There's a difference between cussing & swearing?

Whenever I need to look up a word, I pop on over to dictionary.com. Well, one day this header caught my eye and welcoming the distraction I clicked it. It shoots me over to a blog called The Hot Word. Being the curious person that I am and a fan of totally weird and bizarre facts, I find it fascinating. I was completely sucked in by all the off-the-wall headers.

Bleep! What’s the difference between cussing, swearing, and cursing?

Want to meet two extinct letters of the alphabet? Learn what “thorn” and “wynn” sounded like

Why is “dog” one of the great mysteries of the English language?

The “Taser” is a serious weapon, but what the name stands for may puzzle you

What's even better than the answers are the comments posted by every type of person under the sun. Words are hot button issues.

The Death of Cursive?

I recently read an article about the furture of cursive in our school systems. The big question was should it still be taught, is it still necessary? WHAT?! My instant reaction was YES OF COURSE! It's cursive, it's handwriting, it's done on a daily basis right. Right?

I learned it in second grade, and remember most of my classmates being excited to learn it. Hey, we were in second grade now, we actually got to use pens for our assignments. We were big kids. Adults used cursive and so did all the older kids, it was cool that we finally got to learn it. Then I remember those endless lines of repeating the same letter over and over again. Where is the fun in that? If it's not something that's going to be fun, of course kids don't want to learn it.

But the question is: Is it still relevant?

I have read more than one article on this, and have seen every kind of answer. It improves fine motor skills, it's faster, more professional, and denotes an educated person. It's antiquated, technology makes it unnecessary, it's a waste of valuable education time.

My take:

I'm a throw back to the old days, but with a practical mind set. I think it is more important now than ever to teach kids the basics of cursive. And I mean the basics. Make it fun for kids and let them develop their own style. A handwritten note is something that is going to make you stand apart. It shows that you took the time to say hi to a friend, to wish grandma a happy birthday, or to thank a potential employer. It is a personal touch, a written fingerprint that is uniquely yours, in a world of processed fonts.

Bathroom Wall Commentary

What is it about bathroom walls that people feel the need to leave their thoughts on them? Little girls room, little boys room, it doesn't matter. The writing's on the wall. Some comments are serious or deep thoughts, and then there are these life altering reasonings:



Is it the need to stand up and be heard? The act of vandalism?
Some landlords have gone the can't-beat'em-join'em-approach:


Then there is the approach that leaves our scribe so intimdated that they decide to wait for a bathroom with less witnesses.

A person could instead leave a note on a bulletin board, or in a stairwell, on a door, a garbage can, but it's the bathroom wall that draws the greatest response in commentary. It must be the captive audience. But it makes you wonder who leaves that first comment on the bathroom wall. What was that first thought that started it all? Which scribble was it and why?