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Common announcement on trains might be phrased slightly inaccurately -- how shocking!
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Paul Epstein
Sep 5, 2023, 6:11:34 PM9/5/23
to
On Uk trains, when the train comes to the end of the line, the standard
announcement is (something very similar to):
"This train terminates here. All change please."
Isn't this announcement incorrect though? I would think that a passenger
would only "change" if they connect with another train at that station.
I wouldn't call it a "change" for those who have arrived at their destination.
"All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
Paul Epstein
announcement is (something very similar to):
"This train terminates here. All change please."
Isn't this announcement incorrect though? I would think that a passenger
would only "change" if they connect with another train at that station.
I wouldn't call it a "change" for those who have arrived at their destination.
"All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
Paul Epstein
Paul Wolff
Sep 5, 2023, 6:50:57 PM9/5/23
to
"Disentrain" ought to work, but I don't expect it to catch on. Too
strong a suggestion of dysentery, perhaps.
On Tue, 5 Sep 2023, at 15:11:30, Paul Epstein posted:
--
Paul W
strong a suggestion of dysentery, perhaps.
On Tue, 5 Sep 2023, at 15:11:30, Paul Epstein posted:
Paul W
henh...@gmail.com
Sep 5, 2023, 10:05:00 PM9/5/23
to
---- i might call it the [Manekineko] mentality?
Jerry Friedman
Sep 5, 2023, 10:53:15 PM9/5/23
to
I may be the only person here who hears "All change" and thinks
Feel your body melt
Mum to mud to mad to dad
Dad diddley office, Dad diddley office
You're all full of ball
Dad to dam to dumb to mum
Mum diddley washing, Mum diddley washing
You're all full of ball
--
Jerry Friedman
Hibou
Sep 6, 2023, 12:43:45 AM9/6/23
to
It's true that most people will be going on to somewhere else by some
other means of transport, even if it's only Shanks' pony, but the
terminus itself can be the final destination (as when we went on a
behind-the-scenes tour of Glasgow Central).
Mark Brader
Sep 6, 2023, 1:06:46 AM9/6/23
to
Paul Epstein:
word ("detrain"). <grin>
On the TTC it's generally "all passengers must leave the train".
--
Mark Brader "How diabolically clever: a straightforward message!
Toronto Only a genius could have thought of that."
m...@vex.net -- Maxwell Smart (Agent 86)
>> On Uk trains, when the train comes to the end of the line, the standard
>> announcement is (something very similar to):
>> "This train terminates here. All change please." ...
>> announcement is (something very similar to):
>> "All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
Paul Wolff:
> "Disentrain" ought to work, but I don't expect it to catch on.
Trust someone British to add 3 letters to a perfectly good existing
word ("detrain"). <grin>
On the TTC it's generally "all passengers must leave the train".
--
Mark Brader "How diabolically clever: a straightforward message!
Toronto Only a genius could have thought of that."
m...@vex.net -- Maxwell Smart (Agent 86)
Bertel Lund Hansen
Sep 6, 2023, 2:30:38 AM9/6/23
to
About "All change please": One might argue that they change form of
transport no matter how they continue.
--
Bertel, Denmark
Bertel Lund Hansen
Sep 6, 2023, 2:34:00 AM9/6/23
to
Hibou wrote:
> It's true that most people will be going on to somewhere else by some
> other means of transport, even if it's only Shanks' pony, but the
> terminus itself can be the final destination (as when we went on a
> behind-the-scenes tour of Glasgow Central).
You say Shank's pony. Danes say "apostlenes heste" (horses of the apostles)
> It's true that most people will be going on to somewhere else by some
> other means of transport, even if it's only Shanks' pony, but the
> terminus itself can be the final destination (as when we went on a
> behind-the-scenes tour of Glasgow Central).
--
Bertel, Denmark
occam
Sep 6, 2023, 2:49:51 AM9/6/23
to
'slight inaccuracy' of the 'All change' announcement?
How about "this train has been cancelled due to leaves on the track" or
"cancelled due to the wrong type of snow".
</slight inaccuracy>
Can I suggest the already well known phrase 'All passengers please
disembark'.
occam
Sep 6, 2023, 3:00:58 AM9/6/23
to
On 06/09/2023 06:43, Hibou wrote:
> Le 05/09/2023 à 23:11, Paul Epstein a écrit :
>>
>> On Uk trains, when the train comes to the end of the line, the standard
>> announcement is (something very similar to):
>> "This train terminates here. All change please."
>> Isn't this announcement incorrect though? I would think that a passenger
>> would only "change" if they connect with another train at that station.
>> I wouldn't call it a "change" for those who have arrived at their
>> destination.
>> "All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
>
> All passengers, please alight.
>
'Alight' has a touch of the flammable/inflammable about it.
> Le 05/09/2023 à 23:11, Paul Epstein a écrit :
>>
>> On Uk trains, when the train comes to the end of the line, the standard
>> announcement is (something very similar to):
>> "This train terminates here. All change please."
>> Isn't this announcement incorrect though? I would think that a passenger
>> would only "change" if they connect with another train at that station.
>> I wouldn't call it a "change" for those who have arrived at their
>> destination.
>> "All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
>
> All passengers, please alight.
>
Athel Cornish-Bowden
Sep 6, 2023, 3:33:20 AM9/6/23
to
On 2023-09-06 06:49:45 +0000, occam said:
> On 06/09/2023 00:11, Paul Epstein wrote:
>> On Uk trains, when the train comes to the end of the line, the standard
>> announcement is (something very similar to):
>> "This train terminates here. All change please."
>> Isn't this announcement incorrect though? I would think that a passenger
>> would only "change" if they connect with another train at that station.
>> I wouldn't call it a "change" for those who have arrived at their destination.
>> "All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
>>
>
>
> <smile> Of all the announcements made on UK trains, you latch on to the
> 'slight inaccuracy' of the 'All change' announcement?
>
> How about "this train has been cancelled due to leaves on the track" or
> "cancelled due to the wrong type of snow".
Once I went from Birmingham to give a lecture in Sheffield. For the
> On 06/09/2023 00:11, Paul Epstein wrote:
>> On Uk trains, when the train comes to the end of the line, the standard
>> announcement is (something very similar to):
>> "This train terminates here. All change please."
>> Isn't this announcement incorrect though? I would think that a passenger
>> would only "change" if they connect with another train at that station.
>> I wouldn't call it a "change" for those who have arrived at their destination.
>> "All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
>>
>
>
> <smile> Of all the announcements made on UK trains, you latch on to the
> 'slight inaccuracy' of the 'All change' announcement?
>
> How about "this train has been cancelled due to leaves on the track" or
> "cancelled due to the wrong type of snow".
return every single train at Sheffield station was late. What struck
me, though, was the inventiveness of the excuses: every one was
different (driver turned up drunk for work, dead sheep on the track,
rails frozen, rails melted, expectant mother had to be rushed to
hospital for delivery, etc. (I exaggerate, of course)). Reginald Perrin
couldn't have done better.
>
> </slight inaccuracy>
>
> Can I suggest the already well known phrase 'All passengers please
> disembark'.
--
> </slight inaccuracy>
>
> Can I suggest the already well known phrase 'All passengers please
> disembark'.
Athel -- French and British, living in Marseilles for 36 years; mainly
in England until 1987.
charles
Sep 6, 2023, 5:15:08 AM9/6/23
to
In article <klqo9r...@mid.individual.net>, Athel Cornish-Bowden
train, It was entirely due to a management cock-up."
--
from KT24 in Surrey, England - sent from my RISC OS 4té
"I'd rather die of exhaustion than die of boredom" Thomas Carlyle
<athe...@gmail.com> wrote:
> On 2023-09-06 06:49:45 +0000, occam said:
> > On 06/09/2023 00:11, Paul Epstein wrote:
> >> On Uk trains, when the train comes to the end of the line, the
> >> standard announcement is (something very similar to): "This train
> >> terminates here. All change please." Isn't this announcement
> >> incorrect though? I would think that a passenger would only "change"
> >> if they connect with another train at that station. I wouldn't call it
> >> a "change" for those who have arrived at their destination. "All leave
> >> please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
> >>
> >
> >
> > <smile> Of all the announcements made on UK trains, you latch on to the
> > 'slight inaccuracy' of the 'All change' announcement?
> >
> > How about "this train has been cancelled due to leaves on the track" or
> > "cancelled due to the wrong type of snow".
> Once I went from Birmingham to give a lecture in Sheffield. For the
> return every single train at Sheffield station was late. What struck me,
> though, was the inventiveness of the excuses: every one was different
> (driver turned up drunk for work, dead sheep on the track, rails frozen,
> rails melted, expectant mother had to be rushed to hospital for
> delivery, etc. (I exaggerate, of course)). Reginald Perrin couldn't have
> done better.
I prefer one I heard a few years ago: "Apologies for late departure of this
> On 2023-09-06 06:49:45 +0000, occam said:
> > On 06/09/2023 00:11, Paul Epstein wrote:
> >> On Uk trains, when the train comes to the end of the line, the
> >> standard announcement is (something very similar to): "This train
> >> terminates here. All change please." Isn't this announcement
> >> incorrect though? I would think that a passenger would only "change"
> >> if they connect with another train at that station. I wouldn't call it
> >> a "change" for those who have arrived at their destination. "All leave
> >> please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
> >>
> >
> >
> > <smile> Of all the announcements made on UK trains, you latch on to the
> > 'slight inaccuracy' of the 'All change' announcement?
> >
> > How about "this train has been cancelled due to leaves on the track" or
> > "cancelled due to the wrong type of snow".
> Once I went from Birmingham to give a lecture in Sheffield. For the
> return every single train at Sheffield station was late. What struck me,
> though, was the inventiveness of the excuses: every one was different
> (driver turned up drunk for work, dead sheep on the track, rails frozen,
> rails melted, expectant mother had to be rushed to hospital for
> delivery, etc. (I exaggerate, of course)). Reginald Perrin couldn't have
> done better.
train, It was entirely due to a management cock-up."
--
from KT24 in Surrey, England - sent from my RISC OS 4té
"I'd rather die of exhaustion than die of boredom" Thomas Carlyle
Edward Collier
Sep 6, 2023, 6:15:48 AM9/6/23
to
On Wednesday, 6 September 2023 at 03:53:15 UTC+1, Jerry Friedman wrote:
> Can't argue with any of that.
>
> I may be the only person here who hears "All change" and thinks
>
> Feel your body melt
> Mum to mud to mad to dad
> Dad diddley office, Dad diddley office
> You're all full of ball
> Dad to dam to dumb to mum
> Mum diddley washing, Mum diddley washing
> You're all full of ball
>
> --
> Jerry Friedman
You absolutely aren't.
> Can't argue with any of that.
>
> I may be the only person here who hears "All change" and thinks
>
> Feel your body melt
> Mum to mud to mad to dad
> Dad diddley office, Dad diddley office
> You're all full of ball
> Dad to dam to dumb to mum
> Mum diddley washing, Mum diddley washing
> You're all full of ball
>
> --
> Jerry Friedman
occam
Sep 6, 2023, 7:40:38 AM9/6/23
to
Decent"
lar3ryca
Sep 6, 2023, 12:19:22 PM9/6/23
to
--
Sponges grow in the ocean.
I wonder how much deeper the ocean would be if that didn't happen.
lar3ryca
Sep 6, 2023, 12:22:24 PM9/6/23
to
On 2023-09-06 01:33, Athel Cornish-Bowden wrote:
> On 2023-09-06 06:49:45 +0000, occam said:
>
>> On 06/09/2023 00:11, Paul Epstein wrote:
>>> On Uk trains, when the train comes to the end of the line, the standard
>>> announcement is (something very similar to):
>>> "This train terminates here. All change please."
>>> Isn't this announcement incorrect though? I would think that a
>>> passenger
>>> would only "change" if they connect with another train at that station.
>>> I wouldn't call it a "change" for those who have arrived at their
>>> destination.
>>> "All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
>>>
>>
>>
>> <smile> Of all the announcements made on UK trains, you latch on to the
>> 'slight inaccuracy' of the 'All change' announcement?
>>
>> How about "this train has been cancelled due to leaves on the track" or
>> "cancelled due to the wrong type of snow".
>
> Once I went from Birmingham to give a lecture in Sheffield. For the
> return every single train at Sheffield station was late. What struck me,
> though, was the inventiveness of the excuses: every one was different
> (driver turned up drunk for work, dead sheep on the track, rails frozen,
> rails melted, expectant mother had to be rushed to hospital for
> delivery, etc. (I exaggerate, of course)). Reginald Perrin couldn't have
> done better.
He didn't get where he is today by revealing the truth.
> On 2023-09-06 06:49:45 +0000, occam said:
>
>> On 06/09/2023 00:11, Paul Epstein wrote:
>>> On Uk trains, when the train comes to the end of the line, the standard
>>> announcement is (something very similar to):
>>> "This train terminates here. All change please."
>>> Isn't this announcement incorrect though? I would think that a
>>> passenger
>>> would only "change" if they connect with another train at that station.
>>> I wouldn't call it a "change" for those who have arrived at their
>>> destination.
>>> "All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
>>>
>>
>>
>> <smile> Of all the announcements made on UK trains, you latch on to the
>> 'slight inaccuracy' of the 'All change' announcement?
>>
>> How about "this train has been cancelled due to leaves on the track" or
>> "cancelled due to the wrong type of snow".
>
> Once I went from Birmingham to give a lecture in Sheffield. For the
> return every single train at Sheffield station was late. What struck me,
> though, was the inventiveness of the excuses: every one was different
> (driver turned up drunk for work, dead sheep on the track, rails frozen,
> rails melted, expectant mother had to be rushed to hospital for
> delivery, etc. (I exaggerate, of course)). Reginald Perrin couldn't have
> done better.
>> </slight inaccuracy>
>>
>> Can I suggest the already well known phrase 'All passengers please
>> disembark'.
>
>
--
Ken Blake
Sep 6, 2023, 12:42:43 PM9/6/23
to
On Wed, 6 Sep 2023 10:19:17 -0600, lar3ryca <la...@invalid.ca> wrote:
>On 2023-09-06 00:33, Bertel Lund Hansen wrote:
>> Hibou wrote:
>>
>>> It's true that most people will be going on to somewhere else by some
>>> other means of transport, even if it's only Shanks' pony, but the
>>> terminus itself can be the final destination (as when we went on a
>>> behind-the-scenes tour of Glasgow Central).
>>
>> You say Shank's pony. Danes say "apostlenes heste" (horses of the apostles)
>
>And every Canadian I have heard saying it, said it as "Shank's mare".
I don't remember ever hearing anyone say it, but I've read it in books
>On 2023-09-06 00:33, Bertel Lund Hansen wrote:
>> Hibou wrote:
>>
>>> It's true that most people will be going on to somewhere else by some
>>> other means of transport, even if it's only Shanks' pony, but the
>>> terminus itself can be the final destination (as when we went on a
>>> behind-the-scenes tour of Glasgow Central).
>>
>> You say Shank's pony. Danes say "apostlenes heste" (horses of the apostles)
>
>And every Canadian I have heard saying it, said it as "Shank's mare".
a number of times. I think it's always been "shanks' mare," not
"pony."
Kerr-Mudd, John
Sep 6, 2023, 1:07:49 PM9/6/23
to
> >> </slight inaccuracy>
> >>
> >> Can I suggest the already well known phrase 'All passengers please
> >> disembark'.
> >
> >
>
> --
> Glibido (v): All talk and no action.
>
Bah, and indeed Humbug.
Jerry Friedman
Sep 6, 2023, 1:40:56 PM9/6/23
to
On Wednesday, September 6, 2023 at 4:15:48 AM UTC-6, Edward Collier wrote:
> On Wednesday, 6 September 2023 at 03:53:15 UTC+1, Jerry Friedman wrote:
> > Can't argue with any of that.
> >
> > I may be the only person here who hears "All change" and thinks
> >
> > Feel your body melt
> > Mum to mud to mad to dad
> > Dad diddley office, Dad diddley office
> > You're all full of ball
> > Dad to dam to dumb to mum
> > Mum diddley washing, Mum diddley washing
> > You're all full of ball
> You absolutely aren't.
> On Wednesday, 6 September 2023 at 03:53:15 UTC+1, Jerry Friedman wrote:
> > Can't argue with any of that.
> >
> > I may be the only person here who hears "All change" and thinks
> >
> > Feel your body melt
> > Mum to mud to mad to dad
> > Dad diddley office, Dad diddley office
> > You're all full of ball
> > Dad to dam to dumb to mum
> > Mum diddley washing, Mum diddley washing
> > You're all full of ball
There are two of us!
--
Jerry Friedman
Hibou
Sep 6, 2023, 2:08:46 PM9/6/23
to
context.
lar3ryca
Sep 6, 2023, 3:33:26 PM9/6/23
to
use it for the meaning being discussed.
--
You know, the New Testament is pretty old.
They should call them the Old Testament and the Most Recent Testament.
~ Steven Wright
Kerr-Mudd, John
Sep 6, 2023, 4:13:51 PM9/6/23
to
Kerr-Mudd, John
Sep 6, 2023, 4:16:32 PM9/6/23
to
On Wed, 6 Sep 2023 13:33:21 -0600
lar3ryca <la...@invalid.ca> wrote:
> On 2023-09-06 12:08, Hibou wrote:
> > Le 06/09/2023 à 08:00, occam a écrit :
> >> On 06/09/2023 06:43, Hibou wrote:
> >>>
> >>> All passengers, please alight.
> >>
> >> 'Alight' has a touch of the flammable/inflammable about it.
> >
> > Strangely, that never crossed my mind. I suppose that's the power of
> > context.
>
> Whenever I hear 'alight' I think of burning, most likely because I never
> use it for the meaning being discussed.
>
Oooh oh, my ears are alight. </DD+Aces>
lar3ryca <la...@invalid.ca> wrote:
> On 2023-09-06 12:08, Hibou wrote:
> > Le 06/09/2023 à 08:00, occam a écrit :
> >> On 06/09/2023 06:43, Hibou wrote:
> >>>
> >>> All passengers, please alight.
> >>
> >> 'Alight' has a touch of the flammable/inflammable about it.
> >
> > Strangely, that never crossed my mind. I suppose that's the power of
> > context.
>
> Whenever I hear 'alight' I think of burning, most likely because I never
> use it for the meaning being discussed.
>
> --
> You know, the New Testament is pretty old.
> They should call them the Old Testament and the Most Recent Testament.
> ~ Steven Wright
>
Anders D. Nygaard
Sep 6, 2023, 4:29:54 PM9/6/23
to
/Anders, Denmark
Mark Brader
Sep 6, 2023, 5:15:58 PM9/6/23
to
Paul Epstein:
> All passengers, please alight.
"Alight" makes me imagine the passengers are supposed to be insects.
--
Mark Brader, Toronto | "Domine, defende nos
m...@vex.net | Contra hos stupidos DOS!" -- after A. D. Godley
> > "All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
"Hibou":
> All passengers, please alight.
"Alight" makes me imagine the passengers are supposed to be insects.
--
Mark Brader, Toronto | "Domine, defende nos
m...@vex.net | Contra hos stupidos DOS!" -- after A. D. Godley
Paul Wolff
Sep 6, 2023, 5:32:15 PM9/6/23
to
On Wed, 6 Sep 2023, at 21:15:49, Mark Brader posted:
--
Paul W
>Paul Epstein:
>> > "All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
>
>"Hibou":
>> All passengers, please alight.
>
>"Alight" makes me imagine the passengers are supposed to be insects.
I see conflict with the current smoking ban on our railways.
>> > "All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
>
>"Hibou":
>> All passengers, please alight.
>
>"Alight" makes me imagine the passengers are supposed to be insects.
--
Paul W
Bertel Lund Hansen
Sep 7, 2023, 2:16:15 AM9/7/23
to
Kerr-Mudd, John wrote:
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shanks%27_pony
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shanks%27_mare
An Ngram with "Shank's mare,Shank's pony" is quite interesting.
"Shank's mare" begins in 1825 and wins almost all of the time.
"Shank's pony" begins in 1860. Today it scores 50% in relation to
"mare". They scored the same in 2010 and 2013 with "pony" winning in
between.
--
Bertel, Denmark
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shanks%27_pony
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shanks%27_mare
An Ngram with "Shank's mare,Shank's pony" is quite interesting.
"Shank's mare" begins in 1825 and wins almost all of the time.
"Shank's pony" begins in 1860. Today it scores 50% in relation to
"mare". They scored the same in 2010 and 2013 with "pony" winning in
between.
--
Bertel, Denmark
Bertel Lund Hansen
Sep 7, 2023, 2:21:13 AM9/7/23
to
lar3ryca wrote:
> Whenever I hear 'alight' I think of burning, most likely because I never
> use it for the meaning being discussed.
So do I, and I never knew that it could have the other meaning.
> Whenever I hear 'alight' I think of burning, most likely because I never
> use it for the meaning being discussed.
I wanted to look it up and found a headline on the page a bit funny:
alight ---- All matches
There was however no explanation of the leave-meaning.
--
Bertel, Denmark
Bertel Lund Hansen
Sep 7, 2023, 2:21:49 AM9/7/23
to
Mark Brader wrote:
>>> "All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
>
> "Hibou":
>> All passengers, please alight.
>
> "Alight" makes me imagine the passengers are supposed to be insects.
Fireflies?
>>> "All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
>
> "Hibou":
>> All passengers, please alight.
>
> "Alight" makes me imagine the passengers are supposed to be insects.
--
Bertel, Denmark
Bertel Lund Hansen
Sep 7, 2023, 2:24:14 AM9/7/23
to
Anders D. Nygaard wrote:
>> Can I suggest the already well known phrase 'All passengers please
>> disembark'.
>
> "Please leave the train" is used on the Copenhagen S-train system.
I had forgotten that because I bought a car. The English messages in the
>> Can I suggest the already well known phrase 'All passengers please
>> disembark'.
>
> "Please leave the train" is used on the Copenhagen S-train system.
Danish trains are very clear and excellently expressed. They are spoken
by an English person.
--
Bertel, Denmark
Athel Cornish-Bowden
Sep 7, 2023, 2:56:01 AM9/7/23
to
to someone called Shanks.
Hibou
Sep 7, 2023, 3:28:51 AM9/7/23
to
Le 06/09/2023 à 20:33, lar3ryca a écrit :
> On 2023-09-06 12:08, Hibou wrote:
>> Le 06/09/2023 à 08:00, occam a écrit :
>>> On 06/09/2023 06:43, Hibou wrote:
>>>>
>>>> All passengers, please alight.
>>>
>>> 'Alight' has a touch of the flammable/inflammable about it.
>>
>> Strangely, that never crossed my mind. I suppose that's the power of
>> context.
>
> Whenever I hear 'alight' I think of burning, most likely because I never
> use it for the meaning being discussed.
Very popular at one time outre-Atlantique, apparently:
> On 2023-09-06 12:08, Hibou wrote:
>> Le 06/09/2023 à 08:00, occam a écrit :
>>> On 06/09/2023 06:43, Hibou wrote:
>>>>
>>>> All passengers, please alight.
>>>
>>> 'Alight' has a touch of the flammable/inflammable about it.
>>
>> Strangely, that never crossed my mind. I suppose that's the power of
>> context.
>
> Whenever I hear 'alight' I think of burning, most likely because I never
> use it for the meaning being discussed.
<https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=alight+from+the+train%3Aeng_us_2019%2Calight+from+the+train%3Aeng_gb_2019&year_start=1800&year_end=2019&corpus=en-2019&smoothing=3>
Hibou
Sep 7, 2023, 3:28:56 AM9/7/23
to
Hibou
Sep 7, 2023, 3:33:33 AM9/7/23
to
Le 07/09/2023 à 07:55, Athel Cornish-Bowden a écrit :
> On 2023-09-07 06:16:08 +0000, Bertel Lund Hansen said:
>>
>> An Ngram with "Shank's mare,Shank's pony" is quite interesting.
>>
>> "Shank's mare" begins in 1825 and wins almost all of the time.
>> "Shank's pony" begins in 1860. Today it scores 50% in relation to
>> "mare". They scored the same in 2010 and 2013 with "pony" winning in
>> between.
>
> I have always heard it as Shanks's pony (note additional s), referring
> to someone called Shanks.
I think it has to be plural - and writing it as a proper name is a joke.
> On 2023-09-07 06:16:08 +0000, Bertel Lund Hansen said:
>>
>> An Ngram with "Shank's mare,Shank's pony" is quite interesting.
>>
>> "Shank's mare" begins in 1825 and wins almost all of the time.
>> "Shank's pony" begins in 1860. Today it scores 50% in relation to
>> "mare". They scored the same in 2010 and 2013 with "pony" winning in
>> between.
>
> I have always heard it as Shanks's pony (note additional s), referring
> to someone called Shanks.
Think "Edward Longshanks".
Bertel Lund Hansen
Sep 7, 2023, 4:00:29 AM9/7/23
to
Athel Cornish-Bowden wrote:
> I have always heard it as Shanks's pony (note additional s), referring
> to someone called Shanks.
New Ngram: Shank's mare,Shank's pony,Shanks's mare,Shanks's pony
> I have always heard it as Shanks's pony (note additional s), referring
> to someone called Shanks.
"Shanks's pony" is a winner since 1980 and today it is a clear winner.
"Shank's mare" comes second.
Before that the picture is muddled, but the two with "mare" dominate
till 1950.
Shanks's mare: from 1815
Shank's mare: from 1825
Shanks's pony: from 1850
Shank's pony: from 1860
The overall picture is that all four combinations have existed most of
the time and still do.
--
Bertel, Denmark
Bertel Lund Hansen
Sep 7, 2023, 4:10:41 AM9/7/23
to
Hibou wrote:
> I think it has to be plural - and writing it as a proper name is a joke.
> Think "Edward Longshanks".
I made a third Ngram and a fourth. With four combinations and
> I think it has to be plural - and writing it as a proper name is a joke.
> Think "Edward Longshanks".
case-insensitive activated "shank's mare" wins with "shanks's pony"
coming second.
Merriam-Webster has "shank's mare" and so does dictionary.com.
Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary doesn't have it.
Here is the complete string for Ngram:
Shank's mare,Shank's pony,Shanks's mare,Shanks's pony,shank's
mare,shank's pony,shanks's mare,shanks's pony
--
Bertel, Denmark
Bertel Lund Hansen
Sep 7, 2023, 4:13:58 AM9/7/23
to
Hibou wrote:
>> There was however no explanation of the leave-meaning.
>
> <https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/alight> Sense 4
Thanks. That was a new dictionary which I added to the others that I
>> There was however no explanation of the leave-meaning.
>
> <https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/alight> Sense 4
use. It has "shank's mare" and marks it as "American".
--
Bertel, Denmark
HVS
Sep 7, 2023, 5:59:54 AM9/7/23
to
On 06 Sep 2023, lar3ryca wrote
> On 2023-09-06 12:08, Hibou wrote:
>> Le 06/09/2023 à 08:00, occam a écrit :
>>> On 06/09/2023 06:43, Hibou wrote:
>>>>
>>>> All passengers, please alight.
>>>
>>> 'Alight' has a touch of the flammable/inflammable about it.
>>
>> Strangely, that never crossed my mind. I suppose that's the power
>> of context.
>
> Whenever I hear 'alight' I think of burning, most likely because I
> never use it for the meaning being discussed.
I wonder if the use of "alight" is similar to the UK use of "whilst" -
an unremarkable RightPondian use of a word which, to my Canadian ears,
sounded quaintly archaic when I moved here. (I stopped noticing it
after a few years.)
--
Cheers, Harvey
> On 2023-09-06 12:08, Hibou wrote:
>> Le 06/09/2023 à 08:00, occam a écrit :
>>> On 06/09/2023 06:43, Hibou wrote:
>>>>
>>>> All passengers, please alight.
>>>
>>> 'Alight' has a touch of the flammable/inflammable about it.
>>
>> Strangely, that never crossed my mind. I suppose that's the power
>> of context.
>
> Whenever I hear 'alight' I think of burning, most likely because I
> never use it for the meaning being discussed.
an unremarkable RightPondian use of a word which, to my Canadian ears,
sounded quaintly archaic when I moved here. (I stopped noticing it
after a few years.)
--
Cheers, Harvey
Adam Funk
Sep 7, 2023, 9:45:08 AM9/7/23
to
--
Don't take me seriously, but I have a hunch that when the unknown
parts of the DNA are decoded, the so-called sequences of junk DNA,
they're going to turn out to be copyright notices and patent
protections. ---Donald Knuth
Adam Funk
Sep 7, 2023, 9:45:08 AM9/7/23
to
On 2023-09-06, occam wrote:
> On 06/09/2023 00:11, Paul Epstein wrote:
>> On Uk trains, when the train comes to the end of the line, the standard
>> announcement is (something very similar to):
>> "This train terminates here. All change please."
>> Isn't this announcement incorrect though? I would think that a passenger
>> would only "change" if they connect with another train at that station.
>> I wouldn't call it a "change" for those who have arrived at their destination.
>> "All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
>>
>
>
><smile> Of all the announcements made on UK trains, you latch on to the
> 'slight inaccuracy' of the 'All change' announcement?
>
> How about "this train has been cancelled due to leaves on the track" or
> "cancelled due to the wrong type of snow".
>
></slight inaccuracy>
> On 06/09/2023 00:11, Paul Epstein wrote:
>> On Uk trains, when the train comes to the end of the line, the standard
>> announcement is (something very similar to):
>> "This train terminates here. All change please."
>> Isn't this announcement incorrect though? I would think that a passenger
>> would only "change" if they connect with another train at that station.
>> I wouldn't call it a "change" for those who have arrived at their destination.
>> "All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
>>
>
>
><smile> Of all the announcements made on UK trains, you latch on to the
> 'slight inaccuracy' of the 'All change' announcement?
>
> How about "this train has been cancelled due to leaves on the track" or
> "cancelled due to the wrong type of snow".
>
>
> Can I suggest the already well known phrase 'All passengers please
> disembark'.
Pedants would complain that it's not a boat.
> Can I suggest the already well known phrase 'All passengers please
> disembark'.
--
If an organization had to assume that anything it did would become
public in a few years, people within that organization would behave
differently. ---Bruce Schneier
Adam Funk
Sep 7, 2023, 10:00:09 AM9/7/23
to
And our fish came down, too.
He fell into a pot.
He said, "Do I like this?
Oh, no! I do not.
This is not a good game,"
Said our fish as he lit.
"No, I do not like it,
Not one little bit!"
I guess the meaning of "lit" is clear enough from the context &
illustrations, but it always struck me as fairly obscure.
--
There’s never enough time to do all the nothing you want.
---Calvin
phil
Sep 7, 2023, 10:57:52 AM9/7/23
to
specifically with open-platform double-decker buses. I think it may be
that there were signs in the buses I rode in my childhood that said
something along the lines of "Wait until the bus has stopped before
alighting". Any of the Brits here remember?
--
Phil B.
Mack A. Damia
Sep 7, 2023, 11:40:29 AM9/7/23
to
On Thu, 7 Sep 2023 15:57:46 +0100, phil <ph...@anonymous.invalid>
wrote:
I got into BIG trouble one day on the school bus in Accrington by
alighting before the bus had stopped at our school. Just copying the
conductors. Maybe I was about five years old.
wrote:
alighting before the bus had stopped at our school. Just copying the
conductors. Maybe I was about five years old.
Sam Plusnet
Sep 7, 2023, 3:32:43 PM9/7/23
to
On 06/09/2023 22:15, Mark Brader wrote:
> Paul Epstein:
>>> "All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
>
> "Hibou":
>> All passengers, please alight.
>
> "Alight" makes me imagine the passengers are supposed to be insects.
No. That's not cricket.
> Paul Epstein:
>>> "All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
>
> "Hibou":
>> All passengers, please alight.
>
> "Alight" makes me imagine the passengers are supposed to be insects.
lar3ryca
Sep 7, 2023, 4:04:45 PM9/7/23
to
--
This sentence no verb.
Peter Moylan
Sep 8, 2023, 12:43:41 AM9/8/23
to
On 06/09/23 08:11, Paul Epstein wrote:
> On Uk trains, when the train comes to the end of the line, the
> standard announcement is (something very similar to): "This train
> terminates here. All change please."
I've just arrived home by train. When we were waiting at the platform,
> On Uk trains, when the train comes to the end of the line, the
> standard announcement is (something very similar to): "This train
> terminates here. All change please."
there was an announcement: "The train arriving on platform 8 terminates
here. Do not board this train". As soon as the train stopped, the
announcement changed to "The train on platform 8 is going to Newcastle
Interchange via Stratfield. Please board now."
Someone with a weird sense of humour?
Platform 8 at Sydney Central Station is one of the dead-end platforms,
i.e. it is impossible for an arriving train to go any further. Its only
option is to reverse direction, unless of course there's an intention to
let all arriving trains just sit there forever.
--
Peter Moylan http://www.pmoylan.org
Newcastle, NSW
Peter Moylan
Sep 8, 2023, 12:49:57 AM9/8/23
to
spoken by a Sydney person. Even after all this time, she still
mispronounces the names of the towns near the Newcastle end.
Thomas Joseph
Sep 8, 2023, 1:11:44 AM9/8/23
to
On Wednesday, September 6, 2023 at 12:43:45 AM UTC-4, Hibou wrote:
>
> It's true that most people will be going on to somewhere else by some
> other means of transport, even if it's only Shanks' pony, but the
> terminus itself can be the final destination (as when we went on a
> behind-the-scenes tour of Glasgow Central).
I wouldn't quibble about the word. The guy says get off, it's time
to get off no matter how he words it. As for 'change', it's all around
us all the time. Everything is changing all the time. When you get
to the end of the line and your ass comes off the seat, that's a change.
Everything is a change. You have to learn how to deal with it. Be more
like me and just go with the flow. Yes, be more like me and you will
see a whole new world opening up for you - a world where all changes
are perfect in a "Let's change partners and dance" kind of way.
"Everybody off - NOW! You have 10 seconds to disentrain. (thanks,
Mr. Wolff). Let's go people! Anyone not disentrained within ten
seconds will be summarily executed. The biggest change of all.
> Le 05/09/2023 à 23:11, Paul Epstein a écrit :
> >
> > On Uk trains, when the train comes to the end of the line, the standard
> > announcement is (something very similar to):
> > "This train terminates here. All change please."
> >
> > On Uk trains, when the train comes to the end of the line, the standard
> > announcement is (something very similar to):
> > "This train terminates here. All change please."
> > Isn't this announcement incorrect though? I would think that a passenger
> > would only "change" if they connect with another train at that station.
> > I wouldn't call it a "change" for those who have arrived at their destination.
> > would only "change" if they connect with another train at that station.
> > I wouldn't call it a "change" for those who have arrived at their destination.
> > "All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
> All passengers, please alight.
>
> It's true that most people will be going on to somewhere else by some
> other means of transport, even if it's only Shanks' pony, but the
> terminus itself can be the final destination (as when we went on a
> behind-the-scenes tour of Glasgow Central).
I wouldn't quibble about the word. The guy says get off, it's time
to get off no matter how he words it. As for 'change', it's all around
us all the time. Everything is changing all the time. When you get
to the end of the line and your ass comes off the seat, that's a change.
Everything is a change. You have to learn how to deal with it. Be more
like me and just go with the flow. Yes, be more like me and you will
see a whole new world opening up for you - a world where all changes
are perfect in a "Let's change partners and dance" kind of way.
"Everybody off - NOW! You have 10 seconds to disentrain. (thanks,
Mr. Wolff). Let's go people! Anyone not disentrained within ten
seconds will be summarily executed. The biggest change of all.
Mark Brader
Sep 8, 2023, 1:38:31 AM9/8/23
to
Peter Moylan:
> Someone with a weird sense of humour?
Trains and elevators are easier to use when the people getting on wait
for people to finish getting off through the same door before boarding.
Probably this was someone's idea of a clever way to achieve that.
> Platform 8 at Sydney Central Station is one of the dead-end platforms,
> i.e. it is impossible for an arriving train to go any further. Its only
> option is to reverse direction...
But it may or may not still be in service when it does so. If the train
is going out of service, the original announcement is the correct one.
On the Paris Metro, the typical terminal station has separate platforms
for unloading and loading, and if an arriving train is forming a service
in the reverse direction, it stops twice, going beyond the station in
between to reverse. Everybody is expected to get off at the unloading
platform, and they aren't told whether the train is going out of service.
--
Mark Brader | In the face of such devastating logic as "despite
Toronto | what you say you mean, you must mean this and you
m...@vex.net | are wrong", I cede the territory. --Truly Donovan
My text in this article is in the public domain.
> I've just arrived home by train. When we were waiting at the platform,
> there was an announcement: "The train arriving on platform 8 terminates
> here. Do not board this train". As soon as the train stopped, the
> announcement changed to "The train on platform 8 is going to Newcastle
> Interchange via Stratfield. Please board now."
That's Strathfield.
> there was an announcement: "The train arriving on platform 8 terminates
> here. Do not board this train". As soon as the train stopped, the
> announcement changed to "The train on platform 8 is going to Newcastle
> Interchange via Stratfield. Please board now."
> Someone with a weird sense of humour?
for people to finish getting off through the same door before boarding.
Probably this was someone's idea of a clever way to achieve that.
> Platform 8 at Sydney Central Station is one of the dead-end platforms,
> i.e. it is impossible for an arriving train to go any further. Its only
But it may or may not still be in service when it does so. If the train
is going out of service, the original announcement is the correct one.
On the Paris Metro, the typical terminal station has separate platforms
for unloading and loading, and if an arriving train is forming a service
in the reverse direction, it stops twice, going beyond the station in
between to reverse. Everybody is expected to get off at the unloading
platform, and they aren't told whether the train is going out of service.
--
Mark Brader | In the face of such devastating logic as "despite
Toronto | what you say you mean, you must mean this and you
m...@vex.net | are wrong", I cede the territory. --Truly Donovan
My text in this article is in the public domain.
occam
Sep 8, 2023, 1:58:50 AM9/8/23
to
artist, the editor/compiler of the train announcement messages, the
manager of the line...
I think the whole system must be geared against Newcastle and environs.
Or they are doing it just to rub it in?
occam
Sep 8, 2023, 2:01:08 AM9/8/23
to
On 07/09/2023 15:43, Adam Funk wrote:
> On 2023-09-06, occam wrote:
>
>> On 06/09/2023 00:11, Paul Epstein wrote:
>>> On Uk trains, when the train comes to the end of the line, the standard
>>> announcement is (something very similar to):
>>> "This train terminates here. All change please."
>>> Isn't this announcement incorrect though? I would think that a passenger
>>> would only "change" if they connect with another train at that station.
>>> I wouldn't call it a "change" for those who have arrived at their destination.
>>> "All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
>>>
>>
>>
>> <smile> Of all the announcements made on UK trains, you latch on to the
>> 'slight inaccuracy' of the 'All change' announcement?
>>
>> How about "this train has been cancelled due to leaves on the track" or
>> "cancelled due to the wrong type of snow".
>>
>> </slight inaccuracy>
>>
>> Can I suggest the already well known phrase 'All passengers please
>> disembark'.
>
> Pedants would complain that it's not a boat.
>
>
Pedants can go jump in the lake, sea, river... or any fluid of their
> On 2023-09-06, occam wrote:
>
>> On 06/09/2023 00:11, Paul Epstein wrote:
>>> On Uk trains, when the train comes to the end of the line, the standard
>>> announcement is (something very similar to):
>>> "This train terminates here. All change please."
>>> Isn't this announcement incorrect though? I would think that a passenger
>>> would only "change" if they connect with another train at that station.
>>> I wouldn't call it a "change" for those who have arrived at their destination.
>>> "All leave please" would probably be more accurate but no one says that.
>>>
>>
>>
>> <smile> Of all the announcements made on UK trains, you latch on to the
>> 'slight inaccuracy' of the 'All change' announcement?
>>
>> How about "this train has been cancelled due to leaves on the track" or
>> "cancelled due to the wrong type of snow".
>>
>> </slight inaccuracy>
>>
>> Can I suggest the already well known phrase 'All passengers please
>> disembark'.
>
> Pedants would complain that it's not a boat.
>
>
choice. </smile>
Peter Moylan
Sep 8, 2023, 2:59:37 AM9/8/23
to
On 08/09/23 15:58, occam wrote:
> On 08/09/2023 06:49, Peter Moylan wrote:
>> On 07/09/23 16:24, Bertel Lund Hansen wrote:
>>> Anders D. Nygaard wrote:
>>>
>>>>> Can I suggest the already well known phrase 'All passengers
>>>>> please disembark'.
>>>>
>>>> "Please leave the train" is used on the Copenhagen S-train
>>>> system.
>>>
>>> I had forgotten that because I bought a car. The English messages
>>> in the Danish trains are very clear and excellently expressed.
>>> They are spoken by an English person.
>>
>> The recorded messages on the Sydney-to-Newcastle train are
>> obviously spoken by a Sydney person. Even after all this time, she
>> still mispronounces the names of the towns near the Newcastle end.
>
> Surely it is not just the fault of the speaker ('she'). The
> recording artist, the editor/compiler of the train announcement
> messages, the manager of the line...
Yes, you're right. The responsibility should probably lie with whoever
> On 08/09/2023 06:49, Peter Moylan wrote:
>> On 07/09/23 16:24, Bertel Lund Hansen wrote:
>>> Anders D. Nygaard wrote:
>>>
>>>>> Can I suggest the already well known phrase 'All passengers
>>>>> please disembark'.
>>>>
>>>> "Please leave the train" is used on the Copenhagen S-train
>>>> system.
>>>
>>> I had forgotten that because I bought a car. The English messages
>>> in the Danish trains are very clear and excellently expressed.
>>> They are spoken by an English person.
>>
>> The recorded messages on the Sydney-to-Newcastle train are
>> obviously spoken by a Sydney person. Even after all this time, she
>> still mispronounces the names of the towns near the Newcastle end.
>
> Surely it is not just the fault of the speaker ('she'). The
> recording artist, the editor/compiler of the train announcement
> messages, the manager of the line...
is supposed to check the messages for correctness.
> I think the whole system must be geared against Newcastle and
> environs. Or they are doing it just to rub it in?
understand that there are some parts of the country that are not inside
Sydney.
Last night there was bad weather, mostly in terms of damaging winds,
that affected south-eastern Australia. When I first heard the news, in a
national broadcast, it was clear that the southern half of Victoria was
the worst affected, especially a long stretch of the south coast. The
storm did also stretch up part of the east coast, and reached both
Sydney and Newcastle, but the big effect was on the Victorian coast.
Shortly afterwards, I heard on the NSW state news that a bad storm had
hit Sydney. In what was almost an aside, it was mentioned that Melbourne
was affected by the same storm. That report, to me, had two annoying
features:
(a) the assumption that the Sydney news was the only important part;
(b) using "Melbourne" to mean "Victoria", as if the city was synonymous
with the state.
That sort of thing seems to happen all the time on the TV news.
Peter Moylan
Sep 8, 2023, 3:10:58 AM9/8/23
to
On 08/09/23 15:38, Mark Brader wrote:
> Peter Moylan:
>> I've just arrived home by train. When we were waiting at the
>> platform, there was an announcement: "The train arriving on
>> platform 8 terminates here. Do not board this train". As soon as
>> the train stopped, the announcement changed to "The train on
>> platform 8 is going to Newcastle Interchange via Stratfield.
>> Please board now."
>
> That's Strathfield.
Yes, sorry. Sometimes I don't hit a key hard enough.
> Peter Moylan:
>> I've just arrived home by train. When we were waiting at the
>> platform, there was an announcement: "The train arriving on
>> platform 8 terminates here. Do not board this train". As soon as
>> the train stopped, the announcement changed to "The train on
>> platform 8 is going to Newcastle Interchange via Stratfield.
>> Please board now."
>
> That's Strathfield.
>> Someone with a weird sense of humour?
>
> Trains and elevators are easier to use when the people getting on
> wait for people to finish getting off through the same door before
> boarding. Probably this was someone's idea of a clever way to
> achieve that.
train arrived. The second came as it was slowing to a halt.
>> Platform 8 at Sydney Central Station is one of the dead-end
>> platforms, i.e. it is impossible for an arriving train to go any
>> further. Its only option is to reverse direction...
>
> But it may or may not still be in service when it does so. If the
> train is going out of service, the original announcement is the
> correct one.
hinted that that train would be taken off to a parking area after the
passengers had disembarked, and that those of us waiting on the platform
must wait for a second train to arrive. That does happen sometimes. But
not in this case.
> On the Paris Metro, the typical terminal station has separate
> platforms for unloading and loading, and if an arriving train is
> forming a service in the reverse direction, it stops twice, going
> beyond the station in between to reverse. Everybody is expected to
> get off at the unloading platform, and they aren't told whether the
> train is going out of service.
does happen at the higher-numbered platforms at Sydney Central. (That
station handles both long-distance trains and suburban trains.) It's not
an option, though, when the end of the platform is also the end of the line.
occam
Sep 8, 2023, 11:14:43 AM9/8/23
to
Sam Plusnet
Sep 8, 2023, 1:04:11 PM9/8/23
to
Sam Plusnet
Sep 8, 2023, 2:41:12 PM9/8/23
to
foot snowdrifts anywhere else in the UK
Paul Epstein
Sep 8, 2023, 4:02:42 PM9/8/23
to
On Friday, September 8, 2023 at 5:43:41 AM UTC+1, Peter Moylan wrote:
> On 06/09/23 08:11, Paul Epstein wrote:
>
> > On Uk trains, when the train comes to the end of the line, the
> > standard announcement is (something very similar to): "This train
> > terminates here. All change please."
> I've just arrived home by train. When we were waiting at the platform,
> there was an announcement: "The train arriving on platform 8 terminates
> here. Do not board this train". As soon as the train stopped, the
> announcement changed to "The train on platform 8 is going to Newcastle
> Interchange via Stratfield. Please board now."
>
> Someone with a weird sense of humour?
...
> On 06/09/23 08:11, Paul Epstein wrote:
>
> > On Uk trains, when the train comes to the end of the line, the
> > standard announcement is (something very similar to): "This train
> > terminates here. All change please."
> I've just arrived home by train. When we were waiting at the platform,
> there was an announcement: "The train arriving on platform 8 terminates
> here. Do not board this train". As soon as the train stopped, the
> announcement changed to "The train on platform 8 is going to Newcastle
> Interchange via Stratfield. Please board now."
>
> Someone with a weird sense of humour?
Not at all a weird sense of humour IMO but a well-developed and fairly conventional
sense of humour. Why do you say "weird"?
An announcer with a weird sense of humour would have said:
"I've got a great riddle that I'd like to share with all of you!
What's the difference between a cheese and tomato sandwich and a cheese
and tomato baguette?
Do you give up?
One of them has cheese and tomatoes, and the other has tomatoes and cheese.
Geddit?"
I hear jokes by announcers quite a lot -- for example joking that a London Underground
train provides free champagne or something like that.
Paul Epstein
charles
Sep 8, 2023, 4:15:17 PM9/8/23
to
In article <6VJKM.39206$07Jf...@fx12.ams1>,
Indeed, some years ago, I was driving through Glencoe in, what could only
be described as, a blizzard and I was warned on the radio that there was
quarter of an inch of snow in Brighton. When I reached Glasgow, the bus
services had stopped because of snow. But luckily, the airport was open.
--
from KT24 in Surrey, England - sent from my RISC OS 4tщ
"I'd rather die of exhaustion than die of boredom" Thomas Carlyle
be described as, a blizzard and I was warned on the radio that there was
quarter of an inch of snow in Brighton. When I reached Glasgow, the bus
services had stopped because of snow. But luckily, the airport was open.
--
from KT24 in Surrey, England - sent from my RISC OS 4tщ
"I'd rather die of exhaustion than die of boredom" Thomas Carlyle
phil
Sep 8, 2023, 7:20:00 PM9/8/23
to
the bus services to grind to a halt. It catches them out every time.
--
Phil B.
Athel Cornish-Bowden
Sep 9, 2023, 6:09:42 AM9/9/23
to
winter on sabbatical in Guelph, Ontario. There is not a lot to do in
Guelph during a cold weekend so I used to take the bus to Toronto each
weekend to stay with my aunt. Regardless of the weather the bus was
_never_ late. Likewise, the only time when snow affected traffic was
while it was actually snowing. As soon as the snow stopped it would be
swept off the road surface within half an hour.
Nearly all the people who took that bus were students, and I learned a
lot about what students talk about when they think that there are no
professors listening. What do you think was the favourite topic of
conversation of young men in the bus:
Football?
Ice-hockey?
Women?
Cars?
Skiing?
The weather?
Something else?
If you guessed "something else" you win. Almost the _only_ things they
talked about were tests: what did you think of this week's test? What
will probably be in next week's test? It was like that every single
weekend.
--
Athel -- French and British, living in Marseilles for 36 years; mainly
in England until 1987.
Peter T. Daniels
Sep 9, 2023, 10:16:13 AM9/9/23
to
pieces with a slight snow. But just look at the Inaugurations (January 20)
the participants are freezing in the wind! It only moved inddors once, for
one of Reagan's.
I drove to the Linguistic Society annual meeting in Baltimore (first weekend
in January), 50 miles north of DC -- and the schools were closed for 1/2 inch
(1 cm) of snow.
St. Louis, MO, OTOH, has the slogan "Far enough South to be cultured,
far enough North not to be hick" -- and their natural disasters are appropriate
to their climate: river floods.
Jerry Friedman
Sep 9, 2023, 10:21:54 AM9/9/23
to
On Saturday, September 9, 2023 at 8:16:13 AM UTC-6, Peter T. Daniels wrote:
[snow removal]
> St. Louis, MO, OTOH, has the slogan "Far enough South to be cultured,
> far enough North not to be hick" -- and their natural disasters are appropriate
> to their climate: river floods.
Cf. the comment in /The Yale Insider's Guide to Colleges/: "St. Louis, city
of Northern charm and Southern efficiency".
--
Jerry Friedman
[snow removal]
> St. Louis, MO, OTOH, has the slogan "Far enough South to be cultured,
> far enough North not to be hick" -- and their natural disasters are appropriate
> to their climate: river floods.
of Northern charm and Southern efficiency".
--
Jerry Friedman
lar3ryca
Sep 9, 2023, 1:09:51 PM9/9/23
to
On 2023-09-09 04:09, Athel Cornish-Bowden wrote:
> On 2023-09-08 23:19:54 +0000, phil said:
>
>> On 08/09/2023 21:15, charles wrote:
>> To be fair, a quarter-inch of snow in Brighton is quite enough to
>> cause the bus services to grind to a halt. It catches them out every
>> time.
>
> Places that a lot of snow know how to cope with it. In 1977 I spent a
> winter on sabbatical in Guelph, Ontario.
To paraphrase Maxwell Smart, "Missed you by THAT much!"
> On 2023-09-08 23:19:54 +0000, phil said:
>
>> On 08/09/2023 21:15, charles wrote:
>> To be fair, a quarter-inch of snow in Brighton is quite enough to
>> cause the bus services to grind to a halt. It catches them out every
>> time.
>
> Places that a lot of snow know how to cope with it. In 1977 I spent a
> winter on sabbatical in Guelph, Ontario.
While it wasn't 'my' account I was often called out to the University to
install engineering changes, to provide tech support, or to repair their
computers after hours. That was when I was working out of the Kitchener
office of IBM, from ''68 to '72.
One night, I was called out to fix one of their smaller computers (a
360/50 IIRC). It was snowing lightly when I left my home in Preston, but
by the time I finished the call, I would have called it a blizzard.
I was driving a Triumph TR3 at the time, and about halfway home the
engine started to overheat. Checking, I found the radiator packed with
snow, and I didn't think I could clear it. There was no traffic at all,
so I elected to keep going. I managed to get home, but the engine was in
pretty bad shape. I ended up replacing it.
That TR3 was probably my favourite car. Second favourite was my bug-eyed
Sprite.
> There is not a lot to do in
> Guelph during a cold weekend so I used to take the bus to Toronto each
> weekend to stay with my aunt. Regardless of the weather the bus was
> _never_ late. Likewise, the only time when snow affected traffic was
> while it was actually snowing. As soon as the snow stopped it would be
> swept off the road surface within half an hour.
>
> Nearly all the people who took that bus were students, and I learned a
> lot about what students talk about when they think that there are no
> professors listening. What do you think was the favourite topic of
> conversation of young men in the bus:
>
> Football?
> Ice-hockey?
> Women?
> Cars?
> Skiing?
> The weather?
> Something else?
>
> If you guessed "something else" you win. Almost the _only_ things they
> talked about were tests: what did you think of this week's test? What
> will probably be in next week's test? It was like that every single
> weekend.
>
--
Silvano
Sep 10, 2023, 5:44:37 AM9/10/23
to
phil hat am 09.09.2023 um 01:19 geschrieben:
> To be fair, a quarter-inch of snow in Brighton is quite enough to cause
> the bus services to grind to a halt. It catches them out every time.
Which is better?
1) Same in Rome.
2) The same in Rome.
3) In Rome as well.
Is snow in Brighton as seldom as in Rome? I wonder, because I saw snow
in London in October.
> To be fair, a quarter-inch of snow in Brighton is quite enough to cause
> the bus services to grind to a halt. It catches them out every time.
1) Same in Rome.
2) The same in Rome.
3) In Rome as well.
Is snow in Brighton as seldom as in Rome? I wonder, because I saw snow
in London in October.
Peter Moylan
Sep 10, 2023, 6:59:38 AM9/10/23
to
On 10/09/23 19:44, Silvano wrote:
> phil hat am 09.09.2023 um 01:19 geschrieben:
>
>> To be fair, a quarter-inch of snow in Brighton is quite enough to
>> cause the bus services to grind to a halt. It catches them out
>> every time.
>
> Which is better? 1) Same in Rome. 2) The same in Rome. 3) In Rome as
> well.
Your number 1 would be understood, but it's not good English. 2 and 3
> phil hat am 09.09.2023 um 01:19 geschrieben:
>
>> To be fair, a quarter-inch of snow in Brighton is quite enough to
>> cause the bus services to grind to a halt. It catches them out
>> every time.
>
> Which is better? 1) Same in Rome. 2) The same in Rome. 3) In Rome as
> well.
are acceptable, with number 2 being most likely in practice.
> Is snow in Brighton as seldom as in Rome? I wonder, because I saw
> snow in London in October.
better word in this context would be "infrequent".
I first saw snow, through a window, when I was about 4 years old, but
only a few flakes, and it probably evaporated before hitting the ground.
Apart from that, I never saw snow until my first visit to Brussels,
when I was in my late thirties.
Silvano
Sep 10, 2023, 5:19:26 PM9/10/23
to
Peter Moylan hat am 10.09.2023 um 12:59 geschrieben:
>> Is snow in Brighton as seldom as in Rome? I wonder, because I saw
>> snow in London in October.
>
> Quibble: you can't use "seldom" that way, because it's an adverb. A
> better word in this context would be "infrequent".
Or "rare"?
> On 10/09/23 19:44, Silvano wrote:
>> phil hat am 09.09.2023 um 01:19 geschrieben:
>>
>>> To be fair, a quarter-inch of snow in Brighton is quite enough to
>>> cause the bus services to grind to a halt. It catches them out
>>> every time.
>>
>> Which is better? 1) Same in Rome. 2) The same in Rome. 3) In Rome as
>> well.
>
> Your number 1 would be understood, but it's not good English. 2 and 3
> are acceptable, with number 2 being most likely in practice.
Thank you!
>> phil hat am 09.09.2023 um 01:19 geschrieben:
>>
>>> To be fair, a quarter-inch of snow in Brighton is quite enough to
>>> cause the bus services to grind to a halt. It catches them out
>>> every time.
>>
>> Which is better? 1) Same in Rome. 2) The same in Rome. 3) In Rome as
>> well.
>
> Your number 1 would be understood, but it's not good English. 2 and 3
> are acceptable, with number 2 being most likely in practice.
>> Is snow in Brighton as seldom as in Rome? I wonder, because I saw
>> snow in London in October.
>
> Quibble: you can't use "seldom" that way, because it's an adverb. A
> better word in this context would be "infrequent".
Peter Moylan
Sep 10, 2023, 6:42:58 PM9/10/23
to
Both of them, I think, suggest that you get snow in Rome only once every
few years. I'd use 'rare' if it was only once in twenty years.
'Uncommon' and 'unusual' would also work.
phil
Sep 10, 2023, 7:50:16 PM9/10/23
to
it's often late in the season -- March or April. Brighton is hilly, and
a modest covering of wet snow means the buses can't get up the hills. It
doesn't often last very long.
--
Phil B.
Silvano
Sep 11, 2023, 4:26:19 AM9/11/23
to
Peter Moylan hat am 11.09.2023 um 00:42 geschrieben:
thirty years) and infrequent for snow in Milan (about every other year
in the 1970s, now probably once every 3-5 years).
> On 11/09/23 07:19, Silvano wrote:
>> Peter Moylan hat am 10.09.2023 um 12:59 geschrieben:
>>> On 10/09/23 19:44, Silvano wrote:
>
>>>> Is snow in Brighton as seldom as in Rome? I wonder, because I
>>>> saw snow in London in October.
>>>
>>> Quibble: you can't use "seldom" that way, because it's an adverb.
>>> A better word in this context would be "infrequent".
>>
>> Or "rare"?
>
> 'Rare' works grammatically, but it's a bit stronger than 'infrequent'.
> Both of them, I think, suggest that you get snow in Rome only once every
> few years. I'd use 'rare' if it was only once in twenty years.
Thank you again. Then I'll use rare for snow in Rome (once in twenty or
>> Peter Moylan hat am 10.09.2023 um 12:59 geschrieben:
>>> On 10/09/23 19:44, Silvano wrote:
>
>>>> Is snow in Brighton as seldom as in Rome? I wonder, because I
>>>> saw snow in London in October.
>>>
>>> Quibble: you can't use "seldom" that way, because it's an adverb.
>>> A better word in this context would be "infrequent".
>>
>> Or "rare"?
>
> 'Rare' works grammatically, but it's a bit stronger than 'infrequent'.
> Both of them, I think, suggest that you get snow in Rome only once every
> few years. I'd use 'rare' if it was only once in twenty years.
thirty years) and infrequent for snow in Milan (about every other year
in the 1970s, now probably once every 3-5 years).
J. J. Lodder
Sep 11, 2023, 7:23:33 AM9/11/23
to
Jan
Kerr-Mudd, John
Sep 11, 2023, 7:28:02 AM9/11/23
to
--
Bah, and indeed Humbug.
Peter Moylan
Sep 11, 2023, 9:30:14 AM9/11/23
to
weather. Why not save their washing until they could get out of the snow?
I don't often send Christmas cards, but when I do it's difficult to find
cards without a winter theme. The people who make the cards haven't yet
woken up to the fact that Christmas comes in summer.
(I do exchange cards with a distant Irish cousin. She sends me cards
with messages like "Nollaig Shona agus Athbhliain faoi Mhaise Duit", so
I feel some obligation to respond with things like Santa on a surf
board.)
WIWAL the typical Australian Christmas dinner was hot roasts prepared in
an intolerably hot kitchen. We all wore suits to stay warm, and tried to
pretend that the sweat was not dripping off us. This custom has
gradually broken down over my lifetime. Now the typical Australian
Christmas dinner is cold sliced meats and salad, accompanied by lots of
beer and wine. Some people take their celebration down to the beach.
For the one Christmas I spent in the US, I felt that I would be breaking
tradition if I didn't go for a swim on Christmas day, so I had a quick
dip in San Francisco Bay. I got out very quickly, though.
I have since experienced a couple of European Christmases, so I do now
understand what all that hot food is about.
(But I've only ever met Zwarte Piet at the Belgian consulate in Sydney.)
Peter T. Daniels
Sep 11, 2023, 10:06:47 AM9/11/23
to
On Monday, September 11, 2023 at 9:30:14 AM UTC-4, Peter Moylan wrote:
> For the one Christmas I spent in the US, I felt that I would be breaking
> tradition if I didn't go for a swim on Christmas day, so I had a quick
> dip in San Francisco Bay. I got out very quickly, though.
As I noted the last time you mentioned that, our Polar Bear Clubs
> For the one Christmas I spent in the US, I felt that I would be breaking
> tradition if I didn't go for a swim on Christmas day, so I had a quick
> dip in San Francisco Bay. I got out very quickly, though.
usually do that on New Year's Day morning.
Bertel Lund Hansen
Sep 11, 2023, 10:10:23 AM9/11/23
to
Peter Moylan wrote:
> I don't often send Christmas cards, but when I do it's difficult to find
> cards without a winter theme. The people who make the cards haven't yet
> woken up to the fact that Christmas comes in summer.
In Denmark we have cold weather during Christmas. One year my two
> I don't often send Christmas cards, but when I do it's difficult to find
> cards without a winter theme. The people who make the cards haven't yet
> woken up to the fact that Christmas comes in summer.
daughters were in South Africa in that period. They sent me a picture
taken on the 24th of december. They were lying on the beach with a clear
sky and a hot sun. They wrote that it was difficult to get in the
Christmas mood.
--
Bertel, Denmark
Ken Blake
Sep 11, 2023, 10:41:08 AM9/11/23
to
Peter Moylan
Sep 11, 2023, 11:00:51 AM9/11/23
to
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-06-22/dark-mofo-nude-midwinter-swim-2023/102506380
The really brave participants do it in Antarctica:
https://www.antarctica.gov.au/news/2022/expeditioners-take-the-polar-plunge-for-midwinter/
Peter T. Daniels
Sep 11, 2023, 12:36:57 PM9/11/23
to
On Monday, September 11, 2023 at 11:00:51 AM UTC-4, Peter Moylan wrote:
> On 12/09/23 00:06, Peter T. Daniels wrote:
> > On Monday, September 11, 2023 at 9:30:14 AM UTC-4, Peter Moylan wrote:
> >
> >> For the one Christmas I spent in the US, I felt that I would be breaking
> >> tradition if I didn't go for a swim on Christmas day, so I had a quick
> >> dip in San Francisco Bay. I got out very quickly, though.
> >
> > As I noted the last time you mentioned that, our Polar Bear Clubs
> > usually do that on New Year's Day morning.
> The comparable activity here is a nude swim at the winter solstice:
>
> https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-06-22/dark-mofo-nude-midwinter-swim-2023/102506380
Ours don't do it naked because they want to be on the evening news.
> On 12/09/23 00:06, Peter T. Daniels wrote:
> > On Monday, September 11, 2023 at 9:30:14 AM UTC-4, Peter Moylan wrote:
> >
> >> For the one Christmas I spent in the US, I felt that I would be breaking
> >> tradition if I didn't go for a swim on Christmas day, so I had a quick
> >> dip in San Francisco Bay. I got out very quickly, though.
> >
> > As I noted the last time you mentioned that, our Polar Bear Clubs
> > usually do that on New Year's Day morning.
> The comparable activity here is a nude swim at the winter solstice:
>
> https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-06-22/dark-mofo-nude-midwinter-swim-2023/102506380
They mostly wear Speedos/bikinis. Either tthe news cameras don't
look at the ones who shouldn't be wearing Speedos/bikinis, or only
people who are fit enough to survive the experience do it.
> The really brave participants do it in Antarctica:
>
> https://www.antarctica.gov.au/news/2022/expeditioners-take-the-polar-plunge-for-midwinter/
Kerr-Mudd, John
Sep 11, 2023, 12:55:50 PM9/11/23
to
J. J. Lodder
Sep 11, 2023, 5:11:22 PM9/11/23
to
Jan
Bertel Lund Hansen
Sep 12, 2023, 2:01:25 AM9/12/23
to
Kerr-Mudd, John wrote:
>>>>> Thank you again. Then I'll use rare for snow in Rome (once in twenty or
>>>>> thirty years) and infrequent for snow in Milan (about every other year
>>>>> in the 1970s, now probably once every 3-5 years).
>>>>
>>>> And Jerusalem?
>>>>
>>> Every year at Christmas without fail. I've seen the evidence on cards.
>>
>>
>> Evidence? You're dreaming.
>
> Sing it, brother. Or do a search with Bing.
Applause!
>>>>> Thank you again. Then I'll use rare for snow in Rome (once in twenty or
>>>>> thirty years) and infrequent for snow in Milan (about every other year
>>>>> in the 1970s, now probably once every 3-5 years).
>>>>
>>>> And Jerusalem?
>>>>
>>> Every year at Christmas without fail. I've seen the evidence on cards.
>>
>>
>> Evidence? You're dreaming.
>
> Sing it, brother. Or do a search with Bing.
--
Bertel, Denmark
Adam Funk
Sep 12, 2023, 5:00:14 AM9/12/23
to
On 2023-09-11, Peter Moylan wrote:
> On 12/09/23 00:06, Peter T. Daniels wrote:
>> On Monday, September 11, 2023 at 9:30:14 AM UTC-4, Peter Moylan wrote:
>>
>>> For the one Christmas I spent in the US, I felt that I would be breaking
>>> tradition if I didn't go for a swim on Christmas day, so I had a quick
>>> dip in San Francisco Bay. I got out very quickly, though.
>>
>> As I noted the last time you mentioned that, our Polar Bear Clubs
>> usually do that on New Year's Day morning.
>
> The comparable activity here is a nude swim at the winter solstice:
>
> https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-06-22/dark-mofo-nude-midwinter-swim-2023/102506380
Well, they're wearing hats! Anyway I had to look "Dark Mofo" up ---
> On 12/09/23 00:06, Peter T. Daniels wrote:
>> On Monday, September 11, 2023 at 9:30:14 AM UTC-4, Peter Moylan wrote:
>>
>>> For the one Christmas I spent in the US, I felt that I would be breaking
>>> tradition if I didn't go for a swim on Christmas day, so I had a quick
>>> dip in San Francisco Bay. I got out very quickly, though.
>>
>> As I noted the last time you mentioned that, our Polar Bear Clubs
>> usually do that on New Year's Day morning.
>
> The comparable activity here is a nude swim at the winter solstice:
>
> https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-06-22/dark-mofo-nude-midwinter-swim-2023/102506380
not the "mofo" I've heard before.
>
> The really brave participants do it in Antarctica:
>
> https://www.antarctica.gov.au/news/2022/expeditioners-take-the-polar-plunge-for-midwinter/
>
--
out of toes, then you read in the next foot and repeat. If you run out
of bullets, you continue anyway because you have no exception-handling
facility.
J. J. Lodder
Sep 12, 2023, 5:24:32 AM9/12/23
to
He has been repaced by 'roetveeg Piet', (soot stain Piet)
usually white with some smudges.
He gets black not by being black, but by descending through chimneys,
to bring packages for the kids.
(and to take away that hay and carrots for Sint's horse,
waiting on the rooftop)
BTW, there is nothing ancient about that 'Piet'.
He is a mid-19th century invention,
About contemporary with Santa's reindeer.
The 'Sint Nocolaas' otoh goes back to the middle ages,
(see Jan Steen for what the feast looked like in the 17th)
Jan
Madhu
Sep 12, 2023, 11:35:33 AM9/12/23
to
* Peter Moylan <udna2u$13hdq$1 @dont-email.me> :
Wrote on Tue, 12 Sep 2023 01:00:43 +1000:
> On 12/09/23 00:06, Peter T. Daniels wrote:
>> On Monday, September 11, 2023 at 9:30:14 AM UTC-4, Peter Moylan wrote:
>>
>>> For the one Christmas I spent in the US, I felt that I would be breaking
>>> tradition if I didn't go for a swim on Christmas day, so I had a quick
>>> dip in San Francisco Bay. I got out very quickly, though.
There's an annual event close which just got over
https://waterworldswim.com/swims-events/golden-gate-bridge/
[I was suprised to recognise last years winner, a frenchman, who was
briefly a former colleague at work]
Wrote on Tue, 12 Sep 2023 01:00:43 +1000:
> On 12/09/23 00:06, Peter T. Daniels wrote:
>> On Monday, September 11, 2023 at 9:30:14 AM UTC-4, Peter Moylan wrote:
>>
>>> For the one Christmas I spent in the US, I felt that I would be breaking
>>> tradition if I didn't go for a swim on Christmas day, so I had a quick
>>> dip in San Francisco Bay. I got out very quickly, though.
https://waterworldswim.com/swims-events/golden-gate-bridge/
[I was suprised to recognise last years winner, a frenchman, who was
briefly a former colleague at work]
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