Wine Gal
Subscriber since: Wed Jan 16 14:55:09 EST 2013
Location: Los Gatos, CA
About Me
I love wine and writing and I'm a Certified Sommelier (via CMS). I own a small wine consulting business and I blog about wine and life. I love language and learning.
I can also be found on:
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My Word Lists
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Favorite Word:

prestidigitation

Least Favorite Word:

ointment

Favorite Quote:

"Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new."
- Albert Einstein

Favorite Topics:

Blogs:

Ben Zimmer on How Technology is Shaping Language
Tue Oct 08 00:00:00 EDT 2013
On Slate, Lexicon Valley Launches a New Language Blog
Tue Sep 10 00:00:00 EDT 2013

Books:

"Nine Nasty Words": How and Why We Curse
Fri Aug 13 09:00:00 EDT 2021
Highly Entertaining and Informative
Tue Aug 03 08:00:00 EDT 2021

Branding:

The Rare, Overstuffed "Turduckenym"
Thu Sep 16 00:00:00 EDT 2021
Electrifying!
Thu Jun 17 00:00:00 EDT 2021

Dictionaries:

The Post-Dictionary World?
Thu Jun 03 09:00:00 EDT 2021
Finding (or Inventing) Euphemisms in the Latest OED Update
Wed Nov 13 00:00:00 EST 2019

Fun:

Predictive Human Balderdash and Other Managed Malarkey
Thu May 12 00:00:00 EDT 2022
Very Spatial and Capable Lethal Aid
Thu Feb 10 00:00:00 EST 2022

Grammar:

Seven Sentences You Should Stop Writing
Mon Nov 23 09:00:00 EST 2020
How to Make Your Sentences Shorter
Thu Jun 25 09:00:00 EDT 2020

How to write:

Nine ways to finish the writing you start
Thu Jul 28 11:00:00 EDT 2022
How to Survive Until You're Famous or Successful
Thu Mar 24 00:00:00 EDT 2022

Language arts:

The Enduring Impact of English Teachers on Students
Tue Apr 28 00:00:00 EDT 2015
The Art of Subterfuge: Using Pop Culture to Create Interest in the Classics
Fri Dec 05 00:00:00 EST 2014

Language:

Metaphors We Live By (Updated)
Thu Mar 03 00:00:00 EST 2022
Brand Names of the Year for 2021
Thu Dec 16 00:00:00 EST 2021

Linguistics:

Scale Your Onboarding
Thu Jun 02 00:00:00 EDT 2022
Tricky, Special, Fruitful, Space-Flavored Fiddle-Faddle
Thu Apr 14 00:00:00 EDT 2022

Marketing:

What Do Plus Signs Add?
Thu Jul 15 09:00:00 EDT 2021
Brand Names of the Year for 2019
Thu Dec 19 00:00:00 EST 2019

Media:

Understanding "Maven"
Thu May 19 00:00:00 EDT 2022
Predictive Human Balderdash and Other Managed Malarkey
Thu May 12 00:00:00 EDT 2022

Online:

Strategic Flexibility and Other Bendy Balderdash
Thu Oct 07 00:00:00 EDT 2021
A Recipe for Time Travel
Tue Oct 06 00:00:00 EDT 2020

Word Origins:

Shoot! How Gun Idioms Color Our Speech
Thu Jul 21 12:00:00 EDT 2022
Scale Your Onboarding
Thu Jun 02 00:00:00 EDT 2022

Reading:

How to Read More Books
Mon Nov 19 00:00:00 EST 2018
Pride and Prejudice and Natural Language Processing
Mon Apr 02 00:00:00 EDT 2018

Spelling:

To Bee or Not to Bee?
Thu Mar 18 09:00:00 EDT 2021
2015 Spelling Bee: Co-Champions Triumph Again, as Vanya and Gokul Prove Unbeatable
Fri May 29 00:00:00 EDT 2015

Students:

2015 Spelling Bee: Co-Champions Triumph Again, as Vanya and Gokul Prove Unbeatable
Fri May 29 00:00:00 EDT 2015
"Sinister Buttocks" and the Dangers of Thesaurus Flipping
Fri Aug 29 00:00:00 EDT 2014

Usage:

Comparative Nonsense
Fri Nov 01 00:00:00 EDT 2019
Unexpected Cousins
Mon Apr 01 00:00:00 EDT 2019

Vocabulary:

The Post-Dictionary World?
Thu Jun 03 09:00:00 EDT 2021
A "Dumpster Fire" of a Year
Wed Jan 11 10:14:00 EST 2017

Words:

Shoot! How Gun Idioms Color Our Speech
Thu Jul 21 12:00:00 EDT 2022
"Nine Nasty Words": How and Why We Curse
Fri Aug 13 09:00:00 EDT 2021

Writers:

Nine ways to finish the writing you start
Thu Jul 28 11:00:00 EDT 2022
How to Survive the Feast or Famine of Freelance Writing
Thu Apr 28 00:00:00 EDT 2022

Writing:

Nine ways to finish the writing you start
Thu Jul 28 11:00:00 EDT 2022
How to Survive the Feast or Famine of Freelance Writing
Thu Apr 28 00:00:00 EDT 2022