Mint

Mint (pronounced mint)

(1) Any aromatic herb of the genus genus Mentha (family Lamiaceae (labiates)), having opposite, aromatic leaves and spikes of small, typically mauve, whorled flowers.  The leaves of some species are used for seasoning and flavoring (peppermint, spearmint, horsemint, water mint. mint sauce etc).

(2) A soft or hard confection or candy flavored with spearmint or peppermint.

(3) A shade of green, classically a light hue with a cool, bluish undertone but many commercial products so-named are quite vivid.

(4) Something made or flavored with mint.

(5) Of or pertaining to the color mint.

(6) To make (coins, medals etc.) by stamping metal; to turn (metal) into coins.

(7) In crypto-currencies, to create a crypto token.

(8) A place where coins and special medals (and in some places paper currency) etc are, now always under government authority if the production of legal tender is involved.

(9) A place where something is produced or manufactured.

(10) In slang, to make, fabricate or invent (including weightless items such as words).

(11) In slang (as “a mint”, “made a mint” etc), a vast amount, especially of money.

(12) In slang, excellent; impressive (mostly northern England)

(13) In slang, attractive; beautiful; handsome (most of the English Speaking world except North America).

(14) In philately (of a stamp) and numismatics (of currency), being in its original, unused condition (use now extended to (1) any item in such condition and (2) an item which has been restored or renovated to a state where it can be described as “as new” (ie appearing to be newly made and never used, even if once dilapidated)).

(15) Intent; purpose; an attempt; try; effort (mostly northern England & Scotland).

(16) To take aim at with a firearm (rare and mostly northern England & Scotland).

(17) To hit or strike at someone or something (rare).

Pre 900: From the Middle English mynt & münet (money, coin), from the Old English mynet (coin, coinage, money), from the late Proto-West Germanic munit, from the Latin monēta (place for making coins, coined money) and named after the temple of Juno Monēta (named for Monēta,mother of the Muses), the mint where Roman money was coined.  A doublet of money and manat, the verb was from the noun; the Old English mynetian (to mint) was a parallel formation.  The use to describe “mean, intent, aim etc” was also pre 900 and was from the Middle English verb minten, munten & munte (to intend, plan, think of), from the Old English myntan & gemyntan (to mean, intend, purpose, determine, resolve), the noun a derivative of the verb, from the Proto-West Germanic muntijan (to think, consider), from the primitive Indo-European men- & mnā- (to think),  It was cognate with the Saterland Frisian mintsje & muntsje (to aim, target), the Dutch munten (to aim at, target), the German Low German münten (to aim at), the German münzen (to aim at), the Dutch monter (cheerful, gladsome, spry), the Gothic muns, (thought, opinion) and the Old English munan (to be mindful of, consider, intend).  The use in botany may have been earlier but certainly was in use by the tenth century.  It was from the Middle English mynte, from the eighth century Old English minte (the mint plant), from the Proto-West Germanic mintā (leaf of the mint) (source also of Old Saxon minta, the Middle Dutch mente, the Old High German minza and the German Minze), from the Latin mentha & menta of uncertain origin but probably from a lost Mediterranean language via either the Ancient Greek μίνθη (mínthē) & μίνθα (míntha) or directly.  It was akin to the Old Norse minta (mint) and the Old High German minza.  In Greek mythology, minthē was personified as a nymph transformed into an herb by Proserpine.

Lindsay Lohan with mint hair (digitally altered image).

The general sense of “a vast sum of money” was in use by the 1650s and the term “mint-mark” (mark placed upon a coin to indicate the mint where it was struck) was formalized in 1797.  The verb in the sense of “to stamp metal to make coins” dates from the 1540s and was developed from the noun; minting soon followed.  In the Old English, the agent noun was mynetere which became the twelfth century Middle English minter (one who stamps coins to create money; place where coins are stamped), from the Late Latin monetarius.  The adjective minty (full of or tasting of mint) was documented since 1867 (mintesque seems never to have been coined) while the related noun mintiness was first noted in the 1920s.  Mint is a noun, verb & adjective; minting is a noun & verb, minted is a verb & adjective and minty is an adjective, the noun plural is mints.

Minties: 54.3% sugar and inclined to extract fillings, they are income generators for dentists.

Introduced in Australia in 1922, the Mintie is a mint-flavored confectionery which is hard, white, chewy and prone while chewing to enter such a state of stickiness that it's not unusual for dental fillings to be dislodged.  Despite this, essentially unchanged, they've been popular in Australia and New Zealand for over a century, some half a billion are sold annually and they're available in many outlets around the world.  In some places they have a cult following and in London there's a shop which offers a text-messaging service to advise customers when the sticky treat is again in stock, the Mintie addicts apparently not only homesick colonials.  The company's It's moments like these you need Minites advertising campaign in the 1920s was responsible for a catch-phrase entering the local vernacular, the truncated “It's moments like these” still heard when something unfortunate has happened.

In September 2023, Rupert Murdoch (b 1931) announced he was standing down from executive roles within the News organization to become Chairman Emeritus.  It came as a surprise because many had assumed he’d intended to die “in the saddle” and after all, he is 92 so people needed just to be patient.  But he (sort of) retired instead and that triggered the inevitable speculation about hidden agendas and ulterior motives, the things which for decades have been attributed to Mr Murdoch’s every action.  It’ll be interesting to watch the dynamics this unleashes in the Murdoch family but it may be that now he’s again single, Mr Murdoch just wants more time for dating.  One almost immediate impact of his (at least symbolic) departure was a lapse in journalist standards within the corporation, a piece run on the news.com.au website including a mistake which once would never have got past a sub-editor.  The story was about a US$10,000 bill “minted” during the 1930s.

News.com.au, 26 September 2023.

In the US, dollar bills are not “minted”, they are “printed”, the US Bureau of Engraving and Printing responsible for the production of paper currency while coins are produced by the United States Mint.  The $10,000 bill in question was rated as “mint condition” by the authoritative Paper Money Guarantee (PMG), a third-party operation which assesses and certifies paper money and sold for US$480,000 at the Long Beach Expo currency auction in Dallas, Texas, a record for the type.  The high-value US bills are now quite a novelty, the Treasury in 1969 purging from the system all “large value bills” (ie anything above US$100) and while even then $500 & $1000 bills were still in circulation, the older issues (up to $10,000) had vanished from general use and were restricted to institutional and inter-departmental purposes.

Mint fan Lindsay Lohan with Prada Mint Satchel Tote Bag (May 2012, left), in mint green dress (February 2012, centre) and mint green bathing suit (July 2017, right).

Mintbacks: During the 1930s, there was even a US$100,000 bill but it was technically a “Treasury Gold Certificate” which never entered circulation, use restricted to transactions between branches of the Federal Reserve.  It’s interesting to speculate what a $100,000 Treasury Gold Certificate in mint condition would achieve at auction.  It would obviously have a value to numismatists because of the historical significance and collectors would be drawn to such a rarity but these certificates have not been redeemable for gold (or indeed US$) since Richard Nixon (1913-1994; US president 1969-1974) abandoned the gold standard in 1971.

Clockwise from top left: 1971 Holden Monaro GTS 350, 1970 Plymouth ‘Cuda 440-6, 1972 Ford Falcon XA GT, 1973 Triumph Stag, 1970 Plymouth Road Runner Superbird and 1971 Chrysler Valiant Charger R/T E38.

The combination of advances in manufacturing techniques and the psychedelic vibe of the late 1960s inspired manufacturers to offer some lurid shades.  It was the first time since the 1920s that purple gained some popularity but bright greens were also fashionable and in marketing departments, imaginations were allowed to wander as names were conjured.  It probably never was true that weed and acid were much involved in the process but the names certainly read as if they were and they included: Plum Crazy, In-Violet, Tor Red, Sassy Grass, Panther Pink, Sub Lime, Lime Light, Moulin Rouge, Top Banana, Lemon Twist & Citron Yella.  Although it may be an industry myth, the story told is that Plum Crazy & In-Violet (vivid shades of purple) were late additions because the killjoy board refused to sign-off on Statutory Grape.  Some of the colors used in the US were too bright to be called “mint” and the ones which were closer didn’t adopt the description but in Australia, Holden had what most would consider a “lime” green but they anyway called it “Lina Mint”, a name apparently just too good to resist.  After 1973, the bright colors vanished from the color charts for some 25 years because the use of lead in paint was banned and it wasn’t until the twenty-first century alternatives were produced at viable cost.

The Mint Julep

Mint Julep served in Julip Tin.

Famously associated with the Kentucky Derby which is one leg of the racing’s Triple Crown, the origins of the mint julep lie in ancient Persia where it was a non-alcoholic drink made with rosewater.  Julep was from the Middle English, from the Old French julep, from the Medieval Latin julapium (via the Arabic جُلَاب‎ (julāb)), from the Persian گلاب‎ (golâb) (rosewater), the construct being گل‎ (rose) + آب‎ (water).  The refreshing drink was one of the many cultural exports from the Orient which reached Europe in the seventeenth century and from there it travelled across the Atlantic where, gradually, it evolved into something alcoholic.  Like other such concoctions in post-colonial America, the julep for some time straddled the gray area of respectability between sometimes dubious medicinal preparations and party drinks and it wasn’t until the commercial ice trade expanded early in the nineteenth century it became really popular.  Now most associated with whiskey, the early recipes in the US all suggested using French brandy or cognac but as the great national switch to whiskey gained momentum in the later 1800s, the mint julep in its familiar modern form became the standard.

Ingredients

65ml bourbon
10 mint leaves
12.5ml of 2:1 sugar syrup
A big sprig of mint

Method

Prepare the 2:1 sugar syrup by dissolving 1 cup of sugar in ½ cup of water over a low heat.  Leave to cool, and then store in a bottle with a suitable pouring neck.  This will make about 1 cup of sugar syrup.  Use either a highball or julep tin and keep them under refrigeration for long enough for them to be ice-cold.  A mint julep must be served really cold.

Shake the ingredients with ice and strain into a highball glass or julep tin filled with crushed ice. Churn gently with a long-handled spoon and top with more crushed ice.  Because the scent of mint is the julep’s signature, give the mint garnish a couple of sharp claps between your palms before tucking it into the glass; this will release the aromatic oils.  Some experiment with different types of mint (apple mint, chocolate mint, spearmint et al) while other insist on sticking to the classics.  A straw is essential and the ideal ones to use are stainless steel because (1) they better maintain the temperature and (2) will last decades and reduce plastic waste.

Can

Can (pronounced kan)

(1) A sealed container for food, beverages etc, by convention made from aluminum, iron coated with tin or another metal (has now become a common form even on parts of the English-speaking world where “tin” was the traditional use (the form “tin can” covering all bases).

(2) A receptacle for garbage, ashes, etc (often as “trash can”)

(3) A bucket, pail, or other container used usually for holding or carrying liquids.

(4) A drinking cup; a tankard.

(5) A shallow, cylindrical (usually aluminum, cardboard or plastic) container made in various sizes and used for storing and handling film on cores or reels (often used in the phrase “in the can” to indicate the completion of something).

(6) In slang (mildly vulgar), of US military origin, the latrine; the toilet.

(7) In slang, jail; prison (often in the phrase “in the can”).

(8) In slang (mildly vulgar), the buttocks (always in the plural).

(9) In audio engineering, a set of headphones which cover the ears (always in the plural).

(10) In admiralty slang, a depth charge (in the US Navy used also as a slang term for a destroyer, the “utility” warship in size historically between a frigate and cruiser).

(11) In slang, to discard something; to throw away.

(12) In slang, to throw something away;

(13) In slang, to stop something (a project, discussion etc).

(14) In many places, an alternative to “canx” as an abbreviation for “cancelled” (notably by those who have standardized on three-character codes)

(15) In military ordnance, a standard abbreviation for “canon”.

(16) For some purposes, the abbreviation for “Canada” & “Canadian”.

(17) To be able to; to possess the necessary qualifications, skill or knowledge; to know how to; to have the power, authority or means to.

(18) To have the possibility.

(19) To know (obsolete).

(20) To seal a substance (usually food) in a can; to preserve by sealing in a can (can also be used of substances stored in glass jars etc.

(21) In slang, to dismiss from employment; to fire.

(22) In film & television, to record on film, tape or some other medium (based on the physical “cans” in which films were stored).

Pre 900: From the Middle English, from the Old English cunnan (to know, know how) and cognate with the German & Gothic kann (know), the Old Norse kunna, Old High German kunnan, the Latin cognōscere (to know) and the Sanskrit jānāti (he knows).  The use to describe the receptacle emerged some decades later and was from the Middle English canne, can & cane, from the Old English canne and cognate with the German Kanne, the Old Norse and Old High German kanna, the Irish gann and the Swedish kana, all of which may be of West Germanic origin.  In the Late Latin, a canna was a “small drinking vessel”.  Can is a verb & noun, canned & canning are verbs; the noun plural is cans.

In Singlish, “can” is a versatile word.  Singlish (the construct a portmanteau of Sin(gapore) + (Eng)lish)) is still known by some language specialists as Colloquial Singaporean English but the blend is a more popular description and aligns the variation with flavors like Spanglish (Spanish influenced English), Hinglish (Hindi influenced English) & Konglish (Korean influenced English).  In Singapore, Singlish is used in parallel with Singaporean Standard English (differing usually from British English only in the accents although standards in the Far East tend generally to be higher) and it’s been documented since the 1960s although the linguistic tradition is much older.  In Singlish, the meaning of “can” can vary according to the relationship between the speakers and the tone of voice used although essentially it means “yes”, the nuances learned through use. For example Can or not? means “Can you do this?” to which the reply is Can (yes).  As a politeness, that might be responded to by Can meh? (Are you sure?), the expected answer being Can lah! (Yes of course!).  Inevitably, that begat Cannot lah!

In idiomatic use, a “can of worms” is a complicated, difficult, distasteful problem and if applied in retrospect it’s often of something which proved insoluble.  To “carry the can” is to take responsibility for something (particularly if challenging or troublesome); when used in the form “left carrying the can” it implies the task has been “dumped on one”, all others having evaded task.  It’s believed “carry the can” has its origin in the undesirable task of “latrine duty” in the military which required one literally to carry away from the temporary latrines “cans of shit” (also the origin of “can” as a slang word for “toilet”.  To “kick the can down the road” is delay dealing with a problem, the idea being of not then picking up the can as one eventually must.  “In the can” indicates something is complete, arranged, agreed or finalized and was from film production, the cores or reels of processed and edited films being stored “in the can” (a shallow, cylindrical (usually aluminum, cardboard or plastic) container made in various sizes to suit different film stocks.  To be a “can do” sort of person is to be dynamic, positive and anxious to accept a challenge.  The politician Campbell Newman (b 1963; premier of the Australian state of Queensland 2012-2015) described himself as “Can do Campbell” and enjoyed a fine election victory but it ended badly; in the next he suffered one of the bigger landslides in modern political history losing even his own seat.  “Canned laughter” was the process by which “laughter tracks” were spliced into the recordings of television comedies for subsequent broadcast, emulating a live (and appreciative) audience.  It’s often been regarded cynically but all the research suggests it really did work.  The popular phrase ”no can do” indicates an inability or unwillingness to do something.

Yes we can

Barack Obama (b 1961; US president 2009-2017) more than once observed he thought the speeches he wrote were better than any which came from his speechwriters and one can see his point but one of the reasons his presidency is regarded as insubstantial is that his words were more impressive than his deeds.  He was elected president and awarded the Nobel Prize for the same reason: He wasn’t George W Bush (George XLIII, b 1946; US president 2001-2009).  He promised much, exemplified by the phrase “…yes, we can” which expertly he worked into a speech he delivered in Nashua, New Hampshire on 8 January 2008, during the Democratic primaries while campaigning against crooked Hillary Clinton (b 1947; US secretary of state 2009-2013) for the party’s nomination:

…and tonight, I think about all that she's seen throughout her century in America — the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we can't and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes, we can.

At a time when women's voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed, she lived to see them stand up and speak out and reach for the ballot. Yes, we can.

When there was despair in the Dust Bowl and depression across the land, she saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal, new jobs and a new sense of common purpose. Yes, we can.

When the bombs fell on our harbor and tyranny threatened the world, she was there to witness a generation rise to greatness and a democracy was saved. Yes, we can.

She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in Birmingham, a bridge in Selma and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that "We Shall Overcome." Yes, we can.

A man touched down on the moon, a wall came down in Berlin, a world was connected by our own science and imagination. And this year, in this election, she touched her finger to a screen and cast her vote, because after 106 years in America, through the best of times and the darkest of hours, she knows how America can change. Yes, we can.

America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves: If our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made?

This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment. This is our time — to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth that out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism, and doubt, and those who tell us that we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes, we can.

As a rhetorical device, the repetition of “yes we can” worked well and he deserves credit also for the skill with which it was delivered; few US politicians since Ronald Reagan (1911-2004, US president 1981-1989) have shown such a flair for timing and effect and Reagan had the advantage of decades of practice under the tutelage of some of the best film directors.  But in office, reality bit and Obama soon understood why so many of his predecessors had commented that one surprise as president was how difficult it was to get anything done and the more that involved change, the harder it was.  On the night, “yes we can” thrilled many but among Republicans and even some factions in his own party, the spirit was somewhere between “no we probably shouldn’t” and “no we won’t”.  Still, he may have convinced himself because in his farewell address in Chicago in January 2017 he reprised “yes we can” before pausing for effect and adding “…yes we did”.  Dutifully, the audience applauded.

Soda agnostic Lindsay Lohan with (clockwise from top left) can of Rehab, can of Coca-Cola, can of Red Bull, Can of Pink Ginseng, can of Sunkist Soda & can of Pepsi Cola.  The car in the "Rehab" shot is a 2006 Mercedes-Benz SL 65 (R230; 2004-2011) which, flachkühlered, would later feature in the tabloids after a low-speed crash.

In the matter of can & may.

"Can" and "may" are modal verbs and the grammar Nazis police their use with some relish and for those who care about such things, there are frequent instances of misuse.  Can & may are sometimes interchangeable: just about anywhere on the planet it can at some time rain but it’s as correct to say it may at some time rain.  In some cases too, neither can nor may might be the appropriate word to use even if both are grammatically correct:  It’s really not helpful to ask: “Can I believe anything said by crooked Hillary Clinton?” or “May I believe anything said by crooked Hillary Clinton?” because the better choice is “Should I believe anything said by crooked Hillary Clinton?”  The answer is of course: “No”.  Still, the general principle is “can” is used of possibilities and “may” of permissions”, illustrated by the companion sentences “I can swim” & “May I go swimming”.  One of the quirks of English which may account for some the undue popularity of “can” is that while can’t has since the eighteen century been one of the language’s most commonly used contractions, “mayn’t is listed by most authorities as rare or archaic (though extinct might more reflect reality).  That was probably because can’t more effortlessly rolls from the tongue.

Campbell's Soup Cans (1962), acrylic with metallic enamel paint on canvas by Andy Warhol (1928–1987).

One of the landmarks of pop-art, Warhol’s Campbell's Soup Cans (1962), is a piece which depends for its effect, not on its content but its intent and there was a randomness of chance in the choice of subject.  The artist explained it by revealing for some twenty years he’d been having a can of the stuff for his lunch, thereby accounting for the motif of “the same thing over and over again”, a idea he’d reprise with variations for the rest of his life.  Had his habit been to enjoy sardines for lunch instead, the painting would have looked different but the meaning would not have changed.  It’s was also an coincidence of capitalism that 32 cans appear, that happening because at the time the company offered that many flavors but had they offered 36, the work would have contained that many.  Presumably, had the range been 29, 31 or some other number symmetrically more challenging things might have differed in detail but the concept would have survived.  Repeating the nearly identical image, the canvases stress the uniformity and ubiquity of the product’s packaging and subvert the idea of painting as a medium of invention and originality.  Although pop-art had at the time a newness about it, Campbell's Soup Cans was another step in the path art had taken since 1917 when Marcel Duchamp (1887–1968) had submitted a porcelain urinal for display in an art gallery, his purpose being to have people question whether art was defined by what it was or the context in which it appeared.  Does anything become art if it's put in an art gallery?  It was an confronting question and we’ve been living with its implications since, none more so than Ted Cruz (b 1970; US senator (Republican-Texas) since 2013), cans of "Campbell's Big'n Chunky Soup" his favorite food.  In 2016 he told US Weekly: "When I'm away from the family, in Washington DC, my dinner is a can of soup.  I have dozens in the pantry" and in that count he may be being untypically modest; his wife revealed that after their honeymoon, he returned from a trip to the grocery store with (literally) 100 cans. 

Campbell's Soup (Limited Editions).

On several occasions, the Campbell brand has taken advantage of the famous association and produced editions of soup cans with Warhol style labels complete with the artist's printed signature.  The first two runs used color schemes close to those which appeared in the 1962 work but the most recent was rather more garish with some changes to the layout.  A notable difference was the customers weren’t required to purchase 32, the cans sold individually.  In a development which Warhol would doubtless have applauded, the cans soon appeared on sites like eBay for three figure US$ sums, a healthy appreciation for their original RRP between US$1-2. 

Fishnet

Fishnet (pronounced fish-net)

(1) A net for catching fish.

(2) A fabric with an open mesh, resembling a fishnet.

(3) Being of an open-mesh weave.

(4) In fashion as a clipping of “fishnet stockings” & “fishnet tights”, usually in the form “fishnets”.

(5) In math, geometry and mapping, as “fishnet grid”, a grid of equally-sized (usually square or rectangular) cells which can be overlaid onto another representations (graphs, chart-lines, maps etc) for various purposes.  

Pre 1000: from the Middle English, from the Old English fiscnett, the construct being fish + net.  Fish was from the Middle English fisch, from the Old English fisċ (fish), from the Proto-West Germanic fisk, from the Proto-Germanic fiskaz (fish).  It may be compared with the West Frisian fisk, the Dutch vis, the German Fisch, the Danish, Norwegian & Swedish fisk and the Icelandic fiskur, from the primitive Indo-European peysḱ- (fish) (the equivalent form in was iasc and in Latin piscis.  Net was from the Middle English nett, from the Old English net & nett, from the Proto-West Germanic nati, from the Proto-Germanic natją, from the primitive Indo-European ned- (to turn, twist, knot).  It was cognate with the West Frisian net, the Low German Nett, the Dutch net, the German Netz, the Danish net and the Swedish nät.  Fishnet is a noun & adjective and fishnetted & fishnetty are adjectives; the noun plural is fishnets.

The most obvious “fishnet grid” is of course the fishnet, used by fishers to harvest seafood and one of the oldest technologies still in use with its essential design unchanged although much has changed in terms of materials, scale and techniques of use, some now highly controversial.  The same design (a grid structure with equal sized cells) is used in various field including (1) concreting where the steel reinforcing for slabs is used in this form, either in pre-made sections or assembled on-site.  (2) In agriculture, the grids are used as a support structure for climbing plants like beans which grow up the grid, gaining enhanced exposure to airflow and sunlight; ultimately, the arrangements also make harvesting easier and cheaper.  Made now with slender, strong, cheap and lightweight plastic strands which don’t absorb moisture, like the nets used to harvest fish, the agricultural mesh is produced in a variety of cell sizes, the choice dictated by the crop. (3) In architecture and interior decorating, grids are common design element, sometimes integrated into structural members and sometimes merely decorative.  (4) In fashion, the most famous fishnet grids are of course those used on stockings & tights where the most frequently seen patterns are diamonds or squares displayed with points perpendicular.  When used of other garments, the orientation of the cells can vary. (5) In industrial design, fishnet grids made of durable materials like steel or synthetic fibers are widely used, providing structures which can be lighter than those made with solid materials yet, in a seeming paradox, be stronger, at least in the direction of the stresses to which they’ll be exposed.  Such constructions are often used in support structures, fencing and other barriers.

North America with the lines of latitude & longitude as traditionally depicted in maps using a fishnet grid (left) and in a form which reflects the effects of the curvature of the earth.

In cartography, the most famous fishnet grid is that made up from the lines of latitude & longitude which, east & west, north & south, encircle the globe and have for centuries been used for navigation.  However, the familiar representation of the lines of latitude and longitude as a fishnet grid is illusory because the common, rectangular map of the world is just a two-dimensional rendering of a three dimensional sphere.  For most purposes, the flat map is ideal but when lines of latitude & longitude were added, so were distortions because the lines of longitude converge at the poles, becoming progressively closer as they move away from the equator.  Never parallel on the sphere which is planet Earth, on a map the lines are exactly parallel; a perfect fishnet grid.

The politics of the Mercator Map

The Mercator projection was developed in 1568 by Flemish geographer, cosmographer & cartographer Gerardus Mercator (1512–1594) as a navigation tool with spherical planet earth depicted on a flat rectangular grid with parallel lines of latitude and longitude.  Its functionality was such that in the west, it became the standard technique of projection for nautical navigation and the de facto standard for maps and charts.  For seafarers it was invaluable; all they needed do was follow the line on the chart and, barring accidents, they would arrive where intended.  However, the Mercator map is a most imprecise representation of the precise shapes and relative sizes of land masses because the projection distorts the size of objects as the latitude increases from the Equator to the poles, where scale becomes infinite.  That’s why land-masses such as Greenland and Antarctica appear much larger than they actually are, relative to equatorial areas such as central Africa.

The Mercator map (left), the distorting effect of the Mercator projection with the real size in the darker shade (centre) and the actual geography of Earth's land masses (right).

In the twentieth century, that distortion attracted criticism on the grounds the projection tended to increase the size of the land-masses of the European colonial powers while reducing those in the colonized south.  However, neither Gerardus Mercator nor other cartographers had social or political axes to grind; the geographical distortion was an unintended consequence of what was designed as a navigational device and it's anyway impossible accurately to depict the surface of a sphere as a two-dimensional rectangle or square (the so-called "orange-segment" renditions are dimensionally most accurate but harder to read).  The Mercator map is no different from the map of the London Underground; a thing perfect for navigation and certainly indicative but not to exact scale.  Modern atlases generally no longer use the Mercator map (except for historical or artistic illustrations) but they’re still published as wall-maps.

The Tube

The classic "map" of the London underground is an ideal navigational aid but, conceptual rather than being drawn to scale, applying a fishnet grid would be both pointless and without meaning.  Professional cartographers refer to such things as "diagrams" or "mud maps", the latter a colloquial term which began life in the military and was a reference to the improvised "maps" drawn in the soil by soldiers in the field.  While not precise, to scale or a detailed representation of an area, they were a simple visual aid to assist in navigation.

Fishnet fan Lindsay Lohan: Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen (2004), (left), Elle Style Awards, London, February 2015 (centre) and Cannes Film Festival, May 2017 (right).  

There are both fishnet tights and fishnet stockings and unless worn in a manner to permit an observer to discern which, whether it’s one or another is often known only to the wearer, the distinction blurred further by manufacturers being sometimes inclined to be a bit loose with their labeling.  While both items of leg-wear, there are technical differences in the construction, coverage and style.  Tights should be made of a thicker, more opaque material which affords complete coverage from the waist to the toes.  Although a fashion item, the historic purpose of tights was to keep the legs warm in cold weather and they were a garment of some importance when there were dress codes which denied women the right to wear trousers.  Constructed almost always in one piece, tights have an elastic waistband which has the primary purpose of keeping them in place but there are some tights which technically are “shapewear”, the midsection an expanded, all-round elastic panel which has a mild compression effect on the areas around and immediately above the hips, rendering a more trim silhouette.  Except for a handful of high-priced products, tights use relatively thick materials like nylon or spandex (sold as lycra in some markets).  There are also composite materials now available which has meant the range of thicknesses, colors and patterns offered has been expanded and the finishes range from semi-sheer to opaque, making them suitable for casual and formal occasions while still providing protection from the cold.  The essential difference between tights and leggings is the later are shorter, stopping anywhere from the ankle to the upper calf (although some specialized sports leggings extend only to somewhere above the knee).

Australian architect & multi-media installation Bianca Censori (b 1995), Instagram post, May 2025.

Ms Censori is one of the industry's leading practitioners of minimalist fashion and on this occasion paired a fishnet top with sheer tights, sunglasses the only visible accessory.  Wearing unobtrusive mules rather than the fishnet’s clichéd stilettos was a nice juxtaposition and the background was well-chosen, proving the value of a trained architect's eye.

Classically, stockings were designed to cover only the legs between the upper-thigh and the toes.  Made typically from a sheer material, they are held in place by a device called a “garter belt” or “suspender belt” which sits around the hips, two (sometimes three) elastic “suspender slings” (a marvelous name) are attached to each side at the ends of which are metal clips into which a rubber or silicone disc is inserted through the stocking material, holding it permanently in place.  Usually sheer in a color spectrum from black to white (with a solid emphasis of “skin tone” although sensitivity to the implications of that term means it now less used), patterns are also available and among the most popular is the single, emulated “seam” running vertically up the back of the leg.  Until the mid twentieth century, stockings were made almost exclusively from silk are they remain available but the majority use some form of synthetic, either nylon or a nylon-mix and are thought to impart both a more delicate and refined look and are thus associated with formal attire.  The modern hybrid which has since the 1970s captured most of the stocking market is “pantyhose” (the construct being a portmanteau of the modified clippings of panties (panty) + hosiery (hose).  Pantyhose used the design of tights and the sheer material of stockings, the obvious advantage being the convenience of not needing the belt apparatus with its alluring but fiddly “suspender slings”.  Fishnet pantyhose are available.

The obsessive fear of nets (as opposed to mere sensible caution) is amphiblestronophobia and this would include those with a morbid aversion to fishnets although, depending on the evidence presented, a clinician might give the patient a diagnosis of textophobia (the irrational fear of certain fabrics).  There seems in the literature no mention of specific phobia tied exclusively to a fear of fishnets; while there may be a few whose experiences have led them to fear those who wear fishnets, that’s not quite the same thing.  That notwithstanding, the non-standard nouns fishnetism and fishnetists are there for those who self-identify as fishnetophiles.  The American Psychiatric Association's (APA) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) does sometimes include discussions of specific objects and devices but fishnets seem never to have been mentioned.  Obviously though, fishnet clothing could be an element in a paraphilic disorder, a category of eight updated in the DSM’s fifth edition (DSM-5, 2013).  These disorders are characterized by intense and recurrent urges or fantasies focused on atypical sexual objects, situations, or non-consenting individuals and while those which cause significant distress or impairment can come to the attention of clinicians, there are presumably many individuals who either successfully self-manage or actively cherish their paraphilias, something no longer thought requiring clinical intervention provided the practices are “victim free”.

(1) Voyeuristic Disorder: Sexual arousal from observing others without their knowledge or consent.  This would include those aroused by the sight of fishnet garments being worn “in the wild”.

(2) Exhibitionistic Disorder: Sexual arousal from exposing one's genitals to unsuspecting strangers.

(3) Frotteuristic Disorder: Sexual arousal from touching or rubbing against a non-consenting person.

(4) Sexual Masochism Disorder: Sexual arousal from being humiliated, beaten, bound, or otherwise made to suffer.  Fishnet garments may be involved because they’re a stereotypical part of the “uniform” worn in the BDSM (Bondage; Discipline (dominance and submission); SadoMasochism) community but they would be an incidental element.

(5) Sexual Sadism Disorder: Sexual arousal from inflicting pain or humiliation on others.  Again, fishnets may be present but merely coincidental to the condition.

(6) Pedophilic Disorder: Sexual arousal from a desire to have sexual contact with a child who is not of legal age of consent.

(7) Fetishistic Disorder: Sexual arousal from non-living objects, non-genital body parts, or a combination of both.  Fishnet garments would be a classic example of a particular clothing fetish but the fondness is a spectrum and of clinical significance only if causing a patient distress or impairment.

(8) Transvestic Disorder: Sexual arousal from dressing in clothing associated with the opposite sex, particularly when not related to a transgender identity.  Fishnet garments could be an element in this but are not essential.

Targa

Targa (pronounced ta-gah)

(1) A model name trade-marked by Porsche AG in 1966.

(2) In casual use, a generic description of cars with a removable roof panel between the windscreen and a truncated roof structure ahead of the rear window.

1966 (in the context of the Porsche): From the Targa Florio race in Sicily, first run in 1906 and last staged in its classic form in 1973.  In many European languages, targa (or derivatives) existed and most were related to the Proto-Germanic targǭ (edge), from the primitive Indo-European dorg- (edge, seam), from the Old Norse targa (small round shield) and the Old High German zarga (edge, rim).  The modern Italian targa (plate, shingle; name-plate; number plate or license plate; plaque; signboard; target (derived from the rounded oval or rectangle shield used in medieval times)) was ultimately from the Frankish targa (shield).  In the Old English targa (a light shield) was also from the Proto-Germanic targǭ and was cognate with the Old Norse targa and the Old High German zarga (source of the German Zarge); it was the source of the Modern English target.  The Proto-Germanic targǭ dates from the twelfth century and “target” in the sense of “round object to be aimed at in shooting” emerged in the mid eighteenth century and was used originally in archery.  Targa is a noun; the noun plural is targas.

1974 Leyland P76 Targa Florio in Omega Navy, Aspen Green & Nutmeg (without the side graphics).

Although, especially when fitted with the 4.4 litre (269 cubic inch) V8, it was in many ways at least as good as the competition, the Australian designed and built Leyland P76 is remembered as the Antipodean Edsel; a total failure.  It was doomed by poor build quality, indifferent dealer support and the misfortune of being a big (in local terms) car introduced just before the first oil shock hit and the world economy sunk into the severe recession which marked the end of the long, post war boom.  It vanished in 1975, taking with it Leyland Australia but it did have one quixotic moment of glory, setting the fastest time on Special Stage 8 of the 1974 World Cup Rally, run on the Targa Florio circuit in Palermo, Sicily.  The big V8 machine out-paced the rest of the field by several minutes and to mark the rare success, Leyland Australia built 488 "Targa Florio" versions.  Available in Omega Navy, Aspen Green or Nutmeg (a shade of brown which seemed to stalk the 1970s), the special build was mechanically identical to other V8 P76s with automatic transmission but did include a sports steering wheel and aluminium road wheels, both intended for the abortive Force 7, a two-door version which was ungainly but did offer the functionality of a hatchback.  In a typical example of Leyland's mismanagement, the Force 7 was being developed just as the other local manufacturers were in about to drop their big two-doors, demand having evaporated after a brief vogue.  Leyland do however deserve credit for their plans to name the luxury version of the Force 7 the Tour de Force. 

Except (usually) those who stick to numbers (Mercedes-Benz the classic example), coming up with a name for a car can be a tricky business, especially if someone objects.  In 1972 Ford of England was taken to court by Granada Television after choosing to call their new car a Granada though the judge gave the argument short shrift, pointing out (1) it was unlikely anyone would confuse a car with a TV channel and (2) neither the city nor the province of Granada in Spain’s Andalusia region had in 1956 complained when the name was adopted for the channel.  The suit was thrown out and the Ford Granada went on to great success.  Ford’s US operation had less success in 1965 when trying to sell the Mustang in the FRG (Federal Republic of Germany, the old West Germany (1949-1990)) because Krupp AG held (until December 31 1979) exclusive rights to the name which it used on a range of trucks.  A Mustang couldn’t be confused with a truck (though some snobby types in France might have suggested otherwise) but Ford’s legal advice was to settle rather than sue so they attempted to buy the rights.  The offer was rebuffed so for years Mustangs in the FRG were sold as the “T-5” which was the car’s project name during its development.  Almost identical to the US version but for the badges, it was one of the most popular US cars sold in Europe, aided by the then attractive US$-Deutsche Mark exchange rate and its availability in military P-X stores, service personnel able to buy at a discount and subsequently have the car shipped back to the US at no cost.

1970 Porsche 914/6: Porsche built the mid-engined 914 exclusively with a targa top.  The 914 was the first of a number of attempts by Porsche’s engineers to convince customers there were better configurations than the rear-engine layout used on the 911 & 912.  The customers continued to demand 911s and it remains available to this day.

1962 Daimler SP250 (née Dart).

The Daimler SP250 was first shown to the public at the 1959 New York Motor Show and there the problems began.  Aware the sports car was quite a departure from the luxurious but rather staid line-up Daimler had for years offered, the company had chosen the attractively alliterative “Dart” as its name, hoping it would convey the sense of something agile and fast.  Unfortunately, Chrysler’s lawyers were faster still, objecting that they had already registered Dart as the name for a full-sized Dodge so Daimler needed a new name and quickly; the big Dodge would never be confused with the little Daimler but the lawyers insisted.  Imagination apparently exhausted, Daimler’s management also reverted to the engineering project name and thus the car became the SP250 which was innocuous enough even for Chrysler's attorneys.  The Dodge Dart didn't for long stay big, the name in 1964 re-used for a compact line although it was the generation made between 1967-1977 which was most successful and almost immediately Chrysler regretted the decision to cease production, the replacement range (the Dodge Aspen & Plymouth Volaré (1976-1980)) one of the industry's disasters.  The name was revived in 2012 for a new Dodge Dart, a small, front wheel drive (FWD) car which was inoffensive but dreary and lasted only until 2016.  The SP250 was less successful still, not even 3000 made between 1959-1964, something attributable to (1) the unfortunate styling, (2) the antiquated chassis, (3) the lack of development which meant there were basic flaws in the body engineering of the early versions and (4) the lack of interest by Jaguar which in 1960 had purchased Daimler, its interest in the manufacturing capacity acquired rather than the product range.  It was a shame because the SP250's exquisite 2.5 litre (155 cubic inch) V8 deserved better.  

Lindsay Lohan with Porsche 911 Targa 4 (997), West Hollywood, 2008.  The Targa was reportedly leased by her former special friend, DJ Samantha Ronson (b 1977).

Sometimes though, numbers could upset someone.  Even in the highly regulated EEC (European Economic Community, the origin of the European Union (EU)) of the 1960s, a company in most cases probably couldn’t claim exclusive rights to a three number sequence but Peugeot claimed exactly that when Porsche first showed their new 901 in 1963.  Asserting they possessed the sole right to sell in France car with a name constructed with three numbers if the middle digit was a zero, the French requested the Germans rename the thing.  It was the era of Franco-German cooperation and Porsche did just that, announcing the new name would be 911, a machine which went on to great things and sixty years on, remains on sale although, the lineage is obvious, only the odd nut & bolt is interchangeable between the two.  So all was well that ends well even if the French case still seems dubious because Mercedes-Benz had for years been selling in France cars labelled 200 or 300 (and would soon offer the 600). Anyway, this time, it was the project name (901) which was discarded (although it remained as the prefix on part-numbers) and surviving examples of the first 82 cars produced before the name was changed are now highly prized by collectors.

Sometimes however, the industry uses weird names for no obvious reason and some of the cars produced for the JDM (Japanese domestic market) are, to Western ears, truly bizarre though perhaps for a Japanese audience they’re compellingly cool.  Whatever might be the rationale, the Japanese manufacturers have give the world some memorable monikers including (1) from Honda the Vamios Hobio Pro & the That's, (2) from Mazda the Titan Dump, the Scrum Truck & the Bongo Brawny, (3) from Mitsubishi the Super Great, the eK-Classy, the Town Box, the Mirage Dingo Teddy Bear & the Homy Super Long, (4) from Suzuki the Solio Bandit & the Mighty Boy, (5) from Toyota the Royal Lounge Alphard, (6) from Subaru the Touring Bruce, (7) from Nissan the Big Thumb, the Elgrand Highway Star & the Cedric and (8) from Cony, the Guppy.

1964 Porsche 901 (left), 1968 Porsche 911L Targa (soft window) (centre) and 1969 Porsche 911S Targa (right)

Compared with that lot, Porsche deciding to call a car a Targa seems quite restrained.  Porsche borrowed the name from Targa Florio, the famous race in the hills of Sicily first run in 1906 and where Porsche in the 1950s had enjoyed some success.  Long, challenging and treacherous, it originally circumnavigated the island but the distance was gradually reduced until it was last run in its classic form in 1973 although in even more truncated form it lingered until 1977.  The construct of the name of the Targa Florio, the race in Italy from which Porsche borrowed the name, was Targa (in the sense of “plate” or “shield” + Florio, a tribute to Vincenzo Florio (1883-1959), a rich Sicilian businessman, automobile enthusiast and scion of a prominent family of industrialists and sportsmen; it was Vincenzo Florio who in 1906 founded the race.  Porsche won the race seven times between between 1963-1970 and took victory in 1973 in a 911 Carrera RSR, the car which in its street-legal (the Carrera RS) form remains the most coveted of all the 911s.

1968 Triumph TR5 with “Surrey Top”.

Porsche had since the late 1940s been building roadsters and cabriolets but while the 911 (then known internally as Project 901) was under development, it was clear US regulators, in reaction to a sharply rising death toll on the nation’s highways, were developing some quite rigorous safety standards and a number of proposals had been circulated which threatened to outlaw the traditional convertible.  Thus the approach adopted which, drawing from the company’s experience in building race cars, essentially added a stylized roll-over bar which could accommodate a detachable roof-section over the passengers and a folding rear cover which included a Perspex screen (the solid rear glass would come later).  Actually, the concept wasn’t entirely novel, Triumph introducing something similar on their TR4 roadsters (1961-1967) although their design consisted of (1) a half-hard top with an integral roll-bar & fixed glass rear window and (2) two detachable (metal & vinyl) panels which sat above the passengers.  Customers universally (and still to this day) referred to this arrangement as the “Surrey Top” although Triumph insisted only the vinyl insert and its supporting frame was the “Surrey” while the rest of the parts collectively were the “Hard Top kit”.  The targaesque top was also available on the TR5 (1967-1969; a de-tuned version sold in North America as the TR250) with twin carburetors replacing the Lucas mechanical fuel-injection used in most other markets, the more exotic system then unable to comply with the new emission standards.

Built by Ferrari: 1973 Dino 246 GTS with "chairs & flares" options.

The rhyming colloquialism “chairs and flares” (C&F to the Ferrari cognoscenti and these days the early Dinos are an accepted part of the family) is a reference to a pair of (separately available) options available on later production Dino 246s.  The options were (1) seats with inserts (sometimes in a contasting color) in the style used on the 365 GTB/4 (Daytona) & (2) wider Campagnolo Elektron wheels (which the factory only ever referred to by size) which necessitated flared wheel-arches.  In the early 1970s the factory wasn’t too punctilious in the keeping of records so it’s not known how many cars were originally built equipped with the wider (7½ x 14” vs 6½ x 14”) wheels but some privately maintained registers exist and on the basis of these it’s believed production was probably between 200-250 cars from a total run of 3569 (2,295 GT coupés & 1,274 GTS spyders (targa)).  They appear to have been most commonly ordered on UK & US market cars (although the numbers for Europe are described as “dubious” and thought an under-estimate; there are also an unknown number in other countries), the breakdown of verified production being:

246 GT: UK=22, Europe=5, US=5.
246 GTS: UK=21, Europe=2, US=91.

The “chairs and flares” cars are those which have both the Elektron option and the Daytona-style seats but because they were available separately, some were built with only one of the two, hence the existence of other slang terms in the Dino world including “Daytona package”, “Sebring spyders” and, in the UK, the brutish “big arches”.  In 1974, the Dino's option list (in US$) comprised:

Power windows: $270.00
Metallic paint: $270.00
Leather upholstery: $450.00
Daytona type central seat panels: $115.00
Air-conditioning: $770.00
14 x 7½ wheels & fender flares: $680.00
AM/FM/SW radio: $315.00
Electric antenna & speakers: $100.00

At a combined US$795.00, the C&F combination has proved a good investment, now adding significantly to the price of the anyway highly collectable Dino.  Although it's hard to estimate the added value because so many other factors influence calculation, all else being equal, the premium would seem to to be well over US$100,000.  Because it involves only wheels, upholstery and metal, the modifications are not technically difficult to emulate although the price of a modified vehicle will not match that of an original although unlike some of the more radical modifications to Ferraris (such as conversions to roadsters), creating a C&F out of a standard 246 seems not to lower its value.  These things are always relative; in 1974 the C&F option added 5.2% to the Dino GTS's list price and was just under a third the cost of a new small (in US terms a "sub-compact") car such as the Chevrolet Vega (1970-1977).

An enduring design: 2023 Porsche 911 Targa 4 (992).

Porsche didn’t complicate things, in 1966 offering the Targa as an alternative to the familiar coupé, then in series production since 1964.  Briefly, the company flirted with calling the car the 911 Flori but ultimately Targa was preferred and the appropriate trademarks were applied for in 1965, the factory apparently discovering targa in Italian means “number plate” or “license plate” only that year when the translators were working on international editions of the sales brochures.  The now familiar fixed, heated rear screen in safety glass was first offered in 1967 as an alternative to the one in fold-down plastic one and such was the demand it soon became the standard fitting.  The Targa carried over into the 911’s second and third generation being, re-designed for 1993 in a way that dispensed with the roll bar and it wouldn’t be until 2011 the familiar shape returned.

1970 Iso Grifo Targa (Series I, 350 cubic inch (5.7 litre) Chevrolet V8, left) and 1971 Iso Grifo Can-Am Targa (Series II, 454 cubic inch (7.4 litre) Chevrolet V8, right).  The raised centre section on the hood (bonnet) of the big-block Grifos was known informally as the "penthouse"; it was required because the induction system sat higher than on the small-block cars.

Among the small volume manufactures which in the post-war years found a lucrative niche in combining sensuous European coachwork with the cheap, powerful and robust American V8s, there was a focus of two-door coupés because (1) this was the example set by Ferrari and (2) there most demand in the segment clearly existed.  The ecosystem was sent extinct by the first oil shock of the early 1970s but in the era, some did offer convertibles and where not, there were specialists prepared to help.  There was though, the odd targa.  The achingly lovely Iso Grifo spyder (roadster) shown at the Geneva Motor Show in 1964 never reached production but in 1966, less than two years into the Grifo’s life (during which almost 100 had been made), the factory put a targa version on their stand at the Turin Motor Show.  It was only ever available to special order on a POA (price on application) basis and between then and the shuttering of the factory in 1974, only 17 were built, four of which were the Series II Can-Ams.