Good morning and happy Tuesday! How about some fun with words for your morning musing? Another visit with Susie Dent and her wonderful little book of etymology and the history of words. Happy Tuesday Digital Neighbors!
Dismal - Derived from Latin dies mali, ‘evil days’. In medieval times the term “dismal days” referred to 24 specific days of the year that were regarded as unlucky. The meaning became more general as the old superstitions faded.
Leap year - A year of 366 days, also known as a bissextile year. In the Julian and Gregorian calendars, this is any year exactly divisible by four, except those divisible by 100 but not by 400. In ordinary years, the day of the month that falls on a Monday this year will fall on Tuesday next year and Wednesday the year after, but in the fourth year it will “leap over” Thursday to land on Friday. This happens because a day is added to February. The astronomical year (the time it takes Earth to orbit the sun) is approximately 365¼ days, or more precisely 365.2422 days. The difference between .25 and .2422 is corrected by omitting three leap days every 400 years. An old saying holds that during a leap year ladies may propose marriage, and if refused, may claim a silk gown.
Overmorrow - A sadly faded term for “the day after tomorrow.”
Dent, Susie. Interesting Stories about Curious Words: From Stealing Thunder to Red Herrings
Nightfall - Jordan Steranka - Unsplash
Today marks the three hundred and thirtieth birthday of the Frenchman François-Marie Arouet, better known by his nom de plume, Voltaire (1694-1778).
Born into a bourgeois family during the reign of Louis XIV, the “Sun King” (r. 1643-1715), Voltaire suffered tragedy at a young age when his mother died. Never close with his father or brother, Voltaire exhibited a rebellious attitude toward authority from his youth. His brilliant mind was fostered in the care of the Society of Jesus, who introduced him to the joys of literature and theater. Despite his later criticisms against the Church, Voltaire, throughout his life, fondly recalled his dedicated Jesuit teachers.
Although he spent time as a civil servant in the French embassy to the Hague, Voltaire’s main love was writing—an endeavor where he excelled in various genres, including poetry, which led to his appointment as the royal court poet for King Louis XV. Widely recognized as one of the greatest French writers, and even hyperbolically referred to by ...
Padre - Tom Miller invites you to a Coffee Talk, Speakeasies, Schmoozes, Tea Times, Afterhours and other gatherings.
https://teams.live.com/meet/93792382189049?p=DiBHsYfuECPgDrG7vO
2026 Coffee Talk with the ADD Irregulars
Thursday, January 1, 2026
6:00 AM - 8:00 AM (CST)
Occurs every day starting 1/1 until 12/31/2027
Coffee Talk - Daily beginning at 6:00 AM Central Time Zone - USA
White Pilled Wednesday - A break from the heaviness of news and current events to focus upon things more personal & positive for the first hour of Coffee Talk.
Afternoon Chats - Most Tuesday, Friday & Sundays 2:00 PM Central
Other chats as posted in the community.
Don’t argue with people over sixty.
Just don’t.
It’s not just an age; it’s a masterclass in survival.
They grew up without Google, without DoorDash, without therapy podcasts, and without an "undo" button. If something broke, they grabbed duct tape, WD-40, a hammer, and a look of sheer determination that made even the broken appliance second-guess itself.
As kids, they knew exactly what kind of mood their mom was in just by the sound of how hard she slammed the cast-iron skillet onto the stove.
They were the original latchkey kids — walking home from middle school with a house key tied around their neck, with strict orders to heat up lunch and not burn the kitchen down. By the time they were ten, they could bike to the corner store, buy a gallon of milk for the neighbor, feed the family dog, and still have time to play freeze tag in the yard until dark.
Their knees were a permanent canvas of scrapes, bruises, Mercurochrome, and rubbing alcohol. Their universal first-aid kit was just ...
