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Taut, Taught, & Taunt Pitches


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Viewing 25 posts - 1 through 25 (of 59 total)
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  • #1316936
    Delmar O’Donnell
    Member

    @bolster

    Locale: Between Jacinto & Gorgonio

    After reading several dozen articles here in the Gear section of BPL on how to pitch tents and tarps, I offer this cheat-sheet:

    Taut: “Stretched tightly, under stress.”

    Taught: “To impart knowledge.” (past tense)

    Taunt: “To ridicule or provoke.”

    Seems a lot of people here are either imparting knowledge to their tarps, or ridiculing them.

    Here’s how to become a true tent-pitch savant:
    In school you learn that a pitch can be taught
    But it’s cruel and it’s mean when your pitch is a taunt
    What you want is a tent that is tight and is taut.

    #2103608
    USA Duane Hall
    BPL Member

    @hikerduane

    Locale: Extreme northern Sierra Nevada

    Foresome of us, id's just ben two long sense we where inn skool.
    Duane

    #2103611
    Ian
    BPL Member

    @10-7

    GEAR talk. Everything GEAR. All about GEAR. Ultralight backpacking gear. Lightweight backpacking gear. Hiking gear. Anything GEAR. Gear that sucks, gear that works, gear that's cheap, gear that's cool, gear that's overrated by lying manufacturers, gear that's only available from a side street Spanish market, gear that breaks, gear that's multi-use, gear that can be Googled, GEAR GEAR GEAR GEAR GEAR. Now go. Talk 'some gear.

    Perhaps rants and musings about alleged trolls, spelling, grammar, AND "usage" should be posted in Chaff.

    Edit: Better Bob?

    #2103614
    Bob Gross
    BPL Member

    @b-g-2-2

    Locale: Silicon Valley

    Did you mean "grammar" or did you mean usage?

    –B.G.–

    #2103617
    Don Morris
    Member

    @hikermor

    In any event, "you've got to be carefully taut" as the song goes….

    #2103628
    bjc
    BPL Member

    @bj-clark-2-2

    Locale: Colorado

    Guyline vs. guide line

    #2103629
    jscott
    BPL Member

    @book

    Locale: Northern California

    It's my tent that taunts me when I can't get it taut. Apparently I can't be taught.

    #2103640
    Ken Thompson
    BPL Member

    @here

    Locale: Right there

    Move this to Chaff

    Don't know what everyone is scared of over there. Was the best of BPL for years.

    #2103644
    Delmar O’Donnell
    Member

    @bolster

    Locale: Between Jacinto & Gorgonio

    > Perhaps rants and musings about alleged trolls, spelling, grammar, AND "usage" should be posted in Chaff.

    Considered it, but didn't do that, because the vast majority of discussions on taut/taught/taunt are held here in the GEAR forum, where people are discussing how to pitch tent or tarp.

    Is it really so terrible if folks open this thread and happen to learn the definitions of these three simple words that are frequently used to describe GEAR? I don't think so.

    #2103648
    Ian
    BPL Member

    @10-7

    I tell you what… you sit here and make it your life's mission to straighten out the world. I'm headed for Rainier.

    Peace.

    #2103649
    Delmar O’Donnell
    Member

    @bolster

    Locale: Between Jacinto & Gorgonio

    ^ Now that's a taunt.

    #2103715
    Roger Caffin
    BPL Member

    @rcaffin

    Locale: Wollemi & Kosciusko NPs, Europe

    And if you guys get it wrong any more, I'll have the tort lawyers after you.

    #2103716
    Eric Blumensaadt
    BPL Member

    @danepacker

    Locale: Mojave Desert

    So jist git yer butt off to night skoll and git yer GED!

    As a retired high school English and social sciences teacher (history, psychology and environmental studies) even in the '90s I despaired of this nation's ever-lowering level of public education. One year I even had to fail 30% -yes, THIRTY PECENT- of my entire 10th grade world history class! But so did the English and biology teachers for that same lazy-assed class.

    And here in Nevada we have THE LOWEST performing public education system in the nation. It's all due to insufficient funding – period.
    Sorta a "mind over matter" thing. The citizens and businesses don't mind and it doesn't seem to matter to the parents.

    Delmar, don't get me started! You know how I get…

    #2103723
    Gary Dunckel
    BPL Member

    @zia-grill-guy

    Locale: Boulder

    Isn't Eric holding a tot in his avatar? So, my humble offering:

    "At first, the little tot tried to taunt me for my sloppy tarp, but then he taught me how to get a taut pitch."

    Tent taunting? Man, this could go on forever.

    #2103725
    Diane Pinkers
    BPL Member

    @dipink

    Locale: Western Washington

    I for one appreciate the attempt to point out incorrect English usage. The use of spellchecker programs and now auto-fill on cell phones has made people very lazy about their writing. I like to read blogs as well as forums, but I want to stab the screen when I read the same incorrectly used word 4 times in the same blog entry. And, it's not just incorrect usage of apostrophes, either (its vs it's, there/their/they're), but sometimes an entirely other word has been substituted that changes the sense of the sentence! Also the use of text-speak in regular postings–aaaah!

    #2103737
    Ben Smith
    Member

    @bsmith_90

    Locale: Epping Forest

    I can handle some mistakes but when people are passionate about a hobby to the point of starting a blog, surely they can spell their key words correctly?

    #2103743
    BlackHatGuy
    Spectator

    @sleeping

    Locale: The Cascades

    "The use of spellchecker programs and now auto-fill on cell phones has made people very lazy about their writing."

    Since you're using 'spellchecker programs AND now auto-fill phones,' have made would be correct, not has made.

    "sometimes an entirely other word"

    Hmmmmm, grammatically awkward – better to write: 'another word entirely' if you really want to get the word 'entirely' in there. But really, 'entirely' is superfluous in your sentence….

    :-)

    #2103759
    Franco Darioli
    Spectator

    @franco

    Locale: Gauche, CU.

    Thanks Delmar
    That is what I taut .
    like.

    #2103776
    Justin Baker
    BPL Member

    @justin_baker

    Locale: Santa Rosa, CA

    One time I pitched my tarp way too taunt. I woke up the next morning emotional scarred from the verbal abuse.
    Using that taunt line hitch was a huge mistake.

    #2103779
    Delmar O’Donnell
    Member

    @bolster

    Locale: Between Jacinto & Gorgonio

    …moved to OP…

    #2103780
    Diane Pinkers
    BPL Member

    @dipink

    Locale: Western Washington

    A hastily written post on a forum, without proof-reading! That's why I don't write a blog, Doug!

    Walk away, come back and read your post, correct it, then hit Send.

    #2103784
    Ian
    BPL Member

    @10-7

    "And if you guys get it wrong any more, I'll have the tort lawyers after you."

    Well you can always try to bribe your way out of it by offering them an expresso although torte lawyer would have been funnier.

    (if you can't beat 'em join 'em I suppose)

    #2103786
    Greg Mihalik
    Spectator

    @greg23

    Locale: Colorado

    They litigate cake?

    Tort

    #2103788
    W I S N E R !
    Spectator

    @xnomanx

    Thank you for pointing out those mistakes Doug. While we're on the subject, I would argue that this statement needs more work.

    _______________________

    "And, it's not just incorrect usage of apostrophes, either (its vs it's, there/their/they're), but sometimes an entirely other word has been substituted that changes the sense of the sentence! Also the use of text-speak in regular postings–aaaah!"

    _______________________

    While it's not technically incorrect to start a sentence with "And", it adds an air of informality. There are better choices. Simply starting the sentence with "It's not just…" would have been sufficient to avoid the awkward use of a coordinating conjunction. The final sentence could benefit from a comma being placed after "Also". Finally, closing the sentence with the use of the expression "aaaah!" is arguably simplistic and vague. Perhaps you mean to express frustration? If you are trying to explain a complex set of emotions and lack the proper vocabulary, I suggest you investigate those feelings and find the proper vocabulary to express them. The reader will gain a more accurate insight into what you are trying to say.

    Edited for grammar and spelling.
    Edited again for clarity.
    Edited again for content.
    Edited again for spelling.

    #2103789
    Ian
    BPL Member

    @10-7

    "They litigate cake?"

    They do if they're being punny.

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