Words develop lives of their own, light-years beyond what their original meaning was.
Gay used to mean 'happy' - cool was a temperature - a solid was something... well, something solid.
'Liberal' was getting to be too accepted, I guess - so the term 'progressive' is wielded by both sides proudly.
And having influenza is much more dangerous than having the flu.Because the word 'Influenza' is associated with plagues - large number of deaths - snow - bare floors - poor quality black and white photography.
But having the flu... that's laying in bed, drinking a lot of fluids, and sleeping a lot.
And having to feel sorry for yourself...because no one else wants to be around you to catch it.
