Link Mania: 'Your knaidel makes me verklempt'

12 Most Remarkable Words You Should Include in Your Daily Vocabulary
Kind of an easy list for TWITOnians. There's one word on it I didn't know, however: verklempt. Use it when you see a panda hugging a police officer -- or the equivalent.

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Words that win spelling bees
Do YOU know your knaidel from your kneydl?

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58 Everyday Things You Never Knew Had Names
A great list that includes two of my favorite words: mondegreen (TWITO, page 90) and zarf (TWITO, page 168).

Random Sequence

"The poultry promised by Miss Jemima in her written bill of fare was very slow in coming. For three mortal weeks a crew of chattering hens, lordly roosters, and saucily piping chickens strutted and strolled unmolested in the barnyard, before the covetous eyes of the visitors, while upon the side table ox relieved sheep, and the porcine species contributed an occasional rasher or an unctuous chunk from the barrel of pickle in the cellar."
--from "The Departed Wife", in Godey's Lady's Book and Magazine, October 1864

(I found a bound copy of Godey's in my basement and have been flipping through the dusty pages.)

"porcine" = of a pig or pig-like
"unctuous" = affected piousness or moralistic fervor; smooth, suave, or smug to an excessive degree
"rasher" = a thin slice of bacon or ham

I'm not sure how a "chunk" (of pickled pigs' feet?) from a barrel can be unctuous. Nice word, though, and one that should be used more often -- just not about pickles or pigs' feet.

Word of the Day: doolally

"Doolally" is a word from my book, The Word I'm Thinking Of: A Devilish Dictionary of Difficult Words, available here. TWITO is not a comic book; I'm just having some fun with stripcreator.com. The dialog, however, is from the book (slightly adapted).

Photo of the Week (by me)

The circus is in town! (The town of Newark, NJ, that is.) Yes, I work in a tall building.

Send in the clowns....but click the pic for a closer look first.

Link Mania: It's prestantious!

10 Words Every Book Lover Should Know
Including "ultracrepidarian" (TWITO, page 153!) and a variation of "incunabulum" (TWITO, page 72!).

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35 Classy Slang Terms for Naughty Bits from the Past 600 Years
It's the "staff of life". No, not a baguette....

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18 awesome ways to say awesome
Strangely missing from this otherwise eximious list: supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. (Even though the sound of it is...oh never mind.)

Random Sequence

"A shudder of indescribable terror ran over me, and though not cowardly by nature, a cold sweat stood on my forehead. I tried to speak, but could not utter a word; I tried to walk, but my limbs refused to obey my will. At last, imagining myself to be the object of some trick, I adjured the spirit to speak, threatening to fire upon it unless it answered my challenge."
--from "A Ghost Story", translated from the French by Mrs. Annie T. Wood, in Godey's Lady Book and Magazine, April 1864

(I found a bound copy of Godey's in my basement and have been flipping through the dusty pages.)

Interesting how the terror is "indescribable" and then the author proceeds to describe it. "Adjure" is a an interesting word, not much used these days. It means to command solemnly or to entreat earnestly. But try telling a ghost to do anything. They just won't listen! And I doubt they are afraid of guns.

Word of the Day: empery

"Empery" is a word from my book, The Word I'm Thinking Of: A Devilish Dictionary of Difficult Words, available here. TWITO is not a comic book; I'm just having some fun with stripcreator.com. The dialog, however, is from the book.

TWITO is "the Opposite of Atrabilious!"

Here is one of my favorite reviews of my book on Amazon, by someone named "Grampy", who made a verified purchase (bless him!):

The Opposite of Atrabilious!

"The Word I'm Thinking Of" by Michael Gates is a foudroyant, often gelastic lexicography of polysyllabic perspicacity. I don't wish to obnubilate, nor do I want to be rebarbative, but "The Word I'm Thinking Of" will remedy your hebetudinous nescience, allowing you to be the sciolist your Mother always thought you should be.

Allow me to enucleate. Michael Gates is no blatherskite. Au contraire, Mon ami. Nor does he bloviate like a common blatteroon. And "The Word I'm Thinking Of" is neither gasconade nor glaikery. No longer will you feel threatened by an invidious, gormless gowk or peccant killcow. This luciferous tome will help you peregrinate from stultiloquence to puissance in short order.

Do not think I am ultracrepidarian, or spouting ugsome tushery. Nor am I a mendacious makebate. If ataraxia is your goal, "The Word I'm Thinking Of" provides an anfractuous desideratum. I recommend it for your personal edification, or just for jocularity. Eschew obfuscation! Kthxbye.

The T&T List

synchrotron imaging
Code.org
Alibaba
MERS
the Schroth method
Benjamin Millepied
Creativity Inc.
Sylvan Esso
Poveglia
Trinamool Congress
Skullcandy
WinBot 730

Random Sequence

I saw her! She came to that window! She's in that house, Bolker, by Jupiter!" exclaimed John Henry, evidently in a frenzied state of mind, and immediately darted up the steps again.

Fearful of an approaching crisis, I rushed after him, and, getting between his outstretched hand and the bell-pull, besought him to be calm, and restrain himself till we could find a cab to take him home.

"Pshaw!" said he, with unnecessary petulance, considering the kindness of my offer, "don't be a fool, Bolker. I tell you there is some mistake. That lovely young lady is certainly in this house. I saw her distinctly at the window, a moment ago. Let me alone, will you? I know what I'm about."
--from "In Search of an Owner", in Godey's Lady Book and Magazine, July 1864

I recently came across a bound volume of Godey's Lady Book, a magazine from the 1860s, in my basement. It's full of all sorts of interesting ephemera from that era, including fictional pieces full of phrases like "by Jupiter" and "Pshaw!" Today it would be "by God!" (or "Jesus Christ!") and "Bullshit!" -- which would, I suppose, have given the ladies of the 1860s the vapors.

Word of the Day: fissiparous

"Fissiparous" is a word from my book, The Word I'm Thinking Of: A Devilish Dictionary of Difficult Words, available here. TWITO is not a comic book, though. I'm just having some fun with stripcreator.com. The dialog, however, is from the book.

Photo of the Week: Tower of Power

Sometimes a fluorescent tower is just a fluorescent tower. Click the pic for a closer view. (You know you want to.)

Random Sequence

It was getting dark, and he felt as if his sweat was starting to freeze. All wanted to do was to go back to his apartment, change his clothes, and sit down with a book and a steaming mug of hot chocolate. Knowing that he could use the car if he needed to was satisfying, though.
--from "Snow in the City" (by me), first published by Biff's Boards

Link Mania: Giggle Water, Anyone?

You wouldn't find a teetotaler in a blind pig drinking giggle water -- only whales and wets.
15 Fun Phrases That Were Popularized During Prohibition

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Admit it. You're a word...maven.
The Yiddish Handbook: 40 Words You Should Know

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Was Mac Adamia nuts?
12 Things You Didn't Know Were Named After People

Word of the Day: desideratum

"Desideratum" is a word from my book, The Word I'm Thinking Of: A Devilish Dictionary of Difficult Words, available here. TWITO is not a comic book, though. I'm just having some fun with stripcreator.com. The dialog, however, is (slightly adapted) from the book.