As a blogger and writer (Cleft Heart and other books) , I get caught up from time to time in the etymology of words (as opposed to that insect stuff, entomology). Etymology is the study of a word's history, origins, and how it's use and meaning have changed over time. Harelip When it comes to a hairy word like harelip, I must get serious first before we can have some fun with some hairy words . The term “harelip” can be considered offensive by many. The little girl pictured here—as all girls … [Read more...]
QB Peyton Manning: Cleft lip star makes history.
It was a special night for the Special Needs community. Bronco QB Peyton Manning threw Touchdown Pass number 509 to become NFL's all-time touchdown king. Cleft Lip steeled star for later surgeries. Here's how the Denver Post covered it. Cellphones were raised in unison at 7:40 p.m. The cheapest tickets for this game were priced at $301 in section 507, the highest $12,000 on the 308 club level. No one among the 77,047 standing fans was going anywhere at Sports Authority Field at Mile High … [Read more...]
Heart to heart about memoir, Cleft Heart.
As part of the International Authors' Day blog hop hosted by b00kR3vi3ws, I'm going to tackle some of the questions that're asked of me as I do various book events on Cleft Heart book tours. Debdatta, who reviews books at his site, b00kR3vi3ws, claims he's addicted to books. I hope he never goes into rehab. 1. Why now? What made you decide to write Cleft Heart? I finally got some time off from being a professor and decided to have another go at aspects of being a cleft afflicted … [Read more...]
Celebs with cleft lip & other birth defects—II.
Here are six celebs born with less impactful birth defects than those noted in my prior blog (which included Joaquin Phoenix). Again, thanks to Listverse.com and Madamenoire.com for doing the legwork. FOREST WHITAKER, LAZY EYE When asked about his famous lazy left eye, Forest admits that he inherited the condition from his father. He has considered having it fixed but only because it affects his vision. Some birth defects are mild, even intriguing. Here's another eye "deformity," … [Read more...]
Date a harelip? Cont’d.
Harelip, cleft lip? What's in a word? Using the word harelip in these times is a bit like using the N-word or other slang words for minorities. It's offensive to cleft-affected people and an indication of ignorance about the birth defect commonly known as a "cleft lip." Actually, doctors and scientists often use the medical term, cheiloschisis. See other technical terms for clefts and their repair. I'll continue now with more responses to an Asker's question on Ask Yahoo, "Would you … [Read more...]
Date a person with a Harelip?
Before dealing with a topic I encountered throughout my adolescence and young adulthood, a few words about Jack Dupree and the lyrics to the song he sang in the You Tube video posted in my last blog. Singing the "Harelip Blues." So here's what I found out about the song, but not becasue of Snopes (see prior blog). I dug a bit and found--according to a Wiki article--that Jack Dupree sometimes used the equivalent of poetic license for singers—an artistic conceit—by singing as if he had a cleft … [Read more...]
A song called “Harelip Blues?”
The harelip (sometimes hare lip) label. When an internet site said it featured lyrics for a song by jazz great Jack Dupree called, "Harelip Blues," I had my doubts. Doubts about whether he, or anyone else as the site claimed, ever sang such a song. The reason is that many teens, and certainly most adults, know that "harelip" is perceived as a derogatory term for a cleft lip. It's not that cleft-affected kids and grownups don't like being associated with cute bunnies and rabbits or don't know … [Read more...]