English Language & Usage: Multi-Layered Discourse Room

Mateon1

00:00

Hmm, that might be more fitting here, are these words recognized by English speakers?

Cerberus

If they are educated, yes.

Mateon1

Alright, thank you very much. Also, sorry I wasn't responding much, it's pretty late for me :)

Cerberus

Coeval is more common than the others, but it is usually said of things. But you can still use it with people.

But you did respond!

Besides, noöne is under any obligation to reply promptly here.

Mateon1

These words, apart from 'coeval' don't seen to be present in the online dictionaries I use... Google's "define ..." and the dictionaries have results for 'coeval', however 'equaeval' and 'equaevous' don't seem to have any definitions.

I believe 'coeval' could be used, I wouldn't feel safe using the other two.

Cerberus

@Mateon1 They are admittedly uncommon. But do we care what the common people know, hmm?

Educated people will understand equaeval.

Mitch

00:19

@Mateon1 coeval is the adjective you're looking for. But most people, even educated, will not understand it to mean 'of equal age'. They'll get a vague impression that it might have something to do with being in the same group. (Like 'cohort')

Cerberus

00:39

@Mitch Then they require further education.

SmokeDetector

01:48

[ SmokeDetector ] Blacklisted website: What is the grammatical subject in these phrases: "what is there to eat?" and "who is at the door" by Gargamel on english.stackexchange.com

Robusto

room topic changed to English Language & Usage: Siŋté Glešká, Tašúŋke Witkó, Tȟatȟáŋka Íyotake (no tags)

SmokeDetector

02:34

[ SmokeDetector ] Blacklisted website: What is the grammatical subject in these phrases: "what is there to eat?" and "who is at the door" by Gargamel on english.stackexchange.com

tchrist

04:06

May you never come to be so enraged over the injurious stupidity of shitty corporate software that you become blind with fury and a danger to yourself and others as your blood pressure spikes and your cats think you are going to pull the house down. No, I can't talk about it, but life is too short for this level of fucked-upness. I'd rather cut my own throat.

@Mitch We have different ideas of "educated".

And no, it is not my company's software. My company fires people who do this shit.

Kit Z. Fox

04:26

Well, good evening to you, @tchrist.

tchrist

Not especially. But you are kind to say so.

Kit Z. Fox

I'm having a good evening. I wish to share it with you.

tchrist

Does it involve scotch?

Kit Z. Fox

Not this particular evening.

There was...vodka?

tchrist

Can't type well. In bed with my arm arounf Randy purring inmy ear.

Kit Z. Fox

04:30

Sweet.

tchrist

No, I never drink when I'm upset.

Kit Z. Fox

I had an editor that I don't know offer me encouragement. I feel very happy right now.

I meant the purring kitty was sweet.

tchrist

He is.

You are a mom.

Kit Z. Fox

What can I offer to ease your upsettedness?

A joke?

A story?

My boys have taken to pretending that they are pets in the evening.

I have a kitty and a puppy who like to play fetch.

tchrist

Pets are better than pests.

Maybe talk of children would help.

Kit Z. Fox

04:33

The kitty likes to climb in my lap and push his face against mine and purr. The puppy likes to put his head on my lap and kick his foot while I scratch behind his ear.

They two both think this is hilarious.

tchrist

Do they yip or nip?

Kit Z. Fox

Nope.

The puppy pants sometimes, and has a certain number of barks for yes and no and maybe.

tchrist

So comfy.

Kit Z. Fox

It is.

The kitty likes to meow for attention.

tchrist

Does it work?

Kit Z. Fox

04:35

Yes.

I tell them they are very good pet children, and feed them pretend treats.

tchrist

Well, they're good for mice and cockroaches.

Kit Z. Fox

The littlest is the kitty, and the elder is the puppy.

tchrist

Of course. They confuse size for wisdom.

Kit Z. Fox

Sometimes the littlest wants to be a puppy too, then his name is either "Shadow" or "Darth Vader".

But he still acts like a cat.

Well, a cat that fetches.

The littlest loves being a kitty though. His kitty name is Bonkers. His ocelot name is Cheetah. His cheetah name is Whiskers.

tchrist

Cats fetch. Sometimes. Shadowcats are hard to see.

Kit Z. Fox

04:39

He likes to rub his cheeks on me, just like a cat, and put his head under my chin and purr.

tchrist

Cheetahs never prospah in the long run.

Kit Z. Fox

haha

The eldest like being a dog because he thinks that only dogs carry things in their mouths and also that dogs are smarter than cats. He has no basis for this comparison, as we have only two cats and no dogs.

His dog name is Rufus.

tchrist

I think children would be enough reason to endure the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune. Or at least, a concincing enough delusion of a reason.

Kit Z. Fox

And his favorite dog trick is to "walk like a human".

@tchrist I would have disagreed a dozen years ago.

tchrist

And he only says roof and rough and ralph.

Kit Z. Fox

04:43

Then somehow I had these wonderful children. Two of them!

tchrist

I keep thinking you've a third. I don't know why.

Kit Z. Fox

We thought about it. but decided we didn't want to be outnumbered.

tchrist

We dwindle.

20 to 10 to 3 to 3 to 1 to 0.

And there were none.

Kit Z. Fox

I was laughing with a friend tonight about how my sons have the stereotype that mommies know how to fix computers and write code.

And mommies teach you how to punch and use a toaster and make coffee.

tchrist

They just think mommies can do anything.

Kit Z. Fox

04:46

Also, help with video games and math homework.

tchrist

I'm afraid tnose are the only kind of girls I've ever liked. I have no time for the others.

Kit Z. Fox

It's pretty funny. A few weeks ago, my husband was troubleshooting something on the iPad for the little one, and he gives his daddy a dubious look and says "Maybe we should ask Mommy...""

tchrist

Well of course.

Ethan

Is there a room for history?

Kit Z. Fox

And he says "I can totally do this," all defensive. Then he sighs and says "Yeah, I guess we probably should."

@Ethan Probably. Want me to look?

infinitesimal

04:49

@ethan history of math and science?

Ethan

Yes please

no

Kit Z. Fox

The Time Machine

General discussion for history.stackexchange.com. For urgent i...

1

Ethan

American history*

Kit Z. Fox

That one?

Ethan

oh ok thx

Kit Z. Fox

04:50

Sure thing.

Gah. "Sure thing" marks me as a New Englander, dunnit?

room topic changed to English Language & Usage: No English required (no tags)

tchrist

> ‘I HAVE already told you of the sickness and confusion that comes with time travelling'. --H.G. Wells

Kit Z. Fox

Why am I not sleeping?

I wish I had eaten more for dinner.

tchrist

Also, the epigraph to The Peripheral, Gibson.

Kit Z. Fox

And that I needn't rise early.

tchrist

Would that I weren't made that way.

Kit Z. Fox

04:57

Are you cheered?

tchrist

I no longer fear my own destructive wrath.

It has abated, a bit.

Maybe I should play piano.

Kit Z. Fox

I have some writing I would share with you. Might make you laugh.

tchrist

But I am tired. I get up when you do, or should.

I could read.

Kit Z. Fox

It's really short. Here: foxfirekitty.wordpress.com/2013/07/30/lightning-rounds-16

tchrist

I can't reason my way out of these blinding rages. I can only be distracted. Thinking just makes it worse.

Kit Z. Fox

05:00

I found it again recently, and laughed out loud. I forgot I wrote it.

tchrist

reads

I've forgotten how to laugh, you know.

Kit Z. Fox

I'm certain you are just rusty.

Find the right oil and you'll be fine.

tchrist

MRI says typical age-related male-pattern frontal-lobe shrinkage.

Kit Z. Fox

Well, that's good-ish.

You aren't that old, iirc.

tchrist

Why? I was such a sweet lad, full of vim and joy, Now I'm just an old crank.

reads

Kit Z. Fox

05:04

Well, frontal lobe shrinkage is preferable to accidentally blasting a metal rod through your head.

tchrist

Or intentionally?

Kit Z. Fox

I suppose there would be more factors to evaluate if you did it intentionally.

tchrist

The older I get, the less tolerant I am of rigamarole.

Kit Z. Fox

Is that an oblique criticism of my ten-minute free write?

tchrist

And people 10, 20, 30 years my seniors say the same thing.

Kit Z. Fox

05:06

I can do better; I just need time to think about it.

Have you read Water for Elephants?

tchrist

@KitZ.Fox There is no bad pie.

Kit Z. Fox

Also, I say that, and I am a mere ten years your junior.

tchrist

I have not been kind on these last 10 years.

Kit Z. Fox

@tchrist "...pie competitions are unparalleled corruptions of the exquisite beauty of dessert consumption." Seriously. What kind of crack was I smoking?

tchrist

The wrong kind.

Kit Z. Fox

05:09

@tchrist What makes you say so?

tchrist

You were asking about crack varieties.

If you have cause to question its calibre, you know the answer.

Kit Z. Fox

Nah, I laughed. I told you.

I find some of the stuff I wrote, especially the spontaneous stuff, to be really funny.

tchrist

Funny how this has entered the common culture, a turn of phrase used by those who simply have no idea what that whole world is really like.

Kit Z. Fox

I am glad that I don't really know.

Despite my self-destruction, I managed to avoid hard drugs.

Unlike my friend Tina.

tchrist

I don't either. But I have seen it, seen it turn humans into something less.

Kit Z. Fox

05:13

She just disappeared.

tchrist

She sticks around longer with some of her friends than with others.

David Sedaris says some very funny things about her.

Kit Z. Fox

No, I mean, she was gone one day. Nobody knows where she went.

An actual friend of mine.

tchrist

Oh, I thought we were encoding.

Kit Z. Fox

I was not clear.

The only friend I have ever known before and after heroin.

tchrist

Well, it was an obious subrosa.

I guess it's good I don't care for opiates, even Rx.

So many people dying now of them.

Kit Z. Fox

05:18

Her boyfriend overdosed.

She went to rehab.

tchrist

They moved hydro to SSched 2 in CO. Maybe it will help.

Kit Z. Fox

She disappeared about a year later.

tchrist

Odd that no body was ever found.

Kit Z. Fox

She had amazing skin. That's what I remember most about her. And she was so sad.

She might still be alive.

I like to think that she decided to ditch her whole life and start over again somewhere new. She was always so ashamed of the track marks on her arms.

tchrist

I havd a FoF mourning over a BF dead of H.OD a couple months now. My mind flees.

Kit Z. Fox

05:20

Sorry. I didn't mean to digress to sad topics.

Pie is cheerier.

tchrist

I haven't talked to him about it. Too hard.

Kit Z. Fox

And pet children.

tchrist

Our common friend will be here to crash in a guest room in60-90m so he can go snowshoeing up in the NatFor tomorrow.

Kit Z. Fox

Really?

Did I know that?

tchrist

They got like 2 more feet and it is good quality stuff.

Which? That the woods are lovely dark and deep?

Kit Z. Fox

05:23

I have promises to keep.

tchrist

Or that I'm a waystation the the ContDivide?

Kit Z. Fox

Yes.

That.

Not that it matters.

Just idle curiosity.

tchrist

I am not going. He's going with others. But it takes too long if he starts from Denver. Needs an early start.

I figured I'd be long asleep but I got too mad.

Kit Z. Fox

Well, I should redouble my efforts to ease your pain.

tchrist

I think I'm ok now. I did self-medicate, although the half-life is 19h or something like that.

Kit Z. Fox

05:26

Maybe you should tell me something funny.

Just to check.

tchrist

thinks

Got it.

Kit Z. Fox

waits patiently, tongue lolling

tchrist

During the blizzard yesterday the kitties were playing the Chinese Firedrill game, making circuits at top speed out the basement catflap and running around to the back door for another loop. Like every 2-3m for a good half hour or more, each chasing the other like a cheetah race.

Kit Z. Fox

hee hee hee

You are a good cat daddy to keep the catflap clear.

tchrist

They make me smile.

Kit Z. Fox

05:30

Good.

Now I should to bed.

Well, to sleep.

tchrist

Oh, I have a clever device to keep it clear.

Kit Z. Fox

Now I want to know about the device.

tchrist

Like a ramada.

An awning of sorts.

So they can never be trapped out.

Kit Z. Fox

Oh I see. Doesn't it get heavy with snow?

tchrist

It is on a wire frame with a tarp over it. Deforms gracefully, slips off, easy to shake. And is largish.

Kit Z. Fox

05:32

What color tarp?

tchrist

Like 6' long rolled.

Blue.

Never had coons.

Kit Z. Fox

Hmm. Interesting.

tchrist

But it is protection to run to too.

Kit Z. Fox

I'm glad you think about those things.

Your cats are adorable.

tchrist

Neibor's big friendly golden lab few days ago came bounding up to play with them. I could not believe how fast they leapt to safety.

Up the side of the wall, into the spruce.

Kit Z. Fox

05:35

hahaha Cats are incredibly quick.

tchrist

This is a cat friendly dog byt they do not know that. Its best friend h

is a kitty that sleeps on top of it.

But not mine. It is a big dog.

Many big dogs here. That or lion bait.

Kit Z. Fox

Golden labs are. My brother has one, and a cat that is almost as big.

tchrist

Labs are wnat, 60#?

Kit Z. Fox

Clarice the Boy Cat, who has taken down a deer.

tchrist

Bobcat?

Kit Z. Fox

05:37

@tchrist Maybe. The goldie seems much bigger than the black lab that I had as a girl.

@tchrist Nope. No idea. Really big cat. Maybe some coon cat? Tiger striped, but no tufts.

tchrist

They only take new fawns I though. Pumas need to eat a deer a week tnough.

Kit Z. Fox

Well, they were very surprised. He hasn't taken one since, so hopefully that's done with.

tchrist

Maine coon. Norwegian Forest Cat. Over 20#. Very gentle.

How took deer?

Kit Z. Fox

He also tried unsuccessfully to defend their chickens from a local dog.

@tchrist I'm not clear on that. Family legend at this point. Maybe it just harassed a fawn.

tchrist

Oh I see.

Yes, that can happen. I had twin newborn fawns bedded down in tne tall grass behind me last summer, so I kept kitties away from them.

Fawns are not like pronghorn. No protection at first. Nor smell.

Kit Z. Fox

05:41

A very unusual cat though, as evinced by his name.

tchrist

My cats do stalk deer.

Mutual curiosity.

Lorin swiped at one's nose that was nosing over the fence to eat the garden.

Kit Z. Fox

I was surprised about his defense of the chickens, but that might have been a resource conservation effort.

@tchrist hahaha

They are surprisingly brave with some animals.

tchrist

The deer was very very surpised. What was this little tiny rabbit thing doing with claws raking its nose?

Now the moms herd the fawns away from the kitties. Momma was not pleased.

I think they have an instinct about predator vs prey.

Kit Z. Fox

Momma needs sleeping. talk to you tomorrow, my friend.

tchrist

night

thanks

Kit Z. Fox

05:45

Good night.

infinitesimal

Whoa, and if you overlay a Fibonacci spiral on a golden spiral it matches up almost perfectly!

RegDwigнt

10:47

0

Q: This might be a semiotics type of question, I don't know. you tell me please

I would like to know what kind of information (what is it called) is carried along and is seemingly not present or stored within the text itself, yet has the power to conjure up a specific characters "voice" or voiced inflection that is impossible to convey by my use of words constructed as they ...

What.

RegDwigнt

10:59

@Robusto mkay, I have to ask. If I'm born on a 30th, in which base numbering system exactly would that be a 23?

Matt E. Эллен

11:24

@RegDwigнt is 30th base 10?

RegDwigнt

Yes.

Mitch

11:47

@RegDwigнt 30 base 5, 23 base 6

RegDwigнt

What.

23 base 6 is 3 + 12 = 15.

crl

2*b^1+3*b^0=30

b=13.5

a non-integer base, hmm

Mitch

2*6 + 3 = 15 base 10

drops mike. stomps offstage

RegDwigнt

12:03

@crl exactly.

Robusto

12:18

@RegDwigнt I leave it to real mathematicians to work out the details.

RegDwigнt

I prefer imaginary mathematicians.

Robusto

Either is fine.

RegDwigнt

Ether is rough.

Boris_yo

@Robusto Hello.

You live in US, correct?

RegDwigнt

12:42

We will never know!

My money is on Belarus.

He has that Kahlua flair about him.

Mitch

He has that Nature Boy Rick Flair about him

RegDwigнt

He has that Rick Roll look about him.

Mitch

He has that mosquito about him

RegDwigнt

He has that boring biography book about him.

Mitch

He shouldn't have written the index to his own autobiography. Turns out he's Kurt Vonnegut.

Boris_yo

12:50

Who can enlighten me on wine gift baskets?

Matt E. Эллен

I can enlighten you of your wine gift basket yoink

Mitch

By the way, if your money is in Belarus, you should move it to Russia. Beat the crowd...and the border.

RegDwigнt

@Mitch Still better than Vonneschlecht. Also, he's only Kurt with us because time is a factor.

Boris_yo

@MattE.Эллен Not sure I understand... I asked in general.

RegDwigнt

And he responded in private.

instant rim-shot

Mitch

12:51

@MattE.Эллен Hey, can you enlighten me about those yoinks? Do the come in boxes or bottles?

RegDwigнt

Anyway, I don't know any wine experts here. Basically everyone just drinks whatever cologne you serve them.

Jul 11 '12 at 15:52, by RegDwight ΒВB

Awful waste of perfectly fine grape juice.

Matt E. Эллен

@Boris_yo I took your wine basket from you, thus enlightening you

RegDwigнt

Enlight my fire, your wine is my only desire, cos I want your wine.

Matt E. Эллен

yoink is sort of onomatopeia for taking something quickly

Mitch

Vonneschlecthaus-funf niche do gut ein schlachthaus

RegDwigнt

12:54

Was.

Boris_yo

@MattE.Эллен Yeah you just made me Google...

RegDwigнt

Sprich Englisch, Junge.

@Boris_yo As long as he doesn't make you gaggle...

Mitch

Na und, alter Mann?

RegDwigнt

Was: na und. Ich versteh die Frage nicht.

Boris_yo

I wanted to know if it's custom in US to give wine gift basket on specific occassions.

Mitch

12:55

Yoinks!

Boris_yo

And do you include personal note in basket?

Mitch

Wine is a possible gift on visiting someone for dinner.

RegDwigнt

I will leave the answering of these to our um-err-I-can!s.

Boris_yo

If you do, then would it make sense to include complementary gift nicely wrapped with personal message.

Mitch

I should be able to answer this but I can't. Because now I feel like for all these years I should have been bringing gifts to dinner and I haven't

Boris_yo

12:59

Personal note in basket, plus another personal note on packing slip of gift I ordered online.

Mitch

I think a personal message is up to you, it is not required.

Are you doing all the packing yourself or by Amazon?

Boris_yo

2 notes = too much. @Mitch I order on Amazon and they send me wrapped with personal message I customize at checkout.

Mitch

I think a basket is too much. But I've seen a decorative wine bottle bag

Boris_yo

@Mitch Basket includes wine and chocolates too.

Mitch

_and_chocolate? Is this for Valentine's Day? Or just for dinner?

Boris_yo

13:02

This is probably something oriented at people with higher social status.

@Mitch Chocolate is complementary for dinner.

Mitch

And wine afterwards?

Robusto

13:15

Hey, who took the Indians off the room description?

Mitch

looks around. What Indians?

Boris_yo

@Mitch I don't know. I thought you could enlighten me. Maybe these serve for occasions more?

Robusto

11 hours ago, by Robusto

room topic changed to English Language & Usage: Siŋté Glešká, Tašúŋke Witkó, Tȟatȟáŋka Íyotake (no tags)

0

Q: where we use "what" and where we use "which"?

Sometimes, I get confused when I want to ask a question,so I need some clarification.

word-choice grammar

Gah. Is there a rung below ELL for this person?

room topic changed to English Language & Usage: Siŋté Glešká, Tašúŋke Witkó, Tȟatȟáŋka Íyotake (no tags)

Tierra del juego

Mitch

13:31

What kinds of Indians are those?

Matt E. Эллен

Lakota people

The Lakȟóta people (pronounced [laˈkˣota]; also known as Teton, Thítȟuŋwaŋ ("prairie dwellers"), and Teton Sioux ("snake, or enemy") are an indigenous people of the Great Plains of North America. They are part of a confederation of seven related Sioux tribes, the Očhéthi Šakówiŋ or seven council fires, and speak Lakota, one of the three major dialects of the Sioux language. The Lakota are the westernmost of the three Siouan language groups, occupying lands in both North and South Dakota. The seven bands or "sub-tribes" of the Lakota are: Sičháŋǧu (Brulé, Burned Thighs) Oglála ("They Scatter Their...

RegDwigнt

Ah yes, the Lakota castle in the sky.

Snake, or enemy, are a disingenuous people of the Great Plains.

Robusto

13:46

@RegDwigнt sosiouxme

RegDwigнt

Curly Sioux.

Matt E. Эллен

An Encounter!
4 Orwellian Giant Green Frogs (Dainty, Lvl. 4)

RegDwigнt

"I constantly see people use the word X all over the Internet. Is it a popular word or old-fashioned?"

We really need a "the answer's in the question" close reason.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

15:23

> So far in February, 58.5 inches of snow have fallen there. That’s more than the total seasonal snowfall that Boston received in 95 of the previous 124 winters (77 percent).

Yet somehow, people think the weather is bad in Canada.

Matt E. Эллен

I bet people in Canada don't have to have their mayors tell them not to jump out of windows!

RegDwigнt

Yeah lol. Of course it's off the chart if you specifically choose the scale to end midway through.

Make it go all the way to 4000 inches, and suddenly it's back on the chart again.

Or make it end at 0, and the snow situation is off the chart all the time.

Matt E. Эллен

15:44

my name is off the chart!

most of human knowledge is off the chart

Cerberus

Hello.

Matt E. Эллен

something being off that chart is not remarkable!

@Cerberus hello

Cerberus

How is England?

Matt E. Эллен

it's fine, thanks for asking. How is Holland?

Cerberus

Sunny, 8 degrees.

Matt E. Эллен

15:54

days are getting longer. the sun improves the outlook

Cerberus

We've had a pretty good winter, so far.

Matt E. Эллен

aye

Cerberus

Indeed!

Matt E. Эллен

we had a fair amount of rain on monday afternoon

Cerberus

It is no longer dark when I ride home.

Rain bad.

Matt E. Эллен

15:55

otherwise, nothing to complain about

Cerberus

I see.

My boyfriend is in Kuala Lumpor. Boy, am I glad not to be there!

Matt E. Эллен

what's he doing there?

Cerberus

Vacation.

Matt E. Эллен

very nice

Cerberus

He will also visit Singapore and Brunei.

Matt E. Эллен

15:56

do you not like it there?

Cerberus

I have never been there, but I would probably hate it.

Matt E. Эллен

:D

Cerberus

I hate warm weather and modern architecture.

But I suppose I would visit the city for a few hours if it were around the corner.

Have you ever been to the Far East?

Matt E. Эллен

I've been to Taiwan

Cerberus

Ah, yes!

And you liked it, didn't you?

I remember now.

Matt E. Эллен

15:58

Yes.

Cerberus

Good.

Matt E. Эллен

but it has modern architechture surrounding old temples

so you might not like it

RegDwigнt

Much better now.

Matt E. Эллен

:D

The Time Machine

Transcript for

English Language & Usage: Multi-Layer…