Ambivalent. What a great word. Say it out loud. You know you want to. Or maybe you're ambivalent about words in general. Lately I have felt ambivalent about blogging. Living life has seemed more interesting to me than writing about living life. So the fate of Winds Unexpected remains ambiguous (another one of my favorite words, this is a good night for gratuitous word-slinging. And yes, I like gratuitous too. Ooooh, life is good. Really good.)
The blog may stay alive simply to provide me a place to use really cool four-syllable words. OK, so call me a total dork, but I love words. Love. Confession: I dream of reading the dictionary cover to cover. It would be fun. Really. Scombroid, intumescence, dahoon. See what I mean? Try it. Kedge, mungo, trunion. Looks like Winds Unexpected stays, at least until I feel unequivocally "done" with it. Right now I'm just mostly done.
Indulge me in a whim though, please. Overcome your ambivalence long enough to share a couple of your favorite words in a Comment. I promise I will say them out loud in your honor. Go ahead.
And in the name of word-dork solidarity, here's a word-of-the-day challenge. Use the following word in the next 48 hours (in a logically sound sentence during conversation with a real person.) The word is: profligate. Go for it, my friends, and return and report.
so I took your challenge my friend. I went and searched for some words I do not normally use so I too can expand. Here is one. Backronyms. I am going to file that away for use later on. Here is one more. that I actually use. GADZOOKS I think I have heard you use it too :)
ReplyDeleteWhat a great post. Since we are in Sweden right now...I am not sure I can use your profligate but I will try!
Your Favourite Non-Giants Fan ;) Johnnie K
Great words, John-John. I have been known to say gadzooks. Aah, Sweden--twilight at 11:00 pm. Love it.
ReplyDeleteSuperfluous...an all time favorite of mine :)
ReplyDeleteyep, me too. it's a classic.
ReplyDeleteThis is kind of a negative word, but I love "ridiculous," partly because it sounds as dismissive as it means to mean. When frustrated at something that just don't make sense to me (being cut off in traffic, etc.), I take great comfort in shaking my head and saying, all emphasis on the force of the "d," "ri-Dic-u-lous."
ReplyDelete(This is your cousin Geoff...first time commenting, and they're prompting me for an account, so I may need to make one.)
quintessential. imperturbable. viscous. circumlocution.
ReplyDelete@Geoff--ridiculous is a superbly satisfying word because it's widely used and understood, but also delicious.
ReplyDelete@annie--mmmmm, nice choices. viscous sounds so viscous, doesn't it. it makes me want to clear my throat or something.
Profligate sounds like an Annie Dillard word, and I'm prettysure I busted it out in a lesson about the extravagance of God's grace a while back. I like that word: extravagance. And there's always omphalos.
ReplyDelete