When Pigs Fly there will be More Trivia, IWSG, Quote of the Month, Being Thankful

 Happy New Year and all that jazz. 

 WARNING POLITICAL COMMENTARY

It's been stressful for me and my family and all my friends who live in the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico and the rest of the Caribbean. Venezuela is just 500 miles away and the actions taken by the current administration are destabilizing the whole region. I can't even imagine how the people in Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao and feeling right now.  This kidnapping of a head of state (doesn't matter if he's a dictator or not) sets a terrible precedence. What's to prevent China from kidnapping the leader of Taiwan? or Putin kidnapping Zelensky? Or France and England joining forces to kidnap Trump?

The one day cancellation of flights into and out of San Juan, St. Thomas, and St. Croix was a huge disruption at the height of the high season and caused a lot of problems for all the people who got stranded in the islands. As of this writing a lot people were looking at Friday and Saturday as the soonest they will be able to get back to the states. And that's just on St. Thomas.

It's a mess. It's very scary. It's infuriating. The Caribbean has lived in relative peace and quiet since the end of World War II. But now... it's like the delicately woven fabric of the region is being ripped apart and unraveled by a pair of very clumsy and thoughtless hands.

Origins: a recurring post in which I delve into the history of a weird word or odd phrase. I am also adding a new category for rare or obsolete words that are no longer used but which I think should be brought back.

Today's Odd Phrase and/or Weird Word is: When pigs fly!!

Of course this is in England!

This phrase is older that I thought. It goes back to at least the 1500s. The meaning of the phrase, representing somethings that is highly unlikely, hasn't changed either.

 Back in the 1530s, a Frenchman named Francois Rabelais, wrote a book called Gargantua and Pantagruel. Five volumes! about two giants cavorting about the country side and having adventures. In volume four he describes a flying pig. "From the north, a big, fat gray pig came flying up, with wings as long and wide as those of a windmill..." The phrase has stuck with us since then.

Did you know there is a National When Pigs Fly Day? It is celebrated on September 9th. Put that on your calendar!

Today's Obsolete Word is: Adoxography. This is a new addition to this meandering blog in which I will taking a look at words we don't use anymore but maybe should.

Adoxography was coined in the late 1800s, but has been applied to describe works of literature much older, such as The Praise of Folly (1509) by Erasmus. So, one might assume it means something lofty.

But no.

Put simply, adoxography means to write eloquently, and perhaps at great length, about something trivial. Seems to me there's a great deal of that happening at the moment.

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Posting the First Wednesday of every month, the Insecure Writer's Support Group, is the brainchild of Alex Cavanaugh. YOU can sign up HERE to participate.

Every month a question will be posed that may prompt you to share advice, insight, a personal experience or story. Remember, the question is optional. You can write about anything that relates to your writing journey.

Let's give a warm welcome to our co-hosts:    Shannon Lawrence, Olga Godim, Jean Davis, and Jacqui Murray!

This month's question is: Is there anything in your writing plans for 2026 that you are going to do that you couldn't get done in 2025? Yes. I'm waiting on edits for a novel. 

Quotes of the Month

“When pigs fly, dreams take wing.” 

Anonymous

"Peace on earth...when pigs fly."

Anonymous

Being Thankful

Today I'm struggling to find something to be thankful for.

But here goes: I'm thankful to be doing a bit of drawing and painting again.

What are you thankful for? Any writing/creative plans for 2026? What do you think about bringing back adoxography?