Rock, Paper, Scissors

While watching the clip on Big Bang Theory about "Rock, Paper, Scissors, Lizard, Spock", I decided to look up the rules because it didn't make sense to me.

I found the rules on wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock-paper-scissors

While reading, I came across the reference to the Japanese version called Jan-ken-pon.
My mind flashed-back to my childhood when my mom and I would play the "Rock, Paper,Scissors" derivative Jack en poy; the chant clearly going through my head "Jack en Poy. Hali Hali Hoy!" or "Pik, Pik... Papel, Gunting, Bato!" Surely, this had to be related to the Japanese version.

I looked up the rules of Jan-ken-pon: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan-ken-pon

Sure enough, it was:

In the Philippines, a variation called jack en poy is used. This was introduced most likely during the Japanese occupation during World War II. The complete chant in Tagalog is Jack en poy, hali hali hoy, sino ang matalo, siya ang unggoy! ("Jack en poy, hali hali hoy, the one who loses is a monkey!"). Another variation is called bato bato pik! or simply pik.

To Hell in a Handbasket

That phrase came into my head as I was thinking about something. Then I thought, where did that phrase come from. What does it even mean? The picture painted in my head is a weird one. It doesn't even make much sense to me. I don't even know why I know that phrase or where I heard it from.

So, I looked it up. Not much help in that arena. Origins don't seem clear.
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_origin_of_going_to_hell_in_a_hand_basket

Worms in the Rain

It's April, so it's been raining a lot lately. I've noticed this many times that after a rainstorm, you see worms all over the payment. I always wonder if the worms knew they were going to die. Why don't they stay closer to the ground so they can go back down after the rain stops? Sometimes after the rain, if I see that a worm is still alive and writhing on the payment, I'll pick up a stick and place them on a patch of grass. I don't know if they survive. I guess it's just to make myself feel better.

Bathroom Urges

Why is it that you can control your extreme urge to go to the bathroom, but as soon as you near your destination all of a sudden you can't hold it anymore?

How to pronounce 'Often'

When I was a growing up, I was taught to pronounce often without the 't'. But, I keep hearing people pronounce it with a 't', so I decided to look it up.

From: http://www.pbs.org/speak/speech/beastly/

Often AWF-in or AHF-in. Do not pronounce the t.

Before I give you my two cents on the t in often, let’s take a look at what various authorities have said about it since the late 18th century.

John Walker (1791), whose Critical Pronouncing Dictionary was one of the most respected and popular references both in England and America well into the 19th century, declared that “in often and soften the t is silent.”

“The sounding of the t,” proclaims the legendary H.W. Fowler in Modern English Usage (1926), “which as the OED says is ‘not recognized by the dictionaries,’ is practised by two oddly consorted classes—the academic speakers who affect a more precise enunciation than their neighbours…& the uneasy half-literates who like to prove that they can spell….”

“The t in glisten is silent, even as it is in castle and often,” says Frank H. Vizetelly (1929), editor of Funk & Wagnalls New Standard (1913), “yet one occasionally hears pedants and provincials pronounce them [GLIS-ten] and [AWF-ten]. No pronouncing dictionary with a reputation to lose ever sounds the t in these words.”

“You don’t want a t in here any more than in soften,” advises Alfred H. Holt (1937).

Webster 2 (1934), which sanctions only AWF-in, notes that “the pronunciation [AWF-tin], until recently generally considered as more or less illiterate, is not uncommon among the educated in some sections, and is often used in singing.”

According to Random House II (1987),

OFTEN was pronounced with a t- sound until the 17th century, when a pronunciation without the (t) came to predominate in the speech of the educated, in both North America and Great Britain, and the earlier pronunciation fell into disfavor. Common use of a spelling pronunciation has since restored the (t) for many speakers, and today [AWF-in] and [AWF-tin]…exist side by side. Although it is still sometimes criticized, OFTEN with a (t) is now so widely heard from educated speakers that it has become fully standard once again.

“Nowadays,” says R.W. Burchfield (1996), editor of the OED 2 (1989), “many standard speakers use both [AWF-in] and [AWF-tin], but the former pronunciation is the more common of the two.

What is going on here? After two hundred years of censure, has the t in often scratched and clawed its way back into acceptability? I would caution those who might be consoled by the comments of Random House II and Burchfield to heed the admonitions of the past and avoid pronouncing the t. Current dictionaries, including Random House II, do not give priority to AWF-tin, and it is much less common in educated speech and far more often disapproved of by cultivated speakers—particularly teachers of English, drama, and speech—than Random House II makes it appear. In 1932 the English lexicographer Henry Cecil Wyld called AWF-tin “vulgar” and “sham-refined,” and today the bad odor of class-conscious affectation still clings to it as persistently as ever. As if that were not enough, analogy is entirely unsupportive: no one pronounces the t in soften, listen, fasten, moisten, hasten, chaste, christen, and Christmas—so, once and for all, let’s do away with the eccentric AWF-tin.

Jumping for Joy

Why do people jump, hop, bounce continuously when they are excited or happy? Especially in sporting events, when someone wins, especially the home team, the whole place is jumping up and down. Why is that?

Is it contagious to jump for joy when someone else is or is it how the body works?

Passion for Photos

Ever since I was a child, I had an affinity towards the camera. I remember being given my first camera at 9 years old. It was a Blue Kodak camera that used 110 film. (Those little cartridges were so cool) I used to shoot anything and everything and they usually turned out pretty bad.

As I grew older, I used 35mm point and shoot cameras. I would mostly take pictures of people and scenery. Again, most of the pictures were not very good. Then in college, I bought into the APS film craze. It was fun taking panoramic photographs. But, they were so hard to put in any standard photo album. This is probably when I really started to enjoy taking scenic photography.

I've never used an SLR or DSLR camera before and photography terms such as aperture and f-stops were a foreign language to me. Then, I was required to take a Photography course at my job and this opened up a whole new world to me. I decided to buy a point and shoot camera with manual capabilities for my own use, just to get my feet wet and practice. I would also borrow the DSLR camera at my work to hone my skills more.

But, what is it about photography that drew me towards it? I think one factor, is my love of traveling and sight-seeing. I wanted to capture these beautiful moments on film, to always remember them by. By understanding photography better, I can make these images even more powerful and bring back those memories to life.

I love to photograph buildings and architecture, especially with strong lines and curves. Now, the only time I photograph people is at family parties or social functions.

By no means, do I consider myself a photographer. I just love to take pictures. I love to learn all about photography and how to better my photographs.