036 - Ballot - White Elephant - Cloud 9 - Alma Mater

Episode 36 (this one) is the product of strenuous, hard and exhausting research so you had better enjoy it or I will pout for 20 minutes.   Today we explore the origin of the word "ballot" as used to vote, White Elephant when used to say "I've got a white elephant", Cloud 9 and finaly, since I have been sitting through so many graduations and matriculations lately,  Alma Mater.     Added bonus fact: Martriculate does not mean to graduate, it means to enroll.  "Medieval Latin matriculatus, past participle of matriculare,from Late Latin matricula public roll, diminutive of matric-, matrix list, from Latin, breeding female"  and technically means "to enroll as a member of a body and especially of a college or university".  So the proper use is to say that "he matruculated (was enrolled at) to the College of Stagant Waters by cheating on his entrance exams" .   Yeah life is hard.  Which is related to Alma Mater by the way as nourisning mother.   Free pun: I stayed up all night to see where the sun went.  Then it dawned on me. Costly pun: I tried to catch some fog:  I mist.