replaces it with one proudly waves its apostrophe over the proceedings. (When it is used properly.)
Time-off is meant to induce indulgences. So, if by some chance I happen to go shopping for a men's shirt this weekend I will no doubt be confronted with the sleeve choice of 32/33. This of course means, that depending on how you use one of the two buttons on the cuff, you will have a sleeve that is either 32 inches (my true size), or a sleeve that is 33 inches. Amazing, without changing physical matter, the sleeve can simultaneously be one of two measurements. The sizing has been collapsed. There has been a "contraction" of inventory needs.
It turns out however, one of my arms is slightly longer than the other. Although I don't readily remember which one, through a little trial and error, I make use of the choice the two buttons provide me.
The loss of a holiday and a dedicated sleeve size has been bemoaned for years. My own personal surprise is that I've gotten used to it.
http://www.onofframp.blogspot.com/
Presidents' Day has been around long enough now that there can be fully developed individuals with the right to vote and drink who know nothing of the historical observance of separate holidays to celebrate the birth of President Washington and the birth of President Lincoln.
As a kid, these days were easy to spot on a calender. Whoever made calendars in that era was way ahead of their time, because each holiday had an "icon" on the date, wordlessly telling the calendar viewer what the holiday was about. February 12th was the celebration of Lincoln's birthday, and there was a picture of Lincoln, somewhat like what's been on the penny (huh?) since 1909. For Washington's birthday, February 22, there was a picture that looked something like George in that that Gilbert Stuart painting
These icon were colorful. They could almost be likened to the mosaics that were used in the New York City subway (and can still be found) to depict stops and a major landmark to people who might not be able to read English.
Calendars today are somewhat more global. The companies that produce them I'm sure are distributing them in different countries. How else to explain my knowledge of holidays in New Zealand, or Canada. And there are no more "icons."
The forces that have given us Presidents' Day have been making the effort to combine the two birthdays into a single holiday, always observed on a Monday, for quite some time. What has now emerged fairly consistently, is a single holiday that accomplishes two observances. Since the holiday was never a revenue generator for the greeting card industry, there was no anti-combination lobbying from that sector.
So, here we are. In February, looking forward to another Presidents' Day, and another Presidents' Day weekend.
Apostrophes have always been a challenge to anyone who tries to follow rules for writing English. There can be a lot of teeth gnashing over trying to remember the proper use and placement of that elevated comma, that realistically doesn't even change the pronunciation of the word it floats over.
Say Presidents' Day without seeing an apostrophe, and then say it when you see one. Big difference, right? No.
Lynne Truss, in her informative and entertaining book Eats, Shoots and Leaves devotes an entire chapter to the back-story and use of apostrophes. Ms. Truss wrote a book on grammar that became a best-seller, a stunning achievement. She explains, "the word in Greek means 'turning away,' and hence 'omission.' In classical texts it was used to mark dropped letters."
And there we have it. Dropped letters. Words that are contractions (combinations) make use of apostrophes, and a holiday that drops in effect two separate holidays and replaces it with one proudly waves its apostrophe over the proceedings. (When it is used properly.)
Time-off is meant to induce indulgences. So, if by some chance I happen to go shopping for a men's shirt this weekend I will no doubt be confronted with the sleeve choice of 32/33. This of course means, that depending on how you use one of the two buttons on the cuff, you will have a sleeve that is either 32 inches (my true size), or a sleeve that is 33 inches. Amazing, without changing physical matter, the sleeve can simultaneously be one of two measurements. The sizing has been collapsed. There has been a "contraction" of inventory needs.
It turns out however, one of my arms is slightly longer than the other. Although I don't readily remember which one, through a little trial and error, I make use of the choice the two buttons provide me.
The loss of a holiday and a dedicated sleeve size has been bemoaned for years. My own personal surprise is that I've gotten used to it.
http://www.onofframp.blogspot.com/
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