Tuesday, January 9, 2007

Gryphon's Word of the Day, Jan 7, 2007

The word of the day* for January 7, 2007 is "beleaguer" - 1 : BESIEGE. 2 : TROUBLE, HARASS <beleaguered parents> <an economically beleaguered city>.

We've been going down to the city park on the river to feed the birds for the past few weeks. There are Canadian geese, mallard ducks, two breeds of gulls, starlings, pigeons, and crows. Usually we either buy the off-code bread from the bread outlet, but once in a while we buy a 50 lb. bag of game corn, which cost about the same per feeding. The game corn is probably better for the birds but the bread is easier to get.

Yesterday, the ungrateful gulls anointed the car while we were tossing out the corn. I suppose that's because the gulls prefer bread. In fact, if we toss out an entire slice of bread, the gulls will converge on whichever bird picks up the bread and a melee ensues. They don't do that when we feed corn. Perhaps they just like an excuse for a scrum.

The quote† for today is from William Shakespeare (1564-1616):

       When forty winters shall besiege thy brow
       And dig deep trenches in thy beauty's field,
       Thy youth's proud livery, so gaz'd on now,
       Will be a tatter'd weed of small worth held.
       Then being ask'd where all thy beauty lies,
       Where all the treasure of thy lusty days,
       To say, within thine own deep-sunken eyes
       Were an all-eating shame and thriftless praise.
       How much more praise deserv'd thy beauty's use
       If thou couldst answer, 'This fair child of mine
       Shall sum my count and make my old excuse,'
       Proving his beauty by succession thine!
       This were to be new made when thou art old
       And see thy blood warm when thou feel'st it cold.

--Jan

* The definition is from either Merriam-Webster Online, 10th Edition (http://www.m-w.com/) or The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition (http://www.bartleby.com/61/) and is used by permission.

† The quote is from either Bartleby: Great Books on Line (http://www.Bartleby.com/bartlett) or The Quotation Pages (http://www.quotationspage.com/) and is used by permission.

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

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Gryphon's Word of the Day, Jan 6, 2007

The word of the day* for January 6, 2007 is "epiphany" - 1 capitalized : January 6 observed as a church festival in commemoration of the coming of the Magi as the first manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles or in the Eastern Church in commemoration of the baptism of Christ. 2 : an appearance or manifestation especially of a divine being. 3 a (1) : a usually sudden manifestation or perception of the essential nature or meaning of something (2) : an intuitive grasp of reality through something (as an event) usually simple and striking (3) : an illuminating discovery, realization, or disclosure b : a revealing scene or moment.

We plan to take down our Christmas lights today. We would have done it yesterday, but it was raining-that fine mist that gets up under your umbrella no matter what. The day before was too windy. We live in Kansas; what else need I say.

There's a superstition that all the Christmas decorations should be down by Epiphany (Three Kings Day to those who know about such things)  Probably started by some harried housewife who wanted to involve her family in the search and pack-up of all the ornaments and candles. How on earth do pine needles manage to hide until August, and then manifest in the middle of the living room carpet just before the in-laws arrive?

The quote† for today is from Reginald Heber (1783-1826), Epiphany:

Brightest and best of the sons of the morning,
Dawn on our darkness, and lend us thine aid.

--Jan

* The definition is from either Merriam-Webster Online, 10th Edition (http://www.m-w.com/) or The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition (http://www.bartleby.com/61/) and is used by permission.

† The quote is from either Bartleby: Great Books on Line (http://www.Bartleby.com/bartlett) or The Quotation Pages (http://www.quotationspage.com/) and is used by permission.

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

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Gryphon's Word of the Day, Jan 5, 2007

The word of the day* for January 5, 2007 is “insipid” — 1 : lacking taste or savor : TASTELESS <insipid food>; 2 : lacking in qualities that interest, stimulate, or challenge : DULL, FLAT <insipid prose>.

Rented M. Night Shymalan’s Lady in the Water last night. It’s listed as a horror movie. I suppose that for eight to twelve year-olds, one might consider this horror. There seems to be a trend in these PG-13 “horror” movies: The Ring, The Village, etc. They have some gruesome scenes—without the grue—but they are not bone chilling horror as the original The Haunting or Louis Jourdan as Dracula.

My husband, Lloyd, asked me this morning how LitW had ended; he must have fallen asleep. Will I buy the DVD? No, nor would I buy the sound track CD if such a thing exists. Ho hum!

The quote† for today is from: Logan Pearsall Smith (1865–1946), “Life and Human Nature,” Afterthoughts (1931):

      Happiness is a wine of the rarest vintage, and seems insipid to a vulgar taste.

;^) Jan

* The definition is from either Merriam-Webster Online, 10th Edition (http://www.m-w.com/) or The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition (http://www.bartleby.com/61/) and is used by permission.

† The quote is from either Bartleby: Great Books on Line (http://www.Bartleby.com/bartlett) or The Quotation Pages (http://www.quotationspage.com/) and is used by permission.

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

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Gryphon's Word of the Day, Jan 4, 2007

The word of the day* for January 4, 2007 is “obese” — having excessive body fat.

According to the freebie calendar from the pharmacy, January is Weight Loss Month. Well, I’m all for that. I’m giving up chocolate as one of my New Year’s resolutions. Partly because I’m way too fond of the sugars and fats that go with chocolate to make it superb. I think sometimes that chocolate, like coffee, is just an excuse to mainline sugar and cream.

The other reason to eschew my favorite treat is that the chocolate producers haven’t convinced me that their goods are created entirely without slave labor. As someone once said, “You can’t stamp an origin on every bean.”

The quote† for today is from: Gwendolyn Brooks (b. 1917), “The Anniad”:

      Think of sweet and chocolate,
      Left to folly or to fate,
      Whom the higher gods forgot,
      Whom the lower gods berate;
      Physical and underfed
      Fancying on the featherbed ...

;^)  Jan

* The definition is from either Merriam-Webster Online, 10th Edition (http://www.m-w.com/) or The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition (http://www.bartleby.com/61/) and is used by permission.

† The quote is from either Bartleby: Great Books on Line (http://www.Bartleby.com/bartlett) or The Quotation Pages (http://www.quotationspage.com/) and is used by permission.

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

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Gryphon's Word of the Day, Jan 3, 2007

The word of the day* for January 3, 2007 is “catarrh” — inflammation of a mucous membrane; especially : one chronically affecting the human nose and air passages.

Lloyd and I have been nursing some sort of cold/sinus infection/allergy nastiness since our Christmas travels. Let me just say that the people who inform us that we have x many miles of intestine, skin, etc. have way underestimated the amount (and capacity) of sinus cavities. When the neighbor came over Saturday to watch the Cotton Bowl with Lloyd , he brought a box of tissues as a hostess gift.

Nebraska lost, but Lloyd didn’t weep too hard. He’s been in a sort of quasi-mourning since Tom Osborne retired from coaching. Oh well, there’s always next year.

The quote† for today is from: John Webster (1580?–1634).  The Duchess of Malfi:

      DUCH.  I forgive them: 
      The apoplexy, catarrh, or cough o’ th’ lungs,  
      Would do as much as they do.   
        BOS.  Doth not death fright you?     
        DUCH.        Who would be afraid on ’t,      
      Knowing to meet such excellent company 
      In th’ other world?    


;^) Jan
* The definition is from either Merriam-Webster Online, 10th Edition (http://www.m-w.com/) or The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition (http://www.bartleby.com/61/) and is used by permission.

† The quote is from either Bartleby: Great Books on Line (http://www.Bartleby.com/bartlett) or The Quotation Pages (http://www.quotationspage.com/) and is used by permission.

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

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Gryphon's Word of the Day, Jan 2, 2007

The word of the day* for January 2, 2007 is “adapt” — to make fit (as for a specific or new use or situation) often by modification.

Back to work today: dredging up passwords, putting up a new calendar, adjusting to the schedule. The nearest restrooms in the building are still under renovation, which means we have to trek a half block to and from the next nearest. Makes one plan one’s day a bit more carefully.

Looking at the paper on my desk, I can see that no fairy godmother waved a wand at my cubicle during the winter hiatus. Fortunately, we are all in the same boat on this one. “I’ve slept since then” is on everyone’s lips.

The quote† for today is from: Martha Beck, O Magazine, Growing Wings, January 2004:
       
Any transition serious enough to alter your definition of self will require not just small adjustments in your way of living and thinking but a full-on metamorphosis.

;^)  Jan

* The definition is from either Merriam-Webster Online, 10th Edition (http://www.m-w.com/) or The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition (http://www.bartleby.com/61/) and is used by permission.

† The quote is from either Bartleby: Great Books on Line (http://www.Bartleby.com/bartlett) or The Quotation Pages (http://www.quotationspage.com/) and is used by permission.

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

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Gryphon's Word of the Day, Jan 1, 2007

The word of the day* for January 1, 2007 is “regenerate” — 1 : formed or created again; 2 : spiritually reborn or converted; 3 : restored to a better, higher, or more worthy state

I have decided to restart my Word of the Day series. Yes this is late, but I'll catch up and we'll be up and running
 
Several years ago this was an ongoing monologue with a word and its definition, a paragraph or two loosely connected to that word and a quote for the day. You have been chosen to receive this daily e-mail because I like you. I encourage you to comment, but please don’t use the Reply To All button, as others on the list may have smaller mailboxes and/or smaller tolerance of spammed stuff. If you don’t wish to be on the list, just let me know. It’s much easier to remove a name than one would think.

The quote† for today is from: William Wordsworth, 1888, ECCLESIASTICAL SONNETS, IN SERIES, 1821-22.

XVII. CONVERSION

      PROMPT transformation works the novel Lore;
      The Council closed, the Priest in full career
      Rides forth, an armed man, and hurls a spear
      To desecrate the Fane which heretofore
      He served in folly. Woden falls, and Thor
      Is overturned; the mace, in battle heaved
      (So might they dream) till victory was achieved,
      Drops, and the God himself is seen no more.
      Temple and Altar sink, to hide their shame
      Amid oblivious weeds. "O come to me,
      Ye heavy laden!" such the inviting voice
      Heard near fresh streams; and thousands who rejoice
      In the new Rite, the pledge of sanctity,
      Shall, by regenerate life, the promise claim.

;^)  Jan


* The definition is from either Merriam-Webster Online, 10th Edition (http://www.m-w.com/) or The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition (http://www.bartleby.com/61/) and is used by permission.

† The quote is from either Bartleby: Great Books on Line (http://www.Bartleby.com/bartlett) or The Quotation Pages (http://www.quotationspage.com/) and is used by permission.

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

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