Vocabulary

Proliferate – to increase or grow at a rapid rate

Privy – made a participant in knowledge of something secret or private

Inclusion – the act of including

Confraternity – an association of persons united in a common purpose or profession

Diminutive – extremely small in size

Penchant – a definite liking; a strong inclination

Poignancy – physically painful

Transgressed – to go beyond or over

Astronomically - immense

Petri dish – a shallow circular dish used to culture bacteria or other microorganisms

Aesthetic – of or concerning the appreciation for good taste

Altruism - an attitude or way of behaving marked by unselfish concern for the welfare of others

Extol - to praise somebody or something with great enthusiasm and admiration

Invocation - a calling upon a greater power such as God or a spirit for help

Zeitgeist - the ideas prevalent in a period and place, particularly as expressed in literature, philosophy, and religion

Protracted - lasting or drawn out for a long time

Xenophobia - an intense fear or dislike of foreign people, their customs and culture, or foreign things

Pernicious - causing great harm, destruction, or death

Vocabulary

Tawdry – Gaudy and cheap in nature or appearance

Narcissism – excessive love or admiration for oneself; erotic pleasure derived from contemplation or admiration of one's own body or self

Improbable – unlikely to take place or be true

Conventional – based on or in accordance with general agreement, use, or practice

Obliterated – to do away with something so as to leave no trace

Exhibitionistic – the act or practice of deliberately behaving so as to attract attention

Clichéd – having becoming stale or commonplace through overuse

Voyeur – an obsessive observer of sordid or sensational subjects

Inverted – reversed

Contemptible – deserving of disparaging or haughty disdain, as for something base or unworthy

Titillation – to excite somebody or stimulate somebody pleasurably, usually in a mildly sexual way.

Quote of the week

"Oppression is a systematic, institutionalized, socially based ideology that limits the power of individuals as members of social groups."

…Adela Vazquez

Marielito

The second wave of Cuban immigrants to the United States. The term “Marielito” applies to 125,000 Cubans who fled to the United States from the Cuban port of Mariel as part of the Mariel boatlift in 1980. Most of the people were black, unskilled, mentally ill, homosexuals, criminals, and generally poor. Some people in Cuba say that the day the Marielitos left was the day Cuba “flushed the toilet.”
Initially the refugees were seen as a “Latin American problem” by the Carter administration. Eventually, President Carter grittingly welcomed them with “open arms.” The Mariel immigrants were confronted by nativist backlash among white Americans and racial conflicts emerged within their own refugee community. Their compatriot predecessors had been white, well educated, and came from Cuba’s upper and middle classes.

Something happened to Morrissey in 1991

I am more than half way through Morrissey in Conversation: The Essential Interviews. As expected, I am totally digging the book. The interview, "Morrissey Comes Out! (For a Drink)" by Stuart Maconie, was impressionable. (They all kind of are in their own way.) I annotated so many things.

I'll start with the vocabulary.

• Bloke – a fellow; a man
• Pedantic – characterized by a narrow, often ostentatious concern for book learning and formal rules
• Temerity – foolhardy disregard of danger; recklessness
• Ignominious – marked by shame or disgrace
  

Here are a few quotes that I thought were interesting.

"At the risk of sounding more pompous than I am, I was always more loved than admired…I was always loved and I felt it."

"I'm frighteningly happy."

"Given the competition, it's easy to shine…or at least gleam in reasonably buffed manner."

"And anyway, one way or the other, pieces about me, whether they praise or damn, are never tedious. They're always a good read."

"But I live in hope."

"You know I have standards and I won't lower them to put up with the merely trendy. I'm not frightened of people just because of their supposed hipness."

"I have very strict guidelines, very strict rules of basic taste in human beings as well as in music, which narrows life somewhat. Either the situation is right or, as in most cases, it's wrong."

Vocabulary

Staid – characterized be sedate dignity and often a strait-laced sense of propriety; sober

Poignant – keenly distressing in the mind or feelings

Grist – something that can be used to advantage

Anathema – a vehement denunciation; a curse

Ponce – (offensive slang (chiefly British English)) 1. a man who is effeminate in his manner and fussy in the way he dresses, 2. the same as a pimp; someone who procures customers for whores

Insular – suggestive of the isolated life of an island

Adulation – excessive flattery or admiration

Octomom

If you look in the dictionary under the word "selfish," a picture of a smiling Nadya Suleman would appear.

More vocabulary from Morrissey

"in excelsis" – in the highest degree

Ashen – resembling ashes, especially in color; vary pale: "A face ashen with grief."

Jingoism – chauvinistic patriotism

Prurient – inordinately interested in matters of sex; lascivious

Imbue – to inspire, permeate, or invade

Moot – to bring up as a subject for debate

Fey – having or displaying an otherworldly, magical, or fairylike aspect or quality

Sacrosanct – regarded as sacred and inviolable

Ebullient – zestfully enthusiastic

Effusive – unrestrained or excessive in emotional expression; gushy

Monastic- strictly disciplined or regimented

Drivel – stupid or senseless talk

Umbrage – offense; resentment

Fabulous Quote

I read this on Dr. Laura's blog. It was the "quote of the week."

"If you can't be a good example, then you'll have to be a horrible warning."

-Catherine Aird, a British crime fiction novelist.

New Book!

It's been a while since I learned any new vocabulary words. A long time ago, I told myself that I should always be reading at least one book. It's been 3 months since my last book. The Virgin store on Market Street is going out of business and I made my friend buy me "Morrissey in Conversation: The Essential Interviews." It was 25% off.

Here's what I learned today:

 

Dominion – a territory or sphere of influence of control or influence; a realm

Vehemently – characterized by forcefulness of expression or intensity of emotion or conviction; fervid

Perfunctory – done routinely and with little interest or care; acting with indifference

Messmate – a person with whom one eats regularly

Ensue - to follow closely after something; to be a consequence of something

Laconically – using or marked by the use of few words; concise

Dole – grief

Throng – a large group of people gathered or crowded closely together; a multitude

Vitriol – bitterly abusive feeling or expression

Sardonic – scornfully or cynically mocking

Salvoes – a sudden outburst as of cheers or praise; a forceful verbal or written assault

Pablum – trite, insipid, or simplistic writing or speech

Moniker – (slang) a personal name or nickname

Strong Personality

According to Wictinary, a "strong personality" is defined as the qualities of self-confidence and assertiveness in a person. Furthermore, Joyce Meyer claims that "If you have a strong-personality, there is no way you're going to be nice to people if you don't spend time with God."

What a read for me as I often feel that I come across as a not very nice person.

What are words for?

For Christmas, Santa Claus brought me the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language. A perfect gift to complement my growing vocabulary list. The introduction of the dictionary starts off with a great quote that defines "conversation."

"...intelligent beings expressing their minds one to another in words, or other signs intentionally directed to us for notice, whose immediate and main design is to be signification of the mind of him who gives it."

-Noah Webster

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Vocabulary for the week

Effrontery – brazen boldness; presumptuousness
Twee – overly precious or nice
Calamity – an event that brings terrible loss, lasting distress, or severe affliction; a disaster
Anachronism – representation of someone as existing or something as happening in other than the chronological, proper, or historical order.
Inexorable – not capable of being persuaded by entreaty; relentless
Entreaty – an earnest request or petition; a plea
"Donkey Punch" - (slang) Donkey punching involves the male punching the sexual partner in the back of the head during anal or vaginal sex prior to orgasm, to provoke a shock causing the vaginal or anal muscles to contract around the male's penis. The move can be prosecuted as sexual assault and even rape in the case of surprise anal penetration.