weinraub’s words

A NY Times piece today on the Microsoft/Yahoo search deal contained a usage of “reticence” where “reluctance” would have better.

After tense, months-long negotiations, the deal was derailed, in part by Mr. Yang’s reticence,…

They would no doubt justify it by pointing to the entry, in their query.nytimes.com service which seems to use the American Heritage Dictionary.

But it still pisses me off. I’m much more in agreement with traditional purists on this point: Reticence is a subset of reluctance referring only to speech.

Sigh…

Benjamin recently rebuffed Annie’s attempt to wake him by replying “Leep. Lone.”

Translation: “Sleeping. Leave me alone.”

Just love that kid.

Becca has been on a tear lately drawing pictures. Characters mostly have bodies now, but the eyes have gotten much smaller, to the point of becoming dots, though she usually adds eyelashes. Her girl pics almost always feature hair and earrings, sometimes even those old princess-style or Southern-belle-style dresses that make the girl’s ass look like an over-inflated Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade float.

But Becca has now added a new twist to the presentation. She brings over the picture, hidden behind her back. With a proud and impish smile, she tells me to cover my eyes; dutifully I obey. Then at her command, I open my eyes and she puts the picture under my nose, announcing “Tada!”

Where do they learn this stuff?