[lit-ideas] The Meaning of Liff

No, it's not a misspelling.  "The Meaning of Liff" is the title of a 
wonderful little book by Douglas Adams and John Lloyd that my wife 
handed to me this morning.  The preface explains,

> In Life*, there are many hundreds of common experiences, feelings, 
> situations and even objects which we all know and recognize, but for 
> which no words exist.
>    On the other hand, the world is littered with thousands of spare 
> words which spend their time doing nothing but loafing about on 
> signposts pointing at places.
>    Our job, as we see it, is to get these words down off the signposts 
> and into the mouths of babes and sucklings and so on, where they can 
> start earning their keep in everyday conversation and make a more 
> positive contribution to society.
>
> *And, indeed, in Liff.

Thus, for example,

Aasleagh (n.)
A liqeueur made only for drinking at the end of a revoltingly long 
bottle party when all the drinkable drink has been drunk.

Aberbeeg (vb.)
Of amateur actors, to adopt a Mexican accent when called upon to play 
any variety of foreigner (except Pakistanis -- for whom a Welsh accent 
is considered sufficient)......

Yonkers (n.)
(Rare.) The combined thrill of pain and shame when being caught in 
public plucking your nostril-hairs and stuffing them into your 
side-pocket.

York (vb.)
To sh8ift the position of the shoulder straps on a heavy bag or 
rucksack in a vain attempt to make it seem lighter.
   Hence: to laugh falsely and heartily at an unfunny remark. 'Jasmine 
yorked politely, loathing him to the depths of her being' -- Virginia 
Wolf.

And lots of other great stuff on the 150-odd pages in between.

Highly recommended for holiday and/or everyday reading.

John McCreery


------------------------------------------------------------------
To change your Lit-Ideas settings (subscribe/unsub, vacation on/off,
digest on/off), visit www.andreas.com/faq-lit-ideas.html

Other related posts: