1. geas — magically inflicted obligation I must leave you now, for my bowels have cast a geas upon me, and I must away to the bathroom to fulfill its terrible duty. 2. precentor — one who leads choir or congregation in singing Everyone has noticed the much-diminished vigor of the choir since Simon …
Author Archives: mysterious6030
Friday Vocabulary
1. recruit — to refresh, to reinvigorate, to restore the health of Perry has gone with Aunt Emily to the island estate, where the beautiful grounds and pleasant clime will, D.V., recruit his mind and spirit, so addled by the frights he saw in the late unpleasantness. 2. biotope — region of ecological uniformity …
Book List: 600 Books
As I mentioned just over a month ago, I recently finished book #600—the 600th book, that is, since I began tracking my reading back in June of 2015. When I announced this milestone at the very cusp of the new year, I had only barely finished my analysis of the 5th hundred books read. I …
Friday Vocabulary
1. tittuppy — unsteady, with an exaggeratedly prancing manner I’m not about to be intimidated by some tittuppy old biddy who thinks to threaten me with lawyers and letters; I know my rights. 2. quiz — [British] odd person; odd thing In his burgundy stovepipe hat he looks such a quiz, doesn’t he? …
One Hundred and Seventeen Songs (117,000)
More than two hundred days after my last thousand songs were heard, I have just listened to my 117,000th unique iTunes track, a somewhat mediocre though I suppose historically interesting rendition of the Wilson Pickett classic “In The Midnight Hour” by a group of rock legends jamming at a Taj Mahal concert in Hollywood in …
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Friday Vocabulary
1. targe — [archaic] buckler, small shield Any doubts I had about the value of Kenwyth’s targe were erased when I saw the bowman knock two skirmishers to the ground with the small shield, with hardly a pause in his shooting. 2. heriot — feudal tribute of equipment or chattel The young knight, to …
The Year 2020 by the Numbers
I’ve been posting this on Facebook for the past couple of years, so I may as well put it here, too. (Yeah, I know. I forgot the comma in the ‘Tracks Heard’ figure. Oops.) For comparison, here are the past years’ figures:
Friday Vocabulary
1. perfuse — to besprinkle, to overspread (as with moisture or color); to pour through or over, to diffuse through; [medicine] to circulate through blood vessels or lymphatic system Cunegonde’s cheeks were perfused with a rosy glow, though whether from joy or from our strenuous exertions I could not tell. 2. volplane — to …
Friday Vocabulary
1. po-faced — [British] humorless, over-serious, disapproving Alain’s attempts at defusing the tense standoff between the two culinary students only elicited a po-faced shake of the head from Chef Arnie. 2. auscultation — diagnosis through listening to bodily sounds, usually with a stethoscope Though the pulse diagnosis of Chinese medicine has been compared with …
Friday Vocabulary
1. otic — of the ear Despite the advocates’ claims, ear candles are ineffective and dangerous, and could result in hot wax falling into the otic canal. 2. refrangible — capable of being refracted Though red light was known even in the time of Newton to be the least refrangible of the visible spectrum, …