November weather is doing it’s usual thing of a stretch of rainy days followed by freezy nights and shivery days.
The birds and squirrels are coming in thick and fast stocking up before the snow flies. We keep the feeders going year round but having second thoughts about the birdbath. The birds appreciate the solar fountain, yet that was stored away due to lack of solar power. The best it could muster was an anemic dribble effect.
The birds still gather for a quick sip. No baths lately. One reason is because the water is freezing up. I have taken up the chore of pouring warm water in the birdbaths to loosen up the ice. The fun part is the monocle I pull out.
Backyard Science
I think of Woodstock running his Zamboni on his birdbath ice rink. And I did watch a starling skate around on the ice before I managed to do my defrosting chore. It was one puzzled bird.
There is an unspoken rule that winter is not allowed to happen while autumn is still working on dropping leaves. And winter should hold off until November, preferably until after Thanksgiving. December is acceptable.
We all know winter doesn’t play by the rules.
Waking up to this while it’s still October set back my cheery outlook:
Insult to injury were the winds of 14+ mph all through the day. A few birds attempted to visit the feeder, like this persevering mourning dove.
Not being a winter fan (I don’t ski, walking is curtailed, and hammocking is postponed) snow is definitely a four-letter word in my realm.
Trying to recoup the day I tried to find some positives. A cozy fire was made, a cup of cocoa while I edited a manuscript, fave Pandora station in the background, a new jigsaw puzzle, and a stack of books from the library. Oh, leaf raking is on hold and the yard looks tidier with the leaves hidden by that fresh snow topping.
Okay, not so bad after all, especially since it all melted by 1 pm.
I can’t fight winter🥶
I can find ways of coping, and this winter preview made me realize that snow doesn’t have to ruin my outlook. Keep the cocoa coming and always have a few books on the ready and it will be April before I know it.
Thanks for the reader feedback on how you are enjoying the word selections. I enjoy finding them almost as much as I enjoy sharing them with you all. This past week has consisted of a multitude of words that cause me to say “There is a word for that?”
Splooting: a behavior that some animals use to cool their body temperature. Squirrels are finding cool surfaces and lying on their stomachs, legs spread, to cool off. For awhile we had a winsome little squirrel that would visit us and eat peanuts from our hand. In the summer she would come up to the patio and hang out. I thought she was being a companionable squirrel when she was actually seeking some relief from the heat by splooting.
image: NY Parks and Recreation
parapraxis: when you say one thing and mean another, especially when the words are close sounding. Would you care to call your mother—I mean brother?
catachresis: using what is thought to be the correct word because it sounds like the word you meant to say. “She was reticent about going to lunch.” Umm, she was reluctant about going to lunch? Or perhaps in her reluctance she wasn’t talking about it.
spoonerism: credit Reverend Spooner for the slip of the tongue that causes the transposition of consonants in a sentence. “Go hush your brat” is not the same as “Go brush your hat.” One directive will definitely cause a stir.
solecism: accidental or intentional misuse of grammar. “I am what I say I am; I is what I say I is.”
malapropism: close to a catachresis, this word is attributed to a character, Mrs. Malaprop, in a 1775 play, who unknowingly inserted incorrect words in her utterances. “She was the pineapple (pinnacle) of perfection.”
mondegreen : coined by writer Sylvia Wright who misheard a line in a poem as “Lady Mondegreen” instead of “laying him on the green”, the word refers to mishearing lines or words or lyrics. My nemesis mondegreen was Clearance Clearwater Revival’s line about a “bad moon rising” which I heard as “bathroom on the right” which made sense to me because knowing where the nearest bathroom is located is handy.
eggcorn: similar to mondegreen, an eggcorn replaces the original word, yet it still makes senses since the new meaning hasn’t rendered the original intent incorrect.
free reign” for “free rein”
“in one foul swoop” for “in one fell swoop”
“jar-dropping” for “jaw-dropping”
“old-timers’ disease” for “Alzheimer’s disease”
“on the spurt of the moment” for “on the spur of the moment”
mumpsimus: an insistent use of an eggcorn, being attributed to a monk Erasmus once knew who would say “mumpsimus” instead of the correct “sumpsimus” when reciting the liturgy.
“they’ve got another thing coming” —sorry Obama, that should be another “think” coming
“it’s a doggy dog world”—yeah, it can be ruff out there, but it’s actually “it’s a dog eat dog world”—ooh, it’s ruffer than we thought
“nip it in the …bud”—not the other (thinking gardening, not corporal punishment)
“first come, first serve”—not a Sunday buffet sign because it is supposed to be “first come, first served” (grammar can be tense, I know)
Cacology: when it’s said and done it’s how you said that could do you in—those Spoonerisms, malapropisms, solecisms—all those above, including incorrect pronunciation, could lead to a faux pa, a big mistake.
Splooting has nothing to do with speaking correctly, yet the next time you spot a squirrel doing the hot day sprawl you will know what you are talking about.
The all important Cow Appreciation Day just about snuck past me but my handy National Day calendar alert informed I needed to pay attention. Cows are beyond special—they are bovine.
Having grown up around cows, and having lived across from a dairy farm for twelve years, I have an either an affection or a affectation for cows. I have gathered and created a plethora of cow jokes and cow facts and created a book that unfortunately no publisher is interested in at the moment. That doesn’t stop me from appreciating what Sandra Boynton has done for the cow with her winsome cowtoons and book. Gary Larson has also shown an affinity for cows. One of my other favorites is About Cows. There are scads of other books that regale cows from Dr. Seuss to meditative cows. Maybe the market isn’t ready for yet another tribute to cows.
Sandra Boynton knows her cows
Gary Larson goes to the Far Side about appreciating cowsEmbracing the love of cows
Then again, why not? I’m not giving in or giving up even because cows are cool and the world cud appreciate another udderly cow time.
Here are some of my favorite cow jokes I like to toss out to unsuspecting listeners:
Why are dairy farms so noisy? Too many cows have horns.
If good cows go to heaven where do bad cows go? The udder place.
Why did the farmer place bee hives in his pasture? He wanted to live in the land of milk and honey.
What goes “oom oom oom”? A cow walking backwards.
And my parting riddle—
What is the best way to make a milkshake? Have it jump on a pogo stick.
I would love to hear your thoughts on why cows are so cool or a really good cow joke—I have enough bad ones.
snollygoster: a clever, unscrupulous person. What a fabulous word! It reminds me of a villain lurking in the pages of a Lemony Snicket book.
banderole: a small flag or streamer fastened to a lance, masthead, etc. I imagine this will be a handy term for upcoming Fourth of July parades.
ferdutzt: confused; bewildered. It sounds like have a fuzzy brain.
skrik: a sudden fright or panic. Yes, that’s exactly the word when I’m startled.
quidnunc: a person who is eager to know the latest news and gossip. I am surprised I don’t come across this word in my English village novels. It so sounds like a person found in a Miss Marple story.
reboant: resounding or reverberating loudly. Definitely describes the train horns that barrage our area on a daily basis.
pluviophile: a person who enjoys rain and rainy days, and who is fascinated by the sights, sounds, etc., of rain. I grew up in the Pacific Northwest where you learn to live the rain or go bonkers in winter, spring, and fall.
farouche: sullenly unsociable or shy. Not just shy but shy with an attitude. That is inspiration for a character, for sure. Maybe this person meets up with the local quidnunc and sparks fly. Hmmm…
ferhoodle: to confuse or mix up. A companion of ferduzt.
bloviate: to speak pompously. You know, that part of the movie where the snollygoster monologues about how clever they are right before they are undone by the clever hero.
tawpie: a foolish or thoughtless young person. I see this being home in a Gaiman tale for some reason.
ceilidh: a party, gathering, or the like, at which dancing, singing, and storytelling are the usual forms of entertainment. Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream!
scintilla: a minute particle; spark; trace. It’s right companionable with “smidge”and “scootch.”
pwn: to totally defeat or dominate, especially in a video or computer game. Did the vowel get vanquished when this word came into being?
pervicacious: extremely willful; obstinate; stubborn. Oh dear, what if they are farouche as well?
proceleusmatic: inciting, animating, or inspiring. The problem is by the time the word is properly pronounced the moment has passed.
oppugn: to assail by criticism, argument, or action. This when the snollygoster shows their true colors.
lambent: running or moving lightly over a surface. Oddly, this is an adjective not a verb.
rubricate: to mark or color with red. So for equality purposes other colors should have their own verb—yellow would be “yubricate” and brown would be “bubricate”?
schmatte: an old ragged garment; tattered article of clothing. This sounds more like the state of my door mat after a hard winter of snow and ice abuse.
Challenge!
What word will you work into a conversation this week?
Look up! It’s a full moon! It’s the Worm Moon! Worm Moon? Yes. It’s the Worm Moon.
As over the moon I am about full moons I am not familiar with tonight’s Worm Moon. I’m not squeamish about worms but naming a full moon after these little earth burrowers simply goes against logic and romantic notions. The moon is the silver lady in the sky or the beaming gentleman among the stars (no bias). Attaching “worm” to the full moon status is perplexing.
Good old Farmer’s Almanac helped me out on this one. The March 7th full moon is the Worm Moon because (ready for the drumroll…) winter has passed and the ground is warming up signaling spring is near and the worms are waking up to surface to feed the incoming birds.
Replay that. Winter has passed? Spring is near? Robins and etc are landing to snack on the worms?
Winter has not passed. Spring? HAHAHA This guy is not a worm snacker. Haven’t seen a robin for a long, long time.
I’m looking forward to the rest of the year’s moons. Join me wherever you are and we will gaze up at the night sky in shared appreciation. Worm Moon, indeed…
I’m ever so glad I found Goodreads. Not only does it help in discovering books to read, it more importantly keeps track of the books I have read. Lately I am reading books I have read previously. Goodreads confirms this. I’m contemplating the implications of this reading overlap.
Never mind deep contemplations on my reading habits. Here are the brass facts: according to Goodreads I read 155 books by December 30th. I don’t log books that are DNF (did not finish), which are more than I want to acknowledge this year. Apparently I am becoming more discerning in my book selections.
Instead of the usual how many pages, most popular, least popular factums I thought I would give 746 books activity a try. Using this year’s book list I answered posed suppositions:
In high school I was Here and Now and Then (Mike Chen)
People might be surprised by The Ethan I Was Before (Ali Standish)
I will never be Maisie Dobbs (Jacqueline Winspear)
My life post-lockdown was Little Broken Things (Nicole Baart)
My fantasy job is The Finder of Forgotten Things (Sarah Loudin Thomas)
At the end of a long day I need The Maid (Nita Prose)
I hate being The Accused (John Grisham)
Wish Ihad The Cat Who Saved Books (Sosuke Natsukawa)
My family reunions areTo Disguise the Truth (Jen Turano)
At a party you’d find me with Birds of a Feather (Jacqueline Winspear)
I’ve never been toThe Last Bookshop in London (Madeline Martin)
A happy day includes The Ingredients of Love (Nicolas Barresu)
Motto I live by: The Art of Holding On and Letting Go (Kristin Lenz)
On my bucket list is The Island (Gary Paulsen)
Next year I want to have What the Fireflies Knew (Kai Harris)
That was fun and enlightening. Maybe my book choices reveal more about myself than I am aware of. Hope your year of books was enjoyable and here is to next year!
As stated earlier, the travel bug has not bit us. We hunker down in winter and practice wishful thinking for warmer climates.
All in all, winter is for the birds. Really. That’s what we are doing for entertainment. We have enticed juncos, nuthatches, chickadees, sparrows, finches, a part time dove, and an infrequent flicker to our front yard with seed and such and sit back and enjoy the show.
Took Rocket J. Squirrel a few attempts to reach the feeder
We have a very basic feeder and try to keep it filled; however when it’s 19 degrees, with a brisky wind, finding alternative methods of feeding our feathered friends, like tossing food out the window for them onto the snow is the solution.
The seed buffet has garnered the attention of other critters: squirrels and deer. The squirrels are comical in how they try to avoid going through the snow to get to the food. They traverse on the branches above and tail twitch in frustration that they can’t quite reach the feeder. We spent a good hour observing how one squirrel finally took the plunge and dove into the snow, tunneling a track to feeder’s base to glean dropped seeds.
All you can eat seed buffet
The deer easily amble over to the feeder and lick seeds off the tray. They are not perturbed by our presence at the window.
We think this little guy looks like a burro so we have dubbed it Burrito
The most entertaining morning session was when the squirrel and deer arrived at the same time. The deer held their ground and would not acknowledge the squirrel’s attempts to mosey up to the seed feed. Old Rocket would inch up, tail twitching in anxiety and then Burrito would level a look that translated as “Excuse me?” and Rocket would hightail up the tree and pace the limb waiting, waiting, waiting for his turn.
Showdown at OK Feed and Seed
As for the birds—their territorial flutterings are reminiscent of playground squabbling. There is one white-crowned sparrow who is pro at fluffing up his feathers and chasing off the smaller birds from the seed buffet.
Like little kids playground squabbling
For most, the chosen winter sport is skiing, for us staying warm, while we watch from our chair side seats the front yard antics, suffices. Although, truthfully, after the third snow dump (and it’s still early December) I might just look into those Costco travel brochures that we pass by when we load up on birdseed. I imagine there are birds I can watch from a beachside balcony.
Pam Webb 