Thrice Removed Multiplied by Two is Equal or Greater Than One
Me Tarzan, you Jane.
Me Jane, you Tarzan.
Me Mimi, me Mimi, me Mimi again.
All my cyberfriends are starting
to speak in third-person.
Including me, me and me.
This evening my talented and articulate writer friend, Gale Martin of GEM'S blog fame left this comment about my newest blog, Book Meme Central. She wrote,
"Gale does, too. Gale always seems to being saying to mimi, "Great idea." That must mean mimi is a great idea person. Gale is glad to have such a person as her cyberfriend. "
See what I mean?
Now, before I get all grammified (that's a new word for being cloaked with appropriate grammar), I'd just like to make an observation.
Many cyber moons ago only a handful of people I knew on the net spoke in third-person rhetoric: Yaxlich and Prometheus.
And let me tell you, when Yaxlich, Yaxlich and Yaxlich speaks - people listen! Likewise, the enigmatic writer of cryptic riddles and poet laureate of my cyberworld -Prometheus.
Yaxlich - who is known for putting his underwear in the refrigerator - was a bit of a shock to me at first. It's not everyday you run across a blog with a picture of male undies begging for a donation in the 'About Me' section. Come to think of it, that sounds a bit like one of my bachelors.....but I digress. Read Pant Aid. You won't soon forget it, my friends.
But then one day Yaxlich started to talk about books.
I forgot all about underwear.
In Books Are the New Black he writes,
"The one thing that has please Yaxlich beyond everything is how passionate people are about books. For a long time he thought he was somewhat anally retentive about his books and how much they meant to him. He is so glad that other people understand and appreciate good writing.
Folks tend to pay attention when talking outside one's numero uno self. And I don't mean like the lady in When Rabbit Howls.
Pharaohs spat tres verbiage. People listened.
Prince spoke purple pronouns. People listened and paid big bucks.
Bill Clinton used speech particles in an interesting way - the he said/she said scenario was fraught with frivolity (and trivial pursuit of another kind). The definition of is changed forever - but that's another story altogether.
Let's move on - and on - and on.
Prometheus, over at the Moving Finger is having a bad day. His 50th post is melancholy and he is complaining of blogstipation. Mimi hopes this post will cheer him up.
Here's a snippet from the post Prometheus wrote about the infamous book meme.
"Prometheus doesn't want any of his friends to be left out so he tags all that read this. Can't help it. Prometheus has always been this way. The Association of Genies avoids Prometheus like a lead-sealed bottle for his first wish is for a umptillion more wishes."
Kindness is always in first-person, second-person or third-person fashion. Si?
I like this quote from Paul Davidson's website about why he chose to write a post in third person.
'But Paul Davidson doesn’t do it because he’s got a split personality. He does it because he likes to see what other people will say to him when he refers to himself in the third person. Usually, when Paul Davidson is speaking in the third person, he comes in contact with three distinct responses. There’s the ignorers, the embracers and the inflamers.'
Even when their posts are short it's a powerful thing. I don't even mind that I misspell Y-c-x-h-a-i-l constantly or that I had to look up the mythological significance of Prometheus.
These guys rock. All six of them.
I love this quote from Yaxlich's post about books.
"The English language is a beautiful thing. Yaxlich asks that we do not ever forget that."
So what makes us think we can slink into the shoes of one Y, Y, Y and P, P, P? There's definitely more to them than meets the third eye.
Have you ever seen two such interesting characters in the same sphere at once?
I think not.
I hope this doesn't spawn another meme...er, Mimi.
Maybe Mimi means meme after all. Maybe I should ask those triplicate bloggers from England and India what Mimi memes..I mean means.
Yaxlich will ask Yaxlich and Yaxlich will tell us what Yaxlich said.
I like the sound of that. Now if I could just learn to spell them.
Who knows?
I may even make an underwear donation.
Third-person incognito, of course.
Labels
Blogging & Bloggers,
Memes,
Silliness
8 comments:
Prometheus thanks Mimi for the mention on her blog of high esteem. Prometheus is more than elated to be praised by Mimi. He would like to mention that his third-person speech may probably be attributed to the fact that he hates his first person. So much so that he's considering moving to the seventy third person.
He thinks the etymology of the word meme is linked to the pronoun 'me'. Memes go on about one's personal likes and dislikes, a bit like going 'me, me, me'. Ergo, me-me. He enjoys them nonetheless.
He welcomes Mimi to the clan of third person speakers on behalf of all three of himself and those of his friend Yaxlich.
Yaxlich is a little concerned that when he spoke about books Mimi forgot all about underwear. He trusts that this was a temporary lapse of concentration and that she has subsequently remembered that she needs to regularly wear underwear to prevent chafing.
He would like to thank Mimi for her kind words about his blog. Yaxlich writes in the third person because the first two weren't listening to him.
Prometheus is correct, as far as Yaxlich knows, with regards the origin of meme. That is certainly his understanding of the term.
Prometheus....You are quite welcome for the mention. I am sorry you are having issues with your first person. I suppose you could continue to dispose of said persons one at a time, but Mimi does not like that idea.
Sounds a little violent and besides, I'm just getting used to the third person universe and quite enjoy it.
Etymology of memes brings a new meaning entirely to my name! Oh dear. Interesting.
Thanks for the invitation and I will try to hold my own in the esteemed world of third-person conversation.
Yaxlich....LOL. You are the only one thus far who has commented on my intentional/unintentional underwear faux pas. Actually, I did start to change it but the inference was just too funny so I left it.
Poor Yaxlich. I'm sorry your personas are ignoring you. You and Prometheus have grave issues the likes of which even the serious-minded Mimi (sometimes) cannot cure. But not to worry, I much prefer your brand of humor and intelligence to any attempt at resolving your first person conflicts.
In other words, we all like you, you, and you just the way you (they,we,them) are.
I think I'm in paradise. Three of my favorite bloggers in one post/comments section! Oh, wait...make that seven of my favorite bloggers. But if Mimi migrates to third-person-speak, that'll make it nine.
PPP and YYY are such wonderful dudes; MMM(?) is a wonderful dudette. By the way, I hope Yaxlich can tell me how he got his first two persons to stop speaking to him. Mine won't leave me alone.
Yes, yes, I was playin' wich ya, busting on my more erudite friends--you found me out, mimi. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, my mother always said.
Gale can never hope to compete with the likes of Prometheus; Gale can only hope to be a pale imitation.
But it is funny how one thinks differently when referring to oneself in the third person. I feel almost Godlike when I do it though I sound like an idiot.
Great post!
Here's a coincidence: Do you remember the first entry on my book meme? It was 'The Selfish Gene' by Richard Dawkins. Well, here's an on-line definition of 'meme'. As defined by Richard Dawkins in The Selfish Gene (1976): "a unit of cultural transmission, or a unit of imitation." "Examples of memes are tunes, ideas, catch-phrases, clothes fashions, ways of making pots or of building arches. Just as genes propagate themselves in the gene pool by leaping from body to body via sperms or eggs, so memes propagate themselves in the meme pool by leaping from brain to brain via a process which, in the broad sense, can be called imitation. ..." I did give my own clumsy definition in one of the comments to my book list.
Thank you, faithful blogwatchers, for leaving your amusing and stimulating comments.
You are all fabulous!
Bazza...I may use your online definition of meme somehow in my meme blog. Thanks for reminding me.
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