Blog Schedule

I post on Monday with an occasional random blog thrown in for good measure. I do my best to answer all comments via email and visit around on the days I post.

Monday, July 6, 2015

Alternatives, Six Impossible Things, and Being Thankful

Alternatives is a recurring post in which I give synonyms for an over used word. Click on the tab above for a "complete" list of over used words.


Today's word is:

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"A few" is very similar to "a couple," both of which I bet all of us have used a few more times than necessary. Some of these synonyms didn't (and don't) make a whole lot of sense to me, like "manifold" and "marked." In fact, after I had snared these words in my net, I deleted a few from the list. It's probably of no consequence, a piddling matter to be sure. 

Depending on how you use it, this list may come in handy for finding another way to say the same thing.

a couple, a lot, abounding, abundant, any, atom

between

considerable, copious, countless, crumb

few and far between, fragment

grain

handful, hardly any, heaps

imperceptible, inconsequential, inconsiderable indefinite, infinite, infrequent, innumerable, innumerous, insufficient, iota

jot

lean, legion, less

manifold, many, marked, meager, middling, minor, minority, minute, modicum, molecule, multifarious, myriad

negligible, not many, not too many, numberless, numerous

occasional, one

paltry, particle, particular, petty, piddling, plural, populous, precise, profuse, proportionate

quite a few

rare, regular

scant/scanty, scarce, scarcely any, scattered/scatter/scattering, scrap, seldom, semi-occasional, separate, several, short, shred, single/singular, skimpy, slender, slight, slim, small number, smatter/smattering, some, sparse, special, specific, specified, sporadic, sprinkle/sprinkling, stingy, straggling, sundry

teeming, thin, tittle, trifling

uncommon, uncountable, uncounted, unfrequent, unnumbered, untold

various, voluminous

whit, widely spaced
***

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It was the White Queen, from Through the Looking Glass, who said to Alice: "When I was your age, I always did it for half-an-hour a day. Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast." 

When life gets you down think of, or believe, six impossible things before breakfast. Take a deep breath and close your eyes. If you are aren't smiling by the sixth thing, think of six more. Keep thinking of impossible things until you smile, or until you understand that life itself is impossible. Yet here we are.

Here, for your entertainment, are Six Impossible Things. You can believe them or not as you wish.

1. Flying monkeys on Mars (Maybe the first travelers to Mars will take The Wizard of Oz with them.)
2. Time travel (There are scientific hints that it might be possible.)
3. Having tea with Gandhi (Which is why I could have tea with Gandhi.)
4. Snakes with legs (When they are able to recreate dinosaurs from DNA, they will be able to make snakes with legs.)
5. Turning green and disappearing into the foliage (I could dye myself....)
6. Being a bolt of lightening (Well I suppose I could get struck by lightening which would probably be the same as becoming a bolt of lightening.)

See? Believing in six impossible things isn't so impossible after all!


***
Being Thankful


Today I'm thankful for dogs I've had in my life.

Happy

Bozo (brown) Anna (white)

 Atta Fohat 
(Atta for "Attagirl" and Fohat meaning spiritual energy in Hindi)

 Ursa
 And there are other dogs, like Tricksy, Lassie, Cheese, and Whitey, each of them with a unique personality who hold special places in my memories.

What are you thankful for? Have a favorite pet? Care to share an impossible thing? Got a preferred alternative for A FEW? 

18 comments:

  1. I would have loved to do #3 on your list. And I'm very thankful on my dog--my first dog as a pet--too.

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  2. Dogs are awesome!
    Crumb? So if you say a few crumbs, it's redundant?
    Flying monkeys on Mars. Sound like a science fiction comedy.

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  3. Snakes with legs. There's lizards without legs, so why not?

    I've had many cats over the years and Hobbes will always be my favorite. That cat was too smart for her own good. She knew how to turn doorknobs.

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  4. Snakes with legs gets my vote as the best. And that's because I hate snake without leg. Personally, I'll take dogs any day, and it seems you've had some wonderful ones.

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  5. I'll skip the snakes with legs, but I'll consider the bolt of lightening. I need a little zip. :)

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  6. The dogs are cute, so friendly and trusting. Thanks for the words, Bish. The needs of the many outweighs the needs of the few or the one, is a classic from star trek.

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  7. I'll go with a smattering for my favorite alternative. Success at publishing sometimes seems like an impossible thing to believe in, but I do.

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  8. I hold special memories for all the dogs that have filled my life, too. I've learned something from each of them.

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  9. We had a heavenly dog once. Her name was Muffin. Wonderful pet. Proof that dogs really can go to heaven.

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  10. Hello, great thoughts and insight. Those photos are really lovely.

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  11. Such lovely dogs! I am definitely grateful for pets. And for great lists like the one you provided!

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  12. I honestly believe time travel will eventually be possible. Why... why would you want snakes with legs?! That's just even scarier! Though, here I am gunning for a real Jurassic Park. So. Haha!

    I'm definitely thankful for the dogs throughout my life. They're been true companions. First there's Holly, a Dalmatian mix. She got so ornery towards the end of her life, but it was a good long one and she was so loved. Then Ally, who due to unfortunately (and sadly preventable) circumstances died way before he time. It still makes me sad to think about it. She would've been the best companion to my kiddo. Friends and family dogs, for the amusement they give everyone. And my current furbabies: Vay (a super friendly black lab) and Gremlin (a little, cute butthole of a Chihuahua).

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  13. 'Six Impossible Things Before Breakfast'; what a marvelous idea. I shall have to try that.

    Dogs...I love dogs and have had many wonderful companions. The current love of my life is a little white ball of fluff named Olaf. He's a white miniature Schnauzer. Totally loyal and protective, affectionate, playful, and full of energy. Yes, I'm thankful for dogs too, especially my little Olaf.

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  14. Hehehe your six things made me smile. :-)

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  15. Hey Bish,

    A couple is two. A few, is three or more. Of course, I'm whose words are unfrequent. You now have me convinced to believe that the impossible is possibly possible :)

    Right on with regards to dogs. Penny the Jack Russell dog and modest internet superstar, naturally, concurs. I would never call them a pet but a cherished family member for which I'm truly grateful for.

    Thank you for your thoughtful post, Bish.

    Gary :)

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  16. As you've now taught me, there are many ways of saying 'a little' or not so much.
    I'm coming to believe that being grateful takes work. So easy to disregard the everyday things.

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  17. Dogs are best...you have a great list of words here.

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  18. Such sweet dog pics.

    I loved your list of impossible things.

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Your Random Thoughts are most welcome!