{"id":4375,"date":"2006-02-12T23:09:00","date_gmt":"2006-02-13T03:09:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.law.harvard.edu\/formerlyknownas\/2006\/02\/12\/yes-prof-yabut-can-be-quite-w"},"modified":"2011-08-05T14:54:10","modified_gmt":"2011-08-05T18:54:10","slug":"yes-prof-yabut-can-be-quite-weird","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/2006\/02\/12\/yes-prof-yabut-can-be-quite-weird\/","title":{"rendered":"yes, prof. yabut can be quite weird"},"content":{"rendered":"

D<\/strong><\/em>espite his <\/font>stall-tactic<\/font><\/a> promise earlier this week, it seems clear <\/font>that Editor Giacalone is wimping out on his <\/font>Weird-Tag<\/font><\/a> <\/font>duties<\/font><\/a>. He <\/font><\/font>was <\/font><\/font>tagged by <\/font>Ellen “Marie” Johns<\/font> on Monday, February 6. As <\/font><\/font>usual, it’s <\/font>been left to yours truly, <\/font>Prof. Yabut<\/font><\/a>, to do the dirty work <\/font>around here.<\/font><\/p>\n

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\"NoYabutsSN\" <\/font>When you’ve been weird-tagged, you must do a Weird List<\/em> on your <\/font>website — a list of five habits you have, which you or others consider <\/font>to be “weird.” You also have to name and link to five new taggees, <\/font>and let them know (in comments or email) that they have been tagged. <\/font>(Although some taggees pen long confessions and apologia, others — <\/font><\/font><\/font>see poet <\/font>Pris Campbell<\/font><\/a>‘s quickie list — make them pithy as can be.)<\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

Here are a few of my so-called weird habits:<\/font><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n

1) Aging Up:<\/strong><\/em> When I wrote <\/font>Aging Up: False IDs for the AARP Crowd<\/font><\/a>, <\/font>the idea that Baby Boomers would start wanting fake ID cards to “prove” <\/font>they are older than their real age was meant to be a joke. How<\/font>ever, it’s <\/font>been at least a decade since anyone (under 80) said I looked a lot younger <\/font>than my <\/font>chronological age, and I miss that postiive reinforcement. So, <\/font>these days, <\/font>when I <\/font>meet <\/font>someone for the first time, I often suggest that I am <\/font>already <\/font>60ish, <\/font>in<\/font>stead of my actual 56. (This ploy has not had much success, <\/font>to <\/font>date, and I might start hinting that I’m 70. That should<\/em> do it, for now.)<\/font><\/p>\n

\"tiny To enhance the believability of my claim, <\/font>I like \"MagnifierWatchV\"<\/font><\/p>\n

showing off my new Dakota <\/font>pocketwatch<\/font><\/a>, which has <\/font><\/p>\n

a built-in magnifying glass. <\/font><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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2) Backseat Desire:<\/strong><\/em> There are quite a few foods with which I have <\/font>a one-night-stand relationship: they never last overnight in my home — <\/font>no matter how large their container or quantity. E.g.<\/em>, chocolate, pea<\/font>nut butter, ice cream, nuts. To remedy this problem, I have been <\/font>forced to leave such non-perishable foods on the backseat (or in the <\/font>trunk) of my car, in a detached garage. I then bring relatively small <\/font>amounts inside <\/font>with me for my snacking. (I’m proud to say that, in <\/font>2005, I only went out <\/font>twice after midnight to get a second helping.)<\/font><\/p>\n

\"sundaeG\" As for ice cream, for almost <\/font>30 years,<\/font> for when I’m at <\/font>home <\/font>alone, I have <\/font>pur<\/font>chased only pints <\/font>(and, since eating three <\/font>pints <\/font>of <\/font>Haagen-Daz<\/font><\/a> one night in 1977, while awaiting dinner guests, <\/font><\/font>I buy <\/font>only one at a time). That has not prevented <\/font>frequent freeze-<\/font>burns on the tip of my tongue from rapid <\/font>consumption. Sadly, <\/font>I can no longer have peanut around at all; as a result, I often <\/font>request a p&j sandwich when visiting friends around lunch <\/font>time.<\/font><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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3) Dangerous Pizza<\/strong><\/em>: Virtually every<\/em> time I consume a slice of “Amer<\/font>ican” <\/font>pizza, I get <\/font><\/font>pizza burn<\/font><\/a> — a blistering lesion caused when searing <\/font>hot cheese meets the tender parts of your upper palate, often accom<\/font>panied by a loosened piece of flesh that hangs down from the roof of your <\/font>mouth. [click <\/font>here<\/font><\/a> for advice on kissing with pizza burn] Editor Giacalone, <\/font>despite his ethnic background, has been unable to offer useful tips. (Confi<\/font>dentially, he has the same problem, along with his<\/font> Italian Ice <\/font>brain freeze<\/font><\/a> <\/font>issues.) It’s no wonder that real<\/em> Italian pizza tends to be topped with grated <\/font>cheeses, not mountains of the scalding melted stuff, like here in the USA.<\/font><\/p>\n

\"tiny Question for <\/font>Walter Olson<\/font><\/a><\/em>: Why don’t pizza sellers fear <\/font>competition from MacDonald’s? Answer: here<\/a>.<\/font><\/p>\n

\"bullG\"<\/font><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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4) “Bloggie in the Window<\/strong><\/em>“: It’s certainly not <\/font>the least bit weird, that I — <\/font>like the other alter <\/em><\/font>egos<\/em> around here, and people <\/font>of good taste in gen<\/font>eral — <\/font>deplore<\/a> use of the word “blog,”<\/font>in the place of “weblog” or “web log.” <\/font>None<\/font>theless, my Annoyer gene <\/font>occasionally dominates my Professor and Grown-<\/font>Up genes, and I find myself singing a ditty <\/font>I call “Bloggie in the Window,” <\/font>whenever Editor Giacalone has been spend<\/font>ing too much time on his high <\/font>horse. (haikuEsq<\/em> will sometimes harmonize, <\/font>using a screeching falsetto.) <\/font>Coming soon: “I Fought the Blawg<\/em><\/font><\/a> and the Blawg<\/em> Won.”<\/font><\/p>\n

5) Counselor-out-Law<\/em><\/strong>: Although I almost never tell anyone where to go, <\/font>I have the uncontrollable urge to advise young (pre)adults to avoid law school <\/font>at all costs. [see, e.g<\/em>., <\/font>1L of a decision<\/font><\/a>] This has gotten me into big trouble <\/font>with many a senior-partner\/suburban-soccer parent. Some of my best friends <\/font>have insisted that I cease and desist (no restraining orders yet), leaving me <\/font>to hand my business card to their offspring, with the URL for ethicalEsq<\/em>‘s <\/font>Archives<\/font><\/a>.<\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

\"prof You know, that’s my five, but I feel that I’ve scarcely gotten rolling. <\/font>Nonetheless, I shall stifle myself, and hope that the Current Editor <\/font>is duly grateful for my efforts.<\/font><\/p>\n

Bonus:<\/strong><\/em> I really enjoy looking up words to see their etymology. <\/font><\/font>Today, I learned that”<\/font>weird<\/font><\/a>” comes from the Old English word <\/font>for “fate,” and was used to refer to the three Weird Sisters<\/em>, the <\/font>goddesses who controlled human destiny. Our meaning evolved, <\/font>because the Sisters were often depicted as being odd-looking or <\/font>scary.<\/font><\/p>\n

Have you noticed how many otherwise smart and well-educated <\/font>people misspell “weird”? There are over 5 million Google <\/font>results <\/font>for incorrect form “wierd.” They appear to be<\/font> applying the “I Before <\/font>E Except After C” Rule<\/a>, without attend<\/font>ing to its many corollaries <\/font>and exceptions. Most of the offenders seem to be <\/font>20-something males — those young fellows who can only memorize <\/font>the <\/font>informa<\/font>tion <\/font>needed to win at computer games. Don’t get me <\/font>started. <\/font><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

New Taggees<\/strong><\/em>: Unlike certain<\/a> taggers, I will not tag strangers or <\/font>people I know on the web who seem, well, strange. Here are a <\/font>few weblog colleagues, who I hope will not be unduly annoyed by <\/font>being weird-tagged:<\/font><\/p>\n

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Caolyn Elefant<\/font><\/a> of <\/font>MyShingle<\/font><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Martin F. Grace<\/font><\/a> of <\/font>RiskProf<\/font><\/em><\/a> <\/font><\/p>\n

George M. Wallace<\/font><\/a> of <\/font>Fool in the Forest<\/font><\/em><\/a> and <\/font><\/font>Declarations & Exclusions<\/font><\/em><\/a><\/font><\/p>\n

\"erasingSF\"<\/font> Walter Olson<\/font><\/a> of <\/font>Overlawyered.com<\/font><\/em><\/a> <\/font>and <\/font>Point of Law<\/a><\/em> [withdrawn by taggee]<\/font><\/p>\n

\"erasingS\" Steve Bainbridge<\/font><\/a> of Prof.Bainbridge.com<\/em><\/a> <\/font>and ProfB on Wine<\/em><\/a> [withdrawn by taggee]<\/font><\/p>\n

<\/a><\/font><\/p>\n

update<\/font> <\/em><\/strong>(Feb. 15, 2006): New Taggees<\/em>:<\/font><\/p>\n

Steve Minor<\/font><\/a> of <\/font>the <\/font>SW Virginia Law Blog<\/font><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Nancy Stinson<\/font><\/a> of Canton, Ohio’s award<\/font><\/a>-winning Stark County Law Library Blog<\/a><\/em>.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\"WOlson\"<\/em><\/strong> <\/em><\/strong><\/font>Taggee Reports<\/em><\/strong><\/font> (Feb. 15, 2006): Original Taggee Walter Olson<\/a> has <\/font>left a <\/font>Comment <\/font>pointing out that “I play the accordion and have admitted <\/font>to <\/font>as much <\/font>on my website. I think that should count for the equivalent of <\/font>five <\/font>instances of weirdness all by itself.” Although I’m curious to learn <\/font>a few of his other foibles, I shall accept his calculation that an accordian <\/font>habit is equal to an entire Weird List. So, Walter is hereby untagged, <\/font>and I’ve just tagged Steve Minor<\/a>. <\/font><\/p>\n

Steve Bainbridge<\/font><\/a> of <\/font>Prof.Bainbridge.com<\/font><\/em><\/a> has also asked to be relieved of his duties, so I am passing the torch to the mysterious<\/font><\/a> Nancy Stinson<\/font><\/a> of the award<\/font><\/a>-winning Stark County Law Library Blog<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n

p.s.<\/strong><\/em> At his weblog simply senryu<\/font><\/a><\/em>, our in-house haiku poet, dagosan<\/em> <\/font>posts <\/font>what often amounts to a confession of weirdness every day.<\/font><\/p>\n

\"snowflake\"<\/p>\n

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the nightingale’s song
\nwonderfully strange…
\nspring’s first dawn<\/font><\/p>\n

the love-crazed cat
\nstrangely on edge
\nwanders off<\/font><\/p>\n

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going outside
\neverything is strange…
\nfirst inn of the year<\/font><\/p>\n

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Issa<\/strong><\/font><\/a><\/p>\n

translated by <\/font>David G. Lanoue<\/font><\/a> \"HideGoTree\"<\/font><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Despite his stall-tactic promise earlier this week, it seems clear that Editor Giacalone is wimping out on his Weird-Tag duties. He was tagged by Ellen “Marie” Johns on Monday, February 6. As usual, it’s been left to yours truly, Prof. Yabut, to do the dirty work around here. When you’ve been weird-tagged, you must do […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":94,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[555,900],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4375","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-haiku-or-senryu","category-viewpoint"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6kP1R-18z","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4375","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/94"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4375"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4375\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12782,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4375\/revisions\/12782"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4375"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4375"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4375"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}