Thursday, October 9, 2014

Give Me an "E"!

Annual physical; new (to me) physician. I asked for flu shot; Dr talked me into pneumonia shot, too. Nurse popped flu into left shoulder, akin to being slugged in a school-yard fisticuffs setto. Popped the pneumonia into the right shoulder.  Much like being kicked by a mule.  Shod mule. Yikes.

Mechanic overhauled carburator on the chain saw, brought it home. I went on a dead-wood rampage, cutting dross from the austrees.  Only what I could reach from the ground, of course.  The rest will succumb to the winds over time.

Lawn tractor is going to have to be retired.  Think it beyond salvation.  Well, the lawn season is nearly over; what better time to make the change.  Please!  Someone have a good sale on good equipment.

This.  This post is evidence of the desperation I encounter recently in maintaining the blog.  Never much cared for stream-of-consciousness writing, and here I am engaged in it.  Forgive me, Readers, for I know not what I do.  Seriously, I know not what I do.

(I spelled "carburetor."  Spell check suggested the change you saw above.  I still think it should have an "e."   Eh?  I mean "a."  Not so much.  Okay.  I cared enough to give my very best.  Looked it up, and the "e" is correct, except in the Commonwealth.  So why did. . . ?  Next thing we know, spell check will be suggesting an extra "u" here and there.  Just for color, and stuff.  Never mind.)

Bonus:

Wife says, "The car has a problem.  There's water in the carburetor."
"No way," says Hubs, "and you don't even know what a carburetor is."
"Certainly do; and there is water in the carburetor."
"Alright, already.  I'll check it out.  Where did you leave the car?"
"In the pool."

Yeah, yeah.  It was funnier when cars had carburetors.


10 comments:

Sharkbytes said...

I am impressed at your spelling skills! Glad the final dialogue was not with your wife.

Grace said...

Definitely an 'e' - I put in a 'u' sometimes without even thinking about it and spell check wants me to leave it out...I don't know where I picked that little affectation...but humour just looks more right to me, as does colour.

(and doesn't a word that starts with a vowel require 'an' not 'a'? So why does 'an u' sound and look ridiculous but 'a u' sound and look better? I suppose I could look that up but I shan't.)

vanilla said...

Sharkey, I am a fairly good speller, though on occasion "spell check" dings me. And sometimes, as in this case, I was right nevertheless. The joke is an old one, but I think it funny.

Grace, how funny! I often slip the "u" into colour or humour, too. Violates my general principal of conservation, though (tho).

I think we say "a u" because we pronounce "u" as "yew," whereas when we use a word beginning with "u" we use "an." An ugly thing. . . An untested theory, and so on. So if we called the letter "u" an "oo"?

Grace said...

But what about "a,e,i,o,u and sometimes y"? But yes, I think you are right about the pronunciation of the letter u.

I also meant to comment on the incompetent nurse at your new doctor's office. We get our vaccinations at the drugstore - never feel a thing - even the shingles shot which can hurt - just a tiny pinch. If the nurse can't do a shot properly I might wonder about the competence of the doctor as well. But I'm a cynic.

vanilla said...

Grace, I need to clarify a bit. The administration of the shot itself was no problem. It was the degree of pain once the vaccine started to work; no pain from the needle. (This morning I had five vials of blood drawn by phlebotomist; felt nothing!)

Secondary Roads said...

Perhaps today's version says fuel in the gas tank?

vanilla said...

Chuck, or one hopes he audience relates to a time. Oh, I have a digital display right under the speedo needle, says "* * * miles to E" but I've never arrived at E, wherever that is.

Vee said...

You know the old saying, "When it rains it pours." Unfortunately, things seem to happen that way.

Secondary Roads said...

Perhaps the E is for E-ternity.

vanilla said...

Vee, or "they come in threes," good or bad.

Chuck, that might well be the case.