NOV 30, French savoir-faire: savoir-faire

SAVOIR-FAIRE

I've learned French, but 'before' (that's avant)

Who'd have guessed to say 'having' — ayant?

Faire: its participe present,

Faisant is quite pleasant;

For savoir, though, it's (strangely) sachant.

Check that out with your local savant.

 Dr G.H. and Giorgio Coniglio, 2022

Authors' Note: The present participle (participe présent) is used much less commonly in French compared to English. In contrast, infinitives are used more often, so 'knowing how to', or 'knowing and doing' is described by savoir-faire, whereas sachant-faisant seems à rire (laughable).

All the French verbs mentioned here, as well as avoir, to have, are irregular, so their roots undergo weird transformations in some circumstances. Savant, an archaic form derived from savoir, is still in use as a noun for 'someone who knows' (a prodigy).

 

NOV 29, planet-saving verse: fur-farming

FUR FARMING

As for fur farming, here's what I think:

Chinchilla, Rex rabbits, fox, mink,

Bred in parlous conditions —

Grounds for nasty renditions

Of viral mutations that stink.

Dr G.H. and Giorgio Coniglio, 2022

You can help save the planet by viewing all our verses in this series at "Edifying Nonsense". Click HERE!

NOV 28, neologism (classic): gobbledegook

 

GOBBLEDEGOOK

What's its origin: Gobbledegook?

(Form of bafflegab, Google says, "Look!")

Guy named Maverick invented

This term that's resented:

Verbal clap-trap, not something you'd cook.

Dr G.H. and Giorgio Coniglio, 2022

Authors' Note: The disparaging term gobbledegook was first used in 1944 by a Texas politician named Maverick (scion of the original staunchly independent thinker). Its meaning — pompous, overinflated language — gave rise a few year later to the equivalent bafflegab. These expressions, employing repetition of sounds, have a musical and amusing quality, but only their close cousin clap-trap -- empty verbiage, nonsense -- would qualify as a reduplication.

NOV 27, organic brain poetry: high-dose steroids

HIGH DOSE STEROIDS

High-dose steroids may cause symptoms manic,

Whereas other minds shrivel or panic.

Increased suicide rates —

(Tapered dose, that abates)

Side-effect, 'til you're done, looms titanic.

Dr G.H. and Giorgio Coniglio, 2022

Authors' Note: A course of high-dose synthetic corticosteroids, e.g. dexamethasone, may be used to help bring under control a severe exacerbation of a chronic illness, e.g. asthma, inflammatory diseases, or an initial presentation, e.g. anaphylaxis, septic shock or brain swelling. Owing to the common side-effect of drug-induced euphoria/mania and other psychiatric issues, doctors attempt to taper the high doses as soon as possible.

 

You can view and review all our verses on the topic of 'Organic Brain Poetry' by following this link to the encyclopedic collection on "Edifying Nonsense."

NOV 26, poets' corner: editorial balking

 

EDITORIAL BALKING

Lexicographers routinely squawk,

At key words picked late and ad hoc.

'Undefined' poems never

(Though their wordplay is clever)

Get approved. Eds aren't moved, so they balk.

Dr G.H. and Giorgio Coniglio, 2022

Authors' Note:
This verse bypasses the requirement at OEDILF for 'definition', in favor of the more reasonable targets of 'exemplification' and 'entertainment'. The author points out hesitatingly that 17 prior 'balk-verses' in OEDILF's data-base (as of 2022) altogether provide minimal definition of the many meanings of this puzzling word.

 You can find lots of other verses on this blog under the rubric "Poets' Corner".  Most of them are in limerick format, and have been subjected to the editing process at OEDILF, the Online English Dictionary in Limerick Form. To access all the others, type the phrase Poets Corner into the searchline on this blogpost (at the top of the righthand navigation column).

NOV 25, pluralia tantum: high hopes

 

Grandpa Greg asked us to pass on this message: "You can view the entire collection of verses about 'pluralia tantum' by clicking HERE."

NOV 24, reptiles: skink-busting

 You can review photos and illustrated herpetologic verses in a wider context by proceeding to 'Verses about Reptiles (don't worry! no snake-photos)' on the full-service blog "Edifying Nonsense".

If you prefer, you could view most of this topically arranged material on Facebook, in Giorgio's photo-albums. (About 20% of those offerings consist of political satire or adult limericks, and you will have to be a 'friend' of Giorgio's to view that stuff.)

NOV 23, doctors and their practices: diabetologist

Authors' Note:

diabetologist: a super-specialized endocrinologist who deals with diabetes mellitus and its control

Glycated hemoglobin (hemoglobin A1C), reflects a chemical influence of ambient glucose levels in blood. This simple but subtle alteration of hemoglobin carried by the blood's red cells was discovered in 1958. As the average lifespan of red cells in the blood is three to four months, the biochemical test of blood levels yields a number that reflects blood sugar control over the previous few months. Generally, as your diabetologist will explain, a value less than 7% has been found to reflect good control.

You can view these informative verses in a wider context by proceeding to the collection 'DOCTORS and their PRACTICES' on our full-service blog "Edifying Nonsense". Click HERE!

NOV 22, (re)duplications: hanky-panky

 

HANKY-PANKY

Prof's "Language as Music" orations

Delved deep into (re)duplications

(A repeated morph word)—

He revealed he preferred

Hanky-panky to grads' dissertations.

Dr G.H. and Giorgio Coniglio, 2022    OEDILF #112825

Authors' Note: Reduplications as they are best known, sometimes also called duplications, are language forms (morphs), usually for nouns, in which an element of the word is repeated with little or no change; they figure prominently among the most musical elements in English and in other languages. To this author, the more commonly used term seems redundant. Many other examples begin with the letter 'h', e.g. harum-scarum, helter-skelter, higgledy-piggledy, hillbilly, and hubba-hubba.

NOV 21, American satire: legal precedence

LEGAL PRECEDENCE

"Wait a little" asks Mitt, a bit hesitant,

"He's our White House's shittiest resident.

His sad stint may not alter

Your chances to falter;

So, don't flinch in this case without precedent." 

 

Giorgio Coniglio, 2022

Authors' note: The 'Mitt' in the above verse is American, but allegorical, unrelated to any real current person or Republican congressman. 

We hope that you enjoyed this verse. You can find 30 more on this topic in 5 collections on our full-service blog 'Edifying Nonsense'. Click HERE to start!  

NOV 20, waterfowl: roseate spoonbills

Readers who are not familiar with the term 'pluff mud' should check out another of our illustrated verses HERE.

You can review these illustrated verses in a wider context by proceeding to the post 'Immersible Verse: Limericks about Waterfowl' on the full-service blog 'Edifying Nonsense'. Or, if you prefer, you can find most of this stuff in photo-albums on Giorgio's Facebook profile. 

NOV 19, American satire: "Caine Mutiny"

 

Updated "CAINE MUTINY"

His biz, based on falsehoods and lootiny,

His modus and mind needed scrutiny. 

Yet his climb didn't stop,

'Til he grabbed for the top.

An old plot: Captain Queeg and "Caine Mutiny". 

Giorgio Coniglio, 2022

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Caine_Mutiny_(film)

NOV 18, non-sequitur: hippocampus

 Our collection of 'Non-Sequiturs' on our parent blog "Edifying Nonsense", contains an admittedly bizarre assortment of nonsensical odds-and-ends, that don't quite fit into other topic-based offerings. But should you want to review the entire collection, click HERE.

 

NOV 17, Canadiana: Canadian weather

Authors' Note: 

hinterland: a geographic term for 'interior', derived from the German adverb hinder = 'behind'.

The author contends that the summary he received overemphasized the adverse climatic conditions faced by Canadians, the majority of whom live in the more temperate southern portions of the country.

mid-November in Toronto

You can review poems, pictures and diverse nonsense related to Canada on the post "Canadiana" on our full-service blog  "Edifying Nonsense". 

NOV 16, palinku (poetic novelty): London and Paris (Ontario)

palinku

palinku

\

(Ed. note:) Verses of this ilk have continued to proliferate, and there are now more than 50. You can view them all at one swoop if you proceed with a single click to our more encyclopedic blog "Edifying Nonsense". Click HERE.

links for any date: scroll over to the calendar-based listings of 'Past Posts' in the righthand column on this page, choose your year and then month of interest, and then select (by clicking) the post of your choice.

NOV 15, poets' corner: wit's end

 

WITZ' END

I'm upset, at the end of my wits,

'Cause my blogposts no longer get hits. 

Fans and fam liked my stuff,

But they've now had enough.

My new role? A sole twit -- that shoe fits.

Dr G.H. and Giorgio Coniglio, 2022

You can find lots of other verses on this blog under the rubric "Poets' Corner".  Most of them are in limerick format, and have been subjected to the editing process at OEDILF, the Online English Dictionary in Limerick Form. To access the others, type the phrase Poets Corner into the searchline on this blogpost (at the top of the righthand navigation column).

If you prefer, you could view most of this topically arranged material on Facebook, in Giorgio's photo-albums. (About 20% of those offerings consist of political satire or adult limericks, and you will have to be a 'friend' of Giorgio's to view that stuff.)

Incidental Photo:

a snowy egret, fishing near the old bridge

NOV 14, higher connections: gnostic

 

GNOSTICISM and LACROSSE

"While you carry around that lacrosse stick,

I'll predict that most folks will be caustic.

They'll be prone to perceive

Of your sense you took leave;

Little chance they'll believe that you're gnostic."

That was Doc's formulation prognostic.

Dr G.H. and Giorgio Coniglio, 2021

Authors' Note: 

gnostic: adjective derived from the Greek noun gnosis; pertaining to or possessing spiritual knowledge or insight

NOV 13, patients and their maladies: amblyopia

 

AMBLYOPIA

Amblyopia means lazy eye;

Mine's strabismic, so what do I spy?

Darkened theatre, one dancer —

Pas-de-deux is my answer.

New glasses with prisms I'll try.

Dr G.H. and Giorgio Coniglio, 2022

Authors' Note: 

pas-de-deux: a term, originating in French, for a balletic performance with two dancers, often moving in unison

Amblyopia includes a number of conditions in which the single affected eye provides less useful information to the brain, resulting in suppression of that information in comparison to that from the more normal eye. Double vision or strabismus (crossed-eyes) from weakened eye muscles on the one side is a common cause. When strabismus is relatively minor, the persistence of two discordant images under certain conditions with resulting double vision, may be disconcerting to the adult patient. Reduced lighting, head position and fatigue may enhance the problem, but corrective prismatic lenses may help in reachieving 'monocular' vision.

NOV 12, objectionable adjectives: efficacious

Authors' Note:  The author disavows overly blunt speech and writing, but finds the tendency to embellish disconcerting. Efficacious seems to be used disproportionately when effective or efficient would do nicely. Other words with inflated frequency of usage include symptomatology, methodology and, yes, even usage. 

You can review our editorially selected doggerel (six verses) relating to 'Objectionable Adjectives' by clicking HERE. 

NOV 11, death and the afterlife: memorial service

 

MEMORIAL SERVICE, 

At the Purvis memorial service,

His assistant, head bowed, seemed quite nervous:

She insisted, out loud,

"He'd no right to this crowd.

We worked hard; the Boss didn't deserve us.

He was hardly a saint, Lord preserve us."

Dr G.H. and Giorgio Coniglio, 2022     OEDILF #105625

 You can review more poems about 'Death and the Afterlife' in context ('death and the afterlife') on our full-service blog 'Edifying Nonsense'. Click HERE!

NOV 10, non-sequitur: glowingly

GLOWINGLY

"A great sandbox site," agent Ann, knowingly,

Praised our tiny back patio glowingly:

"Nearby sought-after school;

Parent-buyers will drool:

Leave out toys for our Open House showingly."

Dr.G.H. and Giorgio Coniglio, 2022      OEDILF #119222

Authors' Note: Real estate agents are masters at the psychology of selling of homes. They employ 'stylists' to 'stage' houses, first by decluttering, and then by adding grace notes to indicate the putatively carefree and desirable lifestyle of the owners. In this case, a Victorian-era home with an appallingly small outdoor space was staged to appear more attractive to families. 

Our collection of 'Non-Sequiturs' on our parent blog "Edifying Nonsense", contains an admittedly bizarre assortment of nonsensical odds-and-ends, that don't quite fit into other topic-based offerings. But should you want to review the entire collection, click HERE.

NOV 9, patients and their maladies: the hemorrhoid

  

The HEMORRHOID

It's not gender-specific, the hemorrhoid --

Bothers her, victim's him; it's a them-orrhoid. 

'Cures' don't work (You'll be struck)

Now you've got it, you're stuck

'Til forever. It's not a pro-temorrhoid.

Dr.G.H. and Giorgio Coniglio, 2022

Authors' note: Readers might also enjoy a verse on the same topic presented in September 2021 in the collection "The Bottom Line of Medical Humor". Click HERE.

You can view these verses in a wider context by proceeding to 'Nurse-Verse: Patients and their Maladies' on our full-service blog "Edifying Nonsense". Click HERE!

NOV 8, a brief saga: Leigh Mercer's palindrome workshop

 

LEIGH'S PALINDROME WORKSHOP

"A man + a plan, a canal —

Panacea: A palindrome, pal?"

My friend Leigh seemed contrite —

"No! The ending's not right.

Zeus sees Suez — that seems less lame, Mal."


"A man, a plan, IF final, Pan-

ama works, (like Name male pipe, lame man!)"

My friend Leigh looked uptight,

"No! It lacks enough bite.

It's ambiv'lent, like Nab, rob or ban."

"Amen + a pit, Ipanema"

(Voiced in Portuguese, with no disclaimer).

Leigh: "No! Tip-top pot pit

Is a much better fit,

But Amen! Icy cinema's lamer."

"A mar on a pan — a panorama:

Has poor scansion, but not such bad grammar".

Leigh groaned, "Dammit, I'm mad;

Stuff those phrases so bad;

No sir, prison — that warrants the slammer."

 Dr G.H. and Giorgio Coniglio, 2019

Authors' Note: 

Ipanema: (pronounced ee-pah-NAY-muh in Portuguese): trendy neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro, known for its marvellous beach and for its bossa nova music

Leigh Mercer (1893–1977) was credited with the iconic palindrome, A man, a plan, a canal — Panama. Mercer, an isolated British eccentric who worked at low-level jobs with frequent turnover, occasionally communicated with journals and contest organizers about wordplay and mathematical puzzles. After his death, notebooks filled with unique palindromes were discovered.
This early workshop conducted by Mercer, during which the iconic canal palindrome is almost invented, is fictitious, but with the exception of the first, all the italicized phrases in the 'workshop' session are legitimate palindromes.

NOV 7, ecto-parasites: bedbugs

BEDBUG INFESTATION

Folks acquire by means many and various

Infestations with C. lectularius.

There's a recent resurgence

(They resist most detergents;

On vacation you're heading?

No! Stay home. Clean your bedding.)

Of this blood-sucking bedthug nefarious.

Dr.G.H. and Giorgio Coniglio, 2022 

Authors' Note:  Details of the legend: The protagonist needed some vacation following a busy time of downsizing and changing residences. A few days prior to taking off on Snowbird flight 203, it became obvious that a domestic infestation of bedbugs, presumably acquired during the household move, had pre-empted his search for a subtropical respite. 

NOV 6, hellenophilia: Cretan gorges

 

NOV 5, poets' corner: satirical doggerel

 

You can find lots of other verses on this blog under the rubric "Poets' Corner".  Most of them are in limerick format, and have been subjected to the editing process at OEDILF, the Online English Dictionary in Limerick Form. To access the others, type the phrase Poets Corner into the searchline on this blogpost (at the top of the righthand navigation column).

If you prefer, you could view most of this topically arranged material on Facebook, in Giorgio's photo-albums. (About 20% of those offerings consist of political satire or adult limericks, and you will have to be a 'friend' of Giorgio's to view that stuff.)

NOV 4, mythed opportunities: Eos (Dawn's endless night)

EOS (DAWN's ENDLESS NIGHT)

The mere concept can give you a fright:

Should that asteroid, Eos, alight

On Earth's landmass, the force,

Raising dust, fine and coarse,

Might bring eons of Dawn's endless night.

Dr G.H. and Giorgio Coniglio, 2022    OEDILF #115472

Author's Note: The asteroid known by astronomers as 221 Eos is apparently a large orbiting body with a diameter of over 100 km. It has a potential, should it strike the Earth, to bring about an extinction similar to that produced 60 million years ago that wiped out the dinosaur population.

  Like most heavenly bodies, this one was named after a figure from Greco-Roman mythology, Eos (Aurora), the Goddess of Dawn; the irony is apparent. Click HERE for another nonsensical poem about Aurora/Eos and learn more about the legend.

NOV 3, objectionable adjectives: forced (bulbs)

You can review our editorially selected doggerel (six verses) relating to 'Objectionable Adjectives' by clicking HERE.

NOV 2, reprehensible modern history: Franco-German wars

FRANCO-GERMAN (L'après-guerre)

The term Franco-German conforms

More to wars than to nachbarlich norms:

Stormy history, alarming;

L'après-guerre brought disarming.

Have I opened an old Cannes of Worms?

Dr.G.H. and Giorgio Coniglio, 2022

Authors' Note:

nachbarlich (NAKH-bahr-likh): neighborly (German)

l'après-guerre (la-preh-GAYR): period immediately after the Second World War in France, approximately 1945-1948

Cannes (KAN): French town on the Côte d'Azur, famous for its luxury hotels and villas, and for its international film festival

Worms (VORMZ): German town (sometimes pronounced by anglophones as WUHRMZ) of about the same size as Cannes and Limerick, famed for its production of liebfraumilch

 

NOV 1, palinku (poetic novelty): conformity and timidity

  In this post, we will continue with a novel form of poetic wordplay. Inspired by Japanese haiku poetry, this new form is used for a terse verse with a total of 17 syllables displayed on three lines. Unlike its classic Japanese analogue, this concoction does not mandate the precise distribution of the syllables among the three lines, but does stipulate that each word in the poem be included in a palindromic phrase or sentence in English (i.e. one that can be read either forwards or backwards). 

  To help the reader discern the origin of the lyrics, each palindrome (generally occupying one of the three lines of the poem) has been color-coded. 

 And, just in case you have forgotten what palindromes are about, your blogsite hosts have arranged a serial set of brief lessons on the topic ('Political Palindromes'); click HERE. 

(Ed. note:) Verses of this ilk have continued to accumulate. You can view them all at one swoop if you  proceed with a single click to our more encyclopedic blog "Edifying Nonsense". Click HERE.

(Or, if your prefer, you can view all this material on Facebook  in Giorgio's photo-albums.)