Language and Bullies. The Language of Bullies. Bullies of Language.

I love words.
I love reading words, I love writing words.
I love calligraphy and doodling words  -- even during meetings, which I recently found out is not rude as I feared, but is in fact a beneficial tool for thinking.  Thanks, research!

I love big words that send me to the dictionary, and I love short little words that pack a lexical punch.
And, I love a couple of curse words.  I'm just warning you.  "Shit" is my go-to for typing errors, dropped knitting stitches and mistakes at the piano.  And thanks to the events of 2016, I have welcomed "fuck" into my vocabulary in all its incarnations:  noun, verb, adjective, adverb and most prominently, interjection.

I don't like curses that use the Lord's name in vain.  This probably stems from some time spent over the kitchen sink getting my mouth washed out for "gaw" and "geeze", which to my mother were far too close to you-know-what.  She took the 10 Commandments very seriously, especially the 4th.

I have never heard a synonym for "vagina" that didn't make me cringe.  Just say vagina, ok?  And any time you want to use a female genitalia-derived slur to describe or deride another human, just don't.

That's what I hate most of all -- words/curses/profanity that put down another person.  Calling someone a "pussy" (probably my very least favorite word ever) to define athletic prowess or manliness seems antithetical to its other often-used-but-still-inappropriate definition:  that place where so many long to be for comfort and satisfaction (how's that for sexy talk?)  "Retard" should only be used when referring to slowing the spoilage of food.  You may use "bitch" when referring to a mama dog, "dike" if you're travelling to Holland, and never forget the space between fat and so, as in "I didn't want you to choke on the fat so I cut if off your pork chop."

This is bully speech.  Using our beautifully complex language to brutalize another person should be completely unacceptable to anyone who loves words.  And people.  Bully speech is unacceptable for my family, my friends, strangers, teachers, coaches and the President.

Bully speech clouds arguments.  It steals the focus away from important issues.  It breaks hearts and lets hatred fill the broken places.

So you won't find it here.

Let's talk policy, human rights, environmental stewardship and social justice, but without putting anyone down (or their spouse, their children, or their wardrobe).

Peace.

Life is a reality, you can't always run away

Don't be so scared of changing and rearranging yourself

It's time for jumping down from the shelf - a little bit.