Recycling

Since Mondays are the day I introduce you to the origins of a word or phrase, today would be a good day to tell you about a new word.

You've heard of recycling, I'm sure.

Well, now there's "upcycling," or giving new life to old stuff *before* you recycle it.

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RECYCLING HUMOR

To promote recycling in my military unit, five large dumpsters were placed beside the mess tent with large signs in front of each stating what type of garbage was to be placed inside.

It took several days and many reminders, but eventually the soldiers began complying. One day, just as the troops were lining up for the noon meal, a civilian garbage truck arrived.

In full view of everyone, the contents of all five containers were dumped into the one truck.

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Donations to our local convent were down and the nuns did not have enough funds in their coffers to continue in their usual manner. But rather than shut down and close their doors, Mother Superior ordered a strict austerity program be implemented. This included the recycling of old clothing. As the sisters' gowns had faded over the years, they were all gathered up and sent to the original manufacturer for restoration rather than purchase new ones.

Unfortunately, when they came back from the company - though improved somewhat - they were still a faded black, nearly a gray ... which just goes to prove that old habits dye hard.

[Wit and Wisdom; Pastor Tim's Cybersalt Digest]

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WORD for YOUR WEEK: Almost all words come from what etymologists call "root" words, which come from very few languages originally ... Sanskrit, Hindi, Hebrew, and some Germanic languages (the basic language of the first people to live on each continent, essentially). The root words "kai" and "kevala" meant alone, or only. The Latins merged this with the Germanic word "leben" to create the word "caelebs," meaning unmarried, and caelibatus is one who lives alone. We know it as the word "celibate," which is an unmarried person, and more specifically, someone who refrains from sexual activity, usually for religious reasons, but not always.

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