In the Loop: February 2024
Strong Silent Type
Stop. Wait a minute. Take it easy. Take a breather. Go radio silent. Hold that thought. Rest on your oars. Enjoy an eloquent silence. Stop and smell the roses. Mum's the word. Still waters run deep. Is silence stony, golden, or deafening?
Enough of the incessant grind. Nuts to the glorification of busy. No thank you, endless pursuit of overwork. It's time to stop a beat, take a pause, wade around in a brief silence. Keep calm, then carry on. This month, we bring the chill by highlighting short pauses and blissful (but beautiful) silences.
Editing Q & A: Wait Just a Minute
The pause that accompanies a comma (brief), semicolon (moderate), and period (full) varies in both length and in function. These punctuation marks link up clauses in different ways, hilariously explained by the genius Matthew Inman at The Oatmeal (complete with party gorilla and plague rat).
Playlist: Songs That Stop . . . and Go
What's the Diff?
There are a lot of sneaky words out there—worThere are a lot of sneaky words out there—words with similar spellings, similar sounds, or just similar vibes. Here’s the lowdown on some of those commonly swapped-by-accident words.
Tacit (adj.): Tacit means implied or indicated (as by an act or gesture or by silence) but not actually expressed. For example: tacit understanding, tacit endorsement.
Tacet (musical direction): Tacet is Latin and literally means “it is silent.” It is found on musical scores to indicate a part is silent for a long section or movement. Put your horn down, ‘cause you’re not playing. If you are writing about anything other than a score, it’s probably a typo and you likely mean tacit.
Cool Guide: Lesser-Known Pauses in Grammar
Stuff We Like
What does it sound like in the quietest place on the planet?
Watch as Niles silently prepares for his date. It’s predictably full of blunders. (FYI: I watch old episodes of Frasier while I’m on the treadmill.)
A silent dance party in Manhattan.
Shut up, ice cubes! Noiseless movie props make quiet magic.
Someone edited the courtroom scenes from A Few Good Men and took out all the dialogue. It's surprisingly coherent and dramatic.
Everything is getting louder when it should quiet down, already!
Every letter is silent sometimes, except one.
Uncomfortable silence on SNL. What’s up with that?
Shut up and thrive? Is silence really good for your health?
Enjoy the silence (Atlantic article, not Depeche Mode song).
Less is more: More silence helps children grow those little brains.
Some of the best Calvin and Hobbes comics had no text at all.
Some things can’t be silenced (like a Boomer’s iPhone, amirite).
Pay It Forward
Meet Carrie Cooper! You may know her as a copyeditor at PostScript and besties with Michelle. But did you know she's also a PhD student in American Studies, and a researcher and creative outreach director at Indy Equity Collaborative?
Plus, she assists at the Ray Bradbury Center and the Indiana Arts and Humanities Institute, makes art, plays music, writes, and serves on two arts organization boards. And amidst all this, she finds time for hiking, cooking, and reading for fun. How does she do it? Well, she's also a yoga and meditation instructor, keeping her cool in the chaos.
Carrie understood the assignment! Click over to the blog where she's written a special message to you about stopping for a tick and low-key vibing.
Stay tuned for upcoming Pay It Forward guest bloggers!
