littoral \LIH-tuh-rul\, adjective: 1. Of, relating to, or on a coastal or shore region, especially a seashore. 2. A coastal region, especially the zone between the limits of high and low tides. Professor Henslow tells me, he believes that nearly all the plants which I brought from these islands, are common littoral species in the […]

donnybrook \DON-ee-brook\, noun: 1. A brawl; a free-for-all. 2. A heated quarrel or dispute. But this was the beginning of Tommy’s years of fighting back, a period that ended in a donnybrook conducted all over the O’Connor house. — Tracy Kidder, Home Town Wine and talk flow freely, so much so that the meal ends […]

slugabed \SLUHG-uh-bed\, noun: One who stays in bed until a late hour; a sluggard. Nemecek’s business is not for slugabeds. He opens for business every weekday at 4 a.m. — Drew Fetherston, “He Can Really Make Pigs Fly”, Newsday, December 12, 1994 I found Oriana, as usual, up before me, for I always was a […]

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!! So I’ve fallen too far behind to keep pushing off more until I can catch up, so I’ll start from today and backfill when possible. Wan \WAHN\, adjective:1. Having a pale or sickly hue; pale; pallid.2. Lacking vitality, as from weariness, illness, or unhappiness; feeble.3. Lacking in intensity or brightness; dim or feeble. […]

Does this mean I have to change the name of the blog to GooTube of the Day? Maybe, they’ll call it Toobgle? And now, your creepy ‘Hoff Moment of the Day: Link in my Car!

It’s been nearly two weeks since my last post. I’m sorry for that. It’s not like anyone but Mrs. Bixby (Not Her Real Name) reads this, but others may later. I’m still sorry. It’s been a very difficult last few weeks. I could go over the litany of excuses (work, family, moving to a new […]

Monomania \mon-uh-MAY-nee-uh; -nyuh\, noun:1. Pathological obsession with a single subject or idea.2. Excessive concentration of interest upon one particular subject or idea. One of the themes in the book was the necessity for a leader to be passionate about the work. And sometimes in a corporate setting, passion becomes monomania.— “Balancing the Personal and the […]

Aesthete \ES-theet\, noun:One having or affecting great sensitivity to beauty, as in art or nature. Beijing, with its stolid, square buildings and wide, straight roads, feels like the plan of a first-year engineering student, while Shanghai’s decorative architecture and snaking, narrow roads feel like the plan of an aesthete.— “Sky’s the Limit in Shanghai”, Los […]

Fulsome \FUL-sum\, adjective:1. Offensive to the taste or sensibilities.2. Insincere or excessively lavish; especially, offensive from excess of praise. He recorded the event in his journal: “Long evening visit from Mr. Langtree–a fulsome flatterer.”— Edward L. Widmer, Young America: The Flowering of Democracy in New York City Concealed disgust under the appearance of fulsome endearment.— […]

Ostensible \ah-STEN-suh-bul\, adjective:Represented or appearing to be true, but not necessarily so. The credibility of the energy-trading sector has been severely damaged by disclosures of sham transactions in energy trading, designed to build up ostensible sales and profits and therefore share prices of the trading companies.— James Flanigan, “Dynegy CEO Quits as Probe of Sham […]