Month: November 2020

mode

comportment, deportment – Deportment adds the sense of action or activity to a mode of conduct or behavior; comportment, “behavior or bearing,” does not have this. More…

dictionary – Based on Latin dictio(n-), “mode of expression” or “word,” then dictionarius, “a repertory of words or phrases.” More…

diet – Comes from Greek diaita, “a way of life, mode of living.” More…

mode – Originally a tune or air and later a scheme of sounds. More…

Kali Puja

In the region of Bengal, many Hindus regularly honor Kali, an earth goddess of fearsome appearance and a symbol of fertility. During the year, believers conduct daily pujas (devotional prayers) to Kali, but one particular new-moon day of the year is set aside for a special Kali Puja. Unlike with other festivals, believers will worship Kali at night. Typically, people gather around elaborate pandals (shrines) to the goddess around 9 p.m. Priests will then lead a ceremony, which may involve prayers and sacrifices of animals such as goats, sheep, or buffaloes. Worship may continue until as late as 1 a.m. or 2 a.m. Discuss

Ars Amatoria

Written around the time of the birth of Christ, the Ars Amatoria, or Art of Love, is Ovid’s handbook for acquiring and keeping a lover. The Roman poet offers practical yet witty advice to both men and women, at times exercising discretion. He often delves into psychology, such as when he suggests making a lover artificially jealous to keep him or her attentive. He advises a young man to gallantly brush any dust from his date’s gown. What is his advice if the gown is not dusty? Discuss

lightning

nimbostratus cloud – Can drop precipitation but has no lightning or thunder. More…

artillery – A poetic term for thunder and lightning. More…

coup de foudre – A sudden unforeseen event or instantaneous and overwhelming passion, such as love at first sight; it is French, literally, “stroke of lightning.” More…

lightning – Etymologically, lightning is simply something that illuminates or “lightens” the sky, a contraction of the earlier “lightening.” More…

Carberry Day

The students and faculty at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, celebrate the fictitious academic exploits of Professor Josiah Stinkney Carberry every Friday the 13th. On Carberry Day, small brown jugs appear around campus, and students and teachers fill them with change. The money goes to a book fund that Professor Carberry has set up “in memory of my future late wife, Laura.” Discuss