Joyce Minor

Palindrome palavering proves pesky

Minor Musings
Published: May 30, 2010

If you follow this column at all you know by now that I love the English language. I love playing word games and I'm fascinated by all the quirky things you can do with words. I enjoy keeping lists of unusual words and clever expressions. Occasionally I even share some of them with my readers.

Several months ago I wrote a column stringing together dozens of idioms and colloquialisms. In another one I shared my favorite bumper sticker quotes. When I do this type of thing I always get some interesting reader responses. Some are thoughtful and informative; others are humorous. Some even spark my imagination with new column ideas.

I try to answer every reader response because I appreciate every one, pro or con; however, recently I got one that had me reading it backwards and forwards, so I thought I should respond in kind. See what you think. (The following contains 37 multi-word palindromes. Can you find them?)

To Idiot:

A Santa dog lived as a devil God at NASA? Are you serious? You might as well claim that Bush saw Sununu swash sub. (Wonder if Sununu's fired now. Maybe the devil never even lived.)

Madame, not one man is selfless; I name not one, madam. For instance, Marge lets Norah see Sharon's telegram. Margot trades used art to Gram. Nate bit a Tibetan. Dennis and Edna sinned. No, evil shahs live on. Ma is as selfless as I am, Pa's a sap, and poor Dan is in a droop.

I'll give you a nut for a jar of tuna that if you draw nine men inward, some men interpret nine memos. Nevertheless, put Eliot's toilet up because, no, Mel Gibson is a casino's big lemon. No lemon, no melon.

So, go ahead, holler, "Nurse, I spy gypsies. Run!" Or you could tell Steven, I left an oily lion at feline vets. Senile felines? Yo banana boy!

Finally, ask yourself, was it a car or a cat I saw? Remember, we panic in a pew so won't lovers revolt now? Rats at a bar grab at a star, but is it too hot to hoot? No, a new order began, a more Roman age bred Rowena. Yawn a more Roman way and bombard a drab mob.

On a clover, if alive, erupts a vast, pure evil: a fire volcano. So slap a ham on Omaha, pals. Now do I repay a period won? No, I save on final perusal - a sure plan if no evasion.

In words, alas, drown I.

Regards,

S.D. Rager