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Outside the Arena
Counter Canter With
Garry Stauber |
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Oxymorons |
by Garry Stauber |
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Yesterday I met a vegetarian cowboy. That is an oxymoron if there ever was one.
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An oxymoron is a phrase combines two normally contradictory terms. Oxymoron is from the Greek o xy (which means "sharp" or "pointed") and moros (which means "dull"). Thus the word oxymoron is itself an oxymoron.
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When I told my highly educated son about the vegetarian cowboy and it being an oxymoron, he said that he hates oxymorons and thinks they are over used. I replied, "Probably by a small
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group of individuals." He said, "Very funny." I said, "Well we have to agree to disagree because I think they are seldom understood and can be very funny." |
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Again, he said, "Very funny."
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I said, "Like last week when those experienced dudes came for a trail ride and I loaded up the small eight horse trailer and we hit the road. Before the ride we stopped and ate some jumbo shrimp. Our waitress was pretty ugly but she could really play that baby grand. As we drove through town I showed them where they could have mud baths after the ride. One of them asked me if their horse was very 'cowy' and I replied, 'Good grief.' I figured he was a yuppie cowboy, but come to find out I was wrong. Apparently he is in military intelligence. I told him, 'No, the horse isn't cowy but it is a very economical horse and I bought it from a very dependable farrier who lives next door to a low-cost vet. The dude asked, 'Will I be safe?' I said, 'Sure as I am a rich cowboy. That horse is a bomb-proof flight animal. However, do you have life insurance?'" |
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My son wryly replied, "Very funny, Dad. The oxymorons in that story were only mildly abrasive and you should put that on as a live recording." |
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Read comments or post your own comments to this article at the bottom of this page. |
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Garry rode the length of California on horseback with a packhorse in 2003. The trip took 3 1/2 months and covered 1350 miles. Upon completion of this trip, Garry became a member of The Long Riders Guild. Now he is President of the Ohlone Riders Unit of the Backcountry Horsemen of California. He is a horse trainer and NARHA Registered Therapeutic Riding Instructor. As a member of the Wilderness Rider Program, Garry is a trained and certified instructor and spokesperson for the U.S. Forest Service, National Parks Service, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Game Department and Backcountry Horsemen of California. He is an equestrian writer and has had over 100 articles published in 15 magazines. Garry is Chairman of the Board of The DreamPower Foundation, which provides equine therapy to children and adults with mental and emotional problems. In 2004, Garry retired from a 20 year career as an Executive in Silicon Valley. |
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Copyright © 2008 All rights reserved. The above article is the property of the Author and may not be duplicated or redistributed in any way without permission. |
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Reader comments for this article |
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Name: The Texas Mule Artist Time: 2008-09-11 16:09:38
Comment: Another Oxymoron: Patient Mule
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