Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Gryphon's Word of the Day, March 20, 2007

The word of the day1 for March 20, 2007 is “vernal” — adjective 1 : of, relating to, or occurring in the spring <vernal equinox> <vernal sunshine>. 2 : fresh or new like the spring; also : YOUTHFUL.

“Spring has sprung and the sap is running,” to quote a game offered as a Junior High mixer. The vernal equinox is today: at 7:07AM CDT. I’m not going to try to set any eggs on end. The last time I saw that done, the perpetrator set the egg up in a mound of salt and then gently blew the salt away leaving just enough to hold the egg.

The weather liar claims it will rain on and off all week, which is much needed. At the moment there is much thunder and lightning. I was trying to explain “raining pitchforks and buckets” to one of our Romanians, but he looked really blank. So I tried “raining cats and dogs, with poodles in the road.” He just shook his head and walked away—but he was smiling.

The quote2 for today is from John Milton (1608–1674), British poet. Paradise Lost (l. Bk. IV, l. 264–268):

The birds their quire apply; airs, vernal airs,
Breathing the smell of field and grove, attune
The trembling leaves, while universal Pan,
Knit with the Graces and the Hours in dance,
Led on th’ eternal Spring
.

;^)  Jan

1 The definition is from either Merriam-Webster Online, 10th Edition or The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition and is used by permission.
2 The quote is from either Bartleby: Great Books on Line or The Quotation Pages and is used by permission.

P.S.: Comments and word requests are welcome.

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