Here's a piece of poem of mine to ring in the new year!

 

Ode to Our New Year of 2025

by Jean J. Lee

 

Let your bright inner light shine

Wake up and stay woke from dark torpor

Prayers for those in pain are yours and mine

Heart-wrenching memories will stay where they were

It will be all right to find yourself supine

As long as you occasionally become a weekend warrior

Pat on your back and be on cloud nine

The wintry chill would rather feel like warmer

When upslopes batter your spirits down, just say you’ll be fine

As you feel connected to your strength, curveballs are no longer a torture

Laugh out loud or give a smile so divine

The moon rabbits would greet you back in your dreams with rice cake from their mortar

Blessing is another word for fine

The bitter past was only a blessing in disguise ‘cause your new year will be a perfect restorer

Fill in the blanks from news reports about South Korea's Political Chaos

The Republic of Korea has been suffering in the midst of the totally unexpected political turmoil since December 3^rd when the president Yoon declared Martial Law out of the blue. Martial Law is imposed by the military during violent civil unrest. In this case that occurred in South Korea, there had been no emergency situation at all. This devastating and clueless incident had been secretly orchestrated by Yoon and his followers in the grand scheme of getting rid of the opposition parties as well as blocking the investigation of thousands of illegal acts. Even after Yoon’s impeachment motion was passed at the national assembly, a lot of red tapes and obstacles have still been in the way of the final decision to oust him.

Today, we are filling in the blanks of a bit of the news reports from BBC and AP news with the right words that would make sense of each given sentence.

 

    1.   Yoon has defended his decision to impose martial law, and after his im_________________ he once again said he would fight until the end.

    2.   His defiant words are a marked change from his apologetic tone earlier this month over his short-___________ martial law declaration.

    3.   There was pride when members of parliament swiftly over_____________ the president's martial law decision, that the country's democratic institutions were functioning after all.

    4.   But Yoon has denied that his martial law order was an act of ins__________________, claiming that his political rivals were now creating "false incitement" to bring him down.

    5.   Yoon denied wrongdoing in an influence-peddling scandal involving him and his wife. The claims have battered his ______________ ratings and fueled attacks by his rivals. The scandal centers on claims that Yoon and first lady Kim Keonhee exerted inappropriate influence on the governing party to pick a certain candidate to run for a parliamentary by-election in 2022 at the request of Myung Tae-kyun, an election ______________ and founder of a po_______________ agency who conducted free opinion surveys for Yoon before he became president. (AP news reports)

 

 

 

ANSWER KEYS 

     1.  impeachment 

     2.  short-lived

     3.  overruled

     4.  insurrection

     5.  approval, broker, polling

Is Christmas your favorite time of year? Well, no matter how harsh our lives are treating us, let us just take a moment to savor Christmas vibe!

Every answer today involves a Christmas carol or a popular Christmas song.

 

    1.   Rearrange the letters of TINSEL to spell a word. Then rearrange the letters of THING to spell a word. The two words together are the title of a Christmas carol. What is it?

    2.   Take the phrase "He Threw Rings." Change one letter in each word to get the first three words of a popular Christmas carol.

    3.   The leading newspaper in Nebraska is the Omaha World-Herald. What Christmas carol has "World" in its title? What Christmas carol has "Herald" in its title?

    4.   The refrain of what popular Christmas song consists of only two-letter words?

    5.   Name two colors that come before "Christmas" in Billboard top 40 song titles.

 

 

 

 

Answer Keys

    1.  SILENT NIGHT

    2.  WE THREE KINGS   

    3.  JOY TO THE WORLD, HARK THE HERALD ANGELS SING

    4.  DECK THE HALLS

    5.  BLUE CHRISTMAS & WHITE CHRISTMAS

Let's take a look at the WORDS of 2024!

 

Which English words come to your mind to describe the year of 2024? It depends on what you see or focus on the most throughout this year. Some might think of “POLIRIZATION” among people while some other might say “RESILIENCE”. Let us go over a couple of frequently used or newly coined expressions that we came across in this past year.

 

    1.  demure

Since a famous American TikToker Jools used the phrase “very demure, very mindful” in her video postings, this word has gone viral. It means “modest, unassuming, shy, mindful of how you present yourself, considerate of others”  

 

    2.  brainrot (or brain rot)

the effects of spending too much time scrolling or consuming low-quality content on social media on your brain. In other words, it is supposed deterioration of a person’s mental or intellectual state, especially viewed as a result of overconsumption of material (now particularly online content) considered to be trivial or unchallenging.

 

    3.  slop

This is a derogatory term with pejorative connotations to describe low-quality artificial intelligence-generated content or media. Slop is the common name for household food scraps.

 

    4.  delulu

This expression can be used as a noun or an adjective with a negative connotation that means “someone who is out of touch with reality or delusional”. However, young ones put a positive spin on this expression by saying “Being delulu is the solulu. (Being a bit dreamy or hopeful can be the solution to life's challenges).” to encourage themselves to keep their heads up against all challenges in life.

 

    5.  Midwest nice

This expression originally refers to “courteous and agreeable manner, which is often involving self-deprecation, politeness, and avoidance of conflict”. It came to draw more attention than before in 2024 when Vice President Kamala Harris announced Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her running mate, generating discussions about Walz’s pleasant personality.

 

    6.  Extreme weather

In 2024, the world has gone through record-breaking temperatures and unexpected or abnormal weather incidents. In this sense, “extreme weather” has become a part of everyday vocabulary rather than just a scientific term. Extreme weather is defined as “a period of weather or a weather event that is severe and unexpected or abnormal for the location or season in which it occurs.”

 

7. brat

This word originally describes a misbehaving child, but now embraces a broader image of somebody who is confidently rebellious, unapologetically defiant, independent, or hedonistic.   

    

8. enshittification

“The gradual deterioration of a service or product brought about by a reduction in the quality of service provided, especially of an online platform, and as a consequence of profit-seeking.”  Initially, platforms are good to their users; then they abuse their users to make things better for their business customers; finally, they abuse those business customers to claw back all the value for themselves.” Which is demoralizing and frustrating.

*source from dictionary.com and thehindu.com

Time to play the puzzle! Get a 5-letter common word by adding 2 letters to each given initials!

For years I've been playing a "License Plate Game" when I've been with someone in a car. To play, you need to be in a state where most of the license plates have three letters —which many do. One of you calls out a set of letters from a nearby car. The object is to think of the shortest common, uncapitalized word that contains those letters in left-to-right order — not necessarily consecutively. Let's say the letters on a plate are NFT. Someone might call out BENEFIT, in seven letters.  But that can be beaten by INFANT, in six letters. That in turn can be beaten by NIFTY, in five. In today's puzzle, I'll give you some sets of three letters. For each one, add two letters anywhere to complete a common, uncapitalized five-letter word.

 

    1.  VCR

    2.  GTO

    3.  CNN

    4.  CIA

    5.  NSA

    6.  PGA

    7.  HMO

    8.  RBI

 

 

 

Answer Keys

    1.  ViCaR  (by adding i & a to VCR)

 

    2.  GaToR (by adding a & o to GTS) or GusTO (by adding u & s to GTO)

 

    3.  CaNoN (by adding a & o to CNN) or CaNNy (by adding a & y to CNN)

 

    4.  CIgAr (by adding g & r to CIA) or ChInA (by adding h & n to CIA)

 

    5.  NaSAl (by adding a & l to NSA)

 

    6.  PeGAn (by adding e & n to PGA)

 

    7.  HuMOr (by adding u & r to HMO)

 

    8.  oRBIt (by adding o & t to RBI)  or RaBbI (by adding a & b to RBI)

Here & Elsewhere by Jean Lee

 

Here and Elsewhere

by  Jean J. Lee

 

How many times have you been all ears to your inner voice?

How hard have you ever tried to love yourself and others?

How close have you been to the person you want to be?

How serious or how silly have you been in your lifetime?

How often, if any, have you been willing to forgive someone?

How much hardihood have you had to step up and let yourself heard?

How long has it taken you to process and figure out deaths of your loved ones?

How many days have you happened to shine from within when there was no light from the outside?

How ardently and dearly would you be remembered when you leave?

How excited will your afterlife be on the other side, you believe?

Let it shine, let it shout, and let it sing here so that you’d be so proud with no doubt elsewhere.

 

HEALTH SERIES #27. FIG

It is natural to become physically weaker as one ages. However, it is possible to stay younger and healthier than your physical age by what you eat at your table every day. More and more medical research and studies have shown the medicinal properties and benefits of herbs and healthy diet.

As of this new year of 2024, let us stay healthy by looking into a variety of herbs one by one, their nutrition facts, and healthy diet so that we are able to lead a life with more confidence and constantly get ourselves back on track with aplomb even if we happen to deviate from the optimal state of health.

 

# 27. FIG

 

Fig fruit (Ficus carica L.) is indigenous to western Asia. In the Middle East and Mediterranean regions figs symbolize 1. _______________ (meaning ‘long life’) and have been consumed since ancient times.

 

Figs have been called a "fruit without a 2. _____________" because they don’t display an outward bloom. Figs do however produce hundreds of tiny edible flowers that form, grow, and bloom on the inside cavity of the fruit. Their skins, which range from green to black-violet are edible and their small seeds provide a subtle crunch.

 

Here’s an interesting fact about this fruit: There are many types of figs and unlike wild figs, most commercially available varieties do not require 3. poll______________ by wasps. This is contrary to the common belief that all figs contain wasps that have died inside the fruit after depositing pollen from another fig.

 

Figs provide 4. fi_________ (which can promote healthy digestion and relieve constipation), antioxidants, and smaller amounts of vitamins and minerals. Fig consumption is linked to a number of positive health outcomes, including 5. infl_________________ reduction, less painful periods, and healthy weight management. Figs are also a good source of 6. ca_______ and potassium, which are minerals that help keep bones healthy.

 

Answer Keys

    1.  longevity

    2.  flower

    3.  pollination

    4.  fiber

    5.  inflammation

    6.  calcium

 

*source from healthline.com

 

 

Acrostic poem using FIG by Jean J. Lee

Fig-alicious taste

Impactful look

Gem in your garden!   

 

 

If you’re interested in consulting your health with awesome professional pharmacists, check this out! 

SANTA ANITA COMPOUNDING PHARMACY

It is Cyber Monday! Let's have fun with this short word puzzle from NPR on-air challenge!!!

Tomorrow is Cyber Monday. I've brought a short game of Categories based on the word CYBER. For each category I give, name something in it starting with each of the letters C-Y-B-E-R.

E.g., If the category were "Two-Syllable Girls' Names," you might say Connie, Yvette, Betty, Ellen, and Rachel. Any answer that works is OK, and you can give the answers in any order.

 

    1.    Colors

    2.    Garden Vegetables

    3.    Mammals with Three-Letter Names

    4.    Popular Websites

 

 

 

Answer Keys

   1.    Cyan, Yellow, Blue, Ebony, and Red

   2.    Carrots, Yams, Beets, Eggplants, and Radishes 

   3.    Cat, Yak, Bat, Elk, and Rat

   4.    Chat GPT, Yahoo, Bing, Ebay, and Reddit