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The Big Bang Theory "The Roomate Transmogrification" (spoilers)

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Adam H. Kerman

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May 19, 2011, 9:06:10 PM5/19/11
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Hah! New clause in the Roomate Agreement: They get to make end of life
decisions for each other!

Raj uses his Martha Stewart training to ingratiate himself with Sheldon.

Unfortuntely, the show veers into melodramata when a soused Penny
expresses second thoughts to Raj about dumping Leonard. She tells Raj
she might have thrown herself at him if they didn't know each other and
if he hadn't told her about watching pr0n when he's lonely.

Bernadette is about to become a lot more successful than Howard, with
her dissertation accepted and a high-paying job offer to work for a
pharmaceutical company. After getting teased by everyone, Howard does
indeed become upset with the thought of being her kept man when she
gives him a very expensive gift.

Priya and Leonard have a falling out over her pending return to India.

Hah! Penny and Raj do indeed get together in Leonard's bed, and Penny
regrets it, and sober Raj still won't talk to Penny the morning after!

Decent episode, no real big laughs, but it moved along. I like the way
they shook things up and I hope they don't press the Magic Reset Button
in the first episode of season 5.

Joe Snodgrass

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May 20, 2011, 6:27:56 AM5/20/11
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They will, but if they're smart, they'll wait 'til episode 3. I
figure that after Penny dumps Raj, he'll finally be able to talk to
her. It looks like they might be building up to Bernadette's
elimination, but if they're going to eliminate any of the new
"chicks," it should be Blossom. God how I hate her character. Her
mutation is so disgusting that I turn off the sound when she speaks.
Same for Sheldon.

And why the fridge didn't they do a show about Bernadette getting her
PhD? That idea has plenty of fish-out-of water material, to milk for
laughs.

Captain Infinity

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May 20, 2011, 2:38:51 PM5/20/11
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Once Upon A Time,
Adam H. Kerman wrote:

>Decent episode, no real big laughs, but it moved along.

The best thing about the ep was AmyFarrahFowler being phoned in for only
one scene. The less Bialik, the better.


**
Captain Infinity

Adam H. Kerman

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May 20, 2011, 3:53:42 PM5/20/11
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Joe Snodgrass <joe....@yahoo.com> wrote:

>> s
>> p
>> o
>> i
>> l
>> e
>> r
>>
>> s
>> p
>> a
>> c
>> e

>And why the fridge didn't they do a show about Bernadette getting her


>PhD? That idea has plenty of fish-out-of water material, to milk for
>laughs.

She hasn't gotten it yet. It sounded like her dissertation was authorized,
not accepted. I assume it's just an outline or a partial draft. I imagine
she has quite a lot of work yet to do and I hope her new employer gives
her the time she needs to complete it.

Getting the big job before the Ph.D was a bit odd.

suzeeq

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May 20, 2011, 4:47:31 PM5/20/11
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I thought she said it was accepted, all that's left is isuuing the
paperework.

Ian J. Ball

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May 20, 2011, 5:03:54 PM5/20/11
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On May 20, 12:53 pm, "Adam H. Kerman" <a...@chinet.com> wrote:
>
> Getting the big job before the Ph.D was a bit odd.

Not really - people go A.B.D. (All But Dissertation) all the time. As
long as you are in the process of finishing up, that's usually all
anyone cares about - you've already learned the skills they're
interested in long before you're actually written up you
dissertation...

Adam H. Kerman

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May 20, 2011, 5:28:52 PM5/20/11
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You had the impression that she's written her final draft? It sounded
ambiguous to me. Of course, if she's been a doctoral candidate for years,
she better be finished by this time.

How the hell could she afford to buy that Rolex for Howard?

Windowwasher

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May 20, 2011, 6:03:49 PM5/20/11
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"suzeeq" <su...@imbris.com> wrote in message
news:ir6k10$i6p$1...@dont-email.me...

Yes she said the committee accepted the dissertation so presumably she has
all the committee signatures and only needs to jump through a couple
university administrative hoops to get hooded.

Stan Brown

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May 20, 2011, 6:28:07 PM5/20/11
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On Fri, 20 May 2011 14:47:31 -0600, suzeeq wrote:
>
> Adam H. Kerman wrote:

> > Getting the big job before the Ph.D was a bit odd.
>
> I thought she said it was accepted, all that's left is isuuing the
> paperework.

Yup -- that was her announcement near the start of the show, that the
committee had accepted her thesis.

--
Stan Brown, Oak Road Systems, Tompkins County, New York, USA
http://OakRoadSystems.com
"Children -- so adorable. In a way they're like people."
-- Veronica, on /Better Off Ted/

Default User

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May 20, 2011, 7:03:54 PM5/20/11
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"Ian J. Ball" <ijb...@mac.com> wrote in message
news:69b09557-54ed-4837...@x38g2000pri.googlegroups.com...

> Not really - people go A.B.D. (All But Dissertation) all the time. As
> long as you are in the process of finishing up, that's usually all
> anyone cares about - you've already learned the skills they're
> interested in long before you're actually written up you
> dissertation...

Of course, that brings up the point that someone that close to a doctorate
in her field wouldn't be likely to be a waitress at the Cheesecake factory.
She'd be teaching and doing research, and possibly part-time as a lab-tech.

But, reality, what a concept!

Brian
--
Day 834 of the "no grouchy usenet posts" project
Current music playing: "Hong Kong Garden" (Siouxie and Banshees)


Adam H. Kerman

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May 20, 2011, 7:10:31 PM5/20/11
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Windowwasher <window...@somewhere.com> wrote:

Did she defend her dissertation before the committee? There's usually
an oral presentation, and since that makes for high drama, you'd think
they would have shown her preparing for it.

Adam H. Kerman

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May 20, 2011, 7:12:45 PM5/20/11
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Default User <defaul...@yahoo.com> wrote:

>"Ian J. Ball" <ijb...@mac.com> wrote:

>>Not really - people go A.B.D. (All But Dissertation) all the time. As
>>long as you are in the process of finishing up, that's usually all
>>anyone cares about - you've already learned the skills they're
>>interested in long before you're actually written up you
>>dissertation...

>Of course, that brings up the point that someone that close to a doctorate
>in her field wouldn't be likely to be a waitress at the Cheesecake factory.
>She'd be teaching and doing research, and possibly part-time as a lab-tech.

>But, reality, what a concept!

When Penny got her the job, they did say why she had to take it. Yeah,
there can be a stipend involved while you are a doctoral candidate, but
it won't pay all your expenses. I assume she took the job because she
was broke.

hanc...@bbs.cpcn.com

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May 20, 2011, 9:46:11 PM5/20/11
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On May 20, 5:28 pm, "Adam H. Kerman" <a...@chinet.com> wrote:

> >I thought she said it was accepted, all that's left is isuuing the
> >paperework.
>
> You had the impression that she's written her final draft? It sounded
> ambiguous to me. Of course, if she's been a doctoral candidate for years,
> she better be finished by this time.

It sounded like she had completed all the requirements--wrote the
paper, defended it, etc, which would make sense given she was offered
a nice job.


> How the hell could she afford to buy that Rolex for Howard?-

She likely charged it. Probably not a prudent purchase before
actually taking the new job, but after all this is a sitcom so a very
minor stretch is no big deal. Indeed, lots of people spend money they
don't have to celebrate a brand new job.

hanc...@bbs.cpcn.com

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May 20, 2011, 9:48:56 PM5/20/11
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On May 20, 7:03 pm, "Default User" <defaultuse...@yahoo.com> wrote:

> Of course, that brings up the point that someone that close to a doctorate
> in her field wouldn't be likely to be a waitress at the Cheesecake factory.
> She'd be teaching and doing research, and possibly part-time as a lab-tech.
>
> But, reality, what a concept!

Doctorial candidates and PhD's can be found in all sorts of
situations. Even a real-life PhD playing one on TV.

hanc...@bbs.cpcn.com

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May 20, 2011, 9:53:14 PM5/20/11
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On May 20, 7:10 pm, "Adam H. Kerman" <a...@chinet.com> wrote:

>Did she defend her dissertation before the committee?

The show implied she had completed everything.

I don't think the show bothered to go into specific detail. The show
usually does not refer to any of their specific academic histories or
current university duties unless it can be mined for comedic effect.
Indeed, IIRC, it's been very rare we've seen any of the four teaching
in front of a class or any of their students. Sheldon had some
groupies over, once.

On 3rd Rock, we often saw Dr. Solomon's class and his students "we
choked on our SAT's". They even joked that they were in the same
class over and over again over the years.

Adam H. Kerman

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May 20, 2011, 10:17:45 PM5/20/11
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hanc...@bbs.cpcn.com wrote:
>On May 20, 5:28 pm, "Adam H. Kerman" <a...@chinet.com> wrote:

>>How the hell could she afford to buy that Rolex for Howard?-

>She likely charged it.

Without credit? Right.

>Probably not a prudent purchase before actually taking the new job,
>but after all this is a sitcom so a very minor stretch is no big deal.
>Indeed, lots of people spend money they don't have to celebrate a brand
>new job.

Buying a Rolex would exceed any poor college student's credit limit.

Steve Bartman

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May 20, 2011, 11:03:34 PM5/20/11
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On Fri, 20 May 2011 21:28:52 +0000 (UTC), "Adam H. Kerman"
<a...@chinet.com> wrote:

>How the hell could she afford to buy that Rolex for Howard?

Signing bonus.

Steve

suzeeq

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May 20, 2011, 11:33:20 PM5/20/11
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Mega Student loans and all that, which would need to be paid on if she'd
finished her classes and was just working on the dissertation. A friend
of mine is ABD and he'd worked at 2 parttime jobs while in grad school
then full time while he was trying to get the resources he needed for
the dissertation.

Adam H. Kerman

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May 21, 2011, 12:20:58 AM5/21/11
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Steve Bartman <sbar...@visi.com> wrote:
>"Adam H. Kerman" <a...@chinet.com> wrote:

>>How the hell could she afford to buy that Rolex for Howard?

>Signing bonus.

That makes sense.

Barry Margolin

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May 21, 2011, 12:36:33 AM5/21/11
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In article <ir6sd7$rb9$6...@news.albasani.net>,

"Adam H. Kerman" <a...@chinet.com> wrote:

> Did she defend her dissertation before the committee? There's usually
> an oral presentation, and since that makes for high drama, you'd think
> they would have shown her preparing for it.

This show is about as realistic about being a university researcher as
the CSI's are about being a forensic investigator.

--
Barry Margolin, bar...@alum.mit.edu
Arlington, MA
*** PLEASE don't copy me on replies, I'll read them in the group ***

Anim8rFSK

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May 21, 2011, 10:53:15 AM5/21/11
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In article <barmar-A7105F....@news.eternal-september.org>,
Barry Margolin <bar...@alum.mit.edu> wrote:

> In article <ir6sd7$rb9$6...@news.albasani.net>,
> "Adam H. Kerman" <a...@chinet.com> wrote:
>
> > Did she defend her dissertation before the committee? There's usually
> > an oral presentation, and since that makes for high drama, you'd think
> > they would have shown her preparing for it.
>
> This show is about as realistic about being a university researcher as
> the CSI's are about being a forensic investigator.

More importantly, was "Transmogrification" a word before Bill Watterson
started using it?

--
"Please, I can't die, I've never kissed an Asian woman!"
Shego on "Shat My Dad Says"

Barry Margolin

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May 21, 2011, 12:30:25 PM5/21/11
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In article <ANIM8Rfsk-DCFCB...@news.easynews.com>,
Anim8rFSK <ANIM...@cox.net> wrote:

> In article <barmar-A7105F....@news.eternal-september.org>,
> Barry Margolin <bar...@alum.mit.edu> wrote:
>
> > In article <ir6sd7$rb9$6...@news.albasani.net>,
> > "Adam H. Kerman" <a...@chinet.com> wrote:
> >
> > > Did she defend her dissertation before the committee? There's usually
> > > an oral presentation, and since that makes for high drama, you'd think
> > > they would have shown her preparing for it.
> >
> > This show is about as realistic about being a university researcher as
> > the CSI's are about being a forensic investigator.
>
> More importantly, was "Transmogrification" a word before Bill Watterson
> started using it?

dictionary.reference.com and etymonline.com both say it dates from the
1650's. So at best, he repopularized it.

Steve Bartman

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May 21, 2011, 1:06:28 PM5/21/11
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On Sat, 21 May 2011 04:20:58 +0000 (UTC), "Adam H. Kerman"
<a...@chinet.com> wrote:

>Steve Bartman <sbar...@visi.com> wrote:
>>"Adam H. Kerman" <a...@chinet.com> wrote:
>
>>>How the hell could she afford to buy that Rolex for Howard?
>
>>Signing bonus.
>
>That makes sense.

Yes, if there was a bonus she could buy the watch (afford it is
another matter), but the ironic thing is that wrist watch sales are
plummeting among men of Howard's age cohort. They use their phones for
timekeeping. I'm 52 and even I only wear a watch maybe twice a week.

Steve

Joe Snodgrass

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May 21, 2011, 1:45:21 PM5/21/11
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On May 20, 6:28 pm, Stan Brown <the_stan_br...@fastmail.fm> wrote:
> On Fri, 20 May 2011 14:47:31 -0600, suzeeq wrote:
>
> > Adam H. Kerman wrote:
> > > Getting the big job before the Ph.D was a bit odd.
>
> > I thought she said it was accepted, all that's left is isuuing the
> > paperework.
>
> Yup -- that was her announcement near the start of the show, that the
> committee had accepted her thesis.

OMG! You say "thesis" instead of "dissertation," which means that you
went to a REAL school. Where did you go? MIT? Confess!!

Adam H. Kerman

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May 21, 2011, 2:44:40 PM5/21/11
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Steve Bartman <sbar...@visi.com> wrote:
>"Adam H. Kerman" <a...@chinet.com> wrote:
>>Steve Bartman <sbar...@visi.com> wrote:
>>>"Adam H. Kerman" <a...@chinet.com> wrote:

>>>>How the hell could she afford to buy that Rolex for Howard?

>>>Signing bonus.

>>That makes sense.

>Yes, if there was a bonus she could buy the watch (afford it is
>another matter), but the ironic thing is that wrist watch sales are
>plummeting among men of Howard's age cohort. They use their phones for
>timekeeping. I'm 52 and even I only wear a watch maybe twice a week.

I'm younger than you. I didn't start carrying a phone until relatively
recently, just a few years ago, a concession to the almost complete
withdrawal of pay phones. However, I'd already stopped wearing a watch
years earlier.

Buying Howard something stylish seems pointless, unless you have his
mother pick it out for him.

Adam H. Kerman

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May 21, 2011, 2:45:50 PM5/21/11
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Barry Margolin <bar...@alum.mit.edu> wrote:
>Anim8rFSK <ANIM...@cox.net> wrote:

>>Barry Margolin <bar...@alum.mit.edu> wrote:
>>>"Adam H. Kerman" <a...@chinet.com> wrote:

>>>>Did she defend her dissertation before the committee? There's usually
>>>>an oral presentation, and since that makes for high drama, you'd think
>>>>they would have shown her preparing for it.

>>>This show is about as realistic about being a university researcher as
>>>the CSI's are about being a forensic investigator.

>>More importantly, was "Transmogrification" a word before Bill Watterson
>>started using it?

>dictionary.reference.com and etymonline.com both say it dates from the
>1650's. So at best, he repopularized it.

What was the first known use?

I do so miss Calvin and Hobbes.

Adam H. Kerman

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May 21, 2011, 2:49:10 PM5/21/11
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That's more stupid than funny, given that the words are synonyms. For
whatever reason, American universities use "thesis" as the requirement
for a Master's degree and "dissertation" for a Ph.D. I know that's not
necessarily the terminology elsewhere.

Stan Brown

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May 21, 2011, 4:25:08 PM5/21/11
to

Case Western, actually. Did she really say "dissertation"? I guess
I think of that and thesis as synonyms in this context.

Ian J. Ball

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May 21, 2011, 4:37:36 PM5/21/11
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On May 21, 11:49 am, "Adam H. Kerman" <a...@chinet.com> wrote:

You also (can) write a Thesis for a Bachelors (they're usually
optional, though are often required for Honors).

But, you're right - Dissertation is reserved for Ph.D.s, at least in
The U.S....

hanc...@bbs.cpcn.com

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May 21, 2011, 9:31:42 PM5/21/11
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On May 21, 1:06 pm, Steve Bartman <sbart...@visi.com> wrote:

> Yes, if there was a bonus she could buy the watch (afford it is
> another matter), but the ironic thing is that wrist watch sales are
> plummeting among men of Howard's age cohort. They use their phones for
> timekeeping. I'm 52 and even I only wear a watch maybe twice a week.

Back in the mid 1970s when they were researching how to make cell
phones* and switching centers. . . if someone had a plain vanilla
phone today with just the working clock, alarm clock, and calculator
(forget the phone part), it would be considered a very neat device in
those days.

*Cell phones were intended for cars and required too unit--a telephone
set in the front and a logic box in the trunk.

In a separate thread, it was observed that Britons say "mobile" while
Americans say "cell". (TV Ref. House of Anubis).

Adam H. Kerman

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May 21, 2011, 9:38:09 PM5/21/11
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hanc...@bbs.cpcn.com wrote:

>In a separate thread, it was observed that Britons say "mobile" while
>Americans say "cell". (TV Ref. House of Anubis).

The original "B" carrier in my area was Ameritech Mobile. But when I think
of a mobile phone, I think of Cannon.

Barry Margolin

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May 22, 2011, 12:17:35 AM5/22/11
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In article <v4sft6phegv9a7m2c...@4ax.com>,
Steve Bartman <sbar...@visi.com> wrote:

You don't get a Rolex because you need to know the time. It's a fancy
piece of jewelry that also happens to tell time.

hanc...@bbs.cpcn.com

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May 22, 2011, 12:42:52 AM5/22/11
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On May 21, 9:31 pm, hanco...@bbs.cpcn.com wrote:

> *Cell phones were intended for cars and required too unit--a telephone
> set in the front and a logic box in the trunk.

Oops--That should read: two units. The transmitter was high powered,
IIRC, 12 watts (there's detailed writeups online.) AMPS. Lot of
research required.

> In a separate thread, it was observed that Britons say "mobile" while
> Americans say "cell".  (TV Ref. House of Anubis).

That is to say, US: "Call him on his cell." UK: "Call him on his
mobile".

Years ago usage was "mobile phone" because they were only available
installed in cars per above.

Adam H. Kerman

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May 22, 2011, 1:54:30 AM5/22/11
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No, those were "car phones", distinguished from "bag phones", the
portable ones.

Captain Infinity

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May 22, 2011, 10:13:01 PM5/22/11
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Once Upon A Time,
hanc...@bbs.cpcn.com wrote:

>In a separate thread, it was observed that Britons say "mobile" while
>Americans say "cell".

They also say "rubbish", "bloody" and "brilliant". I mean, ALL THE TIME.
Whenever I see a Brit on TV every third word is "brilliant", except when
it's the fourth word because they sneak "bloody" in front of it.

What the heck is up with that?


**
Captain Infinity

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