HIGH LIFE A WEEKLY FORUM FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS : Wearing Out Words? You Aren’t Alone

“In written English, the most frequently used words are, in order: the, of, and, to, a, in, that, is, I, it, for and as, “ according to the Guinness Book of World Records. “The most used in conversation is I . The most common letter is e and the most common initial letter is T .

“The most overworked word in English is the word set, which has 58 noun uses, 126 verbal uses and 10 as a participial adjective.

“The 55-letter full name of the city of Los Angeles (El Pueblo de Nuestra Senior la Reina de los Angeles de Porciuncula) is abbreviated to L.A., or 3.63% of its length.”

A group of parents of Fountain Valley High School students has announced plans to raise $43,000 by August to keep the school’s music program intact.

Because of declining enrollment, the financially struggling Huntington Beach Union High School District has had to cut back varied programs, including the Fountain Valley High music program.

Parents have formed the Vocal Music Parents Assn./Vocal Music Foundation and plan to raise enough money to pay the salary and benefits for a full-time music teacher for the school.

For more information, contact the foundation at 17816 Bushard St., Fountain Valley, Calif. 92708, or call the school at (714) 962-3301.

“You can find your way across the country using burger joints the way a navigator uses stars.”

--Charles Kuralt,

journalist