Blog Archives

#83: helix

8/31/2015

walking the helix
you go around in circles
yet higher each turn!

The Helix Spire by Erich Remash.
Photo credit, not sure... maybe Chris Thomas?

In honor of the Helix and Burning Man this week!

Some of the best Burner pix I've seen HERE.

DEFINITION of this 2-syllable noun:

a spiral.
Geometry. the curve formed by a straight line drawn on a plane when that plane is wrapped around
a cylindrical surface of any kind, especially a right circular cylinder, as the curve of a screw.
Equation: x = a sinθ, y = a cosθ, z = b θ.

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#82: enciente

8/30/2015

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the damsel's enciente
so in a small town this quaint
her suitor might faint

Never heard of this movie... I'll have to go rent it!

So many movies... So little time.

DEFINITION of this 2-syllable adjective [pronounced "en-seynt" or "en-saint"]:

pregnant; with child.

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#81: argy-bargy

8/29/2015

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'twas argy-bargy
over how early barges
of barley converge

Lots of argy-bargy in Calvin and Hobbes, my all-time favorite comic strip. The cartoon's creator, Bill Watterson, IMHO, is a genius and one of the best technical cartoonists of our time. His imagination is unbounded, and his main character Calvin is the epitome of the smart, precocious boy.

DEFINITION of this 4-syllable hyphenated noun:

Chiefly British. a vigorous discussion or dispute.

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#80: opprobrious

8/28/2015

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oft opprobrious
old Oscar Oberhammer
only ostracized

An appropriate photo, I think... But of course this is Max, not Oscar, played by Walter Matthau in Grumpy Old Men, a fabulous comedy from 1993. Walter is one of my all-time-favorite actors. He's best known for his acerbic character on the Odd Couple TV series.

DEFINITION of this 4-syllable adjective:

outrageously disgraceful or shameful: opprobrious conduct.
conveying or expressing opprobrium, as language or a speaker: opprobrious invectives.

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#79: protean

8/27/2015

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protean nature
be wise to your surroundings
act accordingly

There are many references to "shapeshifters" in folklore and fantasy. One of the most popular horror figures is Wolfman.

But. The real deal is the octopus!

They've been around at least 296 million years!
Four pairs of arms that contain two-thirds of its neurons, the other third in its head
They're really smart, use tools, and have blue blood

DEFINITION of this 3-syllable adjective: