Fenders

I have Mishoni, but keep breaking the fender pump needles, as they break trying to get them into the well caked up valves.
 
Hmm. Fenders. Sausagey shaped vaguely whiteish things. Got some with the boat. Took some off the old boat. Got given a big bag of 'em by ChattingLil. Fenders. Yeah. Can't bring myself to give two hoots how they're made!
 
sailorman said:
it is how PD spells it :p
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I've got an ancient concise Oxford dictionary which gives "tire" as the preferred spelling, saying that there is no etymological justification for the English spelling with a Y. I'm glad to say that I hasn't caught on an you Americophiles remain in a minority.
 
Lovely matching set of big jobbies bought off a chap who had them made for his boat, embossed with the boat name "Blest" - cost him £150 per fender, we got all 9 for £50 and feel very blessed.
 
johnalison said:
I've got an ancient concise Oxford dictionary which gives "tire" as the preferred spelling, saying that there is no etymological justification for the English spelling with a Y. I'm glad to say that I hasn't caught on an you Americophiles remain in a minority.
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In truth, until the 19th century when literacy rates soared due to the widespread education of the "lower" classes, speeling was pretty optional anyway and "i"s and "y"s, for example, were fairly interchangeable. Apparently ('cos I couldn't resist looking it up), both "tire" and "tyre" were commonly used in the 15th / 16th centuries with "tyre" falling by the wayside on both sides of the pond until it was revived in the British sphere of influence (except Canada) in the 19th century. Interesting but useless trivia for the day :)
 
Erbas said:
In truth, until the 19th century when literacy rates soared due to the widespread education of the "lower" classes, speeling was pretty optional anyway and "i"s and "y"s, for example, were fairly interchangeable. Apparently ('cos I couldn't resist looking it up), both "tire" and "tyre" were commonly used in the 15th / 16th centuries with "tyre" falling by the wayside on both sides of the pond until it was revived in the British sphere of influence (except Canada) in the 19th century. Interesting but useless trivia for the day :)
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Spelling stills seems to be optional. :p:o

Anyway, as the ECF purveyor of useless trivia, could you tell me what is the point (if there is one) of the 'k' in knife, knee, know, etc...?
 
OR4751 said:
Spelling stills seems to be optional. :p:o

Anyway, as the ECF purveyor of useless trivia, could you tell me what is the point (if there is one) of the 'k' in knife, knee, know, etc...?
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Dates back to Old English (and probably thence right back to the early proto-Germanic language(s) of Northern Europe) where the 'k' was not silent

The Saxons et all would almost certainly have voiced the 'k' thus saying things like "ker-nife" or possibly "ka-nife". Actually, to be pedantic the Saxons probably didn't because they'd have called a knife a "seax" pronounced "sax" which, due to their cultural identification with a particular form of seax gave rise to their name "Saxons"

Knife probably comes from the Old Norse or Old Frisian "cnif" probably pronounced "canif" and "canif" just happens to be French for a pocket or pen knife :)

(In days of yore "k" and "c" were fairly interchangeable, just like "i" and "y")

As Old English developed into Middle English and then Modern English, the plosive became silent but the letter remained in the written form

Well you did ask!

(I do have to go and look a lot of this guff up I ought to mention, I can't remember all of it off the top of my head :D)
 
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