The philosophy of extra words

[technomc]

Ilandrah, i am so glad that someone appreciated my sense of humour [ !!! ]...and i totally empathise about the ironing thing..i need crampons to get to the top of my pile....

[2 tanners]

I'm right there with you, ilandrah!  I want to know why and where, not whinge and bitch. 

Alan does a fantastic job and although I miss more rosettes than I get, it's a rare case that I don't actually know the words that would have scored them for me.

As I said at the the top of the the thread, I don't want more words, but I do want to understand.  The 'reasonably well read' comment was enlightening to me, although it does appear that Austin and andirons rates higher than Asimov and anions.

[TRex]

Alan, though I doubt many would admit it, I imagine the thought process is something like this:

1. Being a user of this site, words are of some importance to me; I consider myself a word maven, or associate word skills with cleverness to some degree.

2. I missed a word.

3. If I missed a word that most people know and might be classified as "common," then my self-image is tarnished.  Why, I couldn't miss a common word!

4. Therefore, it is a mistake if a word I miss is on the common list.  No one uses that word, or I would have gotten it!

This is why you get so many "XYZ common?  Really??" type posts, with their tone of disbelief if not implied denial.

I was a single word short of a rosette the other day. The word was proton. Surely, that can't be a common word!     

[Alan W]

I used to have one, I think, but I haven't seen it for years.

[mkenuk]

Yes, lots of them in Thailand, and Malaysia, of course, is full of them.

[Alonzo Quixote]

You will find them in enormous abundance all over the earth, in the atmosphere, and in outer space as well.

[ilandrah]

Roger Ramjet, he's our man, hero of our nation......