Nonce – Wordplay Wednesday™ 11/08/17

♪ Live for Today! Sha la la la la ♪ 

We are often reminded to live in the present. Especially when faced with fears that await us on a daily basis.

Put your inhibitions aside. Recall fondly, the past—look forward eagerly to the future—but live for today!*

NONCE (näns) n. – the present use, occasion, or time; time being; chiefly in, for the nonce. [WW #137]

Hmmmm. The dictionary didn’t give this word any particular connotation, as in a regional dialect, or foreign expression. I rather thought it sounded like something the British would use.

Apparently though, it’s just a plain ol’ word not often heard. So here you are! Something new to amaze your friends when you slip nonce into conversation or text. (Still think it needs a British accent.)

… Hmmm, the above comment was made before I dove further into the history of nonce. Seems Wiktionary goes beyond the dictionary definition to nonce’s likely origin. “Etymology 3: Contraction of number used once.”

Okay, but above that I found my earlier inflection instincts were spot-on! “Etymology 2: Unknown. UK criminal slang. Possibly originally from dialectal nonce, nonse (“stupid, worthless individual”), or Nance, nance (“effeminate man”), from Nancy boy.” (A derogatory term that we do not condone. 

 

However, I’m not British, and I much prefer the standard dictionary use, for the nonce. It has a certain je ne sais

quoi… to quote the French. “For the time being” is lifeless … but for the nonce holds charm.

* In case you’re just a young’un and didn’t catch the song reference, we agreed with artists The Grass Roots 50 years ago when fans pushed their bouncy, prophetic tune “Let’s Live for Today,” up to #4 on WCFL/Chicago’s Sound 10 Survey. (June 29, 1967) In the video, vintage TV host and comedian, Jimmy Durante introduced The Grass Roots with, "They don't have a manager, they have a gardener!" Cue the drum-roll.

Word Challenge: NONCE. For those moments when you must stay put, for the nonce. Consider the advantages as you fit nonce into your week of one-and-done writings.

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

'Til next time ... enjoy a wonderful "wordful" week … 

                       

@PenchantForPen

@Irishwriter

Facebook

E-N-D

Effulgence – Wordplay Wednesday™ 11/01/17

First Light of the Holiday Season 

I know … it’s difficult to leave behind the heady mystique and spiritual effervescence of October. It’s time now though, to welcome the charity and spirit of Thanksgiving and the Holiday Season, with open arms, and …

EFFULGENCE (e fulʹjɘns, i-) n. – great brightness; radiance; brilliance  [WW #136]

This time of year cannot but add a little sparkle and effulgence into the dreariest of lives … if you let it … if you give it.

Many have suffered this year, in acts of nature and the brutality of evil. It is not easy to look up from that if you are coping with the aftereffects. For some, the only way is to seek the effulgence, however dim it may appear, at first.

A wrap-up story in the Santa Rosa Press Democrat quoted a survivor of California’s historically worst wildfires last month, and demonstrates the pain and poignancy. “…‛We’re homeless,’ she said — not sadly at all, more like she was announcing a forthcoming trip to Paris. ‛They say it’s good to experience new things as we grow older,’ she said, leaning on her cane. ‛And I’ve never been homeless before.’”

Even through anguish, the aroma of a simple turkey-and-gravy frozen dinner can evoke effulgence and fond memories of Thanksgivings past, and gratitude for survival, present.

We’re heading into a rather somber Holiday Season. For children—of all ages, as we can all be children at this time of year—the season’s effulgence in one string of Holiday lights can brighten a life. Just ask Charlie Brown and Snoopy.

Think charity and thanksgiving this month—offer effulgence to someone who may not otherwise feel the luster of life.

Word Challenge: EFFULGENCE. Feel the light and see the brightness, inside and out, as you fit effulgence into your week of charitable writings.

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

'Til next time ... enjoy a wonderful "wordful" week … 

                       

@PenchantForPen

@Irishwriter

Facebook

E-N-D

Therianthropic – Wordplay Wednesday™ 10/25/17

Howling into Halloween! 

Who is your favorite werewolf actor? Venerable horror genre thespian, Lon Chaney Jr in 1941’s The Wolf Man? The adorable Michael Landon in 1957’s I Was a Teenage Werewolf? How about Butch Patrick as cute little Eddie Munster in our favorite ghoulish 1960s TV series The Munsters?

A more recent hairy guy with a sense of humor, might be more your cup of howl-lar-i-ty with beloved Michael J. Fox in 1985’s Teen Wolf. Scott Howard, the bumbling basketball player-turned-werewolf made us howl!

While all showed considerable talent in the roles … or at least, a certain je ne sais quoi for the part … my endearing and enduring nationally beloved werewolf Rocks On. Can you guess who is my annual Halloween …

TherianthropIC (thir’ ē an thräpʹik) adj. – 1) conceived of as being partly human and partly animal in form; 2) designating or of deities of this kind. [WW #135]

In some form or other, each October, I cherish the memories of Rock & Roll’s most iconic therianthropic werewolf, Wolfman Jack.

Generally a staple in my Blast from Your Past writings, I featured the beloved and bedeviled disc jockey here, for Halloween, 2015. It took two years to stumble on another fun word besides that Wordplay Wednesday’s lycanthrope, to bring back the best therianthropic of them all.

We Californians and insomniacs with a good radio receiver, were acquainted with Wolfman Jack’s raspy growl and reverberating howl, several years before American Graffiti (1973) helped make him into a reality star.

It was just before his death in 1995, however, that we learned of his accidental metamorphosis into a bona fide therianthropic entity. His rambling memoirs, Have Mercy! Confessions of the Original Rock ‘n’ Roll Animal  He introduced us to his early familial incarnation.

Long before Wolfman Jack sat behind a studio mic, Uncle Bob (Robert Weston Smith) pulled a blanket around his shoulders for a cape and chased his young nephews around the house, pretending to terrify them with a wolf howl that made them giggle and hide. So begat the therianthropic werewolf destined to change Rock & Roll Radio forever.

XERB the Mighty 1090 gave voice to the Original Soul Monster in the mid-Sixties. From radio to TV in the Seventies and beyond, Wolfman Jack’s howl turned every day into Halloween. Aoooowwww!

Word Challenge: TherianthropIC. Of course, part human and part animal beings are not limited to werewolves. Explore the legends and lore of shapeshifting as you fit therianthropic into your week of inhuman writings.

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

'Til next time ... enjoy a wonderful "wordful" week … 

Wordy Witch of the West 

                       

@PenchantForPen

@Irishwriter

Facebook

E-N-D