Wednesday, March 15, 2017

Beware the Ides

When Shakespeare had the soothsayer warn Caesar to beware the Ides of March, it made the word sound particularly ominous.  Actually, Ides is a word that simply meant the middle of the month - it could just as well have been the Ides of April or June.
I think Ides are much more dangerous if you add an apostrophe - even more so when that's followed by a but.
"I'd _____, but...."
Those words, with their implied longing for the option not taken, have caused tremendous heartache for humanity. Maybe not as painful as being stabbed by a passel of friends and colleagues, but definitely something to avoid.

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