Prunes and Prism

RULES FOR YOUNG LADIES: Some arch advice on snagging a husband. Exercising the mouth into a pretty shape through repetition of certain words seems to have been an indoor sport for young nineteenth-century girls; in Little Dorrit, Charles Dickens' overly bred girl repeats, "papa, potatoes, poultry, prunes and prism." (Merrycoz.org)

Wednesday, February 08, 2006

Brokeback Molehill

The Comrade's co-worker -- let's call him Vronsky -- wants to buy a ring for his new girlfriend in St. Petersburg but has no idea what size she wears and no way to surreptitiously measure. They printed out a ring-sizing guide, they called me to ask what I wear, they measured Vronsky's pinky.

Finally the Comrade said, "Well, didn't you take her hand at some point?" Vronsky said he had, and to help him better guesstimate the dimensions, the two of them solemnly held hands. This didn't work because Vronsky said the Comrade's fingers were too chunky, but I find it precious nonetheless.

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