Z is for...

Z day…the last day of the A to Z Challenge. I can't believe it's finally here!


Some Z words for your amusement:

zastrugi - A long wavelike ridge of snow, formed by the wind and found on the polar plains

It sounds like a hot dish with lots of noodles and veggies to me.

zeatin - A cytokinin originally isolated from young corn kernels and found later in various other plants

Uhm…I hope it's more benign than it sounds.

zeekoe - A hippopotamus

An alternate name for those who can't spell hippopotamus? Wouldn't hippo be easier?

It's been a wonderful month, thanks to all of you. I've made many new friends and hope to keep seeing you around!

Laura

Y is for...

It's Y day! Where has the month gone?


yabba - Slang a form of methamphetamine

The things I've learned this month…I thought Fred Flinstone said this. Was he on drugs?

Yghe – eye

This is pronounced 'ick'. Why do we have such a strange word for eye? Does it pertain to eyes that are icky?

yips - nervousness or tension that causes an athlete to fail to perform effectively, especially in missing short putts in golf

I thought this was the sound a small dog makes when it's excited.

Come back tomorrow for some Z fun!

Laura

X...no, wait. It's W day!

And on to W, the second half of the backwards days. I have another story up, called Wild Ride (see the W tie-in?) at The New Flesh. I'd be honored if you pop over there and have a read!


Wild Ride at The New Flesh

Only two days left of this Challenge. Please stop by tomorrow for some Y fun!

Laura

W...er, X is for...

Yes, tomorrow is actually X day, but I'm reversing X and W for the sake of being prompt. Is that mysterious enough? Tomorrow is today and yesterday is in the future…never mind. You'll get W tomorrow. Now, on to X.


xerophobia - an abnormal fear of dryness and dry places, as deserts

My guess would be a fear of Xerox machines.

xeroma - abnormal dryness of the conjunctiva and cornea of the eyes; may be due to a systemic deficiency of vitamin A

This is actually bad cooking – zero aroma.

xerosis - abnormal dryness of bodily tissues, esp the skin, eyes, or mucous membranes

My definition? A person who has zero neuroses.

This concludes the first half of backwards alphabet day. Come back tomorrow to see why W played hooky!

Laura

V is for...

Here it is V day already, the month almost gone.


vacua - a plural of vacuum

Really? I thought it would be vacuums. Have you ever heard a salesperson speak of their line of vacua?

Vacuna - The goddess of rural leisure, to whom the husbandmen sacrificed at the close of the harvest. She was especially honored by the Sabines

I bet she never owned a vacuum…

vagient - crying like a child


Before you scientific types point out that vacua is the absence of space, vacuum cleaners really are listed in the same definition. Besides, I'm sure if someone had presented a choice of vacua to Vacuna on her birthday, she would be vagient. Wouldn't you?

Join me tomorrow for a special W day!


Laura

U is for...

Happy U day to you all!


Here are some U gems I've dug up.

ubication - The quality or state of being in a place; local relation; position or location; whereness

Uh huh… This must be what happens when you're on vacation and make an illegal u-turn.

ullage - the amount that a container (as a wine bottle or tank) lacks of being full

Sure, I can use that. Waiter, my wine glass has ullage in it.

ultima - The last syllable of a word

And here I thought it was a car.

I hope to see you tomorrow for some V fun!

Laura

S and T are for...

S is for Story! and T is for terribly late. I promised you a Surprise today. I have a Story up today over at The New Flesh. It's Short too. I'd love for you to go have a read.


Bits and Pieces at The New Flesh


When I promised you the surprise yesterday I had no idea that Alex J Cavanaugh would be featuring my blog on his site today. I guess good things happen in multiples! If you're not already following him, you should be. He is a great friend to the blogging community and has an awesome book out as well called CassaStar.

Happy S and T day! Yes, I'm cheating...

Laura

R is for...

Happy R day to you!


rebato - A stiff flaring collar wired to stand up at the back of the head, worn by men and women in the 16th and early 17th century

rebec - A pear-shaped, two-stringed or three-stringed medieval instrument, played with a bow

rebellow - to re-echo loudly


If one plays the rebec while wearing a rebato, the rebellow can be deafening.


I have a special treat for S day tomorrow. Hope to see you here!

Laura

Q is for...

Happy Q day!


quackle – to suffocate; to choke

This is what happens when you cackle too loudly at a party.

quadrijugous - pinnate, with four pairs of leaflets; as, a quadrijugous leaf

What happens when four vampires bite the same area.

quadripartite - divided into or composed of four parts

A boring party consisting of four people.

See you tomorrow for some R fun!

Laura

P is for...

It's P day!


pedagogy - the function or work of a teacher; teaching

My definition would be a group of people who worship feet.

peladophobia - a dread of baldness

This puzzles me. Since it should mean a fear of pela, I looked that up.

pela – Wax insect

So the above word should be a fear of wax insects. Maybe it's derived from a fear of having to wax your head if you lose your hair.

Tomorrow is Q day! Come back for more fun with strange words.

Laura

O is for...

Happy O day! Here are some peculiar words for you.


oater - A movie about frontier or cowboy life; a western

obeli - A mark ( or ÷) used in ancient manuscripts to indicate a doubtful or spurious passage

oberration - the act of wandering about

ogdoad - a group of eight

When making an oater with an ogdoad, make sure there's plenty of oberration going on in the absence of an obeli in the script.

Come back for some P's tomorrow!

Laura

N is for...

Happy N day! Here are the new words I've dug up for you...


nabla - another name for del


Ok, I'll bite…

del - the differential operator i(∂/∂x) + j(∂/∂y) + k(∂/∂z), where i, j, and k are unit vectors in the x, y, and z directions. Symbol #X2207; Also called nabla

I'm so glad I checked…

natant - floating or swimming in water

My guess would have been either the mating between a gnat and an ant, or a mutant ant.

nebuly - a line or a decoration composed of successive short curves or waves supposed to resemble a cloud

This should be a little nebulae that hasn't expanded yet.

I hope to see you tomorrow for O!

Laura

M is for...

Happy M day to you!


macamba - tropical American feather palm having a swollen spiny trunk and edible nuts

Sounds more like a macaw entwined with a mamba to me. (venomous tree snake with a fatal bite)

macarism - the practice of making others happy through praise and felicitation

It's really the worship of macaroni and cheese.

Meatus - A body opening or passage, such as the opening of the ear or the urethral canal

This meatus rotten, I tell ya.

See you tomorrow for strange N words!

Laura

L is for...

For the letter L, I wanted to find something (anything!) fun about my name. I found that it's actually a noun.



Laura - A number of hermitages or cells in the same neighborhood occupied by anchorites who were under the same superior


Huh? I have no idea what that means. I always thought my name was derived from the laurel tree.


Being named after a tree isn't very exciting, either. Next, I tried to find infamous women named Laura. Nada. Maybe I should be the first.


There are a few famous people named Laura. A former first lady, a few actors, a controversial doctor and two authors. Meh… Maybe I should stick with the tree.


Do you have an interesting origin for your name? (Or pen name)


Happy L day!

Laura

K is for...

And here we are at K day. I don't know about you, but this month has been the most blogs I've ever written back to back!


kaluresis - the presence of excess potassium in the urine

I'm noticing a medical trend in my words, but so many of them seem humorous.


kenophobia - an abnormal fear of a void or of open spaces

I thought this was an abnormal fear of the game Keno.


kinanesthesia - inability to sense movement

Doesn't this look like it should be anesthesia for your kin?

Have a good day and join me tomorrow for L!

Laura

J is for...

Happy J day to you!

jaup - A jaup or jawp is the splash of liquid against a surface or the sound made by liquid sloshing around in a container


I don't know how to describe that sound, but it certainly wouldn't be jaup.

Jazerant – A coat of defense made of small plates of metal sewed upon linen or the like; also, this kind of armor taken generally; as, a coat of jazerant

I think it's a new deoderant for use after Jazzercise.

jugale - the craniometric point at the union of the frontal and temporal processes of the zygomatic bone

Pass the jugale, will ya? The jugbeer is empty.

Can you believe it? Tomorrow's K day already!

Laura

I is for...

I is for I can't think of comments to put with these words, so today is your turn. Tell me in the comments what you think the word should mean. I'll award a virtual cookie to anyone who tries!

idolum - a mental picture; idea


ignicolist – a worshiper of fire

ixodid - ticks having a hard shield on the back and mouth parts that project from the head

Happy I day!

Laura

H is for...

Welcome to H day, where I'm gonna raise a little hell.


barathrum - A bottomless pit or hell

fire and brimstone - Eternal punishment in hell

pandemonium - Literally means abode of all demons (or hell), from Greek pan-, "all," and daimon, "demon(s)."

Hel - (Norse mythology) goddess of the dead and queen of the underworld

Hades - (Greek mythology) the god of the underworld in ancient mythology; brother of Zeus and husband of Persephone

Sheol - The abode of the dead in the Bible.


I hope you've enjoyed your tour of the underworld. Please remember to pay Charon on your way out.

Laura

G is for...

Happy G day!


galactagogue - agent that induces milk secretion

This is a futuristic word. I believe that one day it will mean travelogue to the galaxy.

gimcrack - A cheap and showy object of little or no use; a gewgaw

There seem to be as many words for knickknacks as there are items that carry that description.

gobby - loudmouthed and offensive

If someone called me that, I'd be checking my clothes for a wad of chewing gum.

Come back tomorrow to see if I raise some H.

Laura

F is for...

F is such a fun letter, full of...well, never mind. Here are some fun F words for you.

fabism - An acute anemia caused by the consumption of fava beans or the ingestion of fava pollen

Now you know what excuse to tell your mother when she says eat your beans.

facinorous – Atrociously wicked

As opposed to mildly wicked?

fomes - Any material, such as bedding or clothing, that may harbor pathogens and therefore convey disease

Medical science has a name for everything it seems.

Happy F day to you!

Laura

E is for...

I'm starting to feel like I'm on Sesame Street...

E! The letter E...

eadness - Happiness derived from luxury and wealth

It looks like it's missing a letter at the front...



effulgence - A brilliant radiance

I'd peg it as an intestinal upset...


emblements - The crops or products of the land legally belonging to a tenant

Certainly a word I need to know...

Come back tomorrow for some F fun!

Laura

D is for...

dag - A lock of matted or dung-coated wool

I hope I never have occasion to use this word…

dibber - A dibble

Of course, if you don't know what a dibble is, then you're out of luck.

doggery - Surly behavior

Seems rather unfair to the dogs, in my opinion.

I have an interview up today at mari's randomities. Stop by and say hello!


Happy D day!

Laura

C is for...

Cuneiform - Being a character or characters formed by the arrangement of small wedge-shaped elements and used in ancient Sumerian, Akkadian, Assyrian, Babylonian, and Persian writing.

I used cuneiform writing all through my paranormal romance, Seducer of her Dreams, including tattooing them on Devan, my dream god. The cover also features cuneiform writing all around the edges.

If you'd like to know more about cuneiform script, click here.

Happy C day!

Laura

B is for...

I have three B words for you today!

bafflegab - Gobbledygook.

We needed a second word to say gobbledygook?

baize - An often bright-green cotton or woolen material napped to imitate felt and used chiefly as a cover for gaming tables.

I just thought it was green felt...

And last but not least:

buddle - An inclined trough in which crushed ore is washed with running water to flush away impurities.

Why not call it a trough?

Come back on Monday for C day!

A Is For...

Awesome, Amazing, Articulate words. Without them, we wouldn't be able to communicate. During the month of April I will showcase one or two words each day that start with that day's letter.

attelet - A slender skewer, usually ornamented at the top, used decoratively, especially in serving garnishes.

Who knew? I always called them toothpicks.

Make sure you visit the list with almost 900 blogs participating (the last time I checked) at Tossing It Out!