The official start of spring is here — and with that comes the dreaded allergy season. A little more than a quarter of adults in the United States have these seasonal allergies according to the Centers for Disease and Control Prevention (CDC) and can relate to how pesky the symptoms can be. Once the weather
READ MOREIn these ongoing columns about oddball vocabulary, I try to provide not only definitions, but also etymology (that is, the word’s origin) — if it’s sufficiently clear and interesting. (Granted, that last adjective can be a stretch with etymology.) But last week, I somehow skipped the origin of peduncle, a stalk-like structure found in many
READ MOREGrowing your own produce is an all-around smart practice, from the money you’ll save at the grocery store to the contributions you can make toward a cleaner planet. Maintaining a garden takes some effort, but it’s a project even a beginner can tackle with ease. Consider these tips to start growing your at-home garden: 1.
READ MOREAfter recent forays into terms related to March Madness, Easter and Tax Day, Webb’s Weird Words is back to its stock-in-trade this week: another set of 10 oddball words for your perusal and edification. All are nouns except the adjective milchig. Biltong (BILL-tong) – Long strips of dried meat, usually cured in the sun. Though
READ MOREDeciding to become an organ donor is important, and it’s worth considering more often than when you renew your license at the DMV. Every nine minutes, someone in the United States joins the national organ transplant waiting list. Every day, 17 people on that list die waiting for an organ because there are not enough
READ MORECrystal Hefner broke a promise — and our world is a better place for it. Six decades younger than Playboy magnate Hugh Hefner, Crystal was his third and final wife; when the world-famous womanizer was nearing his death, he made Crystal promise that she would “only say good things” about Hef and his exploitative empire.
READ MOREThe term “feather the edge” does not refer to painting the sides, top, and bottom of a door or finishing the edges of a watercolor painting. Instead, in habitat improvement and deer attraction, it describes a very beneficial way to dress up and complete a food plot. It is said that deer are creatures that
READ MOREA wider observance of Good Friday was forecast today by the Rev. J. Moulton Thomas, rector of the Trinity Episcopal Church, and chairman of the Mayor’s Good Friday Observance Committee. He said the results received from the subcommittee yesterday, when the general committee met at City Hall, indicated a widespread acceptance of Good Friday observance.
READ MOREWhether you restrict your spring gobbler hunting to your home state of Pennsylvania or travel to other states to pursue this great game bird, knowing what they like to eat in your hunting area can be critical to your success. Wherever you choose to hunt, learn and understand the local food sources and preferences of
READ MORESnow geese and Canada geese have been flying north, and robins are more plentiful, and the intermittent snowfalls don’t take long to melt away. Even though we experienced a relatively mild winter, it’s nice to know that spring has finally sprung! As we welcome the warmer days and the emergence of daffodils and tulips, it
READ MOREVibrant, green lawns can draw attention to any landscape. Many homeowners toil for hours each week to ensure their lawns are pristine, or invest in lawn care services to help maintain a yard if they do not have the time to do so themselves. While many treatments can be applied to lawns to help them
READ MOREAn “out with the old, in with the new” mentality can extend to people’s visions for their homes. A home in need of repair or renovation can serve as a catalyst to take inventory of personal style and help make interior spaces reflect one’s unique vibe. A living room can grow stale over time and
READ MOREAs we proceed through “March Madness” toward a strange Sunday-Monday conjunction of Easter and April Fools’, your Weird Words writer is compiling a suitable pair of vocabulary lists: one on fools & madness — and then, more positively, on the death and resurrection of Christ. In the meantime, here are 10 more oddball terms to
READ MOREThe common cold can strike at any time of year, but most people likely associate colds with winter. Colds tend to spread more easily in winter, when people typically spend more time indoors with windows closed, thus making it easier for colds and other viruses to spread. Many people have their own remedies when it
READ MOREIt seems like the subject of invasive species, be they land-based species, aquatic plants, or animals, comes up more frequently these days. As a fisherman, I have noticed several new threats to our waterways, including invasive crayfish, zebra mussels, and the northern snakehead. Other species of fish, like the silver and bighead carp, while not
READ MOREIt’s official. We are at a pretty dreary time of year. The weather ain’t great. I’m fairly sure it rained for 27 hours straight last week. It’s cold, it’s dark, the post-holiday blues are rearing their ugly heads. I know the last thing you probably want to do is go outside. But the best way
READ MORE“I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes. Because if you are making mistakes, then you are making new things, trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, changing yourself, changing your world. You’re doing things you’ve never done before, and more importantly, you’re doing something.” —Neil Gaiman Well, y’all, I did it.
READ MOREParty, party, party — it’s what most folks do on New Year’s Eve to say goodbye to the previous year. Hopefully, our heads have cleared up by now from the revelries of New Year’s Eve, and we can take time to focus on what lies ahead in the coming year. So, steep a pot of
READ MOREWhile most cities during the past year were busy trying to hold their own and keep going, Williamsport, a survey shows, not only maintained its regular industries, but added several more to its already diversified list. Industries that have been established in the city continued to grow and, in several instance, made extensive improvements in
READ MOREThere are five fundamental rights listed in the first two Amendments to the US Constitution: – Freedom of speech. – Freedom of assembly. – The right to petition the government for grievances. – The right to bear arms. The one that does not get much attention, however, is the freedom of the press. I am
READ MOREOver the last month or two, Webb’s Weird Words has taken a largely thematic approach, with columns on animals, etymology, alcohol and a little-known linguistic item called a doublet. So now, let’s get back to our eccentric English exploration: plain old-fashioned oddball words. Here are 12, with another dozen forthcoming next week: Assegai (noun, ASS-uh-guy)
READ MOREIt’s hard to believe, but another archery season is about to get underway, and as usual, I never feel prepared. In years past, I did a lot of pre-season scouting, but like many other hunters, it seems like our busy schedules have made sufficient scouting more difficult. Fortunately, however, a lot of us have a
READ MOREPlanning, preparing, serving and cleaning up after mealtimes are skills that can be beneficial to everyone. Yet when it comes to meal prep, many families find it easier to tell children to go play rather than bringing them into the kitchen to help create meals. “One of the best ways to encourage children to try
READ MOREUnfortunately, CWD has not gone away, and in fact, it continues to expand its boundaries in our state. Prions, the infectious agent that causes a neurological disease, is always fatal. Prions are shed through saliva, urine, and feces. What’s a little unsettling is the fact that animals with CWD may not show any clinical signs
READ MOREWhere has the time gone? Summer seems to have slipped away as August is ending, and on September 23, fall officially begins! Several weeks ago, I did plant a fall blend of seeds to create several food plots for deer. The mix included wheat, rye, oats, winter peas, crimson clover, radish, collard, turnip, beets, and
READ MOREBy now, regular readers of Weird Words have probably figured out that I like to have a theme. We’ve done long words, short words, 10-letter words, words from a single book — and even, last week, a separate piece on dictionaries. This is my 12th installment, but I don’t have a lot of 12-letter words
READ MOREBy now, if you planted in spring, you are probably already enjoying the fruits of your labor. I bet other unwanted guests have also been sneaking goodies from your plants. To date, I have seen deer, rabbits, birds, and stray cats roaming my garden. To keep unwanted guests out of your plants, you can try
READ MOREHomeowners’ fasciation with a lush, green lawn is something that has developed over time and is still “growing” strong. According to a 2019 survey conducted on behalf of the National Association of Landscape Professionals, 81 percent of all Americans had lawns and 79 percent said a lawn is an important feature when buying or renting
READ MOREAs your friendly neighborhood lexicographer approaches another collection of weird words for Webb, Abraham Verghese’s novel “The Covenant of Water” stands at #5 on the New York Times bestseller list. Sales have been aided by the sterling success of Verghese’s earlier “Cutting for Stone,” which spent more than two years on the NYT roster —
READ MOREHoney bees are an amazing asset to our environment since they pollinate almost 90% of all wild plants and 75% of leading global crops. One out of every three mouthfuls of our food depend on pollinators such as bees, and crops that depend on pollination from bees are five times more valuable than those that
READ MOREWhen you hear the word ‘pepper,’ I bet the first thing that comes to mind is ‘hot.’ Yes, some are hot, but did you know that there are hundreds of different varieties of pepper plants? Some varieties can be as sweet as sugar. Peppers are a vegetable that I enjoy growing. Pepper plants are easy
READ MOREOver the years, I have tried many different methods to support my tomato plants. I can remember working with my father in his garden, pounding in the individual wooden stakes to support each plant. They would break or rot within a few years, and we would have to replace them. When I started planning for
READ MORE