Hunter Dickson led No. 1 Kansas to an impressive win over Michigan State, while Mark Pope aced his first big test as Kentucky's head coach.

I have been asked many times if I've written about stodgy, and I always think I have, because I wrote a post about other BrE -odgy adjectives. I have no idea why stodgy didn't make it into that post, but I'm here to rectify the stodgelessness of this blog.

I remember (early in my time in England) asking an English friend what she meant when she said she looked forward to a bit of stodge. She meant 'a carbohydrate-heavy meal'. It was new to me, and this chart from the Corpus of Global Web-Based English (GloWbE) lets you know why: most Americans don't talk about stodge:

stodge in the GloWbE corpus

But stodgy is a different matter:

stodgy in the GloWbE corpus

So how could I not figure out from context what stodge meant, if stodgy be a relatively common word in AmE?

Because Americans typically don't use stodgy to mean 'carb-heavy'.  We mostly use it to refer to someone or something that is so conventional or inactive as to be dull. You can see this in the typical nouns following stodgy in the News on the Web corpus. Here are the top 3:

	BrE	AmE
1	stodgy food	stodgy industry
2	stodgy performance	stodgy incumbents
3	stodgy comfort food	stodgy reputation

    

Stodgy performance (in sport[s]) in the BrE column shows that it can also mean 'dull' in the UK. It's a negative thing when it comes to things other than food, and it can be negative regarding food too. You might feel unpleasantly heavy after eating stodgy food. But stodgy food can also be nice, as I know all too well.

Claggy reminds me a bit of stodgy, and it came up recently when I baked some banana bread for a gathering then overheard a participant describe it as claggy. This again, is a BrEism, which might have become somewhat familiar in the US due to the popularity of the Great British Bake Off (aka the Great British Baking Show: see this old post about that). It means 'having a tendency to clot'—so when it is used in reference to baked goods, it means something like 'so moist or undercooked as to feel gummy or clumpy'. 

These memes will make you us want to quit Stalin and overthrow capitalism right Mao.

New York Magazine published an excerpt from Ivana Trump's memoir Raising Trump - and it has since become a wildly entertaining meme. Thhe excerpt is actually a quote from Ivanka, reminiscing about her "punk" days. 

"During my punk phase in the nineties, I was really into Nirvana. My wardrobe consisted of ripped corduroy jeans and flannel shirts. One day after school, I dyed my hair blue. Mom wasn't a fan of this decision. She took one look at me and immediately went out to the nearest drugstore to buy a $10 box of Nice'n Easy. That night, she forced me to dye my hair back to blond. The color she picked out was actually three shades lighter than my natural color… and I have never looked back!"

The quote has left Twitter users in stitches, making Photoshop memes and mocking the wealthy businesswoman's statement. The results have been delightful. 

Do you take pleasure in converting old doors into coffee tables or old coffee tables into pallets? Do you spend a lot of time carefully crafting email responses? Does grabbing a beer or two at the local Chili's after a Sunday at Home Depot sound appealing to you? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you might get a kick out of these neat memes by novelty memelord @middleclassfancy. We're big fans of this hilarious account and love to share these tongue-in-cheek gems every chance we get.

Qwen2.5-Coder-32B is an LLM that can code well that runs on my Mac 12th November 2024 There’s a whole lot of buzz around the new Qwen2.5-Coder Series of open source (Apache 2.0 licensed) LLM releases from Alibaba’s Qwen research team. On first impression it looks like the buzz is well…

First thought that comes to mind. Try making use of the rel=author attribute. For example: a WP blog allows for authorship as well as sites like BloggerSpot and ArticlesBase.com. From experience it would seem that when sites are joined or for a better term utilized as assets to help the later of the sites, duplicate […]

NASA astronaut Suni Williams says her weight is stable aboard the International Space Station, rebutting tabloid claims that her orbital stay has made her emaciated.

Are you ready to make some kite paper stars? Here’s the tutorial you need – a simple, step-by-step breakdown of this classic craft, so you can follow along with no confusion. At the end of this project, you’ll have a beautiful paper star you can hang in your window as a sun catcher. Try making […]

The post How to Make Kite Paper Stars – Simple Tutorial for a Classic Craft appeared first on Joyful Abode.

Steph Caskenette made these awesome illustrations.

In our fast-paced, modern world, time is our most precious commodity. We’re constantly juggling responsibilities, chasing dreams, and trying to make the most of every moment. But have you ever felt like your days are slipping away, consumed by activities that don’t truly enrich your life? It’s a common struggle, and the culprit is often ... Read more

The post Reclaim Your Time: Conquer the 4 Major Time Wasters appeared first on LifeHack.

Back at the BelAmi “Frisky Summer” ranch, the heat is on. It’s early in the morning and Tommy Clapton is already up and around, so as horny Callum Dean wakes up and decides he needs a bit of morning sex, he has to find his bunk mate and ask if he can lend a hand.... View Article

The post BelAmi Online: Callum Dean Fucks Tommy Clapton appeared first on QueerClick.

Rachel Maddow reminds Americans how Trump told his followers, "You don’t need to vote. I have so many votes." The Republican candidate said multiple times that he had the votes he needed to become president, implicating something other than votes would give him power.

Votes are still being counted in many states, almost one week after the election. Republicans are close to getting control of the U.S. House but Newsweek reports many races are too close to call. I'm not ready to put on a foil hat but isn't it worth looking into some of the odd things surrounding the 2024 election?

I'm not saying the election was "rigged" or unfair. All I am suggesting is that there are strange things about the 2024 election that merit a second look. Since democracy of the free world is at stake, it's worth the trouble.

Trump Doesn't Need Votes and Secret With Moses Mike

As Maddow noted, Trump telling voters he doesn't need their vote is a red flag. The GOP candidate said it multiple times. Trump also made several comments about the "secret" he and Speaker Mike Moses Johnson had about the election.

read more

By Keegan Kelly Published: November 12th, 2024

Brian McLachlan is a cartoonist who's worked for Nickelodeon, The Nib and the New Yorker. He writes the monthly comic Spruce Street Squad for Owl Magazine. His book, Draw Out The Story: 10 Secrets to Creating Your Own Comics is an ILA-nonfiction award winner. Each Tuesday he hosts a group of artists in a PG-13 game of Dungeons & Dragons where they live draw what happens in game on Twitch, called Magical Marker ( MM ). You can find Brian at his website, on Twitter, and Instagram.

Synopsis of COMPLETE THE QUEST: THE POISONOUS LIBRARY (Imprint/Macmillan):

Save your kingdom in this interactive role-playing adventure, which reads like a graphic novel but also plays like a game! It’s perfect for fans of all ages who are interested in the exciting world of fantasy gaming.

Q. How did you come up with the idea for Complete The Quest?

Complete the Quest in a brand new mix of role playing game (RPG) and comic. It started as an experiment to see what would happen if I took a Dungeons & Dragons or Chose Your Own Adventure multi-path story and made it into a comic. How would the gameplay change by putting it into a visual space? For me, it was a literal game changer, turning the CYOA anxiety of multiple choices, into a laid-out, laid-back invitation to check all paths for your favourite way forward. It also encourages people to come up with their own, better solution if they want. While I always give the reader a clear path forward, I invite them to forge their own. It's a great introduction to co-operative storytelling.

Q. What was your writing/illustration process?

I draw a scene much faster than I can write about it. A picture's worth a thousand words and all that. So I draw my scripts in rough, laying out out the word balloons, figuring out how much space I need, how the page turns feel, etc. This was especially important for this comic gamebook which also filled with maps for the reader to navigate. We needed to see if the pathing was clear. Creating the tutorial was the most time intensive part, trying to make the most elegant, clear way to ease the reader into how the game part functions. I think we nailed it. I hear from parents who don't play RPGs that they were worried about the reading a gamebook, but they quickly "got it".

Q. What advice do you have for young writers and illustrators?

Advice is hard to give because everyone's different. Some people need to hear "finish what you start" and some need to hear "stop working on that thing, it's good enough". So my advice is to train your inner advice-giver and follow it. What is it about the way you work that you've been putting off improving, but could do right now? Because you know what type of story or art you're making, and if you're trying to make an apple, the best advice in making a banana isn't going to help. And the best advice in making an apple right-handed isn't going to help you if you're left-handed. Not all advice is for you, it's a skill to figure out what part is for you to take right now, later, or never.

----

Also see my other Inkygirl interviews with book creators and advice for young writers and illustrators from book creators.

IKEA has just unveiled a major upgrade to its beloved PAX wardrobe system, introducing a new foldable frame design. This innovation tackles head-on the long-standing challenges PAX customers have grappled with for years. IKEA makes two bold claims that have caught our attention: first, they promise to slash assembly time by half, and second—brace yourselves—they suggest you can now “fold-up the PAX and go” when it’s time to move. These upgrades could be a game-changer for both assembly and relocation. […]

The post The New PAX Wardrobe: IKEA’s Boldest Claims Yet (And We’re Excited To Test) appeared first on IKEA Hackers.

Breanna Teel is a high school science teacher who keeps things like fish and eels in her classroom. She did not foresee becoming a rabbit rescuer. A student brought a rabbit to school not knowing she was pregnant. While there, the rabbit gave birth to two bright pink baby bunnies, but didn't feed them, so Teel went into overdrive to save the newborns. She would have done so under any other circumstances, but when your students are following along, you go the extra mile to set a good example. I can imagine that no one in the classroom has ever seen newborn rabbits. I certainly haven't.

Teel's efforts paid off when the babies began to grow and flourish. They appear to be some odd breed of show rabbits that resemble large powder puffs with wiggly noses. Are they tribbles? At any rate, they've become a permanent part of the classroom into which they were born.    

Car manufacturers have made great strides in automobile safety in the last few decades. When I was a child, my family drove everywhere in a Volkswagen Beetle or a Microbus that didn't have seatbelts. Nor did they have crumple zones, antilock brakes, or airbags. Riding in the bed of a pickup truck was a regular experience. Fifty years later, my oldest child wanted to get a classic Beetle, but was dissuaded when my brother called them "death traps." Now she has children, and purchased an SUV the size of a tank to keep the kids safe.

The newer a car is, the safer it will be, but when does that become overkill? We know large SUVs are safer for the occupants, yet more dangerous for others around them. We also know that accidents can happen anywhere, but deadly accidents are more likely at high speeds on highways than a short trip to school. And we know that children learn situational awareness and how to test their limits and manage their fears by being in slightly unsafe situations, such as old-fashioned playgrounds. Today, we have young adults who are terrified at the idea of learning to drive.

Jason Torchinsky at Autopian asked reader's opinions on letting their child ride in a classic car such as the original Volkswagen Beetle, and got plenty of replies about how much automotive safety is enough, from farm kids who drove tractors at a young age to ultimate safety advocates. The best comment: "Being unsafe in a car was how I got kids in the first place."

Prolific science fiction author Harlan Ellison wrote two episodes of the TV series The Outer Limits, "Soldier" and "Demon with a Glass Head." They both ran during the show's second season in 1964. In 1984, Ellison heard that James Cameron was working on a film that seemed quite similar to the plot of "Soldier," which you can watch in full. Hemdale Productions wouldn't let him see the script. When he saw The Terminator, Ellison was ready to sue.

The lawsuit never came about, because Hemdale Productions settled the case, for money, screen credit in subsequent releases of the film, and a gag order. To this day, people argue over whether The Terminator was at all plagiarized and if so, how much. Read what Ellison had to say about the case at the time and the reaction from James Cameron at Den of Geek. You've probably already seen The Terminator, and it's up to you to watch The Outer Limits episode if you want to form your own opinion.  

Posts shared on Facebook make an unfounded claim of racially motivated threats of violence in Gwinnett County, Georgia, "from now until the Inauguration." The county sheriff's office said it had "not received any information indicating threats to any group(s) on or after election day."

The post Posts Spread Unfounded Claim of Race-Based Threat of Violence in Georgia appeared first on FactCheck.org.

Former President Donald Trump posted to social media an unsupported claim about "massive CHEATING" in Philadelphia, which he claimed had drawn the attention of law enforcement. The Philadelphia Police Department, the Philadelphia district attorney, a Republican city council member and the Pennsylvania Department of State all refuted the claim.

The post Trump Makes Unsupported Claim About ‘Massive CHEATING’ in Philadelphia appeared first on FactCheck.org.

Some social media posts falsely claimed that CBS News reported there was "cheating" in the 2024 presidential election that benefitted President-elect Donald Trump. We found no evidence of such a report, and a CBS News spokesperson said the outlet "did not report or say there was cheating in the election."

The post Posts Falsely Claim CBS News Reported ‘Cheating’ in Election appeared first on FactCheck.org.

Professional women’s basketball is a cesspool of mediocrity full of women gatekeeping so the sport can’t change. Fortunately, incoming rookie Caitlin Clark is worth more than the entire WNBA due to her sponsorships. This means that unlike other players, Clark doesn’t work for the WNBA she works for her sponsors and her fans. Also, Clark […]

The post WNBA is totally annoying, here’s how to fix it for Caitlin Clark’s arrival appeared first on Penelope Trunk Careers.

He reflected on literature, compassion, belonging, home and the "qualities which make us human."

Download links (Spotify, YouTube, Apple) here. Learn more about the Pagan History Project here.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Princeton Latter-day Saint Student Association hosts a weekly study. The discussions explore various aspects of the gospel of Jesus Christ, scripture, His Church, and the modern application of His teachings. Visitors are welcome.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.

The Program in Visual Arts presents an exhibition of recent work created by students in the fall course, "Painting I," taught by Pam Lins and Colleen Asper. Gallery Hours: Weekdays, 7 AM-8:30 PM; Weekends, 9 AM-8:30 PM.