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☽ November 8th, YDAU - Interdependence Day - Mario's adaptation of The ONANtiad

Page 380

fiat
a formal authorization or proposition; an arbitrary order.

sucrotically
referring to sucrose, i.e. ordinary table sugar, α-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→2)-β-D-fructofuranoside, a disaccharide (one of many such) in which glucose and fructose are linked in a specific way

Endnote 147

pluck
courage or resolution in the face of difficulty

qua
in the capacity or character of

Page 380 (cont'd)

toque

Preacher's Hat

toque
a kind of brimless hat

flitty
OED: [obsolete] flitting, unstable, flighty

aigrette
a headdress or head ornament consisting of white egret's feathers, or incorporating something resembling this, such as a spray of gems. Also: an egret's feather, or tuft of feathers, esp. one forming part of such a headdress.

Endnote 148

sallet
a type of helmet, the forerunner of the modern combat helmets

calpac
a high-crowned felt or sheepskin hat worn in Turkey, Iran, and Central Asia

calotte
A skullcap, especially one worn by Roman Catholic priests

topography
a detailed description of something, usually a place or region.

escudo
Spanish for shield

shako
tall, cylindrical military cap, usually with a visor and sometimes tapered at the top

• 

  Sallet

• 

  Calpac

• 

  Calotte

• 

  Shako

Page 380 (cont'd)

maraschino
a marasca cherry

Redi-Whip
actually Reddi-wip, a brand name of pressurized whipped cream in a can

tendentiously
NOAD: expressing or intending to promote a particular cause or point of view, especially a controversial one

Page 381

Fedora

amanuentic
secretarial

fedoras
A fedora is a soft felt hat that is creased lengthwise down the crown and pinched in the front on both sides. Similar hats with a C-crown (with an indentation for the head in the top of the crown) are occasionally called fedoras. (see right) Wikipedia

baklava
a Near Eastern dessert made from filo dough, honey, nuts, and spices

Echt
German for "bona fide"

linotype
short form name for a linotype machine

'Let the call go forth . . . generation of Americans...'
Compare John F. Kennedy's inaugural address

né
French for "born," the feminine née being more common to denote a woman's birth name, but here the masculine né is appropriate as Gentle is a man

Joyner
not the real Johnny Gentle, who was born with the surname Askew and in the U.K.

retentive
here short for "anal-retentive"

Dermalatix
not a real product

Hypospectral
a neologism that would mean "below the [visible] spectrum [of light]," i.e., invisible

epidermal
of or pertaining to the outermost layer of skin

schmaltz
rendered chicken fat, used in cooking by Jews who keep kosher (among others), who cannot use lard or other rendered pork fat; in this context, it means sentimental or corny music

Endnote 149

Frankies and Tonies
likely a reference to crooners of the Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett ilk

Page 382 (cont'd)

scab
a derogatory word for a worker who replaces a union worker on strike

GE/RCA
General Electric/Radio Company of America

fulcrum
a support or point of rest

lap-dissolves
According to Wikipedia, a lap dissolve "is a technical term in film editing, most often used in the United States, applying to the process whereby the fading last shot of a preceding scene is superimposed over the emerging first shot (fade in) of the next scene..."

prescient
having previous knowledge

jingoist
patriotic to an extreme

macrobiotic
regarding a diet designed largely of whole grains and beans, designed to prolong life

Rush L.
Rush Limbaugh, the conservative host of a popular political radio talk-show

Hillary R.C.
Hillary Rodham Clinton, the former First Lady, and Secretary of State under President Obama

LaRoucheishly
a reference to Lyndon Hermyle LaRouche, Jr. (born 1922), a political extremist and cult leader

Endnote 150

dioxins
dioxin: a highly toxic compound produced as a byproduct in some manufacturing processes, notably herbicide production and paper bleaching. It is a serious and persistent environmental pollutant. [A heterocyclic organochlorine compound; alternative name: 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzoparadioxin]

high-R-waste
probably refers to high radioactivity; Roentgen (R) is a standard for measuring radiation.

Page 382 (cont'd)

post-Perot
i.e., after the immediate era of Texan H. Ross Perot, founder of Electronic Data Systems and twice an indepedent U.S. presidential candidate (in 1992 and in 1996, as the leader of his Reform Party)

white-gloved finger
implying that the finger is on the hand in a white glove, used to draw one's hand over a recently cleaned surface to see if any residual dirt remains

U.W.S.A.
United We Stand America, Perot's political movement

G.O.P.s
Republicans, G.O.P. standing for "Grand Old Party"

Jihad
an Arabic word meaning "struggle" but often translated as "holy war"

redolent
extremely fragrant

retinue
a body of attendants to a powerful person

psychosphere
sort of a synonym for collective consciousness

Page 383

"majestic ambers and purple fruits"
words, slightly jumbled, from "America, the Beautiful"

effluvia
invisible exhalations of noxious vapors

petroleated
neologism, making a past participle of the noun

CO
carbon monoxide

Uno
as in numero uno, number one

dandling
bouncing a baby up and down, as on one's knee

mufti
civilian clothes

adipose
adipose tissue, i.e., fat

fractious
unruly or angry

Page 384

Seal
the Great Seal of the U.S.

Teutons
The President seems to be using this as a place name (perhaps a malapropism of the Tetons), but Teutons is a term for German-speaking people.

imbricate-sequin dresses
dresses decorated with overlapping sequins

wavered
quavering in sound

Wurlitzer
the Rudolf Wurlitzer Company, a producer of organs

dusky
dark-skinned

entr' acte
French: between acts

Page 385

glycemically
in a manner that is motivated or caused by the level of sugar in the blood

cannolis
a type of Italian dessert pastry, stuffed with sweetened ricotta cheese

absolution
forgiveness of sins

jejune
childish or juvenile

Experialism
apparently another Wallace neologism, presumably the antonym of imperialism, and thus perhaps "empire-dismantling" as opposed to "empire-building"

J.J.J.C.
Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien

sympatico
in agreement

inexorable
unyielding

prandial
(for) eating

NATO
North Atlantic Treaty Organization

EEC
European Economic Community

oown
mock-Canadian pronunciation

NAFTA
North American Free Trade Agreement

butter and guns
These are the typical goods used in certain economic models because they are non-competing goods. A reference to the choice between military spending and spending on the general welfare.

infraternal
not a real word, but perhaps a Wallace (or Gentle) portmanteau of internal and fraternal (as "within the brotherhood"?)

Page 386

frappeurs
apparently a French expression for something that strikes something else; literally it means 'strikers', but it seems it's usually used to refer to batters in baseball and cricket

ICBM
Intercontinental Ballistic Missile

maple leaf
the national emblem of Canada

toot sweet
i.e., tout de suite, French for "right away" (which is pronounced very close to 'toot sweet')

'It's a Small World After All'
the song heard ad nauseam at a Disneyland boat-ride attraction

enjambment
the breaking of a line at the end of a verse (in a poem, song, etc.)

Meanwhile, in the Weight Room

Page 386

purling
flowing or rippling

Page 387

gurutical
not a real word, but apparently having to do with gurus

fulgurant
flashing like lightning

Page 388

glabrous
smooth, hairless

wunderkind
German: child prodigy

I/SPN
probably meant to be a follow-up television channel to ESPN

M. Chang
Michael Chang (born 1972) is an American former, but still-living, professional tennis player. Wallace misguessed Chang's early demise.

Mephistophelan
referring to Mephistopheles, the devil character in Goethe's Faust and Marlowe's Doctor Faustus, to whom Faust sells his soul

assuasive
soothing, calming

Page 389

hagiography
the biography of a saint

'The truth will set you free...'
Lyle is paraphrasing John 8:32.

alfresco
Al fresco in Italian means "outside."

Page 390

Seventh-Day Adventists
a Protestant sect of Christianity marked by its observance of the weekly sabbath on Saturdays

turpitude
depravity

dire
indicating trouble

C.F.D.C.
Caffeine-Free Diet Coke

The ONANtiad, cont.

Page 391

Benson & Hedges
a brand of cigarettes

high-lipid
high-fat

auteur
creator, author

UKRAINE, TWO MORE BALTIC STATES APPLY FOR NATO INCLUSION
Ukraine did not begin application for NATO membership until 2006, while the Baltic States were all admitted in 2004.

THERMS
thermonuclear warheads

twelve out of fifteen NATO nations
The last time NATO had fifteen members was in 1982, when Spain was admitted.

Finlandization
This is defined as "the influence that one powerful country may have on the policies of a smaller neighboring country" and refers to Finland's relations with the USSR following WWII.

Page 392

'BIG STICKS'
Jean Chrétien admits that the issues were used here as the "big stick" in the T. Roosevelt-era "speak softly and carry a big stick" foreign policy of President Gentle.

TURTLE MTN. INDIAN RESERVATION
a reservation for Chippewa Indians

Page 393

GI-X-Ray-Grade Colonic Purgative
the kind of laxatives given to people about to undergo colonoscopies (GI meaning Gastro-intestinal)

Pruritis
very bad itching

U.N.L.V.
University of Nevada at Las Vegas

D.O.E.
Department of Energy

METHUEN
a city of Massachusetts about 30 miles north of Boston

Scorcese
Martin Scorsese (b. 1942), American film director.

Page 394

Meanwhile, in the Weight Room, cont.

Page 394

Patridge KS
a city in Kansas about 60 miles northwest of Wichita

telekinetic
able to moves things with one's mind

somnambulist
sleepwalker

Page 395

calotte
a skullcap, typically worn by Roman Catholic acolytes

M.O.
Modus operandi, a Latin phrase meaning the way in which a criminal operates out of habit

DISCUSSION Or more generally, way of operating

DMV
Department of Motor Vehicles

oncologist
a physician who treats cancer

Some of Himself's Movies

Page 395

masochistic
tending to enjoy pain to the point of sexual response; cf. sadistic, tending to derive sexual pleasure from the infliction of pain on another

Page 396

sucrose
table sugar

siren
a reference to the Sirens of Greek mythology

56-gram
about two ounces

Ford's Theater
This is the theater where President Lincoln was assassinated.

muttonchops
very thick sideburns

involuted
complicated; abstruse.

petrification
the process of turning into stone

Ste. Thérèse
Her full name Thérèse de Lisieux

Page 397

cottoned
took a liking to

marquees
the lighted signs on which theaters announce what is playing

dirndls
women's dresses with close fitting bodices and full skirts

Page 398

loo
the British word for "bathroom"