The Reverse Cowgirl
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Filtering by Tag: WORDS
The Agony
The bookshelf at Poke Acupuncture. Follow me on Instagram for more photographs from my life in L.A.
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Mood
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I Love the Dictionary
My ongoing admiration for Merriam-Webster's approach to social media continues, and I was delighted to find that I got quoted on the website again. This time is extra special because the word is "exertion" and the quote is from my recent story on virtual reality porn for The Atlantic: "Porn's Uncanny Valley." Read this blog post if you want to hear about my previous relations with this fine dictionary, which includes the use of the word pique and an ode to gaslighting.
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Pique This
I'm a big fan of Merriam-Webster on Twitter -- yes, the dictionary -- because their social media is just aces. As someone who used to be a digital copywriter for billion-dollar brands, I know how challenging it can be to define the voice of a product and turn that expression into engagement.
Merriam-Webster does a terrific job of this, sending out a tantalizing stream of tweets that inform, delight, and inspire involvement. Yesterday, they tweeted a link to a post defining the difference between timber and timbre. On Twitter, I suggested they do one on the difference between peek, peak, and pique. (Misuse of these terms drives me nuts.)
Within hours, they'd done exactly that and created a post that dissected the various variations. I even learned a use of pique that I'd not been aware of previously: "Pique sometimes is used to mean 'to take pride in (oneself),' as in 'She piques herself on her editing skills.'"
This isn't the first time I've gotten a nod from Merriam-Webster. Earlier this year, I was quoted in a Merriam-Webster post about "Words from London," exploring "Words with London Origins." They quoted a Film Threat review I wrote years ago of "What Lies Beneath" in which I used the word "gaslighted."
In any case, if you want to see social done right, look no further than the dictionary.
I'm in the Dictionary
I was surprised and amused to find myself quoted on the Merriam-Webster website, my go-to site for all things words and definitions related. Check it out here.
Nice Girls Finish Last
via Kimi Knox
Fuck the Wolf of Wall Street
Variety reports the word "fuck" is uttered 506 times in "The Wolf of Wall Street," setting a new record in cinematic swearing.
"According to Wikipedia, the word 'fuck' is used 506 times over 'The Wolf of Wall Street’s' 180-minute running time. Previously, the record for a non-documentary was Spike Lee’s 1999 film 'Summer of Sam' with 435 instances."
[Variety]