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November 11th, YDAU - Snippets from Gately's informal-interface moments

Page 563

Page 564

cheese-nibbler
i.e., a rat

skittery
shy or coy

Page 565

nomonous
malaprop: anonymous

Orin and the "Swiss" Hand Model

Page 565

Sky Harbor
the airport serving Phoenix

I-17/-10
Interstate 17 runs from Phoenix to Interstate 10, which to Flagstaff, Ariz.

Endnote 234

Endnote 234 - Excerpts From Orin's Interview With Moment

Page 566

languor
feeling of exhaustion and relaxation

propitiate
to win or reclaim favor with

Page 567

Idris Arslanian & the blindfold

Page 567

Dural edema
swelling of the dura mater due to excess liquid

Page 568

perforce
by force of circumstance

Page 569

in toto
Latin: completely

nubbin
a small lump

insurmagulate
Pemulis probably means to say "insurmountable."

micturate
urinate

Page 570

Rindge-Latin Remedial
A dig at Cambridge Rindge & Latin, Cambridge, MA's public high school

avail
advantage, use, efficacy

"...part the veil of Maya.."
This means to glimpse transcendental truth by parting the veil of Maya. Why Idris, a Muslim from Pakistan, would be aware of this Hindu reference is not explained

presaging
an indication or warning of a future occurrence

Page 571

hot
i.e., radioactive

UF₄
chemical notation for uranium tetrafluoride, used in some nuclear reactors

Heavy Water
deuterium oxide, water in which the hydrogen in the molecules is partly or wholly replaced by the isotope deuterium, used esp. as a moderator in nuclear reactors

zirconium
a transition metal element, atomic number 40, symbol Zr

Da
a common Irish nickname for one's father

cuc—
Pemulis is probably about to say "cuckold."

Page 572

coprolite
fossilized dung

A.E.C.
Atomic Energy Commission

Men's Sanity in Corporate Sterno
Mens sana in corpore sano (a healthy mind in a healthy body) is a Latin quotation, often translated as, "A sound mind in a healthy body

anathematic
likely to be greatly hated

Endnote 238

meta-disease
a disease syndrome, or a disease that itself causes other diseases

Page 572

Jawohl
German for "yes" in a particularly enthusiastic way

Page 573

sterabolic anoids
malaprop: anabolic steroids

rapacial
malaprop: rapacious

"...each month's prime numbers..."
Which would be the second, third, fifth, seventh, eleventh, thirteenth, seventeenth, nineteenth, twenty-third, twenty-ninth, and thirty-first (when the month has thirty-one days)

decelerated
slowed down

jacklights
shines a special very bright light Into the eyes of an animal, so as to induce temporary immobility, for the purposes of hunting

Page 574

a whole different kettle of colored horses
a combination of "a whole different kettle of fish" and "a horse of a different color."

Eliotical
referring to T.S. Eliot, author of The Waste Land

repose
rest

Orin Realizes Something

Page 574

Junoesque
(of a woman) imposingly tall and shapely. Juno is the Roman equivalent of the Greek goddess Hera. Orin means to say that "Helen" is like a goddess.

Page 575

Rt. 85
Arizona State Route 85 connects Interstate 10 to the Mexican border near Lukesville, Ariz.

(November 11th, YDAU) - Lenz and Green, cont.

Page 575

rhynophemic
a misspelled reference to rhinophyma, the reddening of the nose common to alcoholics

"...like a seahorse..."
Seahorses actually have two eyes.

G.E.D.
General Equivalency Degree, the equivalent of a US high school diploma, earned by passing a test. The GED is a way for someone who failed to complete high school to earn a high school diploma later in life.

Endnote 239

N₂O
nitrous oxide, also known as laughing gas

thiopental sodium
another name for sodium pentothal, a powerful general anesthetic

Page 575 (cont'd)

mumus
the plural of what is actually muumuu, a long, formless, loose-hanging dress

brocade
fabric woven with an elaborate design

hove
past tense of "heave"

Page 576

infernous
malaprop: Lenz is apparently thinking of "infernal"

striated
striped

ensconce
to establish or settle firmly or comfortably

ordinational
i.e., ordinal, or increasing by number

Governor Claprood
possibly a misspelled Marjorie Clapprood, who was the Democratic nominee for Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor in 1990.

jounce
to move joltingly up and down

recesstacle
apparently a portmanteau of "recess" and "receptacle"

excretate
apparent portmanteau of extricate & excrete

sojourn
not a synonym for "journey," as Lenz is using it, but rather a term meaning a stay in a place for a prolonged period

derisive
intended to offend or insult

excretate
i.e., extricate

plaintiffly
malaprop: Lenz means "plaintively."

Dukakis
Michael Stanley Dukakis (born 1933) was governor of Massachusetts (1983-1991) and the 1988 Democratic nominee for President.

18th-Circus
malaprop: that should be "18th Circuit."

Page 577

1.5-meter
about 4.9 feet

Hapless to administer
Helpless? (probable malaprop)

Composition with Red, Yellow and Blue (1921) by Piet Mondrian

Mondrian
Pieter Cornelis (Piet) Mondrian (1872-1944) was a Dutch painter. His work often featured a gridwork of black squares and rectangles, as seen right, which could be read as an urban map.

defiles
narrow passageways

blaze-trailing
wordplay: trailblazing

eyeshot
neologism: wordplay on 'earshot'

5/4
A relatively rarely employed rhythmic meter in music with five quarter-notes per measure, famously heard in the Dave Brubeck Quartet's recording of Paul Desmond's "Take Five" and in Lalo Schrifin's "Theme from Mission: Impossible." In usual practice, the jazzy rhythm actually has four beats per measure, the first two of which are half again as long as the others: long, long, short-short; long, long, short-short; and c.

'shine
a derogatory term for a Black person (in which the apostrophe probably represents the elision of the racially stereotypical occupation, shoeshine)

plasm
OED: protoplasm, cytoplasm

zithery
evoking the sound of the zither, a stringed instrument

rimed
covered with frost or rime ice

kalpacs
a high-crowned felt or fur hat worn by Turks and Central Asians

iridescent
displaying all the colors of the rainbow

Y.C.A.
Youth Corrections Act

distorting a testament
modifying a will

patissiers
French: pastry chefs

Page 578

The way Lenz pronounces brother involves one r.
i.e., "brothah"

lume
a short term for the luminous phosphorescent glowing solution applied on watch dials

Gauguin-colored
see image of one of the Impressionist's paintings at right

Nafea Faa ipoipo? (When Will You Marry?) (1892), by Paul Gaugin

garish
crudely colorful

Page 579

Buns of Steel
still available for sale

entomological icecubes
fake (plastic) icecubes with insects seemingly frozen inside

sedentary
involving much sitting

bosun
slang sailor term for a boatswain

doting
adoring

Falstaff
a brand of beer discontinued in 2005

World's highest-calorie food except...
In fact, the pili nut has a slightly higher caloric content than the macadamia, and the pecan runs a very close third.

suet
fatty tissue surrounding the kidneys of cattle and sheep, used in cooking

Gummi Bears
a small candy originating in Germany

Page 580

ejaculatory
casting or throwing out

cardiac
i.e., a heart attack

cyanotic
afflicted with bluish discoloration due to a lack of oxygenated blood

opaque
cloudy; not allowing light through

scourged
afflicted with great suffering. also, beaten with a whip

brambled
beaten with thorns

Page 581

tetryl
an explosive used to make detonators

V.F.W.
Veterans of Foreign Wars

Rotarians
members of Rotary International

Shriners
members of the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine

W. Miller
William Miller (1782-1849) was an American religious leader and one of the founders of the Seventh-Day Adventist movement.

tracts
religious pamphlets

anti-Capital activists
I.e., against the death penalty

Defarge
Madame Thérèse Defarge is perhaps the principal revolutionary villain in Charles Dickens's 1959 novel A Tale of Two Cities; she knits into her needlework the names of the royalists and aristocrats who must be condemned to the guillotine to make way for the new republic.

roiling
in a state of turbulence or agitation

fezzes
Turkish- or Middle-Eastern-style hats (see right); worn by Shriners

O.D.C.
Ohio Department of Corrections

igneous
descriptive of molten rock produced by volcanic action, implying that "Green's guilt, pain, fear and self-loathing" are now lava-like in their heat and destructive capabilities

blue neon
In fact, neon has a distinctive orange-red color when electrically charged; this "blue neon" is probably argon with some mercury, as shown in the Wikipedia entry for Noble gas (see the section on "Discharge Color").

sump
cesspool

Page 582

warbly
warbling, i.e., trilling or quavering

acclivity
an upward slope

languid
lacking spirit or energy

dogleg
a route that turns at a sharp angle

psoriatic
this is in reference to psoriasis, a skin condition that produces whitish, scale-like scabs of dead skin; the paint is flaking or peeling

eclectic
originating from a diverse variety of sources

Choosy Mothers
probably taken from the Jif peanut butter commerical slogan: "Choosy Mothers Choose Jif"

Endnote 241

passé
out of style

Page 583

midbrain
another name for the mesencephalon

intaglioed
engraved

disincentive
a deterrent

War of the Welles
a reference to the film War of the Worlds, itself adapted from the 1938 radio play by George Orson Welles (1915-1985), American actor and filmmaker

slack-key steel guitar
a combination of two Hawaiian guitar genres shown here

Don Ho
Donald Tai Loy Ho (1930-2007) was a Hawaiian musician.

Sol Hoopi Players
Solomon Ho'opi'i Ka'ai'ai (1902-1953) was another famous Hawaiian musician.

blue and white Quenucker flag
A blend word derived from "Quebec" and "Nuck" (offensive for Canadian, and seen throughout I.J.). The flag here is the Quebec flag, as seen to the right

dormer
a part of a building containing a vertical window sticking out of a slanted roof

JBL
an audio wares company

Page 584

skulk
to move about secretively

Shetland
a Shetland pony, giving some idea how big the dog is

towheaded
possessing a head of light blonde, almost white, hair

noblest oblige
a superlative pun on noblesse oblige, the requirement of the wealthy to be kind to those less fortunate

undulate
to move like waves

Hawaii Five-O
a television series than ran in the late 1960s and 1970s

Page 585

etiology
cause of a disease or condition

Southern Comfort
an orange-flavored sweetened liqueur based on whiskey

anomic
NOAD: lack of the usual social or ethical standards in an individual or group, (here, a possible malapropism for "anemic") (in context, the NOAD makes more sense)

no-load funds
mutual funds in which shares are sold without a commission or sales charge

dustruffle
also known as a bed skirt, a skirt of fabric intended to prevent the accumulation of dust beneath a bed

andante
in music, this word indicates a moderately slow tempo

Page 586

Don Ho: From Hawaii With All My Love
This doesn't appear to be a real record.

lalations
misspelling of "lallations," i.e., baby-talk

Day-Glo
a brand name of glow-in-the-dark fabrics

Geiger counter
a machine used to measure radioactivity

'My Lovely Launa-Una Luau Lady'
Nor does this appear to be a real song.

p.m.
per minute

Year of the Tucks Medicated Pad

Canadian
i.e., in French

Montego
either the Austin Montego or the Mercury Montego

cammed
equipped with an aftermarket camshaft to increase performance, perhaps here simply meaning custommized

slingshot dragster
a type of classic drag racing car pictured here

Page 587

swarthy
dark-skinned

Molson
a Canadian brand of beer

coheres
becomes logically consistent, i.e. coherent

scruff
nape of the neck

32-kilo
a little over 70 lbs

Party-Size Cubelets
miniature ice cubes

Page 588

aphasia
speechlessness

jabber
to talk rapidly

'Dyu!'
most likely Dieu!, French for "God!"

tailback
in American football, the back who is positioned farthest from the line of scrimmage

Page 589

180s
turns half-way around, i.e., 180º

lee
away from the wind