“We die. That may be the meaning of life. But we do language. That may be the measure of our lives.”
Toni Morrison
I did language for a living as well as for a pastime. I did language in a big way. I studied it. I taught it. I researched it. I analyzed it. I did all of this because I love language. I do. Sure, I got the required credentials to teach linguistics at the university level, but that was because I loved talking about language, thinking about language, reading about language, writing about language, and arguing about language.
It seems that I still love to do these things, but I no longer have captive audiences whose tuition dollars keep me honest (as well as fed and sheltered).
So, I decided to provide myself with the audience and interlocutors for my thoughts, observations, questions, and analyses of and about language use throughout my world. To paraphrase and butcher an old saying, I guess you can take the woman out of linguistics, but you can’t take the linguist out of the woman.
This blog is for all of my present friends and all of my future friends who talk, write, teach, argue, joke, play, and analyze. It’s for anyone and everyone who does language. Please join me.
Some of the entries will be short, and some a bit longer. Some may be a bit more serious than others. All of them will reflect my thoughts on language.
DOING LANGUAGE 