Michael Gates's Blog, page 27
August 25, 2015
Story Cubes 6: Bedtime Story
I was lying in bed, asleep and snoring softly (no doubt), when I heard a key twist in the lock. Immediately my eyes flicked open, thinking it must be Mona at the front door. The bedroom was pitch, but I could see the moon and a star framed by the window. Why hadn't Mona called if she was going to be late? Then I remembered -- I had lost my phone to some thief that day when I forgot to close my gym locker.
I heard the front door creak, but no further sound for a long time. If that was Mona coming in, she was moving as slow as a turtle. All I wanted was to hear her voice, to see her smiling face. Any second I expected to see her in the bedroom doorway. But no one was appearing. Not yet. Then I remembered. I had also lost my keys....
I heard the front door creak, but no further sound for a long time. If that was Mona coming in, she was moving as slow as a turtle. All I wanted was to hear her voice, to see her smiling face. Any second I expected to see her in the bedroom doorway. But no one was appearing. Not yet. Then I remembered. I had also lost my keys....
August 19, 2015
Word of the Day: penetralia
What's the word I'm thinking of? Today, it's...
penetralia [pen-eh-TRAY-lee-uh] (noun) [TWITO, page 109]
The innermost part of a structure, especially a temple sanctuary; the most private or secret part of something
(photo by me)
penetralia [pen-eh-TRAY-lee-uh] (noun) [TWITO, page 109]
The innermost part of a structure, especially a temple sanctuary; the most private or secret part of something
(photo by me)
August 11, 2015
Photo of the Week (by me): Paperweight Girl
"There was a little girl,
Who had a little curl,
Right in the middle of her forehead.
When she was good,
She was very, very good,
But when she was bad she was horrid."
--Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
August 10, 2015
Link Mania: Don't Be a 'Windy-Wallets'
The 20 Weirdest Words Added to the Dictionary Because of Technology
Srsly, is fat finger your First-World problem?
~~~
14 Victorian Insults to Unleash in Casual Conversation
Don't be a "windy-wallets". (Time is money.) Includes "gongoozler" [TWITO, page 62]. It's not polite to stare!
~~~
10 Common Crossword Puzzle Words You Should Know
These "common" words include "asea", "iambi", and "smee". That last one has nothing to do with Captain Hook. I guess you could say "psst" is common -- if you do a lot of whispering.
~~~
21 Interesting Words from David Foster Wallace's Vocabulary List
David Forster Wallace's writing was a cornucopia of unusual and interesting words. My favorites here are "privity", "tarantism", and "afterclap".
Srsly, is fat finger your First-World problem?
~~~
14 Victorian Insults to Unleash in Casual Conversation
Don't be a "windy-wallets". (Time is money.) Includes "gongoozler" [TWITO, page 62]. It's not polite to stare!
~~~
10 Common Crossword Puzzle Words You Should Know
These "common" words include "asea", "iambi", and "smee". That last one has nothing to do with Captain Hook. I guess you could say "psst" is common -- if you do a lot of whispering.
~~~
21 Interesting Words from David Foster Wallace's Vocabulary List
David Forster Wallace's writing was a cornucopia of unusual and interesting words. My favorites here are "privity", "tarantism", and "afterclap".
August 6, 2015
Random Sequence: questant
"[S]ee that you come
Not to woo honour, but to wed it; when
The bravest questant shrinks, find what you seek,
That fame may cry you loud: I say, farewell."
--William Shakespeare, All's Well That Ends Well, Act II, Scene I
questant (noun) = a seeker, someone on a quest
Where are my keys? I'm a questant.
Not to woo honour, but to wed it; when
The bravest questant shrinks, find what you seek,
That fame may cry you loud: I say, farewell."
--William Shakespeare, All's Well That Ends Well, Act II, Scene I
questant (noun) = a seeker, someone on a quest
Where are my keys? I'm a questant.
August 5, 2015
August 4, 2015
Story Cubes 5: Backyard Dreamland
When he was a kid, Hector's favorite pastime was camping out in his parents' backyard in his makeshift teepee under the fulgent moon. He would watch the darkened sky for alien spacecraft. When the UFOs failed to show up after an hour or two -- all he ever saw was the occasional winking airplane -- he would take out his magnifying glass and pretend it was a magic wand that could materialize anything he wished. He would draw it up to his eye and imagine, through the blurry image, that he was under the sea, gliding like a fish. When it was past his bedtime, his mother would call him from the backdoor and insist that he climb inside his sleeping bag. He'd do so reluctantly but couldn't drop off until he started counting sheep. Eventually, though, he would drift off to dreamland -- and always miss the midnight saucer floating overhead.
July 30, 2015
Random Sequence: hilding
"If your lordship find him not a hilding, hold me no more in your respect."
--William Shakespeare, All's Well That Ends Well, Act III, Scene VI
hilding (noun) = a good-for-nothing fellow
This word is good for something -- like insulting a guy without him knowing it.
--William Shakespeare, All's Well That Ends Well, Act III, Scene VI
hilding (noun) = a good-for-nothing fellow
This word is good for something -- like insulting a guy without him knowing it.
July 28, 2015
Word of the Day: curwhibble
What's the word I'm thinking of? Today, it's....
curwhibble [KUR-wib-ul] (noun) [TWITO, page 37]
A thingamajig or whatchmacallit
"Many thanks to your honor. What pretty curwhibbles and etceteras! I'll hang 'em to my watch to give it a travelled air."
--Anonymous, "A Captivity among the Rockites," in The Metropolitan (1831)
(photo by me)
curwhibble [KUR-wib-ul] (noun) [TWITO, page 37]
A thingamajig or whatchmacallit
"Many thanks to your honor. What pretty curwhibbles and etceteras! I'll hang 'em to my watch to give it a travelled air."
--Anonymous, "A Captivity among the Rockites," in The Metropolitan (1831)
(photo by me)
July 27, 2015
Photo of the Week: Dragonfly (by me)
A dragonfly landed on my lamp. Click the pic for a closer view. You know you want to.
