[QUOTE=Uncwilly;494495]He did. There is one direct account and two where it might be inferred.[/QUOTE]

Thanks for the references, Uncwilly! So maybe not 'cake' in any modern confectionary sense, but arguably 'cakelike foods'.

Can't resist - getting back to the first birthday in the manger:
[i]
Brian's Mum: Wot's 'myrrh', then?

Magus: It is a balm.

Brian's Mum: A bomb? Well, what're bringin' it in 'ere for?[/i]

[URL="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/06/28/the-i-before-e-except-after-c-rule-is-a-giant-lie/?utm_term=.71cdb5bd8107"]The ‘i before e, except after c’ rule is a giant lie[/URL]

Of course most of us already knew that. If I drank coffee, [URL="https://www.amazon.com/MyCozyCups-Before-Weird-Mug-Literature/dp/B079ZYZVBM"]this[/URL] would be a nice cup to have.

Dream estate site on market
 

$1 B for 157 mountaintop acres. 360 degree views from Malibu to the San Gabriel Mountains. Look down on Warren Beatty and Sylvester Stallone.
[url]https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-07-30/-1-billion-property-for-sale-atop-beverly-hills[/url]

[QUOTE=kladner;494600]$1 B for 157 mountaintop acres. [/QUOTE]
only $146.23 per square foot...

[QUOTE=science_man_88;494601]only $146.23 per square foot...[/QUOTE]
LOL!

[QUOTE=science_man_88;494601]only $146.23 per square foot...[/QUOTE]

Interestingly, cost per square foot is often used in purchasing land, as well as building a building in many parts of the world.

If I had a dollar for every time I heard "you can't build that for less than US$ 500 a square foot" I'd be rich! :wink:

[QUOTE=rogue;494576][URL="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/06/28/the-i-before-e-except-after-c-rule-is-a-giant-lie/?utm_term=.71cdb5bd8107"]The ‘i before e, except after c’ rule is a giant lie[/URL][/QUOTE]

Yeah. It's kinda weird...

[QUOTE=rogue;494576][URL="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/06/28/the-i-before-e-except-after-c-rule-is-a-giant-lie/?utm_term=.71cdb5bd8107"]The ‘i before e, except after c’ rule is a giant lie[/URL]

Of course most of us already knew that. If I drank coffee, [URL="https://www.amazon.com/MyCozyCups-Before-Weird-Mug-Literature/dp/B079ZYZVBM"]this[/URL] would be a nice cup to have.[/QUOTE]From an email today:[QUOTE=J. Woods]At his leisure sipping a protein shake, the deceitful, atheist Sheik raised the beige veil of his daughter, feigning interest, as the incoming freight piled to the ceiling.[/QUOTE]:max:

The version I was taught has [I]i before e except after c [b]when the sound is ee[/b][/I].

[I]Sheila: seize weird Keith[/I] is a grammatically correct sentence formed entirely from exceptions.

[QUOTE=xilman;494669]The version I was taught has [I]i before e except after c [b]when the sound is ee[/b][/I].[/QUOTE]

The version I was taught is [I]i before e except after c and when sounding like A as in neighbor or weigh,[/I]

[QUOTE=rogue;494576][URL="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/06/28/the-i-before-e-except-after-c-rule-is-a-giant-lie/?utm_term=.71cdb5bd8107"]The ‘i before e, except after c’ rule is a giant lie[/URL]

Of course most of us already knew that. If I drank coffee, [URL="https://www.amazon.com/MyCozyCups-Before-Weird-Mug-Literature/dp/B079ZYZVBM"]this[/URL] would be a nice cup to have.[/QUOTE][QUOTE=xilman;494669]The version I was taught has [I]i before e except after c [b]when the sound is ee[/b][/I].

[I]Sheila: seize weird Keith[/I] is a grammatically correct sentence formed entirely from exceptions.[/QUOTE][QUOTE=wblipp;494774]The version I was taught is [I]i before e except after c and when sounding like A as in neighbor or weigh,[/I][/QUOTE]I don't understand the problem. Just learn each spelling as a separate entity. No need for "rules", especially when they are not rules at all. Rulz r 4 weard peepull that knot no how 2 spel.