Thursday 25 June 2015

Parts of Hammers

Hammers have two parts--the hammer handle and hammer head.

Many hammers have handles of hickory or ash.

Use the face of the hammerhead for most work.

Some hammerheads have two identical faces, e.g. sledge hammers

Most hammerheads have only one face; the opposite side of the hammerhead is called the peen.

Machinists' hammers have round or ball peen.

Carpenters' hammers include a claw peen for pulling nails.

See more at http://www.ehow.com/about_5367760_parts-hammer.html

See also a Hammer Buying Guide at http://www.ebay.com/gds/Hammer-Buying-Guide-/10000000177630279/g.html

Tuesday 23 June 2015

Number 1 Haircut

Q: If a have my hair cut as a number 1, how long is the hair in mm?
A: Grade 1 - 3mm
Grade 2 - 6mm
Grade 3 - 9mm
Grade 4 - 12mm
Grade 6 - 19mm
Grade 8 - 25mm
From https://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070907134627AATK0p5

Q: My husband just had a "number 2" hair cut. What does that mean? Does it mean he has shaved his whole head?
A: Here are the general lengths specified by the different numbered length guards:
      •   #1 – one-eighth of an inch
      •   #2 – one-quarter of an inch
      •   #3 – three-eighths of an inch
      •   #4 – one-half of an inch
      •   #7 – seven-eighths of an inch
      •   #8 – one inch
The #5 and #6 length guards are special tapered guards designed for tapering the hair in an area of the head. One end of the guard is generally longer while the other is much shorter and the lengths graduate in between the two.
From http://www.hairfinder.com/hairquestions/clipper_cuts.htm

Q: Haircut Numbers - What Do They Mean?
A: #1 is 1/8 th inch
#2 is ¼ inch
#3 is 3/8 inch
#4 is ½ inch
#6 is ¾ inch
#8 is 1 inch
From http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1271067

Q: How long is a grade 1 2 3 and 4 haircut?
A: Grade 1 - one-eighth of an inch (3mm)
Grade 2 - one-quarter of an inch (6mm)
Grade 3 - three-eighths of an inch (9mm)
Grade 4 - one-half of an inch (12mm)
From http://www.kgbanswers.co.uk/how-long-is-a-grade-1-2-3-and-4-haircut/22796065#ixzz3dG5FPFRf

Sunday 21 June 2015

Minced Oath

A minced oath is a euphemistic expression formed by misspelling, mispronouncing, or replacing a part of a profane, blasphemous, or taboo term to reduce the original term's objectionable characteristics.

Some examples include gosh, darn, dang, and heck.

See more at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minced_oath

Wednesday 17 June 2015

Homonyms and Consecutive Homonyms

Two words are homonyms if they are pronounced or spelled the same way but have different meanings

From www.wordweb.info

 

Examples -

Joe always pares his pears in pairs

Jared didn't know if the correct answer on his Oceanography homework was choice A, B, or C. His friend said, "Look. It's Sea C -- see?"

Wendy wanted to shop at the new store called "Buy." She said, "I have to hang up now. I'm going by Buy. Bye."

The English teacher asks one of his foreign students: "What time do you have?", and he answers : "Two to two". So the teacher asks another student : 'And you?'... the other student says "Two to two too"

From https://ca.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20140121195516AA6Mfyr

 

More examples-

Because of living in days of yore, you're your own worst enemy.

I don't carry cash because it's too easy to lose loose change.

The horse could not only count to one, but could count to two, too.

Did the mill wright write right on the left side by mistake?

From http://absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?208303-Write-a-sentence-with-successive-homonyms-(-quot-You-re-your-own-worst-enemy-quot-)

Tuesday 16 June 2015

Shipping Containers

A shipping container is a container with strength suitable to withstand shipment, storage, and handling. Shipping containers range from large reusable steel boxes used for intermodal shipments to the ubiquitous corrugated boxes. In the context of international shipping trade, "container" or "shipping container" is virtually synonymous with "(standard) intermodal freight container" (a container designed to be moved from one mode of transport to another without unloading and reloading).
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shipping_container

Container ships are cargo ships that carry all of their load in truck-size intermodal containers, in a technique called containerization. They are a common means of commercial intermodal freight transport and now carry most seagoing non-bulk cargo.
Container ship capacity is measured in twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU). Typical loads are a mix of 20-foot and 40-foot (2-TEU) ISO-standard containers, with the latter predominant.
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Container_ship

But the record-breaking aspect of the Globe, owned by Shanghai-based China Shipping Container Lines and built in South Korea, is its capacity. It can carry 19,100 standard 20ft containers. That's estimated to be enough space for 156 million pairs of shoes, 300 million tablet computers or 900 million standard tins of baked beans.
From http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-30696685

Friday 12 June 2015

Jumper, pullover or sweater?

Jumper:

In the UK this just refers to an garment you wear over your shirt for warmth. It doesn't have buttons, and it pulled over your head.

In the US this has a completely different meaning. It is a type of girl's dress, a top, with attached shorts basically. (Google will be happy to show you images.) It has a kind of "little girl" sense to it kind of like pinafore, however, for sure adult women wear them too.

 

Sweater:

In the UK this is the same as a jumper, a garment you wear over your shirt, with no buttons, and is pulled over your head.

In the US this is a similar item, however, a cardigan with buttons can also be called a sweater in the US.

 

Pullover:

Again is a garment you wear over your shirt, pulled over your head. The meaning is the same in the US and UK, but it is a pretty uncommon word in the US.

So in the UK it all means pretty much the same, however there are considerable semantic variations in the US.

 

From http://english.stackexchange.com/questions/27568/whats-the-difference-between-a-jumper-a-pullover-and-a-sweater

 

Also see http://separatedbyacommonlanguage.blogspot.co.uk/2007/08/jumpers-sweaters-and-like.html

Tuesday 9 June 2015

Avast there, ye landlubbers!

landlubber / lubber. Noun: An inexperienced sailor; a sailor on the first voyage

lubber's line / lubber's mark / lubber's point. Noun: A fixed line on a ship's compass indicating its heading

lubber's hole. Noun: Hole in a platform on a mast through which a sailor can climb without going out on the shrouds

Avast. Interjection: (nautical) cease; stop

From www.wordweb.info

 

Avast, ye landlubbers! (parody of pirate slang) listen!, pay attention!.

From http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/avast

 

A sailor is expected to keep hauling until the mate hollers ‘Avast!’

From http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/avast

Tuesday 2 June 2015

The Clothes Peg

The first patented clothes peg issued in March 1832, described a bent strip of hickory held together with a wooden screw which proved to be totally impractical. Rain or even dampness would cause the screw to swell, rendering the pin inoperable

From http://www.ecoforce.co.uk/history-of-clothes-peg.htm

 

The (modern) clothes peg design was invented by David M. Smith of Springfield, Vermont (USA) in 1853 by creating two interlocking plastic or wooden prongs in between which is often wedged a small spring.

From http://www.dryingforfreedom.com/general-laundry-news/clothes-pegs-make-history/

 

Other Names for the clothes peg

  • Clothespin – America
  • C47 – film industry
  • Clothes peg or Dolly peg- UK

From http://www.heritageandhistory.com/contents1a/2010/04/wooden-pegs-c47-or-a-clothespin/

 

Mini Matchstick Gun - The Clothespin Pocket Pistol

See http://www.instructables.com/id/Mini-Matchstick-Gun-The-Clothespin-Pocket-Pistol/

 

33 Crafty Things To Make With Clothespins

http://www.tipjunkie.com/post/crafty-things-to-make/