The English language.

30 outrageous English words that mean something totally innocent.....

  1. Intercourse. Simply means "communication or exchange".

  2. Coccyx. The tailbone at the end of your spine.

  3. Assiduous. Hardworking and diligent.

  4. Uranus. The seventh planet from the sun.

  5. Dickens. An old exclamation meaning "the devil"(used by Shakespeare).

  6. Cocktail. A mixed alcoholic drink.

  7. Buttress. A stone structure that supports a wall.

  8. Pianist. A person who plays the piano.

  9. Dyck. An old spelling of "ditch" in Middle English.

10. Shag. In British English, a type of carpet; also a bird.

11. Titmouse. A small bird.

12. Penal. Relating to punishment (as in "penal code")

13. Masticate. To chew food.

14. Cockspur. A type of hawthorn plant.

15. Annals. Historical records.

16. Angina. Chest pain from reduced blood flow to the heart.

17. Cockpit. The area where a pilot sits in an aircraft.

18. Cumulus. A type of fluffy cloud.

19. Bastardize. To corrupt or debase something (not necessarily a person).

20. Assay. To test or examine something, especially metals.

21. Dicty. Slang for fancy or high-class (early 1900s).

22. Titillate. To excite or arouse interest(not always sexual).

23. Fagot (archaic). A bundle of sticks.

24. Scunthorpe. A town in England (not what you think).

25. Humpback. A type of whale.

26. Pecker. Slang for "courage" in old American English.

27. Shiitake. A type of mushroom.

28. Dicky. British slang for something unstable(like a "dicky chair").

29. Cockchafer. A type of large beetle.

30. Anusim. A Hebrew word for Jews forced to convert in history.

My take

Quite interesting.

Tailpiece.

Got up at 5, sent the morning messages, switched on the hymns on the home theatre, lit up the lamp in the puja room and opened up the house for the day.

Lekha made the morning cuppa.

The chores and was ready by a quarter to 8. Sukesan took me to the temple and I shepherded Colonel Devinder Preet + 6 into the sanctum sanctorum, with the help of Suma kunjamma's friend as fixed up yesterday and returned soon after.

A quiet Tuesday.   

 

A lovely evening!

Had got up at 5, sent all the messages, switched on the hymns on the home theatre, lit up the lamp in the puja room and opened up the house for the day. 

Lekha made the morning cuppa. The chores and was ready by 9. Went with Sukesan, got the ophthalmologist's certificate, collected the additional passport size photographs and went across to the Akshaya Kendra near the RTO.

Sent my application for the renewal of driving licence.

Returned home to carry out my usual work. Worked on the laptop.

Lunch.

Watched television followed by siesta.

Devinder Preet Singh, his friends and their wives had dropped by at The Quarterdeck this evening. The guests were :-

      * Colonel Devinder Preet Singh

      * Colonel Ramachandran Vizhakat and Mrs Padmini

      * Wing Cdr SR Kapekar and Mrs Anjali

      * Colonel Amit Rai and Mrs Alka

Tailpiece.

A day that sorted out issues.

The five mental obstacles to peace.

Kleshas!

* Avidya (Ignorance)                          

   Believing temporary things are permanent.

* Abhinivesha (Fear)

   Fearing death and holding on to life.

* Dvesha (Aversion)

   Disliking or avoiding unpleasant things.

* Raga (Attachment)

   Holding on to past pleasures.

* Asmita (Egoism)

   Focusing too much on body or mind.

My take

How one ends up in disgust towards life! Must consciously try to avoid!!

Tailpiece.

Got up at 5, sent all the morning messages, switched on the hymns on the home theatre, lit up the lamp in the puja room and opened up the house for the day.

Lekha made our morning cuppa.

Walked on the road in front of The Quarterdeck and recited my prayers as part of my morning exercises.

Went about our chores. Rejith, from the Black Swan drycleaners, comes by to remove and collect our white, lace curtains for dry cleaning.

Spoke to Saraswathi teacher, the Headmistress of UPS Thalavoor to find out when I needed to transfer money for the repair of damaged Library Books. She has said that she would get back to me. The school buildings have been marked unfit for use and consequently, the school is scattered in two different buildings to tide over the difficulty.

The first female Archbishop of Canterbury.

Church of England named Sarah Mullally as the next Archbishop of Canterbury, the first woman to hold the 1,400-year-old-office.

To lead 85 million Anglicans in 165 countries

As the principal leader of the Church of England, Mullally, 63,will now lead85 million Anglicans across 165 countries. She will replace Justin Welby, who resigned last year over a child abuse cover-up scandal. Mullally is a former cancer nurse who worked as the UK government's Chief Nursing Officer for England in the early 2000s. She became a priest in 2006.

To officially take charge in Mar 2026

* Mullally will be known as Archbishop of Canterbury-designate till she is confirmed in Jan 2026 and

   officially takes charge in Mar 2026.

* She may face opposition from conservative churches in Africa and Asia, which rejected the reforms

   introduced a decade ago that made it possible for a woman to become the Archbishop of Canterbury.

2018

When Mullally was appointed the first woman bishop of London.

My take

Simply great!

Tailpiece.

Got up at a trifle past 5, sent all the messages, switched on the hymns on the home theatre, lit up the lamp in the puja room and opened up the house for the day.

Lekha made the morning cuppa.

Selvam had come in for pressing the clothes; he was leaving for his hometown to partake in Raja's little daughter's birthday and will return by the 10th. Ramesh and Jinoj came for the monthly clearing of the weeds, trimming the small/intermediate trees and clearing the wet garbage, kitchen waste outlet.

A quiet Friday otherwise. Walked on the road outside the house and recited my prayers.

India, China direct flights.

To resume on 26 Oct after 5-year freeze.

* IndiGo to connect Calcutta, New Delhi with Guangzhou via nonstop flights

* Flights mark key step in normalising bilateral ties, trade, tourism

The flights were suspended in the aftermath of the Doklam crisis and further delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

IndiGo will use its Airbus A320neo aircraft to operate these flights that will re-establish avenues for cross-border trade and strategic business partnerships and promote tourism between the two nations.

A series of confidence-building measures have been undertaken between the two countries to stabilise ties.

This has included :-

     * High-level diplomatic and military dialogues

     * Increased Track-II engagements

     * Easing of trade restrictions on select goods and now,

     * Direct civil airlines flights

My take

If 'RIC' of the BRICS have to formalise a business partnership, then every step toward it must be taken.

Tailpiece.

Got up at a half past 4, recited my prayers. Woke up Lekha at 5, who made our morning cuppa.

Lit up the puja room lamp, switched on the hymns on the home theatre and opened up the house for the day.

Our chores and we were ready by 7. Lekha, today, walked into the Chevy and we were off for the Elite Mission Hospital by a 10' past 7.

Met Dr Jyoshid by a half past 8, who reviewed her two wounds.

Reached home by 10 but not before buying fruits from Rajan's shop at Choondal.

A quiet Friday.

Turkiye's 18-hour ultimatum.

....which fizzled out pathetically! 

Late at night, the Turkish Coast Guard became alarmed when they saw a shape suddenly emerging from the Mediterranean Sea. Soon it is discovered to be a warship.....and an Indian warship. A message is quickly sent for it to 'stay put'. In the morning, amid a tense atmosphere in Turkiye, an emergency meeting of the government and the military was held. Afterward, the Indian warship was sent a 18-hour ultimatum, "Return, or you will be responsible for any further action". However, the Indian warship doesn't respond.

In fact, until today, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye have considered this special area of the Mediterranean Sea their fiefdom, intimidating the coastal countries, prohibiting their vessels and those of other countries, from entering and leaving that area. However, this time, it is an Indian warship, 'Trikhand' that has come within the range. The next day, Turkish warships aggressively surrounded the Trikhand and issued another ultimatum. This time, an answer came in a single sentence : "The Trikhand is on its way, following international rules and has not encroached on any country's border, hence the question of retreat or return doesn't arise".

Meanwhile, three more Indian warships equipped with 'BrahMos' arrive behind Trikhand. By then Turkey, citing NATO, is attempting to stir up trouble across Europe. This Indian destroyer, Trikhand, built at Russia's Kaliningrad Shipyard, was travelling with its entire fleet to Greece, where it was to participate in joint maritime exercises with Greece and France. With only half an hour remaining for the ultimatum issued by Turkiye, France issued a statement stating that the Indian warship fleet was on its designated route and was not encroaching on any country.

Seeing its strategic and international position weaken, Turkiye tried to stir things up but all its efforts were in vain. And the Indian warship fleet proudly set off for Greece.

The new India is respected and seen as a major power worldwide. India stepped out of the Indian Ocean and controlled China's bullying in the Red Sea and today stripped Turkiye of its self esteem in the Mediterranean Sea.

My take

Turkiye was itching to do something stupid but stopped short as it found India's steadfastness and the international support.

Tailpiece.

Got up at 5, sent all the messages, switched on the hymns on the home theatre, lit up the puja room lamp and opened up the house for the day.

Walked within the house and recited my prayers.

Breakfast.

Worked on my laptop. 

A quiet Thursday. Sanath had called up to say that he has cleared the NDA written examination.

The US President and his defence secretary speak to the Military brass.

To end 'politically correct' leadership in the armed forces.

They have declared an end to "woke" culture in the US armed forces.

Promotions based on race, gender to end

The Defence Secretary had called military leaders to the Marine Corps base in Quantico, near Washington yesterday, without publicly revealing the reason. During his nearly hour-long speech, he said that the US military has promoted too many leaders for wrong reasons based on race and gender. "The era of politically correct leadership ends right now at every level".

President Donald Trump

* The US President bragged about US nuclear capabilities and warned the posse of top military leaders 

   that "America is under invasion from within....the purposes of our military is only to protect our 

   republic.

* In keeping with the nonpartisan tradition of the armed forces, the military leaders sat mostly stone-

   faced through Trump's remarks.

Equal fitness standards for both male and female soldiers in offing.

My take

Definitely, an interesting development. The armed forces need to be apolitical for the good of a country.

Tailpiece.

Got up at a trifle past 5, switched on the hymns on the home theatre, lit up the puja room lamp and opened up the house for the day.

Carried out the usual Wednesday 'aarathi'.

Walked on the road outside the house and recited my prayers.

Breakfast followed by bath.

A quiet Wednesday.