words and me

Words have always captured my attention.
Well, not WORDS... but more the meaning behind them... I think way too much about that sort of thing.
Where phrases come from, why one sound means something in one language, and something else in another. And even the meanings that one word can have.... just based on how it's said.

For example.

Monkey.

Monkey is a word that makes you smile. Not because the word "monkey" is a particularly fun word to say.... it's not even a word that feels good to say (thinking about the way syllables are formed in your mouth... I don't like the feeling of "key" -that weird thrusting forward of air over the top of your flexed tongue...** ) But no, we smile because of the critters we recognise as going with that name - or set of sounds. We think more about the fun loving little critters, or, like me, you might think of that little rubber armed flying monkey toy that screams when it crashes into something.

At work we've been doing a survey. It's an online survey, hosted by none other than ... "survey monkey". A name that makes you think of a fun little gadget for all your fun surveying needs!
I couldn't stop laughing when I heard the message on my phone from one of our pretty "serious toned" managers, reading- droning a piece of information about the survey monkey... it sounded like it was some sort of joke... like everyone had decided that instead of "fuzzy little poop throwing animal", Monkey really meant "a droll device used to compile information and categorize it."

** more on the feeling of words some other time.

*** I bought some jujubes today. That has nothing to do with anything. I just really wanted to eat some.

****and the African meal pulled together just fine... with help from the two roomies.

***** did I ever mention that the two roomies also share the same first name?