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AW77 wrote:Is it my turn now? Does Phils comment give me a go-ahead? I have a word on my mind that I'm pretty sure about...

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Yes, over to you André. Go for it.

Douche cap ?

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AW77 wrote:Douche cap ?

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What???
I really thought you had it André. And then this?
No!

Now, this is a surprise for me as well. I thought you were the man who would go down in history for giving the word "douche cap" it's rightful place in the OED.

AW77 wrote:Now, this is a surprise for me as well. I thought you were the man who would go down in history for giving the word "douche cap" it's rightful place in the OED.

Remember, I am asking you to guess the common name of this thing, the name by which it's already known - that is the two-word name. I do not expect you to be able to guess the word that I'm going to get in the OED.

A cricket box?

A flat cap?

AW77 wrote:A flat cap?

Thanks for rescuing this thread from Derek, who's being intensely amusing this evening.

Yes, a flat cap.

In the docks and shipyards in Belfast (which means, amongst tens of thousands of men who all wore them) a flat cap was called a 'duncher'. This comes from the word 'Downshire': the Marquess of Downshire issued caps to all the men who worked on his very large estate, and a Downshire cap eventually became a duncher.

My friend, writer and poet John Campbell, worked in the docks for over 50 years (he's over 80 now) and refers to the duncher in much of his work. So the proposal to list the word, widely known in Belfast, in the OED will also mean that his work gets cited. Neither duncher / dunsher nor Downshire are currently listed in the OED.

John has some very interesting stories about the bonded warehouses in Belfast, and the scenes that would accompany unloading or loading of a ship carrying crates of whisky or vodka; and about the drinking powers of the sailors of various nations. Unfortunately the docks are all but gone now, and the community that supported them in 'Sailortown' has mostly been bulldozed.

Here is the new question:

What do Mark Twain, Karl Marx, David Lodge, Lenin, Mahatma Ghandi, Leon Trotsky, Virginia Woolf, Bram Stoker, George Orwell and I have in common?

AW77 wrote:Here is the new question:

What do Mark Twain, Karl Marx, David Lodge, Lenin, Mahatma Ghandi, Leon Trotsky, Virginia Woolf, Bram Stoker, George Orwell and I have in common?

Vegetarianism

No, I'll have my meat.

All born on the same day of the week?

A good guess. But no.

Lefties? as in handed rather than politics.

LGTrotter wrote:Lefties? as in handed rather than politics.

Where have you been? You missed my question entirely.

Do you all suffer from some kind of condition? Marx had boils on his bum, Woolf suffered from depression (and an incurable problem with her semi-colon).. Perhaps it's a food intolerance.

Webbed feat?

Hello Owen,
fine that you join us tonight.
It's a good guess. But no.

DRT wrote:Webbed feat?

¿Feet?

djewesbury wrote:

DRT wrote:Webbed feat?

¿Feet?

{sack-cloth-and-ashes}

You all write romantic fiction under an assumed name?

LGTrotter wrote:You all right romantic fiction under an assumed name? Go on Daniel shoot me down!

Oh dear.
EDIT: At my school Owen, you'd have been given the crayons.

djewesbury wrote:Where have you been? You missed my question entirely.

Every now and then they make me turn up and do stuff. Work that is.

Sopranos?

All trained as lawyers?

You all had Labrador dogs?

André? Are you there André..?
You all lived in London?

Sorry, I was busy drinking claret. All guesses are wrong so far. But there is a connection to London (but think of what you can do while living in London).

You all worked at the British museum?

LGTrotter wrote:You all worked at the British museum?

I think that's right

Good question. I have no idea what the answer might be.

Your teeth are made of wood?

You all have The Knowledge?

Trevor Eve?

LGTrotter wrote:You all worked at the British museum?

I think that Owen answered the question.
We all had a British Library (or British Museum Library, as it was know before 1973) pass (as it is called today, in the older days it might have been a "readers ticket").
I can still recall my interview at the Reader Registration Office back in July 2005. At the desk next to the one I was sitting in front of, there was a nun in full regalia. She was refused a readers pass because she didn't have sufficient papers from her congregation. So the nun was dismissed without a readers pass. When I saw this, I was getting nervous and then the British Library official began to study my application form and my letter of recommendation (issued by the German Historical Institute London). In this application form I had to state my home address back in Germany and had to show my German I.D. card as proof. But on German I.D. cards you can also find the borough in which you are registered. So on my I.D. card you would find Köln Lindenthal (i.e. Cologne [borough of] Lindenthal), not not just Köln (Cologne), which I had stated in my BL application form. So the BL official asked my sharply: "Lindenthal - What's that?". My palms and forehead became sweaty then and I hastily tried to explain the German I.D. regulations. The BL official looked puzzled at me, but then decided to grant me a reader's pass. When I left the Resistration Office, I really breathed out a sigh of relief.
Then I knew why the Bristish Library was called the "Library of last resort".

Owen, it's your turn now.

Very good question.

These days they hand out readers' tickets to just anyone; I also remember the rigorous scrutiny back when I applied for one first at the end of the 90s.
But thankfully these enthusiasts all go to Humanities I!

Yes Daniel (and all else who sail in her), of course I know it's my turn. But I can't think of anything. Eventually I usually think of something or someone else comes along with a question. Relax, let the love flow...

And I was a bit nonplussed by the British museum being a substitute for the British library.

LGTrotter wrote:And I was a bit nonplussed by the British museum being a substitute for the British library.

Well until the new building at St Pancras opened, the library was in the museum. You knew that though. Which is why your guess was so clever.
Just take it.

djewesbury wrote:

LGTrotter wrote:And I was a bit nonplussed by the British museum being a substitute for the British library.

Well until the new building at St Pancras opened, the library was in the museum. You knew that though. Which is why your guess was so clever.
Just take it.

You and your big brain. Full of stuff.

In the absence of a question from Owen, I can offer a question.

I was delighted this morning to see a flower had opened in my garden. For me, seeing these flowers means that spring is just around the corner. What was the flower (common name or latin name is acceptable)?

Or you can just tell me to continue to bask in the love flowing from Owen.

A tulip?

Crocus.

Morning Glory?

A snowdrop?

Common Daisy?

Owen's right. Owen's question.

Yes, the first snowdrop of the year flowered this morning. They always make me smile and think that winter is on its way out.

AHB wrote:Owen's right. Owen's question.

The accidental question-master seems to be Owen's fate these days.

AHB wrote:Owen's right. Owen's question.

Yes, the first snowdrop of the year flowered this morning. They always make me smile and think that winter is on its way out.

Winter is only just beginning here.. Getting colder by the day. No sign of the snowdrops in our garden yet!

I thought a snowdrop might be the answer, they do give me a sense of hope that this interminable winter might end. They are however a bit forlorn when they arrive, I get the really sharp burst of hope from daffodils and their relations.

I have no question as yet, it continues to gestate, but it will be a beauty if it ever arrives. In the meanwhilst please make free with your own questions.