I came across an old dictionary recently — a 1954 Webster’s New American. It has a hardbound cover, line-art illustrations on each page and cutout letter tabs along the side to help find whatever I’m looking up. There are even color maps of the world in the center.
It’s wonderful, but like most things its age, it’s far from perfect. The pages are yellowing, tattered and brittle, and they carry a faint scent of cigarettes. Still, it’s usable, and I plan to put it to work.
Yes, I have spell check on my word-processing software. And, yes, I use it religiously. But there’s something satisfying about having a dictionary nearby and looking up a word the old-fashioned way. For starters, I think it helps me learn more than simply having a computer correct my mistakes.
We use that same principle when copy editing at Big Green Umbrella Media. We physically print pages, and our staff members proof them with pens in hand. We’ve tried editing on computer screens in various ways, but we found we weren’t as accurate. Call it old school if you want, but it works. And so does the dictionary.
Just for fun, I looked up the word “computer” in my newly acquired 1954 dictionary. It wasn’t there. I love it. These words were missing, too: photobomb, troll, emoji, infomercial, blog, voicemail, spam, Wi-Fi, selfie, malware and inbox. Sounds refreshing, doesn’t it?
Are you curious which words were added to the 1954 dictionary as “new” words? Here are a few: amphetamine, bazooka, brunch, flamethrower, happy dust, laminated wood, racism, Technicolor and zoot suit. Kind of puts things in perspective, doesn’t it?
I may eventually lose interest in this relic. It may end up sitting on a shelf, collecting dust until my wife sells it to someone else who finds it interesting. But for today, at least, it reminds me of a time before mine — a time that certainly had its own struggles, worries and concerns, but also had some simpler and more serene aspects.
I didn’t grow up in the 1950s. Some say I never grew up at all. But I did watch “Happy Days” in the 1970s, and I’m guessing Mr. and Mrs. Cunningham had a dictionary much like mine sitting on a shelf in their living room. And that makes me smile.
Now, forgive me while I look up what happy dust is.
Have a fantastic Friday, and thanks for reading.
Shane Goodman
Editor and Publisher
Times Vedette digital newsletter
shane@gctimesnews.com
641-332-2707