Munday Mosings

On a gray, rainy day that matches my mood…

When we were young Dr. Zal and I liked to play word games, like saying words backwards. (Stloc Eromitlab Eht) We would then have friendly arguments how consonant blends that did not actually occur in English should be pronounced.

We also liked spoonerisms, especially in a two-word phrase or name where the first letter of each word was the same. [Spoonerism: Noun, a verbal error in which a speaker accidentally transposes the initial sounds or letters of two or more words, often to humorous effect, as in the sentence you have hissed the mystery lectures, accidentally spoken instead of the intended sentence you have missed the history lectures.]

Today’s post title is an example of our “solution” to such phrases or names. We would move to the next letter and if they were different we would transpose those. I still engage in spoonerisms, but usually just in my mind and not aloud. I don’t adhere to any hard and fast rule how to do them, though. For example, the TV show title “American Pickers” (one of the only shows I watch on a regular basis) is “Spoonerized” as Pamerican Ickers and not Pmerican Aickers. I keep telling you it’s hell to be inside my head.

Do young people today do anything except use “social media” and play video games? Who would Albert Einstein become if he had been born and raised today? As mentioned previously, I do not subscribe to “The Cult Of The New” where all new things are automatically seen as being improvements on older things. Anecdotal evidence of the deleterious effect of smartphones, social media and video games exists in droves. For example, companies report that a large proportion of recent college graduates are unable to have a face-to-face conversation with another person.

My wonderful wife and I do not have children. While I’m sure we have missed out on many great moments, we have also been spared the constant challenge of setting appropriate limits and dealing with the influx of the new, de-personalizing technology. By the way, I would “spoonerize” constant challenge as chonstant callenge.

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This article from Hagerty is titled “6 late-model sports cars to buy, sell, or hold.” (Of course, the strict grammarian in me would say “6” should be “Six.”) Two cars are listed in each category. Obviously, the assumption is that Hagerty can predict the trend in future values of specific models.

One of the two cars “to buy” is what I consider to be the only ugly car Ferrari has ever made, the FF. Obviously, I don’t care if Hagerty thinks their value is about to increase; I would never buy a car that I think is ugly, even if it’s a Ferrari. One reader wrote this:

 

“How can the FF ever be a “buy”? Give it a 1,000 hp and levitation – it doesn’t matter, it will always be the Pontiac Aztek of Ferrari.”

 

Amen! No, I did not submit that comment.

Both of the cars listed “to sell” are Ferraris, the 2007-2011 Ferrari 599 GTB and the 2010-2015 Ferrari 458 Italia. From the Hagerty piece a picture of the latter:

 

 

The exterior design is a dead giveaway that the car is mid-engined. I was surprised to see that Hemmings has eight of these cars currently listed for sale with asking prices ranging from $139,000 to $366,900. That is quite a range. I don’t know anywhere near enough about Ferrari to know if such a range is justified by differences in mileage, condition, options, etc. Given that the price of a new 488, the successor to the 458, can be in the $300,000 range, $139,000 doesn’t sound too bad.

Here is some of Hagerty’s write-up on the 458 Italia:

 

“…We’ve noted a slide in the insured values of the mid-engine sports car, and despite a slight growth in insurance quoting activity, it’s not enough to set aside the fact that the 458 will be a depreciating asset. Now may be the time to sell and pick up something that’s more stable.”

 

What do you think? Even if most people can’t afford a Ferrari, new or used, I think car people can understand relative value.

By the way, Dirty Dingus McGee actually ranked the three choices in the “Z06 Companion Contest.” I think that’s a great idea so, if you can, please rank the 1963 Avanti, the 1965 Riviera and the 1987 Grand National. Thanks.

 

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#Spoonerism

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#somanycarsjustonelife

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