Make ’em pay

Powerline’s The Week in Pictures

The Duchy of Grand Fenwick

The Duchy of Grand Fenwick is described as no more than five miles (8 km) long and three miles (5 km) wide and lies in a fold in the Northern Alps. The imaginary country features three valleys, a river, and a mountain with an elevation of 2,000 feet (610 m). On the northern slopes are 400 acres (160 ha) of vineyards. The hillsides where the ground is less fertile support flocks of sheep that provide meat, dairy products, and wool. Most of the inhabitants live in the City of Fenwick, which is clustered around Fenwick Castle, the seat of government. The city of Fenwick is also home to the only bar/inn/restaurant in the country, the Gray Goose Pub. About 2 miles (3 km) from the City of Fenwick is a 500 acres (200 ha) Forest Preserve that features a 20-foot (6.1 m) waterfall and attracts many birds that the nation claims as its own native birds.[1] There is a tiny monastery on the border of the forest which also houses the school.

The Duchy takes its name from its founder, the English knight Sir Roger Fenwick who, while employed by France, settled there with his followers in 1370. Thanks to Sir Roger, the national language is English.

That Infallible Source

And if you’re a bit confused because you’ve never heard of Grand Fenwick, it’s okay. It’s not real. It’s the country in the book, The Mouse That Roared (1955).

This is the second thing I’ve learned today!

I remembered the name of the book, but not the country.

comma

Ms. Bernstein, I hope you’re having a nice afternoon.

One of my favorite things to do on a crisp winter day, is sitting down with my kids and reading classic stories.

an email from an organization that should know better

I keep a set of index cards in a little section of a desk organizer, right next to the chocolate bar I’m enjoying. They don’t keep me from making common mistakes, but they keep me from making a lot of common mistakes.

Whoever wrote that on behalf of Hillsdale College really should know there’s no need for a comma after ‘day.’ I am sympathetic. Copy/paste introduces a lot of grammatical errors. And good editors are hard to find.

Today I relearned how to write a capital S in cursive!

On its way

And unfortunately, I will probably be driving in it. So let’s hope it holds off until we get home.Or misses us entirely. That would be nice but I think wishful thinking.

The flip side is that it’s currently 73˚. Rocky and Missy are loving it.

How’s the weather in your neck of the woods?