Penchant for Penning

Wednesday, October 3, 2018

Goblin – Wordplay Wednesday™ 10/03/18

Don’t Be Afraid ~ Well Maybe a Little …

They're creepy and they're kooky | mysterious and spooky | they're altogether ooky … October’s Wordplay Wednesday! Well yeah, and “Wednesday” in The Addams Family of course!

Grabbing a script page from one of the funnest* spooky shows ever to spin a web over your television, we’re exploring the weird and wacky words of Halloween this month. (*I know it isn’t a word. It should be.)

Let’s jump right in the witch’s cauldron with a word we’re all familiar with, but are we really?

19th Century goblin ~ Unknown Artist

GOBLIN (gäbʹlin) n. (folklore) – an evil or mischievous spirit often represented in pictures as humanlike and ugly or misshapen in form. [WW / SPOOKY #184]

A common Halloween word, have you ever stopped to ask exactly what a goblin is? It hit me as I perused the news and stumbled on a headline obviously meant to capitalize on the time of year and grab our attention. It got mine …

A Goblin World That Points Toward Hidden Planet Nine in the Solar System

If you’re into planets and the solar system, this is an article for you! “… there is a growing suspicion that our solar system’s distant reaches conceal a large, ninth planet that we have not yet seen. New findings about a small ice world far beyond Pluto buttress this idea.… which they have nicknamed the Goblin.”

It’s sad that a world we have only just (almost) discovered is already saddled with such an onerous moniker, but it gives us the first “spooky” word of Wordplay Wednesday’s Halloween month to play with!

Gollum clip Lord of the Rings

Now, the dictionary paints the creepy sprites in a revolting picture; and Wikipedia even makes the little guys out as “monstrous.” But those words are generalized and since they’ve been around for centuries, goblins’ physical descriptions are varied. Let your imagination run wild in picturing them.

Perhaps think Gollum, in Lord of the Rings. In movie descriptions, he’s called a “hobbit,” but seriously, compare him to the 19^th century image above …

So goblins are a perfect Halloween costume, because guys always have a tough time coming up with a costume that’s masculine, skimpy, and doesn’t involve a gun (since even fake ones can get you into trouble with the real law). Ok, nevermind that a goblin is supposed to be small and disgusting … a raggedy loincloth doesn’t cost much, so you’re saving a few dollars!

https://www.galvestonheroesandhounds.com/

2018 Galveston firefighter

No? Fine, be a hunky, half-dressed calendar firefighter … again. I was just trying to help, guys. And by the way, the party’s at my place. (Just kidding!)

Word Challenge: GOBLIN. According to Wiki, “They are ascribed various and conflicting abilities, temperaments and appearances depending on the story and country of origin.” So there you have it! Free rein to use your imagination, as you fit goblin into your week of monstrous writings.

Learning knows no prejudices or boundaries, and it isn’t fattening! Expanding your mind is a no-cost, simple joy. Do you feel that way too? What’s your inspiration? Share your creative genius and Wordplay Wednesday comments below.

Write first for yourself … only then can you write for others. (L.Rochelle)

Cheers to ROCKtober & Happy Wordplay Halloween!

@PenchantForPen

@Irishwriter

LinDee Rochelle is a writer and editor by trade, and an author by way of Rock & Roll. She has published two books (of three) in her Blast from Your Past series, available on Amazon (eBook and print): Book 1 – Rock & Roll Radio DJs: The First Five Years 1954-1959; and Book 2 – Rock & Roll Radio DJs: The Swinging Sixties. Coming soon, … The Psychedelic Seventies!

E-N-Dzzzzzzzz

Wednesday, September 26, 2018

Yuppie – RETRO Wordplay Wednesday™ 09/26/18

Yip, Yep, Yup!

After reminiscing and laughing at slang words for the 1950s, ‘60s, and ‘70s for the past three weeks, by the 1980s, it’s obvious many kitschy words and phrases of the 20^th century spanned all four decades, and then some.

Nothing wrong with that, of course, just, even after much research and pouring over many lists, it was tough to pin them down per generation. No matter. They’ve still been fun and interesting to bring back and chuckle over … and think about how we’ve changed … or not.

Oh, how we wanted Julia Roberts' hair!

How “totally” UN-politically correct the 1980s were! At least, until the latter years. Other “uns” that fit the decade: UN-natural, from spiral perms to fake accents; UN-abashed in an anything-goes-fashion nonsense; and radio UN-censored began the trend of shock-and-awe everything … à la the self-important Mr. Stern.

To wrap up RETRO Wordplay Wednesday, we’ll poke your memory and run through a few fun slang words and phrases that are synonymous with the ‘80s.

Like, oh no! Did you see those argyle leg warmers? “Gag Me with a Spoon!” Ah yes, the onset of Valleyspeak! Starting in California’s San Fernando Valley, it still lingers throughout speech nationwide, in statements with an “uptalk” question? “No Duh.” Agh!

The 1980s resonated with “Mall Chicks” hanging out more than they shopped, and “gnarly” surfer dudes, who dated all the “totally bitchin’” babes.

But right from the beginning, as Silicon Valley began its techno rise to fame, there is one word that stretched throughout the 1980s and into the ‘90s, defining a certain slick sector of society. In today’s world, they likely would equate to successful start-up entrepreneurs and high-end IT professionals …

YUPPIE (yupʹē) n. – a young professional regarded variously as upscale, ambitious, materialistic, faddish, etc. [WW / RETRO #183]

Making a play on “yippie,” the derisive slang for “1968 radical activists” (according to the dictionary), we created the other end of that spectrum in the ‘80s, with yuppie. In general use, a mostly mocking term for “young urban professionals.” Think double-breasted suits resurrected from the 1940s for the guys, and big hair with big shoulders (pads) for power play women. Side note … we thought 3” heels were daring.

Practically everyone had a Rubik’s Cube (Ideal Toy Co. 1980)— but not everyone could solve the puzzle. After a day with glossy yuppies and frustrating puzzles, we needed laughs, and tuned in to a plethora of comedy television shows from Cheers to WKRP in Cincinnati.

Hope you enjoyed our RETRO month of Wordplay Wednesday with a chuckle and mayhap a little wistfulness. Well … get over it! ‘Cause you’ll need your wits about you as we head into the unknown for ROCK-tober and Halloween month!

Word Challenge: YUPPIE. Why not “go ‘80s” for Halloween? Tease your hair ladies, and grab your guy posing as Don Johnson with push-up jacket sleeves and a t-shirt, as you fit yuppie into your week of retro writings.