A rainy Saturday randomocity

I'm priming a canvas board, in preparation for painting my first picture using acrylics. I just put the last coat of gesso on it--it should be dry in a couple of hours.

Not that there's any hurry. I had to order an easel because I couldn't find one around here that was worth a damn and it hasn't gotten here yet. Should be here any day now, and I can begin inflicting my artistic visions on the world shortly thereafter.

I haven't resumed working on The Sorcerer's Daughter yet though  I will be, later today, as soon as I finish some domestic stuff.

Anyways, that will be fun, going back into that dark, fantastic world. I'm looking forward to it.

As the title for this entry suggests, it's a rainy Saturday here. Had some thunder and lightning earlier, too. It's going to be stormy all weekend, it looks like.

I've been musing for a while now on the word utilize. I work with someone who uses that word constantly--she does it, I know, because she thinks it makes her sound more intelligent, and like she knows what she's talking about. Of course, it has quite the opposite effect, and she sounds like a pretentious windbag. (She also says "you and I" when "You and me" would be grammatically correct, for the same reason--something else that makes me crazy. But that's another subject.) This led me to think about how useless that word is.

Think about it--is there any circumstance where utilize is more appropriate than use? "I'm going to utilize the restroom." "I feel so . .  . so . . . utilized . . ." It means the same frelling thing  as use, and use is much easier to say.

So, I propose the following new rule for usage of utilize. It will, henceforth, mean used effectively. If you utilized something, that will mean that you got everything out of it you possibly could. Used to the utmost. "She didn't use me, she utilized me."

So, who is with me? Do you agree we should begin utilizing this rule immediately?