You ladies are looking for logic in English. That's illogical.
Makes you wonder how Vulcans would learn English.
Spock: "So, Captain...it's "'i' before 'e', except after 'c', and in words that sound like 'ay' as in 'neighbor' and 'weigh'."
Kirk: "You've got it, Spock."
Spock: "What about 'weird'?"
Kirk: "You just remember that ''i' before 'e'' doesn't apply because 'weird' is weird."
Spock: "...all right. Now is it 'publicly' or 'publically'?"
Kirk: "Yes."
Spock: (head explodes)
Bones: "He's fucked, Jim."
When I was about 8 or so, I would misread the word "pubic" as "public." So I'd be confused about references to "public hair," as I figured that public hair was the least public that hair could be.
There's a parking lot in Bethesda, MD whose sign read "Pub ic Parking" the entire time I was growing up. It was repaired a few years ago, but everyone (in my family anyway, because we're stubborn like that) still calls it Pubic Parking.
Dammit, Jim. I'm a doctor, not an English teacher.
My theory is, if you can sing it to the tune of "The Lee's of Virginia" from
1776
it's lly. So...
Basical-ly
Practical-ly
Publical-ly
Serious-ly
Well crap.
I keep thinking it should have something to do with publicans and, therefore, beer. If I could understand that link, it would all make sense.
Too early for me to have a beer, though.
I keep thinking it should have something to do with publicans and, therefore, beer.
In ancient Rome, publicans were the tax collectors. They were sometimes naughty and would collect extra tax, and keep the extra for themselves.
For what it's worth, my computer's spellchecker says publically is wrong.
When I was in college, people kept snitching the ls from the sign on the Office of Public Information. Very upsetting for the lady in the office.
So, once upon a time publicans took our money and now they serve us beer? What a wonderful transformation.
I think I broke my brain trying to sing "The Lees of Virginia" and getting it confused with the "Sister Mary..." song from Nunsense.
Sometimes anything ending in ly will make me sing that song. Much like anything ending in menon will start a bout of "Mah-nah-mah-nah"
