Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Verbivorous



So. Canderflabble. For those of you who haven't asked Google, canderflabble is a made up word to describe a situation where some action obviously needs to be taken but no one is putting up their hand to volunteer. I'm sure we've all been there.

I like that there is a word for that and it's fun to say.

It's from the book FUNKtionary: a cheeky collection of contemporary words which a friend gave me recently. Some other favourites:


Accellervator: (n) a person who mistakenly believes that the elevator will respond faster if the button is pushed frequently and in a frenzied manner.

Ambipathy: (n) a state of inner conflict when you're both attracted to and repulsed by something.

BBQionist: (n) the person in charge of the barbecue.

Blurfle: (v) when you are caught talking very loudly at the moment the music at the bar stops.

Dumbsizing: (n) management decisions, such as banning chocolate biscuits at morning tea, which save minimal money but incur morale-damaging hostility among staff.

Eyerworks: (n) the little fireworks display you see when you close your eyes (especially when you squeeze them shut or press on your eyelids).

Happicle: the smallest unit of happiness, as icicle is to ice.

Mouse potato: (n) like a couch potato, only time is spent on the computer instead of the telly.

Obfuscake: (v) to talk indistinctly while eating (cake or other food).

Penciventilate: (v) the habit of blowing on your pencil after sharpening it to remove any stray scraps, to the (ahem) point that is more stylistic than functional.

Sheeple: (n) People who are very influenced by what other people think.

Timefable: (n) a short fictional work displayed in public showing an idealised program of arrivals and departures of public transport (aka timetable).

Verbivore: a person who studies or loves words.


Tomaaaahtoes

I bought some truss grown tomatoes at the supermarket tonight, the ones that are still attached to the vine. I just love the smell of tomato vines. It reminds me of when I was a kid and my brother and the neighbours kids would have tomato fights with the fruit we found growing wild behind our houses.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I love these word lists. My favourites in this particular list have to be 'blurfle', for sheer comedy value, and 'eyerworks' - I actually closed my eyes tightly to see my eyerworks as soon as I read the definition :)

Anonymous said...

Just a little glee...
Tiny baby lying calm and happy in his warm bath.
Picnic lunch under the giant beautiful Jacaranda tree on the front lawn.
Couscous and warm roasted pumpkin salad for dinner (made by a friend), because I cooked her dinner last night when she was exhausted.

Anonymous said...

Almost forgot !!
I see you love tomatoes...have you tried the very dark purple ones called Kumato or Russian blacks, we can usually only get them at Woolworths supermarkets here.They are the best tomatoes you are likely to taste in a while....I have grown them and we have them in the vegie garden where I work.YUMMMM

Jayne said...

Hey Becca. I did the same thing with eyerworks. Did everyone else? Blurfle is a funny (non)word and a funny thing (unless you're the one caught talking loudly about something you don't want everyone to hear).

Hey Abbeysmum. Mmmm...your dinner sounds yummy, and it's wonderful to have someone cook for you.

I'm so jealous of your jacaranda tree. I love jacarandas. There used to be one in the little country town I lived in, growing next to a little, old, white cottage. It was very pretty.

Dark purple tomatoes! I've never even heard of them or seen them! Maybe I should look for seedlings and try growing them because nothing compares to homegrown. Oh, except I'm starting my allergy elimination diet again in a couple of weeks and tomatoes will be off the menu...and I don't know if they will get back on it.:(