A Thesaurus Isn’t a Dinosaur?
***Warning: The names have been changed to protect the guilty and the ignorant, as well as the innocent. ***
This takes me back to my college days. See also, "When the Secret of NIMH Meets Invasion of the Body Snatchers." My roommate Mandy's boyfriend thought that a Thesaurus was a dinosaur. It came up in a conversation about vegetarian dinosaurs and if you could have a pet dinosaur, what would it be. He said Thesaurus. He also believed that wrestling was real. I'm not saying it isn't, but we aren't talking about the Olympic kind; we're talking about the chair-throwing, top-turnbuckle-diving spectacle. Embellished, indeed! As real-on-the-mat wrestling was dull, they spiced it up – an art, skillfully avoiding unintentional casualties. It's staged, after all. I found it entertaining when I was a kid but not so much when I grew up.
Say whut?!
This is the reaction I usually get when I tell this story.
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A Roget’s College Thesaurus
Sooo… NO a Thesaurus is NOT a dinosaur!
Anyway, when he visited her, he monopolized the TV, watching only wrestling. Plus, he'd pout if we switched to MTV. Worse, when he got drunk, he'd pick fights with the guys who shared the house next door. Too much! Both had to go. Instead, Clarrissa (not her real name) and I moved next door where her boyfriend and his college roommates lived. There, I met my future hubby. When we were courting, I asked him if he believed wrestling was real (apparently, he nailed that one, as we married a year later). My roommates laughed at my question, as he, my future hubby was also from da 'Burgh. One can never be too sure about such things, perhaps they all shared the same thoughts…
This was the same roommate who never changed the water in her goldfish bowl and when she finally did, the shock killed it. She also put her finch cage near the heat register, and it died, leaving us other roommates a bit traumatized, thinking wasn’t that how serial killers got their start and was it safe to sleep with her in the house?! We will cover proper pet care basics and vegan/vegetarian dinosaurs.
Brachiosaurus - Vegetarian Dinosaur
Recall the scene in Jurassic Park where they weren’t afraid of this dinosaur because it wasn’t a meat eater. It had a very long neck.
This Brachiosaurus is a major landmark in Da ‘Burgh
The iconic Brachiosaurus statue stands as a welcoming sentinel at the Carnegie Museum in Da ‘Burgh, capturing the imagination of visitors with its towering presence and prehistoric allure. A symbol of the museum's rich natural history collection, it sparks curiosity and awe as guests embark on a journey through time..
Dinosaurs were not vegetarians in the same way that some animals today are, as the terms "vegetarian" or "herbivore" are more specific to mammalian diets. However, there were numerous dinosaurs that were herbivores, meaning they primarily consumed plants. Some examples of herbivorous dinosaurs include:
Triceratops: Known for its distinctive frill and three facial horns.
Stegosaurus: Recognizable by its back plates and spiked tail.
Brachiosaurus: A massive, long-necked dinosaur that fed on vegetation.
A T-Rex Jumping Rope
A tiny, spiny dinosaur
was racing through my house;
a tiny, spiny dinosaur
no bigger than a mouse…—A Tiny Spiny Dinosaur by Kenn Nesbitt From his book My Dog Likes to Disco
Imagine being so big and intimidating that they named you a "terrible lizard." Yep, that's exactly what happened to our ancient pals, the dinosaurs. The word "dinosaur" comes from two Greek words: "deinos," which means "terrible" or "fearsome" (because, let’s be honest, these guys were no kittens), and "sauros," meaning "lizard" or "reptile." So, in a nutshell, "dinosaur" translates to "terrible lizard," which sounds like something straight out of a prehistoric horror movie.
This name was dreamt up in 1842 by Sir Richard Owen, an English paleontologist who needed a fitting title for the massive, fossilized creatures scientists were digging up. While these creatures were undeniably fearsome, here's the funny twist—dinosaurs aren’t actually lizards at all! But, once you get labeled as a "terrible lizard," the name tends to stick, and so it did. And now, millions of years later, we’re still calling them that, even though they’re in a league of their own. So, the next time you think of dinosaurs, remember they might not be true lizards, but they sure made a name for themselves! Oh, and no, a Thesaurus is NOT a dinosaur!
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