Redefining misanthropy for a fresh generation. Standard posts begin with a definition from Ambrose Bierce's The Devil's Dictionary followed by a modern adjustment. Miscellany on Wednesday and storytelling on Saturday.
Thursday, November 09, 2006
Habit
HABIT, n. A shackle for the free.
2006 Update: 1. An abrasive proficiency. 2. Confession.
Habit: I am habitually prompt. Also, a long loose garment worn by members of a religious order. Nuns, Priests. I also have a habit with the rabbit! LOL Diane (No smiley today, just for YOU, Doug!)
I have a habit of being ever so slightly malicious in my comments. The problem then is that occasionally I am wrong, and a nasty little urge to repent can also become a habit. Fortunately, I am able to fight that off. Usually. All most always.
thankfully you don't object to smileys Doug otherwise that little habit of mine would be truly be abrasive! er, maybe it is. or rather, maybe its endearing, right Puppybrose?
Habit: a behavior nearing addiction level. ie When your 4 year old wakes up and says "Mom let's play Pretty Pretty Princess!" before she gets the sleep out of her eyes.
“Habit is either the best of servants or the worst of masters” - Nathaniel Emmons
Habit-just a nice way of saying addiction. Like the fact that this particular day of the year has the habit of making me older. (And I'm always in the habit of fishing for happy birthdays).
Habit-- An out of fashion style for convent headware that has enough in common with air foil design that it inspired one of the dummest ideas for a TV show ever. Is anyone here old enough to remember that?
Just a few months after my sister, Caryl, was suddenly widowed and left with three young children to feed, one of our family members asked her if she was making ends meet okay. Caryl replied, "It would certainly be easier if my kids didn't have the bad habit of wanting to eat everyday."
I'm trying to develop more good habits than bad ones. Luckily, I've managed to avoid the trappings of drug and alcohol addictions, but my addictions to dark chocolate truffles and movies are out of control.
I also have a habit of stopping by here as often as I can, but I'm not sure which category that belongs in: a good habit or a bad habit? :) (Just kidding. Kidding is a habit of mine.)
Doug, I think G was speaking of those strange objects through which TV signals once passed, in the days before cables and satellite dishes. See WIRE COAT HANGER.
OC don't forget the tin foil sometimes needed to boost the picture clarity (through which to watch My Favorite Martian). In that case, I believe we were the first in the neighborhood to own an HDTV.
You know commenting first could be become habit.
ReplyDeleteMorning Minka & Al! ;)
ReplyDeleteOh and of course you too Doug.
Sar, are you friggin' kidding me? That post just arrived, give an addict a chance, will ye?
ReplyDeleteI still loves you though :)
I used to have a habit of writing "habit" with two Bs. Because it rhymed with rabbit! What is up with the English language?
ReplyDeleteHabit: see Make Up Sex.
ReplyDeleteAlso, isn't a habit one of those silly little hats nuns wear?
SC
Morning Doug! Happy Thursday All!
ReplyDeleteHabit: I am habitually prompt. Also, a long loose garment worn by members of a religious order. Nuns, Priests. I also have a habit with the rabbit! LOL Diane (No smiley today, just for YOU, Doug!)
(Man, the line at the urinal this morning was, like, around the block... ~zzzip~...)
ReplyDeleteAhem, OK, hmmm, Habit: *DAMN!* Minka got my definition FIRST! Grrr...
al, that wouldn´t be the first time!
ReplyDeleteHabit: saddle
ReplyDeleteHabit: A repetitive practice that, while ignored by you as you do it, irritates the living hell out of everyone else.
ReplyDeleteMinka: mine's, like, better. Nyaa-haaa-haaa!
Sar: "Morning, Minka and Al." From now on, if you please, its "Al and Minka."
Doug: Thanks once again for bringing out the very best in me.
(Puppy: good one! Wish I'd thought of it first.)
ReplyDeleteSar, probably not for you.
ReplyDeleteMinka, I'll start, you complete:
There was a little rabit
Who had a mighty habbit
Ironically, Solace, yes. And very well done on the definition.
Diane, I never objected to the smiley. Bierce did, but posthumously.
Al, please wash your hands and zip up before commenting. I mean it.
Minka, you might want to go easy on Al until his habits improve.
Al, I'm with you, like not washing your hands before commenting.
Puppybrose, rein.
(As is my habit, I'd just laugh quietly here at my desk. But Dougie, I must observe -- that was very funny.
ReplyDeleteNext time, I'll be sure to insert a "splash" after the "zzzip.")
I have a habit of being ever so slightly malicious in my comments. The problem then is that occasionally I am wrong, and a nasty little urge to repent can also become a habit. Fortunately, I am able to fight that off. Usually. All most always.
ReplyDeletearound our house, a "habit" is fondly referred to as an "endearing quirk". (at least it had better be, if a certain someone knows what's good for him)
ReplyDelete...if he saw some grass he´d grabbit,
ReplyDeleteif he heard a word he´d gabbit,
only to find he´d lost his mind
or left it in a cab-it.
Ah, a trip down memory-lane and with the Telic Clause and everything! precious...thanks for reminding me :)
Habit: A catchall defense for a lack of self control and awareness. "Sorry, force of habit."
ReplyDelete(for puppybrose) Does not pertain to "endearing quirks" which, as the name would suggest, are, well, endearing.
HAbit -- childish demand: "Mine! Mine! Leb me hab it!"
ReplyDeletethankfully you don't object to smileys Doug otherwise that little habit of mine would be truly be abrasive!
ReplyDeleteer, maybe it is. or rather, maybe its endearing, right Puppybrose?
*scowls fiercely*
HABIT, n. The fundamental, indivisible unit of laughter. Deemed infectious; see CONVULSIO SPARGENS.
ReplyDeleteHabit: a behavior nearing addiction level. ie When your 4 year old wakes up and says "Mom let's play Pretty Pretty Princess!" before she gets the sleep out of her eyes.
ReplyDelete“Habit is either the best of servants or the worst of masters” - Nathaniel Emmons
Habit: (the bad kind): lack of taking-carement.
ReplyDeleteHabit... begging of the famous Al Pacino (Godfather) line, "Everytime I try to get out, they pull me back in!"
ReplyDeleteNothing so needs reforming as other people's habits. ~Mark Twain
ReplyDeleteHabbit: things that I have tried to wean myself of and have failed, most specifically, crying into Doug's comments
ReplyDeleteI have a habit of talking with strangers in print.
ReplyDeleteAnd I have a habit of constantly hitting refresh. Is there any cure for this?
getting in the habit of stoppin' by.
ReplyDeleteAl, and don't forget the whirr.
ReplyDeleteTLP, you've never been malicious enough for me. You do try, though.
Puppybrose, that's an endearing quirk, as is threatening your long-suffering husband.
Ah, Minka. 2005 was a good year in the blogosphere. Doesn't seem so long ago.
That's right, Joel. "Oh, sorry, I'm always doing that. Here, I'll leave your finger by the piano."
Quill, property is theft as well as our first habit. Well, after nursing.
Kyah, your trying to scowl is absolutely an endearing quirk.
O Ceallaigh, that was an excellent use of the word sputa. What is it with you and Al, today?
CJ, that's a great quote. Maybe you should offer to play the dragon?
Mule, that was put-niceliness.
Miz B, You broke my heart, Freda!
Quill, that one comes up a lot. Bierce described the bible as a book admirably suited to the needs of one's neighbor.
Oh, what would you know about it, Karma?
Pia, don't hold back. Al has tissue left over.
Brian, that is an odd habit.
Anomie, maybe even behavior behind closed doors outside.
Karen, please continue. I'm getting in the habit of looking forward to your call.
Habits: What helps nuns to fly and drunks to cry.
ReplyDeleteSorry I didn't make it in sooner - sometimes life interferes with my habits. How dare.
Habit-just a nice way of saying addiction. Like the fact that this particular day of the year has the habit of making me older. (And I'm always in the habit of fishing for happy birthdays).
ReplyDeleteHabit-- An out of fashion style for convent headware that has enough in common with air foil design that it inspired one of the dummest ideas for a TV show ever. Is anyone here old enough to remember that?
ReplyDeleteBrian, the cure is to set your saved browser pages to zero. I make it a habit to do so.
ReplyDeleteHello Tom, may I introduce you to my comment? :)
ReplyDeleteActually Tom, I prefer to think of myself as old enough to remember but young enough to forget (or something like that).
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday Masil...right?
ReplyDeleteHabit:an indulgence of impulse...and is that always bad? Naaaaah
Tom: Not only do I remember it -- I used to PLAY Flying Nun in my backyard!
ReplyDeleteG, big applause for that one. Not my habit, but there it is.
ReplyDeleteMasil, Happy Birthday! Last year I think I was a week early. This is not something I'm good at.
Tom, I remember that from childhood. Sally Field was my backup in case Marlo Thomas and Trixie from Speed Racer weren't interested.
Quilldancer, I have no idea what you just said but it hasn't hurt my mood any.
G, I might borrow that line.
Mutha, I think it's indulgence of the same impulse. How did you do with the flying part?
G and Tom: Do either of you remember "My Mother the Car"?
ReplyDeleteAl - No, but I'm sure she was a wonderful lady.
ReplyDeleteBahhh... Friggin' young people...
ReplyDeleteAt least, G, you didn't say "Hum a few bars and I'll play along."
Nail biting, hair twirling, thumb sucking, nose picking, breath holding, butt pickin', etc. Maybe a young Dougie's habits?
ReplyDeleteAl: with Jerry Van Dyke, right? (sigh. suddenly i feel old)
ReplyDeleteJust a few months after my sister, Caryl, was suddenly widowed and left with three young children to feed, one of our family members asked her if she was making ends meet okay. Caryl replied, "It would certainly be easier if my kids didn't have the bad habit of wanting to eat everyday."
ReplyDeleteNuns wear those, don't they?
ReplyDeleteI'm trying to develop more good habits than bad ones.
Luckily, I've managed to avoid the trappings of drug and alcohol addictions, but my addictions to dark chocolate truffles and movies are out of control.
I also have a habit of stopping by here as often as I can, but I'm not sure which category that belongs in: a good habit or a bad habit? :)
(Just kidding. Kidding is a habit of mine.)
Yep, "Grannybrose" (haha) -- and the voice of the car was...?
ReplyDeleteAl-osaurus (haha back at ya): the same actress who played Maisie in all those films, right?
ReplyDeleteAl, quoting Groucho isn't helping your case.
ReplyDeleteTLP, that's scandalous. I was never young.
Quill, I'm sorry to hear. Kids have a lot of bad habits, eating shouldn't be one.
Jamie Dawn, kidding is a great habit of yours.
Allyosaurus and grannybrose, you're making me feel young. I hate that.
habit: an impulse to do something probably not good for you
ReplyDeleteOops! Sorry to step on your comment, G. I'll have to read more carefully. snappy comeback, though, I must say.
ReplyDeleteHas anyone mentioned that addictions can be habit forming?
happy birthday, masil!
ReplyDeletemy mother the car, eh? careful, you might scare the likes of masil and solace cai with the dread spectre of black-and-white TV.
tom, don't know. but i think i've seen the line that habits can be addicting. don't tell sally field, though. speaking of BW TV.
I am such a creature of habit that I can't ever seem to post a comment here any earlier.
ReplyDeleteDoug: I did very well with my flying. I was a little Roman Catholic girl after all. I am sure it was on the level of your Spock voyages.
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday Lisa!
ReplyDeleteI remember what the dawg did to you last year. he is birthday-challenged. but as you know, you can't teach an old dog new tricks
jqxqk: jack quacks quickly
Al: as sure as I'm sitting here, I almost did respond with that ole cornball! Pfew, glad I didn't.
ReplyDeleteAnd Just Tom: Not at all, my light was off - you couldn't see the comment, I'm sure :)
And antennas, OC?
Happy Birthday Masil!
habit - Something that SHOULD feel good, but rarely does.
ReplyDeletetoo many comments I can't keep them in line.
ReplyDeleteComing here is my habit.
Grannybrose - Wow, you're good.
ReplyDeleteAnn Sothern played Maisie in the 40's, but I'm sure your great grandmother told you all about that.
(Sorry I'm so late crediting you for your superior grasp of TV history. I had to change my Depends, and then I forgot, and, well, you know.)
Cindra, you mean breathing?
ReplyDeleteTom, I think you're a pioneer with that one.
O Ceallaigh, that's how we got to My mother the car. You old folk tell stories in circles, you know that? Whether together or alone.
Terry, it's good to know when you'll be here so I can have the artichokes ready.
Now, I remember you, Mutha. We almost shot you down over Romulus and St. Mary's.
Karma, forgetfulness is the hardest habit to break.
G, are you talking My Favorite Martian now?
Poobah, maybe you have the wrong ones.
Cooper, and looking forward to your comment is mine.
Al, you washed this time, though, right?
Doug, I think G was speaking of those strange objects through which TV signals once passed, in the days before cables and satellite dishes. See WIRE COAT HANGER.
ReplyDeleteOC don't forget the tin foil sometimes needed to boost the picture clarity (through which to watch My Favorite Martian). In that case, I believe we were the first in the neighborhood to own an HDTV.
ReplyDeleteHabit: A chance to sin on a daily basis.
ReplyDelete