". . . little shall I grace my cause

In speaking for myself. Yet, by your gracious patience,

I will a round unvarnish'd tale deliver . . ."

(William Shakespeare's Othello, I.iii.88-90)

Sunday, January 2, 2011

Words to Live By

My thoughtful and intelligent older son got me a neat Christmas gift. It's a tear-off calendar entitled "Jeffrey Kacirk's Forgotten English: A 365-Day Calendar of Vanishing Vocabulary and Folklore for 2011." I thought some of my readers might be interested in today's word:

"Scurryfunge: A hasty tidying of the house between the time you see a neighbor and the time she knocks on the door."--From John Gould's Maine Lingo: Boiled Owls, Billdads, and Wazzats, 1975

Bet you didn't know there was a word for it!

I'll plan on sharing some of the more noteworthy entries over the course of the coming year. Thanks, Trevor!

1 comment:

Jane said...

Sounds like a great calendar! And I have a new word for my vocabulary.