Today is International Disability Independence Day.

a rose by any other name
The 'v' in Khavn de la Cruz's name is no longer silent. You used to just pronounce 'Khavn' as 'Khan', as if the 'v' did not exist; but now, apparently, it's pronounced 'kav-n' (and not, fortunately, 'cave-in'). This little revelation got me wondering if everyone's name could be made cooler with the simple addition of the letter 'v'. In most cases, I've found, it works rather well. For instance:  

Dean would now be 'Devan' Alfar, which sounds Irish, and would therefore perhaps enable him to write with the kind of gently humorous pathos at which the Irish so excel.

Sage would become 'Svage' Alfar, thus altering the nature of her name from wisdom to ferocity.

Marco would be 'Marcov' Dimaano, adding some nice Russian gravitas to the espionage aspect of his Angel Ace comic book series.  

El could be 'Evl' or 'Elv' Or, making him either diabolical or fey.  

Of course, it doesn't work for everyone, as evinced by the slightly gay-sounding altered names of 'Ruvey' de Vera and 'Vivn' Simbulan.

TRIVIA QUIZ
What is the 'day out of time'?

answer to Friday's question
Discovered in Ecuador in 1998, the Antpitta avis canis Ridgley is a bird that looks like a duck on stilts and barks like a dog. Long-legged and colored black and white, it is one of the largest birds to have been discovered in the last 50 years. The flightless cagou of New Caledonia is also known for barking 'like a young dog'.

Perhaps in retaliation, the basenji is a smallish copper-colored dog that yodels rather than barks.

barking up the right tree: Marc and Xtine