Diary of a Word Nerd

How Spreadsheets Keep Me Organized

Posted on March 20, 2015 by Julia Tomiak / 9 Comments

Today’s post is going to focus more on nerdy, less on wordy.

I’m gonna admit my love for spreadsheets.

I know, spreadsheets are more of an accountant’s obsession. But Excel can do way more than calculations. It can keep a busy life organized. And, you can color code! Next to my love of words comes my love of color. All my index cards in graduate school were color coded: pink and purple for neuroanatomy and pediatrics (my favorite subjects), black and red for wound care (the subject I dreaded.)

The Beauty of Spread Sheets

I have four children. Have I mentioned that before? My daughter keeps telling me I have short term memory loss. I’m positive that, if I have memory loss, motherhood has caused it. All the more reason why I need my spreadsheets! The sports schedules alone keep me hopping, and I need a way to see soccer games and swim meets all at once, so that when someone asks, “What weekends in April are you free?”, I can answer coherently.

Here’s where the Spring Sports Schedule spread sheet comes in handy.

Every child has a color – and that’s not just for spread sheets. The family color code works across calendars, chore charts, and folders I use to keep track of paperwork.

With the spreadsheet, I can pinpoint particularly tricky weekends, when every child has an entry across the row. I save the spreadsheet in Dropbox so that the hubby and I can access it from any device.

Another handy use for Excel: the Family Health Visit Record. Good grief, I don’t know how I would remember when everyone had their last eye exam or visit to the dentist without it.

See how every family member has a color coded tab? This workbook goes chronologically left to right – I just keep adding notes. Eventually, I guess I’ll delete old stuff. 2011 was a long time ago. Sigh.

See how often I’ve been to see a primary care physician? Whoops! Does it count if I’m married to one?

Finally, I use Excel to keep an Editorial Calendar for Diary of a Word Nerd. This is where I plan out posts and keep an eye on variety. Who wants to read (or write) book reviews week after week? With this spreadsheet, I keep notes for social media posts and set reminders for annual events, like National Poetry Month and Banned Books Week. When the new year rolls around, I “save as” for the new year.

I ♥ spreadsheets. Call me “Type A”. Say I’m a dork.

But I know when my child had his last fluoride treatment. Do you?

Michael Hyatt has a great idea for time management. Use his spreadsheet template to plan out your ideal week.

Your turn. What cool stuff do you do with spreadsheets? What’s your nerdy confession?

Please share; we’re all nerds here. 😉

Julia

Improving vocabulary

What Does Inimical Mean?

Posted on March 18, 2015 by Julia Tomiak / 4 Comments

Welcome to the best meme for word nerds, Wondrous Words Wednesday. It’s a great place to ponder those words you come across while reading that give you pause. Visit Kathy at Bermuda Onion to find more interesting words or write your own post and link up to join the fun.

My word comes from an old Merriam-Webster word of the day:

Inimical \i-‘ni-mi-kǝl\ adj from Latin inimicus, meaning enemy

Being adverse often by reason of hostility
Having the disposition of an enemy
Unfriendly

The substitute had years of experience and didn’t flinch under the inimical glares of her freshmen biology students.

Word Nerd Workout

Photo Credit: Gabbo T via flickr CC-BY-SA Tom Felton doesn't look so inimical in this photo. — Tom Felton (aka Draco) doesn’t look so inimical in this picture. Photo Credit: Gabbo T via flickr CC-BY-SA

Can you think of a synonym for inimical? Or better yet, a character from fiction who has an inimical disposition. My synonym is “oppositional” and my character is Draco Malfoy – I know, I took an easy one.

Your turn!

Thanks for playing,

Julia

Awesome Young Adult Books/Book reviews/Favorite Characters/How to encourage reading

What You Should Know About Insurgent Before You See the Movie

Posted on March 13, 2015 by Julia Tomiak / 4 Comments

Insurgent opens next week Friday, March 20, 2015.

If you don’t know what this means, then clearly, you’ve been living under a snow pile for the past three months. I’ll fill you in.

Insurgent, the second movie in the Divergent series, features a dystopian society in which all people must choose to live in one of five factions: Amity, Erudite, Abnegation, Candor, or Dauntless. (For an explanation of each faction, visit my faction vocabulary post.) The society was originally divided into factions to promote peace and balance, but unfortunately some factions aren’t happy with the set up and want to take over.

Also, not all people fit nicely into a faction. Some end up factionless, the equivalent of modern society’s homeless. Others are special, or Divergent, having qualities of two or more factions as well as superior abilities.

Tris, the heroine of the series, is Divergent, which makes her dangerous in the eyes of the people vying for power. She and her boyfriend, Four, who is also Divergent, lead a fight against the evil people trying to take over.

Four is brave, mysterious, and as you can see, gorgeous.

The handsome Mr. James. Photo Credit: Red Carpet Report on Mingle Media TV via flickr CC-BY-SA — The handsome Theo James who plays Four. Photo Credit: Red Carpet Report on Mingle Media TV via flickr CC-BY-SA

This is a fun dystopian series, with rebellion, truth serum, and tattoos, and some good questions about human nature. I read Insurgent a year ago, but I know a 13-year-old Fan Girl who has read the series repeatedly and treasures her Collector’s Edition books. She can tell you what you need to know before you see the movie.

WN (Word Nerd): How many times have you read Insurgent?

FG (Fan Girl): Uh, I stopped counting after ten.

WN: Seriously? Ten? Why do you like this book so much?

FG: Because Tris is awesome.

WN: What are the key plot points of Insurgent, the book?

FG: Probably [Tris] finding out exactly what Jeanine [the evil leader from the Erudite faction] is up to, figuring out what to do with the hard drive [an item with critical information that Tris stole from Jeanine in Divergent], as well as resolving personal conflict about Will. [Tris had to kill Will, her friend, at the end of Divergent, and this haunts her.]

WN: How does the main character,Tris, change in this installment of the story?

FG: She is very reckless and conflicted at the beginning, but near the end she learns to enjoy life and put her emotions aside when making decisions.

WN: What goes on between Tris and Four, who just started their relationship at the end of Divergent?

FG: They fight a TON. 🙁 They learn-ish to trust each other – a problem they struggle with a lot even going into Allegiant, the third and final book in the series.

WN: What are some of your favorite parts of the book? Favorite lines? (because I know you can quote some.)

FG: My favorite part is when [Tris and Four] are in hiding at the Amity compound. [People in the Amity faction grow all the food and are peace loving – think hippies ]. Tris says to Four, “That’s why you like me! You’re not very nice either!” when she’s high on peace serum.

The Insurgent Collectors Edition at Amazon

WN: Why should people read the book before seeing the movie?

FG: The same reason you should read any book before a movie. It – the book – gives you more information than a movie can give you.

WN: Excellent answer. What’s cool about the collector’s edition of Insurgent?

FG: It has special interviews, posters, and even some of Veronica Roth’s rough drafts and early manuscripts.

The Fan Girl’s friends were raving about the movies but hadn’t read the books, something that distressed both Fan Girl and me, so I promised to take them to see Insurgent if they read the book first.

Hopefully, I’ll have a pack of girls with me at theater next week. 😉

Have you read Insurgent? Do you plan to see the movie? Please share!

Julia

Improving vocabulary

Vocab from a Foodie: Sommelier

Posted on March 11, 2015 by Julia Tomiak / 10 Comments

Do you like to learn new words? Then you’re in the right place! I’m going to share a new-to-me word, and you can join the nerdy fun by commenting here, writing your own post about a new-to-you word, and visiting Kathy at the Bermuda Onion blog.

My word this week comes from the hilarious novel The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion. It’s the story of what happens when an extremely intellectual and organized genetics professor meets a care free young woman who is tending bar while she works on her PhD. An opposites attract story with a clever voice.

In the back of the book, Graeme Simsion admits to being a foodie, and my word today comes from the food world.

The sommelier appeared with the wine.

sommelier \sǝ-mǝl-‘yā\ noun from the French soumelier, an official charged with transportation of supplies, from old French, pack animal driver.

A waiter in a restaurant who has charge of wines and their service

Did you catch the etymology on that one? A pack animal driver? That’s a far cry from the distinguished waiter in a tux presenting a bottle of wine.

Aren’t words fun?

Word Nerd Note

This is one of those times when the dictionary didn’t do me justice. My friend Carol shared a more complete definition in her comments.

“…a sommelier is more than a the waiter in charge of wine. It is a big deal designation that is given after intense training. Just count this in the catalog of odd things I know. I know that you got the definition from the dictionary but those trained as a sommelier would protest. Also, while I would agree that you can’t trust Wikipedia, their definition might actually be better this time.’A sommelier (/ˈsɒməljeɪ/ or /sʌməlˈjeɪ/; French pronunciation: [sɔməlje]), or wine steward, is a trained and knowledgeable wine professional, normally working in fine restaurants, who specializes in all aspects of wine service as well as wine and food pairing. The role is much more specialized and informed than that of a wine waiter: In fine dining today the role is strategically on a par with that of the executive chef or chef de cuisine.[1]’”

Thanks Carol!

Word Nerd Workout

Share another obscure term from the foodie world. This is not my arena, so you’ll be sure to teach me something!

Thanks for playing along.

Julia

Improving grammar

When to Use Affect or Effect

Posted on March 6, 2015 by Julia Tomiak / 5 Comments

There are word pairs in the English language that have troubled my writing for years. When should I use who or whom? What’s the difference between lay and lie? Do you share my woes? Today I’m going to tackle another tricky pair: affect and effect.

Thank you Scott Baldwin for this suggestion. 😉

Being a word nerd, I use wordy mnemonics to help me remember things. I would like to say that since effect is a verb, and verb has an “e‘ in it, that effect is usually used as a verb.

But that’s not true. The basic rule with these words is:

Effect is a noun. Affect is a verb.

However, some research in the Merriam Webster Dictionary and my handy Grammatically Correct reference book proved that this simple tenet doesn’t cover the whole picture. Leave it to English grammar to complicate things.

First, let’s look at the multiple meanings of affect.

Affect \ǝ-‘fect\ verb – to act upon, influence

Lack of sleep will poorly affect your performance at the meet.

Affect can also mean to fancy, to cultivate, or to feign.

Rosie affects a British accent when she discusses Harry Potter.

Affect can also be a noun; note the difference in pronunciation

Affect \’af-fect\ noun – psychology: the conscious subjective aspect of an emotion observed apart from bodily changes

The patient has a flat affect (shows no emotion).

Whew. Got all that?

Now, let’s review the meanings of effect

Effective cheering

Effect \i-‘fect\ noun; something that follows a cause; essence; an outward sign; influence; distinctive impression

The cheering had a positive effect on her race.

Effect verb- to bring about, accomplish

The principal tried to effect a change to the dress code.

You probably won’t be surprised to know that affect and effect both come from the same Latin root: ex + facere, meaning “to do”. No wonder their usage is so confusing!

Word Nerd Workout

Choose the right word for the following sentences.

The board will attempt to affect/effect a change to the fundraising requirement.
I’m afraid the wet weather will affect/effect the soccer game.
A side affect/effect of Benadryl is drowsiness.
The student’s affect/effect makes it hard to know what he enjoys.

Word Nerd Note

If you’re looking for an adjective that means producing the desired result or ready for action, you would spell it effective.

Scott uses effective training techniques with his swimmers.

I hope you learned something today. If you have a troubling word pair you’d like the Word Nerd to explore, share it in the comments.

Thanks for stopping by!

Julia

Here are the answers to the quiz in the homonym/homophone/homograph post:

homograph
homonym
homophone
homograph
homophone

Thanks for playing!

Improving vocabulary

The Difference Between Homograph, Homophone, and Homonym

Posted on March 4, 2015 by Julia Tomiak / 11 Comments

Do you know the difference between a homonym and a homophone? My son and I have practiced for the county spelling bee for weeks – it’s been cancelled twice because of snow – and we’ve had to distinguish between many homonyms/phones/graphs.

Cheers to Mr. Luke Phillips for helping my child, and consequently me, understand the distinction between these words. In honor of Wondrous Words Wednesday, I will share this knowledge with you.

Please remember to join the fun of the Wondrous Words Wednesday meme by visiting Kathy at Bermuda Onion and writing your own post with interesting words.

Here’s the difference…

Homonym, homophone and homograph share the same Greek root, homos, which means same, similar, or alike. It’s the second part of each word that gives unique meaning.

Photo credit: Tambako the Jaguar via flickr CC-BY-ND

homonym

-nym comes from the Greek onyma meaning name
a word that is spelled and pronounced like another word but is different in meaning
Examples:
- bear (noun- animal) and bear (verb – to endure)
- quail (noun – animal) and quail (verb – to recoil in terror);
- fair (noun – as in County Fair) and fair (adj – marked by honesty)

homophone

-phone comes from the Greek phonos meaning sounding
a word that is pronounced like another word but is different in meaning, origin, or spelling
Examples:
- sow (verb – to plant seeds) and sew (verb – a needle pulling thread)
- tea (noun – a drink with jam and bread) and tee (noun – a peg to put a golf ball on)
- flower (noun – the pretty part of a plant) and flour (noun – ground wheat for baking)

homograph

-graph comes from the Greek graphos meaning written
a word that is spelled like another word but is different in origin, meaning, or pronunciation
Examples:
- bow (noun – ribbon in a girl’s hair) and bow (noun – part of a ship)
- bass (noun – musical instrument) and bass (noun – a fish)
- close (adj – nearby) and close (verb – to shut)

If you’d like more detailed explanation, visit SpellingCity.com.

Word Nerd Workout

Tell me if the following word pairs are homonyms, homophones, or homographs.

desert (noun- hot, dry place) and desert (verb- to abandon)
scale (noun – measure weight) and scale (noun a small thin plate on the outside of a fish)
bear (noun- animal) and bare (adj- without covering)
wind (verb- to cause to move in a curving path) and wind (noun- moving air)
plane (noun- flying mode transportation) and plain (adj – without adornment)

You can find the answers at the end of my Affect vs. Effect post.

Word Nerd Note

The Spelling City site also taught me about Capitonyms, words that are spelled the same except for capitalization. Sometimes pronunciation differs.

Turkey, turkey
Mobile (Alabama), mobile
May (month), may

I hope you learned something today!

Julia