Words and Semiotics

The best way to describe a dog is to use the letters d, o, and g. Every word has in it a world, and some ask why we still write. Two arms and a head is representation for “person drowning”; lol is an acronym for “laugh out loud,” usually used flippantly as hyperbole. When semiotics meets semantics, there is an occurrence of surreal humor — an illustration with its own inverse reaction embodied in it. Insert a hyphen in 911 and you have 9-11, the latter date on which the former number was surely dialed.

My mother today mispronounced Alzheimer’s as “old timer’s” probably because that’s the demographic.  When she would say Blockbuster really quick it sounded like “black bastard,” though she doesn’t says it anymore because she’s given up on films.   A Chinese colleague at my retail job explained to me the word “that” in Mandurin is “nigga.” Salmon is not made of salmonella. In Lost Boys of Sudan, my African brothers newly arrived to the United States made soup out of crackers because crackers don’t have instructions. I witnessed a therapist at my clinic ask a group of suicidal patients “If you had only 24 hours to live, what would you do?” She was trying to get them to think about the happy things in life, though it was miss-phrased. She played “Everybody Hurts” by R.E.M and told us that is an example of how sad feelings are strong, and to be careful. (Don’t worry, I was not a patient there). Bastards are impossible, thanks to semen. Asian massages are more than massages. Asian messages are more than messages. “Live as though you are already dead,” said some monk. I would, but I have to get the shopping.

As we move along, as the bitch of life and history of expression grows up, let us know when to laugh, when to laugh out loud, and when to remain silent. Goodnight.