The World of the Alphabet

"R, M, and D are strong, unbending and faithful. The sometimes silent B and G and the slippery K follow strident codes of conduct. Even the redoubtable H, which can make P sound like F and turn ROOM into RHEUM, obeys etymology. Consonants are the camels of language, proudly carrying their lingual loads.

Vowels, however, are a different species, the fish that flash and glisten in the watery depths. Vowels are elastic and inconstant, fickle and unfaithful. E can sound like I or U, -IBLE and -ABLE are impossible to discern. There is no combination the vowels haven't tried, exhaustive and incestuous is their couplings. E will just as soon pair with A, I, or O, leading the dance or being led."

~ Bee Season, Myla Goldberg

The Evolution of the Ma'taf

A ma'taf is the peculiar device used for transporting sand by Egyptian workmen from excavation area to refuse midden. It is a bucket-like carrier made of old rubber tires and somewhat inexpertly hinged together. Some pour sand out of the bottom, making the transportation nearly useless, and almost all let out at least a trickle of sand on its path from trench to pile.

All in all they are useful. They are only used in Egyptian archaeology, as far as I can tell. I have theorized that a story of their evolution would double as a chronicle of the history of Egyptology. If ever I choose to write that particular story, this is the title I will use.

*That rubber thing beside Darryl is a ma'taf.