Saturday, February 25, 2012

Big words - butcher a cow

 Sometimes a few simple words can replace several paragraphs of mumbo-jumbo.  The following is an example of how letters to the editor can be shortened, simplified and unneeded words eliminated.
As A youth during my second decade I resided on an expansive plantation midway between Chicago and Cleveland.  There was an annual rite performed between the autumnal equinox and winter solstice that usually involved a gathering of family and friends.  This rite required the dislocation of a selected bovine herbivore from its compatriots.  It was removed to a remote location for further operations.
The first element of the process was to render the selected bovine unconscious.  This was accomplished with a rapid discharge of high voltage administered to the temporal lobe.  The animal was then exsanguinated and eviscerated.  Its outer body covering was removed and placed aside for later processing.
After a period of time when the enthalpy and entropy were in the proper balance, and the ambient temperature at a correct level, the herbivore was dismembered and stored in a proper environment for further processing.
Translation:  We butchered a cow in the fall.

Dal Wolf  Naples

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