Friday 17 June 2011

Reflective Jacket State

I'll tell you what I'm thinking about today...


Reflective jackets. What the hell is with reflective jackets? When people see them they're like rabbits caught in headlights. What is so scary about a reflective jacket? Moreover, what is scary about a person wearing a reflective jacket?

The reflective jacket has become something of a symbol for authority, something to be seen, something to be followed, something to be obeyed. How many times have I been told to look out for the people in reflective jackets in case of an emergency? And how many times have I been told to put my dog on a lead, or to not smoke here please, or to move along because I'm loitering? And 99% of the time, I bet we all obey these people just because they're... easier to spot...

I've experienced it first hand too. At a festival last year I was stewarding and was awarded the great privilege of the reflective jacket. I was wandering around the festival, beer in hand, perfectly relaxed when I walked past a group of lads in their late teens, early twenties. It just so happens that earlier that evening I'd been sitting with them having a laugh but now, with the authoritarian addition of the
reflective jacket they flinched in fear of my presence - no shit! One of them looked up at me, wide eyed in (what an innocent mind would believe to be) fear and he almost threw whatever he was dealing with on the back of a CD case up into air. God! Suddenly now I'm in a reflective jacket I'm the police!

And that brings me on to the character I encountered tonight... a female Community Support Officer, clad, naturally in her brand spanking new shiny
reflective jacket glistening in the sun. Boy oh boy... didn't that put fear into my heart! How I shook as she shined at me... how I trembled with fear as I... saw her more easily. And it made me think, what do these busybody CSOs actually do? What power do they have? What can they do to me? Well they've got a reflective jacket on, so it must be something quite frightening. And then I realised what I was faced with, the great big scary reflective jacketed authority - someone with the power to phone the police.

Thursday 16 June 2011

Lottie's Top 5 Words

As this blog is still very up in the air at the moment, a wide variety of topics are bound to be covered. It's worth checking back regularly to see whether a topic you find interesting pops up... if it doesn't, suggest it!
Onwards!! (ओंवार्ड्स)
Language is a very important part of life, adding colour to our communication and helping us spread our message out into the world. And what would language be without those little gems which make us smile when we read them? This inspired me to create a list of these brilliant little (and big) words in the hope that spreading knowledge of them may help our daily communication to become less of a burden and more of a joy.

And so, my gift to you - wonderful coinages which roll mellifluously off the tongue.
After all, words can put the fun in function.

At Number Five: Mandate

Recently this word has caught my ear on the news, as people discussing all sorts of mandates occurring between politicians...
Turns out that these guys aren't actually going out for romantic evenings together, but actually it refers to a much more dull definition: a formal order from a superior court.

At Number Four: Discombobulate

Makes you wonder whether anyone actually bothers using this word seriously, as every time I hear it I just let out a snigger. It means to confuse or upset, or cause chaos.

At Number Three: Pooh-bah

Let's be honest... it's because it contains the word poo, and everyone gets a giggle out of that. And, poo can be tenuously linked to the definition of the word - it refers to a person of great power or influence, or one who holds many public or private offices.

At Number Two: Flibbertigibbet

Yes, it is a real word! Consult the dictionary for a confirmation! I want to meet the person who came up with this word and shake them warmly by the hand in congratulations. The definition is 'a silly flighty person'. How... lovely.

And finally, at number one, the best word I have found to date: Gimcrack

I don't know what it is about it. Maybe it's the plosive sounds, maybe it's because it sounds like a brilliant insult, maybe it's just because it contains the word 'crack'. But the meaning of this word is a world away from its rude sounding root: it simply means 'a showy item of little worth or value'.

Go forth, use these words and celebrate the wonder that is the English language!