Why?

One of the most basic jobs of journalists is to ask questions, and to find answers. But some questions just don’t have answers to them. Questions like ‘why do good people suffer?’ and ‘how big is the universe?’ do my head in, and they get debated by scientists and academics alike. The truth is, there’s a whole world of questions that no-one knows the answers to, and probably never will. But sometimes these questions are the ones most worth asking, and the ones were the richest not-quite-answers can be found. Questions that force us to think, and step outside of our little boxes, have so much value. Asking questions, and big questions at that, is a fantastic habit to get into. Curiosity leads to great things, and there’s nothing more intriguing than a question without an answer. So dive in, and start asking ‘why?’ to the things that happen around you. 

Just Butter, Thanks.

I saw this ace little video while I was procrastinating about writing my media diary dossier, and thought I might blog about it. See, procrastination does have its benefits!

I really liked this video, because it shows the power of boring words, the kinds of words you and I use all the time. Some of the most powerful, memorable statements were just a simple, neat collection of bread and butter words.

The fact of the matter is that people need to be able to connect with what’s being said and written. “No coordinates exist like one’s domicile” really doesn’t hit home for me. It took me a minute to figure out what the hell that phrase even meant. The truth is, people hold word snobs in much too high esteem. Knowing the meaning of the word ‘tellurian’ doesn’t make you a literary god. Writing a good, powerful, simple sentence does. I must confess that I’m guilty of dropping an oversized word in now and then, and I may have possibly subscribed to dictionary.com’s ‘Word of the Day’ for just that purpose. Big words to have a place and a purpose, don't get me wrong. But this lovely little video has given me the epiphany that big words aren’t always better. So from now on, I might just start appreciating the bread and butter of the language world, without always adding the jam.