How NOT to sound American

by Aaron Hotfelder on

If you’re as fascinated by language as I am, especially by the differences between American and British English, you may want to head over to the “Americanisms” section of the Economist‘s style guide.

The erudite London-based mag offers its journalists tips for how to make sure their prose doesn’t sound too American, including the following:

  • “Hikes are walks, not increases. Vegetables, not teenagers, should be fresh. Only the speechless are dumb, the well-dressed smart and the insane mad. Scenarios are best kept for the theatre, postures for the gym, parameters for the parabola.”
  • “Use senior rather than ranking, rumpus rather than ruckus, and rumbustious rather than rambunctious.” [Rambustious? That’s a new one.]
  • And most importantly, “Gubernatorial is an ugly word that can almost always be avoided.”

And who says the Economist is without a (very dry) sense of humor? Check out this tip:

  • “Try not to verb nouns or to adjective them.”

This, in a nutshell, is the British sense of humor.

Whole thing here. [via Chris Blattman]


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Where to take your final vacation

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Most people focus on their next vacations – not their final ones. And who could blame them? Nothing is quite so ghoulish as planning anything based on your demise. It’s a bit different, however, if you can work from a specific point in time. If you know the world is coming to an end, making arrangements for your last trip may not be a bad idea. With all the talk of 2012 and the Mayan calendar, maybe it’s time to go south of the border.

Check out Monument Six, which was found more than 40 years ago while a highway was being built in southern Mexico. It says something is going to happen in 2012, and the conspiracy set has run with this, calling for the end of the world in the next few years. Going to the Mayan homeland for 2012 is like hitting Times Square for Y2K (in hopes of witnessing the outbreak of Y2Chaos).

Why?

For one thing, the reality is that the Mayan calendar actually says the world isn’t going to end until 4772 – give or take a few years. So, bring a toothbrush and a sleeping bag. Or, go down for 2012 just to see who shows up … that’s what the real show will be.

Attend Edgar Allan Poe’s funeral. He’s finally getting a good one!

by Jamie Rhein on

Two hundred years after his death at age 40, Edgar Allan Poe is being properly honored with the funeral he should have been given years ago. When the author died October 7, 1849, his cousin, Neilson Poe, neglected to tell anyone. As a result, just a handful of people showed up at Poe’s funeral in Baltimore, Maryland to pay tribute. That’s cold.

Tomorrow at two different times, amends are being made in Baltimore. It’s expected that 300 people will attend each of the TWO funerals being held Westminster Hall. The hall, which used to be church back in Poe’s day, is next to the cemetery where he is buried. From the description of the building’s Gothic architecture, it sounds like it would be a perfect setting for Poe’s funeral– even if Poe and his wife weren’t already buried next to it.

The two funerals, part of Baltimore’s Edgar Allan Poe Celebrating 200 Years offerings, are theatrical events where a mix of actors playing famous people who are dead– and people who are themselves–meaning they are still living, thus they can simply be themselves, will pay tribute to Poe’s life and work. Musical performances and readings are part of the mix.

To go to one of the funerals–either the one at 12:30 or at 4:30 p.m., you have to have a ticket. However, even without a ticket, there’s a way to be involved.

The public can attend the processional for the first service for free. For this part of the tribute to Poe, a police escort will help take Poe’s body (not the real one, it’s buried after all) from his house, now museum, at 23 Amity Street to Westminster Hall.

And in a style fitting to the occasion, the casket will be transported in an antique horse drawn hearse with the Loch Raven Pipes and Drums in accompaniment. According to the event’s description, this alone is certainly an interesting way to spend a bit of the morning.

The funeral, of course, is the plum. I’m sure that Poe will be able to rest in peace after tomorrow. Hopefully, he’ll get a chuckle or two as well. How could he not? Consider the following detail that is written on the Web site about the funeral’s speakers list.

” Please keep in mind that while these people have confirmed their attendance many of them are deceased and every effort will be made to ensure that they will attend the event.”

Sir Alfred Hitchcock, for example, is on the list, as is Sarah Helen Whitman, Poe’s former fiancée.

Of all the events I’ve read about lately, this is the one I’d love to be able to go the most. There’s something wonderfully weird about it which is right up Poe’s alley–and mine.

For information about getting tickets, click here. You can also buy a ticket at the door, but instead of $35, a sold at the door ticket costs $40.

As a note, children under 10 are not admitted.

The photo by jjandames is of Poe’s memorial at the graveyard at Westminster Hall. The memorial was placed in order to honor Poe’s grave before the original grave’s location was known.

To honor Poe after tomorrow, you can always visit his grave. After careful searching, the location where he was buried has been determined. Originally, the grave was unmarked due to a freight train mishap that damaged the original stone.

Museum Junkie: The Art of the Samurai at the Met

by Sean McLachlan on

From the 12th to the 19th centuries, Japanese society was dominated by the samurai, elite warriors with a fierce code of honor. While wars were almost constant on the islands during this period, it was also a time of great artistic achievement, one that extended to the weapons and equipment of the samurai.

Starting on October 21, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City will host the largest collection of samurai artifacts ever assembled in the United States.

Art of the Samurai: Japanese Arms and Armor 1156-1868 brings together more than 200 masterpieces of traditional Japanese art, including swords, bows, armor, banners, and other equipment selected from public and private Japanese collections. Many of the items are not only beautiful but unusual, such as the rare example of 18th century woman’s armor pictured here. Also included are a series of Japanese sword blades that, despite the name of the exhibition, date as far back as the 5th century. An accompanying exhibition displays some related objects from the Met’s permanent collection that have been recently restored in Japan.

The exhibition includes 34 National Treasures, 64 Important Cultural Properties, and 6 Important Art Objects. The Japanese government has a hierarchy of designations for important objects. The most precious are labeled National Treasures, and this exhibition has three times the number of National Treasures of any previous exhibition outside of Japan. National Treasures can include buildings, objects, even artists. That so many of these one-of-a-kind objects have made it to New York is a major coup for the Met. You’d have to go to Japan to see a finer collection of samurai arms and armor.

The show runs to January 10.

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See New York through the Gossip Girl lens

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Soak in the sights, sounds and smells of the good life on the latest television tour of Manhattan. The new Gossip Girl tour runs 3 ½ hours and leads fans through the locations used to create the on-screen phenomenon that features the decadent lives of poor little rich kids.

Buses cart fans to the New York Palace, on Madison Ave, home to the Bass and van der Woodsen clans – as well as the Henri Bendel store on Fifth Avenue and The Plaza Hotel‘s Oak Room on the southeast corner of Central Park.

Fortunately, the cost of the tour isn’t commensurate with the lifestyles of the show’s characters. At $40, you’re paying less than the “help” commands. Afterward, be sure to grab brunch at Norma’s where hopefully you can get a look at one of the performers!