Seen in a Palmerston North cafe. (Via Jennifer Natoli @Jenoli42)
Women ... you'd be mad to educate yourselves
The Athenian Mercury, a British periodical of the 1690s, is where the modern advice column began but, unlike the contemporary questions, which are usually of a personal nature, the early queries dealt with bigger philosophical propositions like this:
Q: Is it proper for women to be learned?
A: All grant that they may have some learning, but the question is of what sort, and to what degree? Some indeed think they have learned enough if they can distinguish between their husband's breeches and another man's. Others think they may pardonably enough read, but by no means be trifled with writing. Others again, that they ought neither to write nor read. A degree yet higher are those who would have them read plays, novels and romances, with perhaps a little history, but by all means terminating their studies there, and not letting them meddle with philosophy ... because it takes them off from their domestic affairs and because it generally fills them of themselves ... 'tis a weakness common to our own sex as well as theirs. We see no reason why women should not be learned now. For if we have seen one lady gone mad with learning ... there are a hundred men could be named, whom the same cause has rendered fit for Bedlam.
(Source: The Atlantic)
Words that make you sound dumber than you are
1. Amazing - The word means "causing great surprise or sudden wonder". It's synonymous with wonderful, incredible, startling, marvellous, astonishing, astounding, remarkable, miraculous, surprising, mind-blowing and staggering. You get the point? It's everywhere. It's in corporate slogans. It dominated the Academy Awards speeches. It's all over social media. Newsflash: If everything is amazing, nothing is.
2. Stuff - This word is casual, generic even. It serves as a placeholder for something better. If the details of the stuff aren't important enough to be included in the piece then don't reference it at all. (Via mashable.com)
Over-inflated
Duncan Sinclair spotted this near Albany mall. "A visual comment on Auckland's housing market," he says.
Stay out of the cycle lane
A reader writes: "Last week I was walking down Asquith Ave and turned on to St Lukes Rd. I then saw this line of cars, all waiting to get on to the motorway further down the road. I noticed that every one of them was idling in the cycle lane. Is this legal? As a regular cyclist, if you think I'm going to join the queue instead of just getting on the footpath, think again."
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