This week we're joined by a special guest blogger. Patricia T. O'Conner, a former editor at The New York Times Book Review, is the author of the national best-seller Woe Is I: The Grammarphobe's Guide to Better English in Plain English, as well as other books about language. She is a regular monthly guest on public radio station WNYC in New York. Learn more at her website, grammarphobia.com. Make her feel welcome! Since I'm a language maven and all, readers sometimes ask me whether I blame... READ ON

[Image courtesy of KentuckyDerby.com] Saturday's Kentucky Derby was marred by tragedy, as runner-up Eight Belles had to be euthanized on the track after breaking both front ankles. She was not the first athlete to be struck down on the playing field. Here are ten other tragic athlete deaths. 1. Bill Masterton, HockeyFour minutes into a 1968 hockey game between the Minnesota North Stars and the Oakland Seals, the North Stars' center, Bill Masterton, fell backward and hit his head on the ice. He died... READ ON

I was born and raised in Kentucky, a background that usually doesn't offer much in the way of conversation fodder. By the first Saturday in May each year, though, the Kentucky Derby has made the rest of the world curious about my home commonwealth, and I find myself fielding all sorts of Derby-related questions. This year, I decided it would just be easier to write down my answers. 1. What are the origins of the Derby? Kentucky has been a hotbed of the sport of kings since at least the 18th... READ ON