Cyndi's Two Cents

Choose your words

Commentary.

2018 came blasting in with arctic air as if to announce her presence to every living thing. When I heard the forecast for a real temperature of 6 below zero in the wee hours of January 1, I resolved to stay home and indoors to ring in the new year. That was my one and only New Year’s resolution. I do not regret my decision.

Many people resolve to lose weight or stop smoking or commit to an exercise program. In recent years, my personal resolutions (or goals as I prefer to call them) have centered on how I treat other people.  Generosity, compassion and humility are good examples of virtuous behaviors that can only improve the lives of those around us.  I’m not always generous, compassionate and humble, but these are attainable goals that can be measured.  I try, but like most of the rest of humanity I’m a work in progress.

The words and phrases I use to communicate with others are key in reaching my goals. An unpopular response to a question or comment delivered using a gentler vocabulary selection can make swallowing a bitter pill much less distasteful.

Words are powerful and apparently there aren’t enough of them out there because new words seep into mainstream conversation every year. Sometimes old words take on new meaning.  Some of those new words and old words with new meanings that seem silly to me end up in a dictionary.  Merriam Webster added 250 new words in 2017.

The Internet of Things is a phrase newly minted in the 2017 Merriam Webster dictionary.  The definition is: the networking capability that allows information to be sent to and received from objects and devices using the Internet.

Many farmers can relate to the Internet of Things.  Just think of all the data that has been collected using precision technology.  The goal of course is to integrate and leverage that data. You know the Internet of Things is working when you can swiftly move from precision to decision.

An old word with new meaning that was added to the dictionary in 2017 was also borne of the World Wide Web and mobile communication technologies is troll.  To troll in this sense is to antagonize (others) online by deliberately posting inflammatory, irrelevant, or offensive comments or other disruptive content.

Here’s a word to chew on: youthquake first appeared in a January 1965 Vogue magazine coined by Diana Vreeland, then editor-in-chief, referred to the upsurge of youth culture in London that occurred in the 1960s, especially as reflected in the changing fashion of the period. The definition of youthquake, a noun, in the English Oxford dictionary is ‘a significant cultural, political, or social change arising from the actions or influence of young people’.

My advice to those involved in a youthquake is to use your powers for good.  I can say the same about a couple more phrases added to Merriam Webster in 2017.  Those include concealed carry and open carry.

My wish to each of you is that you may enjoy a happy, healthy and prosperous new year!