I find North American English, with its propensity for inverting
syntactically sound expressions and creating verbs out of sows' ears
(to Christmas shop, to grocery shop, etc.), has produced some rather
unappetizing terms for food usually as some sort of abbreviation. A
few came up recently and I thought I'd start a thread on this, as a
form of recreation (because this is after all a rec.* newsgroup).

NOTE: I specifically said North American as this aberration can also
be found in parts of Canada.

So here are a few:

"from scratch", or worse "scratch" (as in "scratch cake"...oy, the
mental image of cake made from flaky dead skin or dandruff)

"tub" as in "tub of margarine" or yogurt, or worse "tub butter". What
the hell is "tub butter" and who would want any? The word "tub"
conjures up the idea of a large receptacle in which people bathe and
lose their dead skin, floating in soapy water...again with the dead
skin image.

"tablespread" or the use of "spread" to mean a soft substance...I'm
not even going there.

On Nov 12, 10:27*am, " >
wrote:
> I find North American English, with its propensity for inverting
> syntactically sound expressions and creating verbs out of sows' ears
> (to Christmas shop, to grocery shop, etc.), has produced some rather
> unappetizing terms for food usually as some sort of abbreviation. *A
> few came up recently and I thought I'd start a thread on this, as a
> form of recreation (because this is after all a rec.* newsgroup).
>
> NOTE: I specifically said North American as this aberration can also
> be found in parts of Canada.
>
> So here are a few:
>
> "from scratch", or worse "scratch" (as in "scratch cake"...oy, the
> mental image of cake made from flaky dead skin or dandruff)
>
> "tub" as in "tub of margarine" or yogurt, or worse "tub butter". *What
> the hell is "tub butter" and who would want any? *The word "tub"
> conjures up the idea of a large receptacle in which people bathe and
> lose their dead skin, floating in soapy water...again with the dead
> skin image.
>
> "tablespread" or the use of "spread" to mean a soft substance...I'm
> not even going there.


Wait till you encounter Barb's "Dead Spread" - the food after the
funeral.

Lynn in Fargo
"smashed" potatoes?

On Nov 12, 11:27*am, " >
wrote:
> I find North American English, with its propensity for inverting
> syntactically sound expressions and creating verbs out of sows' ears
> (to Christmas shop, to grocery shop, etc.), has produced some rather
> unappetizing terms for food usually as some sort of abbreviation. *A
> few came up recently and I thought I'd start a thread on this, as a
> form of recreation (because this is after all a rec.* newsgroup).
>
> NOTE: I specifically said North American as this aberration can also
> be found in parts of Canada.
>
> So here are a few:
>
> "from scratch", or worse "scratch" (as in "scratch cake"...oy, the
> mental image of cake made from flaky dead skin or dandruff)
>
> "tub" as in "tub of margarine" or yogurt, or worse "tub butter". *What
> the hell is "tub butter" and who would want any? *The word "tub"
> conjures up the idea of a large receptacle in which people bathe and
> lose their dead skin, floating in soapy water...again with the dead
> skin image.
>
> "tablespread" or the use of "spread" to mean a soft substance...I'm
> not even going there.

Comes from that great kid song which most of us were privy to during
our formative years:

Great big gobs of greasy grimy gopher guts
mutilated monkey meat
little birdie's bloody feet
One half pint of all purpose porpoise pus
floating in grade A blood,
and me without a spooooon!
(there are variations; my DH from NJ has a somewhat different
version)

maxine in ri
repository of many many many songs of similar caliber

On Nov 12, 9:24*am, maxine in ri > wrote:
> On Nov 12, 11:27*am, " >
> wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
> > I find North American English, with its propensity for inverting
> > syntactically sound expressions and creating verbs out of sows' ears
> > (to Christmas shop, to grocery shop, etc.), has produced some rather
> > unappetizing terms for food usually as some sort of abbreviation. *A
> > few came up recently and I thought I'd start a thread on this, as a
> > form of recreation (because this is after all a rec.* newsgroup).
>
> > NOTE: I specifically said North American as this aberration can also
> > be found in parts of Canada.
>
> > So here are a few:
>
> > "from scratch", or worse "scratch" (as in "scratch cake"...oy, the
> > mental image of cake made from flaky dead skin or dandruff)
>
> > "tub" as in "tub of margarine" or yogurt, or worse "tub butter". *What
> > the hell is "tub butter" and who would want any? *The word "tub"
> > conjures up the idea of a large receptacle in which people bathe and
> > lose their dead skin, floating in soapy water...again with the dead
> > skin image.
>
> > "tablespread" or the use of "spread" to mean a soft substance...I'm
> > not even going there.
>
> Comes from that great kid song which most of us were privy to during
> our formative years:
>
> Great big gobs of greasy grimy gopher guts
> mutilated monkey meat
> little birdie's bloody feet
> One half pint of all purpose porpoise pus
> floating in grade A blood,
> and me without a spooooon!
> *(there are variations; *my DH from NJ has a somewhat different
> version)
>
> maxine in ri
> repository of many many many songs of similar caliber- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

"The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out,
the worms play pee- knuckle on your snout"
Like my phonetic spelling?

maxine in ri wrote:


> Great big gobs of greasy grimy gopher guts
> mutilated monkey meat
> little birdie's bloody feet
> One half pint of all purpose porpoise pus
> floating in grade A blood,
> and me without a spooooon!
> (there are variations; my DH from NJ has a somewhat different
> version)
>
> maxine in ri
> repository of many many many songs of similar caliber

Great big globs of greasy grimey gopher guts
Mutilated monkey meat
Itsy bitsy birdie feet
French fried eyeballs swimming in a pool of blood
Me, I forgot my spoon
But I have a straaaaaaaw

In article
>,
" > wrote:

> I find North American English, with its propensity for inverting
> syntactically sound expressions and creating verbs out of sows' ears
> (to Christmas shop, to grocery shop, etc.), has produced some rather
> unappetizing terms for food usually as some sort of abbreviation. A
> few came up recently and I thought I'd start a thread on this, as a
> form of recreation (because this is after all a rec.* newsgroup).
>
> NOTE: I specifically said North American as this aberration can also
> be found in parts of Canada.
>
> So here are a few:
>
> "from scratch", or worse "scratch" (as in "scratch cake"...oy, the
> mental image of cake made from flaky dead skin or dandruff)
>
> "tub" as in "tub of margarine" or yogurt, or worse "tub butter". What
> the hell is "tub butter" and who would want any? The word "tub"
> conjures up the idea of a large receptacle in which people bathe and
> lose their dead skin, floating in soapy water...again with the dead
> skin image.
>
> "tablespread" or the use of "spread" to mean a soft substance...I'm
> not even going there.

I favor adding "poutine" to the list.

Of course, there are the phrases that *aren't* used, like "dead cow
meat". That's actually a perfectly correct phrase to describe a beef
steak, but it doesn't sound very good. How about "dead pig meat"? I'm
getting boring here.

My brother went to a very fancy dinner in China. Since my brother was
the only guest who didn't know chinese, he got a special menu in
English. You didn't get to choose off the menu, it was all arranged in
advance, ten courses in all. The English words were all correct, but
not the ones expected. Two of the course were described simply as "pig
intestines". Well, that's what they were. Another was "chicken feet".
After ten courses, my brother left there still hungry.

--
Dan Abel
Petaluma, California USA

" > wrote in news:7bfa283c-02a8-
:

> I find North American English, with its propensity for inverting
> syntactically sound expressions and creating verbs out of sows' ears
> (to Christmas shop, to grocery shop, etc.), has produced some rather
> unappetizing terms for food usually as some sort of abbreviation. A
> few came up recently and I thought I'd start a thread on this, as a
> form of recreation (because this is after all a rec.* newsgroup).
>
> NOTE: I specifically said North American as this aberration can also
> be found in parts of Canada.
>
> So here are a few:
>
> "from scratch", or worse "scratch" (as in "scratch cake"...oy, the
> mental image of cake made from flaky dead skin or dandruff)


Scratch conjures up a different image for me....... a soldiers
breakfast...... a scratch, a fart, and a look around.


>
> "tub" as in "tub of margarine" or yogurt, or worse "tub butter". What
> the hell is "tub butter" and who would want any?


How about a 'knob' of butter.

And who would shape their butter to resemble a knob?


Hmmmmm..... sudden images of "Last Tango in Paris"


> The word "tub"
> conjures up the idea of a large receptacle in which people bathe and
> lose their dead skin, floating in soapy water...again with the dead
> skin image.



You have this thnd about dead skin, don't you??? :-)


>
> "tablespread" or the use of "spread" to mean a soft substance...I'm
> not even going there.
>
>


Spread 'em :-)




--
Peter Lucas
Brisbane
Australia

Mi b'aill docha basaich air m' ris, sin mair air m'glun.

(I'd rather die on my feet, than live on my knees.)

> wrote

>I find North American English, with its propensity for inverting
> syntactically sound expressions and creating verbs out of sows' ears
> (to Christmas shop, to grocery shop, etc.), has produced some rather
> unappetizing terms for food usually as some sort of abbreviation. A
> few came up recently and I thought I'd start a thread on this, as a
> form of recreation (because this is after all a rec.* newsgroup).

Tell me, are you a native British speaker?

> NOTE: I specifically said North American as this aberration can also
> be found in parts of Canada.

Of course. The usage is largely the same as their smaller southern
neighbor.

> "from scratch", or worse "scratch" (as in "scratch cake"...oy, the
> mental image of cake made from flaky dead skin or dandruff)

Sorry, term way predates us as a country.

> "tub" as in "tub of margarine" or yogurt, or worse "tub butter". What
> the hell is "tub butter" and who would want any? The word "tub"

Thats the old name for a bucket and milk was placed in a bucket with a chirn
on top and made into buetter.

> "tablespread" or the use of "spread" to mean a soft substance...I'm
> not even going there.

New one on me.

"cshenk" > wrote in
:

> > wrote
>
>>I find North American English, with its propensity for inverting
>> syntactically sound expressions and creating verbs out of sows' ears
>> (to Christmas shop, to grocery shop, etc.), has produced some rather
>> unappetizing terms for food usually as some sort of abbreviation. A
>> few came up recently and I thought I'd start a thread on this, as a
>> form of recreation (because this is after all a rec.* newsgroup).
>
> Tell me, are you a native British speaker?

Dealt with elsewhere, no. I am a French-Canadian. I have lived in North
America almost all of my life.

>> "from scratch", or worse "scratch" (as in "scratch cake"...oy, the
>> mental image of cake made from flaky dead skin or dandruff)
>
> Sorry, term way predates us as a country.

Chee, did I say this was about a single country? I think I was quite clear
that it wasn't. And how can you know it predates the creation of the US?
Again with the thin skin...or is this your subtle way of saying that as a
USAian, you are blissfully and willingly unaware of anything before 1776?
Because, you know, that wouldn't surprise me in the slightest.

>> "tub" as in "tub of margarine" or yogurt, or worse "tub butter".
>> What the hell is "tub butter" and who would want any? The word "tub"
>
> Thats the old name for a bucket and milk was placed in a bucket with a
> chirn on top and made into buetter.

Can you substantiate this?

--

Capitalism is the astounding belief that the most wickedest
of men will do the most wickedest of things for the greatest
good of everyone. - John Maynard Keynes

Michel wrote on Thu, 13 Nov 2008 07:30:26 -0600:



> Chee, did I say this was about a single country? I think I was
> quite clear that it wasn't. And how can you know it predates
> the creation of the US? Again with the thin skin...or is this
> your subtle way of saying that as a USAian, you are blissfully

As an unapologetic American immigrant, I find the term "USAian",
unappetizing, difficult to pronounce and a clumsy coinage.


> and willingly unaware of anything before 1776? Because, you
> know, that wouldn't surprise me in the slightest.
--

James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

Email, with obvious alterations: not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not

"James Silverton" > wrote in news:q4WSk.261
:

>> Chee, did I say this was about a single country? I think I was
>> quite clear that it wasn't. And how can you know it predates
>> the creation of the US? Again with the thin skin...or is this
>> your subtle way of saying that as a USAian, you are blissfully
>
> As an unapologetic American immigrant, I find the term "USAian",
> unappetizing, difficult to pronounce and a clumsy coinage.

Good thing it's not the topic then. Start your own thread. And just so
you know, it was coined by a USAian university professor back around the
late 1980's.

--

Capitalism is the astounding belief that the most wickedest
of men will do the most wickedest of things for the greatest
good of everyone. - John Maynard Keynes

Michel Boucher wrote:
> "James Silverton" > wrote
>>
>> As an unapologetic American immigrant, I find the term "USAian",
>> unappetizing, difficult to pronounce and a clumsy coinage.
>
> Good thing it's not the topic then. Start your own thread. And just
> so you know, it was coined by a USAian university professor back
> around the late 1980's.

(laugh) All of a sudden Michel is enamored of a word
invented by an American.

nancy

On Thu, 13 Nov 2008 07:40:34 -0600, Michel Boucher wrote:

> "James Silverton" > wrote in news:q4WSk.261
> :
>
>>> Chee, did I say this was about a single country? I think I was
>>> quite clear that it wasn't. And how can you know it predates
>>> the creation of the US? Again with the thin skin...or is this
>>> your subtle way of saying that as a USAian, you are blissfully
>>
>> As an unapologetic American immigrant, I find the term "USAian",
>> unappetizing, difficult to pronounce and a clumsy coinage.
>
> Good thing it's not the topic then. Start your own thread. And just so
> you know, it was coined by a USAian university professor back around the
> late 1980's.

damned academics. hope he wasn't a columbian man.

your pal,
blake

wrote:

> "from scratch", or worse "scratch" (as in "scratch cake"...oy, the
> mental image of cake made from flaky dead skin or dandruff)
>
> "tub" as in "tub of margarine" or yogurt, or worse "tub butter". What
> the hell is "tub butter" and who would want any? The word "tub"
> conjures up the idea of a large receptacle in which people bathe and
> lose their dead skin, floating in soapy water...again with the dead
> skin image.
>
> "tablespread" or the use of "spread" to mean a soft substance...I'm
> not even going there.
>
Well.. you could have an English "fry up" breakfast. Doesn't that sound
good?
And then there are those "bangers and mash" meals....or "mixed grill"

Seems to me you're just inventing a reason to whine about something. Bored?

Goomba > wrote in
:

> Seems to me you're just inventing a reason to whine about something.
> Bored?

Bored, yes, but I'm not whining...it's a conversation. Either go with it,
or ignore it.

--

Capitalism is the astounding belief that the most wickedest
of men will do the most wickedest of things for the greatest
good of everyone. - John Maynard Keynes

Michel Boucher wrote:

> Goomba > wrote in
> :
>
> > Seems to me you're just inventing a reason to whine about something.
> > Bored?
>
> Bored, yes, but I'm not whining...it's a conversation. Either go with it,
> or ignore it.


I was going to ask, Michel...how are your kitties doing these days? I
remember a few years ago when you had a mother cat with kittens IIRC...

If you have some pics please post, I like kitties on my screensaver...

:-)


--
Best
Greg

On Nov 13, 12:13*pm, "Gregory Morrow" > wrote:

> I was going to ask, Michel...how are your kitties doing these days? *I
> remember a few years ago when you had a mother cat with kittens IIRC...
>
> If you have some pics please post, I like kitties on my screensaver...

They're doing well, thanks for axing, Both mother (Kita) and daughter
(Suki)
are healthy overall. We just went to the vet on Tuesday, so this is a
recent
update. The daughter could use to lose a kilo but as she's diabetic
(two
injections of glargine daily), it's a fine line between healthy and
unhealthy.
Being too thin is not a good sign. We're expecting the results of a
glucosamine
test early next week. Should tell us if she is moving towards
remission.

I don't have any recent pictures, but I could take some in the next
little
while. Our house is a bit of a shambles right now as my step-
daughter,
who was supposed to be spending a few weeks with her boyfriend in
Hoboken (he's doing post-grad work somewhere in New York) came back
early with her dog (which the cats really object to).

I'll post a link to my web site when I have them uploaded.

"Goomba" > wrote in message
...
> wrote:
>
>> "from scratch", or worse "scratch" (as in "scratch cake"...oy, the
>> mental image of cake made from flaky dead skin or dandruff)
>>
>> "tub" as in "tub of margarine" or yogurt, or worse "tub butter". What
>> the hell is "tub butter" and who would want any? The word "tub"
>> conjures up the idea of a large receptacle in which people bathe and
>> lose their dead skin, floating in soapy water...again with the dead
>> skin image.
>>
>> "tablespread" or the use of "spread" to mean a soft substance...I'm
>> not even going there.
>>
> Well.. you could have an English "fry up" breakfast. Doesn't that sound
> good?
> And then there are those "bangers and mash" meals....or "mixed grill"

I can't think of "bubble and squeak" without picturing a sucking chest
wound.

On Nov 12, 11:27�am, " >
wrote:
> I find North American English, with its propensity for inverting
> syntactically sound expressions and creating verbs out of sows' ears
> (to Christmas shop, to grocery shop, etc.), has produced some rather
> unappetizing terms for food usually as some sort of abbreviation. �A
> few came up recently and I thought I'd start a thread on this, as a
> form of recreation (because this is after all a rec.* newsgroup).
>
> NOTE: I specifically said North American as this aberration can also
> be found in parts of Canada.
>
> So here are a few:
>
> "from scratch", or worse "scratch" (as in "scratch cake"...oy, the
> mental image of cake made from flaky dead skin or dandruff)
>
> "tub" as in "tub of margarine" or yogurt, or worse "tub butter". �What
> the hell is "tub butter" and who would want any? �The word "tub"
> conjures up the idea of a large receptacle in which people bathe and
> lose their dead skin, floating in soapy water...again with the dead
> skin image.
>
> "tablespread" or the use of "spread" to mean a soft substance...I'm
> not even going there.

Hey hemorrhoid, your name is an abomination... what kinda friggin'
woid is alsandork.

On Nov 13, 10:18*am, Sheldon > wrote:

> Hey hemorrhoid, your name is an abomination... what kinda friggin'
> woid is alsandork.- Hide quoted text -

It was patterned after yours...Sheldork.

Bwahaha...

On Nov 13, 2:11�pm, " > wrote:
> On Nov 13, 10:18�am, Sheldon > wrote:
>
> > Hey hemorrhoid, your name is an abomination... what kinda friggin'
> > woid is alsandork.- Hide quoted text -
>
> It was patterned after yours...Sheldork.
>
> Bwahaha...

Just proves everyone wants to grow up to be like me.

On Nov 13, 2:15*pm, Sheldon > wrote:

> > > what kinda friggin'
> > > woid is alsandork
>
> > It was patterned after yours...Sheldork.
>
> > Bwahaha...
>
> Just proves everyone wants to grow up to be like me.

And when are you planning to grow up and be like you?

how about, "pork butt", "fat back", "cat head biscuit", "red-eye gravy",
and the most disgusting of all, "head cheese"?

YUM!

"scratch" and "tub" PALE by comparison to these!

(I wish I had a pair of cat head biscuits with some red eye, right
now...)

Lass

On Thu, 13 Nov 2008 10:46:26 -0500, (Lass
Chance_2) wrote:

>how about, "pork butt", "fat back", "cat head biscuit", "red-eye gravy",
>and the most disgusting of all, "head cheese"?
>
>YUM!
>
>"scratch" and "tub" PALE by comparison to these!
>
>(I wish I had a pair of cat head biscuits with some red eye, right
>now...)
>
>Lass

How about some good old British (Royal Navy) standbys, like
Spotted Dog, Boiled Baby, Lobscouse, Portable Soup, Figgy-Dowdy,
and Syllabub?

On Nov 14, 11:06*am, wrote:
> On Thu, 13 Nov 2008 10:46:26 -0500, (Lass
>
> Chance_2) wrote:
> >how about, "pork butt", "fat back", "cat head biscuit", "red-eye gravy",
> >and the most disgusting of all, "head cheese"?
>
> >YUM!
>
> >"scratch" and "tub" PALE by comparison to these!
>
> >(I wish I had a pair of cat head biscuits with some red eye, right
> >now...)
>
> >Lass
>
> * * How about some good old British (Royal Navy) standbys, like
> Spotted Dog, Boiled Baby, Lobscouse, Portable Soup, Figgy-Dowdy,
> and Syllabub?

What about Spotted Dick? The visualisation I get is not nice!

JB

On Thu 13 Nov 2008 08:54:25p, Golden One told us...

> On Nov 14, 11:06*am, wrote:
>> On Thu, 13 Nov 2008 10:46:26 -0500, (Lass
>>
>> Chance_2) wrote:
>> >how about, "pork butt", "fat back", "cat head biscuit", "red-eye
gravy",
>> >and the most disgusting of all, "head cheese"?
>>
>> >YUM!
>>
>> >"scratch" and "tub" PALE by comparison to these!
>>
>> >(I wish I had a pair of cat head biscuits with some red eye, right
>> >now...)
>>
>> >Lass
>>
>> * * How about some good old British (Royal Navy) standbys, like
>> Spotted Dog, Boiled Baby, Lobscouse, Portable Soup, Figgy-Dowdy,
>> and Syllabub?
>
> What about Spotted Dick? The visualisation I get is not nice!

Well, actually, some are spotted. I don’t know if that’s a pigmentation
defect or not. hehehehe

Spotted Dick, the food, is actually delicious.

--
Wayne Boatwright
(correct the spelling of "geemail" to reply)
************************************************** **********************
Date: Thursday, 11(XI)/13(XIII)/08(MMVIII)
************************************************** **********************
Countdown till U.S. Thanksgiving Day
1wks 6dys 3hrs 4mins
************************************************** **********************
Conformity obstructs progress.
************************************************** **********************

On Nov 14, 12:57*pm, Wayne Boatwright >
wrote:
> On Thu 13 Nov 2008 08:54:25p, Golden One told us...
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> > On Nov 14, 11:06*am, wrote:
> >> On Thu, 13 Nov 2008 10:46:26 -0500, (Lass
>
> >> Chance_2) wrote:
> >> >how about, "pork butt", "fat back", "cat head biscuit", "red-eye
> gravy",
> >> >and the most disgusting of all, "head cheese"?
>
> >> >YUM!
>
> >> >"scratch" and "tub" PALE by comparison to these!
>
> >> >(I wish I had a pair of cat head biscuits with some red eye, right
> >> >now...)
>
> >> >Lass
>
> >> * * How about some good old British (Royal Navy) standbys, like
> >> Spotted Dog, Boiled Baby, Lobscouse, Portable Soup, Figgy-Dowdy,
> >> and Syllabub?
>
> > What about Spotted Dick? The visualisation I get is not nice!
>
> Well, actually, some are spotted. *I don’t know if that’s a pigmentation
> defect or not. hehehehe

I wasn't thinking of those kind of spots ;-)

>
> Spotted Dick, the food, is actually delicious.

Yes I know. It is just the name that conjures up icky visualisations.

JB

>
> --
> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Wayne Boatwright * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
> * * * * * * * (correct the spelling of "geemail" to reply) * * * * * * *
> ************************************************** **********************
> Date: * * * * * * Thursday, 11(XI)/13(XIII)/08(MMVIII)
> ************************************************** **********************
> * * * * * * * * * Countdown till U.S. Thanksgiving Day * * * * * * * * *
> * * * * * * * * * * * * *1wks 6dys 3hrs 4mins * * * * * * * * * * * * *
> ************************************************** **********************
> * * * * * * * * * * *Conformity obstructs progress. * * * * * * * * * *
> ************************************************** **********************- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

On Fri, 14 Nov 2008 03:57:42 GMT, Wayne Boatwright
> wrote:
>>
>>> >Lass
>>>
>>> * * How about some good old British (Royal Navy) standbys, like
>>> Spotted Dog, Boiled Baby, Lobscouse, Portable Soup, Figgy-Dowdy,
>>> and Syllabub?
>>
>> What about Spotted Dick? The visualisation I get is not nice!
>
>Well, actually, some are spotted. I don’t know if that’s a pigmentation
>defect or not. hehehehe
>
>Spotted Dick, the food, is actually delicious.


I googled Spotted Dick and it sounds remarkably like a sort of
pudding my Mom used to make decades ago, and it was damned good as I
recall. She didn't call it Spotted Dick, though. Don't remember her
name for it.

It isn't just English that gets spoiled, the use of some French terms
on the other side of the pond are a bit weird, "Au jus beef " and "au
gratin potoatoes" grate a bit with me

Steve



and
wrote:
> I find North American English, with its propensity for inverting
> syntactically sound expressions and creating verbs out of sows' ears
> (to Christmas shop, to grocery shop, etc.), has produced some rather
> unappetizing terms for food usually as some sort of abbreviation. A
> few came up recently and I thought I'd start a thread on this, as a
> form of recreation (because this is after all a rec.* newsgroup).
>
>