When to Use Regimen v. Regiment

regimen v regiment

English is a tough language. Many words sound or look the same but have very different meanings. Recently, I’ve heard/seen regimen and regiment used interchangeably in conversations and in articles , and I had to clear up the confusion. They come from the same Latin root, which probably contributes to the problem.

Regimen: noun, from the Latin regimen, meaning rule or government; derived from the Latin regere, to lead straight or to rule

  • A structured plan, such as a diet, exercise routine, or medication, especially one used to improve or maintain someone’s health
  • A regular course of action, especially rigorous training; example: Olympic athletes follow a strict training regimen
  • Government, rule

 

U.S. Army Capt. Joseph Driskell, commander of Company A, 1st Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, describes the actions his paratroopers should take if fired upon by insurgents in their upcoming patrol Aug. 1, 2012, in Ghazni, Afghanistan. The battalion is part of the 82nd Airborne Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team. (U.S. Army photo by Capt. Thomas Cieslak, Task Force 1-82 PAO) US Army via Flickr CC-BY

Regiment: from the Latin regimentum, from regimen

Noun:

  • A military unit consisting of a number of battalions (battalion = large group, a military company composed of a headquarters and two or more companies)
  • Archaic: governmental rule

Verb:

  • To form or assign into a regiment
  • To organize rigidly for the sake of control
  • To subject to order or uniformity, example: She carefully regiments her son’s diet.

Word Nerd tip

Regimen is always a noun, and is basically a routine or plan.  Regiment either describes a military group or is a verb.  For more details, visit Merriam-Webster.

Word Nerd Workout

Choose the right word in the following sentences.

  1. Her coach gave her a training regimen/regiment for her vacation.
  2. The article criticized the school district’s plan to regimen/regiment extracurricular activities.
  3. Sarah has started a new regimen/ regiment to get her blood pressure under control.

Have you struggled with regimen and regiment?  What word pairs give you trouble?

Thanks for getting nerdy with me!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Why You Must Read Turtles All the Way Down

Turtles All the Way Down

My daughter claims that John Green’s books are so good because “he usually has a deep theme he alludes to, but doesn’t hit you over the head with it, and it’s not too cheesy.” I’m in the middle of editing one of my YA novels, and I eagerly read (listened to) Green’s latest release, Turtles All the Way Down, to figure out what makes his work resonate with so many people.

Premise

Turtles All the Way Down is a young adult contemporary story of Aza Holmes, a 16 year old girl trying to solve a mystery while struggling to manage her mental illness. Millionaire Russell Pickett, the father of her childhood friend Davis, has disappeared, and Aza and her best friend Daisy want to find him. However, unlike the detectives in movies and TV who have mental illnesses, Aza’s OCD does not help her solve the mystery. In fact, it very much gets in her way.

What I liked

Like my daughter said, Green includes not just one, but several themes and motifs in his story to deepen the meaning. Here are a few:

  • Spirals, as in thought spirals, as in the uncontrollable thoughts that hijack Aza’s consciousness and interrupt her daily life. The title of the novel, Turtles all the Way Down, alludes to the futility of trying to find an end to those thought spirals.
  • The image of looking up through bare tree branches. This imagery takes on special importance late in the novel when a phone screen is shattered, like bare tree branches dividing the sky.
  • The sky, the stars, the planets and how small we are compared to the vastness of the universe.
  • The language of pain, and how difficult it is to find words to describe psychic pain

Green’s novels also resonate because he tackles tough issues, like pain, loss, and suffering. Turtles addresses the challenges of mental illness and the loss of important people in our lives. It also touches on how hard it is to watch someone you love suffer.

Usually, Green’s novels don’t end with a tidy, happy conclusion. Often, the characters don’t get what they are looking for, but they do learn something important about the world or themselves. Turtles is no exception.

I love Aza and Davis, two of the main characters in Turtles All the Way Down. Green skillfully brings the reader inside Aza’s head to experience her struggle. She’s a kind girl who trys so hard to cope. Davis is a privileged son of a millionaire, but he’s very thoughtful, posting poems and other musings on life on his secret blog. He’s also very patient with Aza, and I adored him for that.

What I didn’t like

I don’t like a lot of Green’s characters. They are often self-absorbed and difficult.  In Turtles All the Way Down, for most of the book I didn’t like Aza’s best friend Daisy. She’s shallow and flippant and surreptitiously includes Aza in the fan fic she writes, and not in a good way.

When I complain about Green’s characters to other readers, many comment, “Oh, they remind me of the people I went to school with.” And by the end of Turtles, I had a revelation. Maybe I don’t like some of Green’s characters because they are too flawed, too real. I want them to be better, but they aren’t, because they are like actual people. My friends were self-absorbed at times too, (weren’t we all as teenagers?), and so I’ve come to appreciate characters like Daisy a little better. I still don’t like her.

A Note on Mental Illness

John Green suffers from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and Turtles All the Way Down attempts to describe his psychic pain. He explains what it’s like to live with OCD in this Vlogbrothers video, (see below) saying that society tends to think of OCD as excessive hand washing and neatness because that’s visible. But there is actually a lot more going on in the mind of a person with OCD, often things that are hard to describe. Green also points out that society tends to stigmatize as well as romanticize mental illness, such as detectives, like the TV character Monk, who are good at solving cases because of their mental illness. For Green, there is nothing romantic about his illness; in fact, it makes it hard for him to think, much less solve problems.

According to the Mayo Clinic, OCD is characterized by obsessions and/or compulsions. Obsessions are repeated, persisted, unwanted thoughts and urges that intrude on a person’s everyday life and cause distress. Some examples include fear of contamination or dirt, needing things orderly, and aggressive thoughts. Compulsions are repetitive behaviors patients feel driven to do to decrease their anxiety. They are not realistically related to the problem they attempt to address and can include things like hand washing, checking, counting, and strict routines/ rituals.

In short, there is a huge difference between perfectionism and OCD, mainly that people with OCD experience worry out of proportion to real problems. I used to think I worried a lot, and I would joke that I had “OCD” tendencies. I will never joke about that again.

Recommendation

Turtles All the Way Down is a great novel for those who love contemporary YA. It’s also good if you know someone with mental illness and want to learn more about what it’s like to live with it. warning: I saw several reviews on Goodreads that said it was hard for people with mental illness to read because it’s too accurate.

Have you read Turtles All the Way Down?  What did you think?  Can you recommend other books about mental illness?

Happy reading!

 

 

 

 

 

 

How to Combat Worry: A Journal

I am a worrier. I often remind my husband, when he tells me not to worry, that I come from a long line of worriers, as if this tradition of my mother and her mother always worrying validates my tendency to fret. As if my habit of jumping to the worst case scenario in my head is perfectly normal, acceptable behavior.
Well, it’s not.

The Problem

Here’s the problem with worrying: it doesn’t DO anything. Wait, that’s not true. It makes my stomach hurt and steals hours of sleep when I need them the most. It encourages me to snap but not to solve the problem I’m churning over. It also usually annoys the people I’m worried about. So a more accurate statement is:

Worrying doesn’t accomplish anything productive.

My husband, ever calm, ever rational, has told me this for years, and I’ve always gotten mad when he said it. But finally, after decades of entertaining this bad habit, I’m tired of suffering its consequences. I’m tired in general, and I don’t have the precious energy to waste on fretting.

I’m ready to confront my worrying.

First, I’m trying to find the root of the problem. I think it has something to do with my need for predictability and control. I have a spreadsheet for our sports schedule and a specific method for loading groceries onto the checkout belt (produce first, then cold stuff, followed by boxes and cans, then the items I don’t want crushed). Worrying is my futile attempt to control my world. Finally, at age 46, I’m understanding that I actually have very little control over the world, and if I accept that, I’ll be a happier gal.

Second, I’m going to break the habit with a few new tools.

The Solution

Lent has started, and each year during this season I practice three disciplines to bring me closer to God: prayer, fasting, and acts of service. I always fast from sweets and Coke during Lent to “detox” (don’t underestimate my addiction to Coke; this truly is a sacrifice for me.) This year I’m also fasting from worry, but I’m going to need a system to help me.

Robert Frost quote
The quote on the cover of my worry journal is apt, especially after reading Turtles All the Way Down.

I will create a “worry journal” in which I will write down the things that trouble me. I will find scripture or quotes to put next to my concerns, so that when my head starts to spin with worrisome thoughts, I will use the scripture/quotes as prayers and mantras to counteract the fretting.  I also hope the physical act of writing down my fears will contain them in the pages of my journal and keep them from creating havoc in my head.

Insight App
My library of meditations from the Insight app

To strengthen my ability to control my thoughts, I’ve started practicing meditation with the help of an app called Insight. (Thank you, daughter.) It has a timer as well as a library of guided meditations searchable by theme and length. My friend Sarah B. Rawz has great tips for meditation on her blog that I’m using too. I’ve only done this for a few days, and for ten minutes or less, but I’m hoping to make it a habit. A productive one to replace the pointless one.

I told my family about my plan, and my people are understandably dubious. My son asked if I would burn the journal at the end of Lent, but I think not. Sometimes, it’s instructive to look back on what you’ve worried about once you know how everything plays out. And, I think I’m going to need this worry journal for longer than six weeks. As my dear friend Kristen pointed out, “This is a tough year for worrying.” My oldest son will leave for college this fall. I’ll have one son starting high school and another starting middle school. My daughter will get her driver’s license this summer.

Lots of worry fodder there.  I’ll be ready to not worry.

Is worrying a problem for you? How do you handle it? Do you have any Lenten practices to share?

Thanks for stopping by!

 

 

 

 

 

 

What Does Omnibus Mean?

Every year, I get a new Mensa Page a Day Puzzle calendar.  My people like to contemplate the puzzles over breakfast.  I like the wordy ones; hubby and child number three like the math ones.  (Insert nerd emoji here.)  Last December, we saw the 2018 version at Barnes and Noble, but I made my puzzler people wait because, “It will go on sale after the New Year.”

Well, this January I discovered the problem with waiting for the 50% off sale.  Wait too long, and it’s out of stock.  Everywhere.

Sporkle trivia calendarSo my puzzler people had to endure boring January breakfasts without any math problems to stimulate their brains.  I finally broke down and bought a Sporkle trivia calendar as a substitute, and it’s fun, but not  the same.  Thankfully, the same time I got the Sporkle, I got Match Wits with Mensa, The Complete Puzzle Book.  It’s a two-inch thick volume with puzzles more like what we’re used to from the Page A Day Calendar.  The cover claims that it is “the Omnibus edition with over 800 puzzles and brainteasers” which prompted a brainteaser of its own.

“What is an omnibus?” child number four asked.

Good question, buddy.  Enter Merriam-Webster.

Mensa Quiz Book

omnibus \ ˈäm-ni-(ˌ)bəs \ from Latin omni, meaning all

  • noun:
    • a public vehicle used to carry a large number of passengers
    • a book carrying reprints of a number of works
  • adjective:
    • of, relating to many things at once
    • containing many items; an omnibus bill

Example:  Congress must hash out the details of the trillion-dollar omnibus spending bill by Friday.

Did you know what omnibus meant?  And where, if at all, do you turn for puzzles to stimulate your brain?

Don’t forget to visit Kathy at Bermuda Onion for the WWW meme!

If you like learning new words, be sure to visit Kathy at Bermuda Onion for Wondrous Words Wednesday!.

Thanks for getting super nerdy with me today!

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Great Site for Book Series Lovers

Thankfully, my kids love to read.  However, it’s hard to stay on top of all the books they consume, especially my younger two boys, who love series of the action/adventure/ fantasy variety.  I can’t remember which books they’ve read and which books they need next from the library!

Luckily, when my friend Leslie and I were discussing the The Ranger’s Apprentice series, she pulled up an extremely helpful website, Book Series in Order.  The guy who runs the site, Graeme, has created an extensive data base of book series that includes everything from Rick Riordan to John Grisham.

You can search by character, and the site will pull up all the books with that character.  When necessary, the site lists the books in order of publication and also in chronological order, when the two differ.  The site offers summaries about characters or series to help you figure out if you’d like the books.

When you search by author, the site gives you interesting background information about the author as well as all the books written by that author, organized by series.  Some incredibly prolific authors, such as Brandon Sanderson and Rick Riordan, have over ten collections of books!  I can never keep all of Riordan’s series straight (is that book part of The Lightening Thief series or The Kane Chronicles?) – Books Series in Order is a huge help!

Book Series in Order

Here’s what comes up when you search “Rick Riordan”.Each book listed also has links to Amazon so that it’s easy to order the book in hardcover, paperback, or Kindle formats.

Graeme, who runs the site, offers some “Top Lists” to help you find books.  Some of his categories include:

  • Top ten books for kids aged 6-12
  • Top ten book to movie adaptations
  • Ten series to read after The Hunger Games

If you can’t find a series you’re interested in, you can submit a request to add that series to the data base.  You can also subscribe to a biweekly newsletter that offers 6-8 book recommendations per issue.

The only downside to the site is it’s filled with ads, which makes it a little clunky to navigate and slow to load.  It’s easy to accidentally click on an ad and get sent someplace you don’t want to go.  Be careful as you scroll!

Graeme, the site manager, uses a basic and somewhat choppy writing style.  He’s clearly not a fancy writer, but he doesn’t claim to be.  He loves books and reading, and his hard work is an asset to other book lovers, especially those who like series.

Have you ever used Book Series in Order?  Can you recommend any other similar sites that help readers keep track of series?

Thanks for reading!

 

 

 

 

 

 

What I Didn’t Like About Fates and Furies

Have you ever picked up a book that’s gotten critical acclaim and fabulous reviews from people online, but by the time you reached chapter three you thought, “I hate this story”? That’s what happened to me, and most of my book club, when we read Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff. I’d seen so much raving about it in my writing circles, I recommended it for our reading list.

I ended up apologizing to my book club. Luckily they are a forgiving bunch.

Premise

Fates and Furies explores the two sides of marriage between Lotto, a charismatic, aspiring actor, and Mathilde, a quiet, beautiful girl with a mysterious past. From the outside, Lotto and Mathilde’s relationship appears passionate and happy, yet secrets lurk. Broken into two parts, Fates and Furies presents the marriage from the perspective of Lotto first (Fates) and then Mathilde (Furies).

What I liked

Fates and Furies has beautiful prose, layered and complicated, yet easy to read. Groff uses unique, poignant descriptions to capture emotions and truths in brief but powerful language. Some examples:

  • On grief: “She could feel the grief coming on fast, shaking the ground like a hurtling train, but she hadn’t been hit by it yet.” And later, “… they deposited her in the bed that still smelled like him. She put her face in the pillow. She lay. She could do nothing. Her whole body had turned inward. [She] had become a fist.”
  • On marriage: “They had been married for seventeen years; she lived in the deepest room in his heart.”

These descriptions felt real and true for me, and there are tons of them throughout the novel.  They kept me reading.

What I didn’t like

I need a character I can relate to or empathize with when I read a book. I couldn’t find one in Fates and Furies. Most of the characters are self-absorbed and conniving; many of them hide dark secrets. Only Lotto doesn’t try to manipulate the people around him, but that’s because he’s too obsessed with himself and his art to notice much else.

The characters do not have clear goals or objectives, and the story meanders, often jumping back and forth in time. It is a novel primarily concerned with character instead of plot, however, since I didn’t like the characters or see them change, this style didn’t work for me. I’ve seen Fates and Furies described as “Gone Girl with nicer people”. I disagree. Gone Girl is a thriller, with a plot driven, suspenseful story. The characters are just as manipulative and dysfunctional, but the plot kept me interested, at least until the ridiculously twisted ending.

Lotto, after failing as an actor, finds success writing plays. Groff includes snippets from his plays within the narrative. They add insight into Lotto’s mind and add depth to the themes and characters presented in the main story. They also provide allusions to Greek mythology. However, I didn’t enjoy reading them, and some of the book club girls skipped them all together.

There’s a lot of sex. I don’t mind love scenes, it is after all a story about marriage, and the love scenes in Fates and Furies aren’t graphic.  But they are plentiful, and often not loving.  Most of the characters use sex as a weapon of manipulation, as if sex can solve their problems. It doesn’t. In fact, it creates more.

The characters are haunted by mistakes from their past, even ones they made as children. In general, Lotto and Mathilde seem powerless to change themselves or to rise above their weaknesses. There is one small triumph near the end of “Furies”, but that seems inadequate compared to the darkness that precedes it.

Recommendation

I can only recommend Fates and Furies to writers looking for great examples of descriptive language. Or to anyone who would be attracted to a novel entitled Sex and Suicide, which was how one book clubber nick named this book.

If you’ve read Fates and Furies, what did you think? What’s another highly touted novel you’ve been disappointed in?

Happy reading!