Pages 698-716

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698 · Introducing Ruth van Cleve

Page 698

Year of the Depend Adult Undergarment

Page 699

Endnote 285

catachresis
misuse of words, as in a mixed metaphor

Page 699 (cont'd)

Norfolk County
a county of Massachusetts bordering Rhode Island to the southwest

'...operating a pharmaceutical company without a license.'
i.e., he was running a meth lab

Page 700

700 (1) · Troelsch Gets Ready for Prime Time

Page 700

screwed
i.e., left

700 (2) · Pemulis at the Ceiling

Page 700

drop-ceiling
a ceiling where, instead of meeting sheetrock at the top of the walls, you reach a series of tiles (often fiberglass-filled) that are hung a few inches below the actual ceiling, sometimes for aesthetic reasons, sometimes to facilitate lighting, etc.

700 (3) · Meanwhile in the Locker Room

Page 700

hovers
hangs in air

701 (1) · Mario and Schtitt

Page 701

sidecar
a passenger car for a motorcycle, usually to the side of the cycle driver

701 (2) · The Moms Makes a Phone Call

Page 701

stern
i.e., the back end

701 (3) · More With Hal Watching Movies/Segue to Addiction

Page 701

wimple
a cloth that goes over the head, frames the face, and is tucked under the chin, worn by nuns

in violent medias res
In medias res is Latin for "in the middle of the thing, meaning, like many epic poems, the work begins in the middle of the story (e.g., the Iliad begins nine years into a ten-year war).

recumbency
here used to mean something one can lie down on

rheostat
another name for a "variable resistor," which is something that alters the value of a circuit without interrupting it - in this case, it is in reference to a light switch with a dial, which allows for dimming the lights

50-point
very large type — if your average typeface is 12 points, then this is four times as large

Page 702

emetics
drugs designed to make one vomit

descant
an ornamental melody or counterpoint sung or played above a theme

banks
to make something glance off a surface, here a spoon

Page 703

hanuman
a monkey held sacred in India

Endnote 288

The Continent's Best Yogurt
It actually stands for "The Country's Best Yogurt," but given the formation of O.N.A.N., the change seems fitting if not necessary.

Page 703 (cont'd)

cognoscenti
people having superior knowledge

wont
accustomed

Page 704

Langesque
in the style of Fritz Lang

tremulous
fearful and shaking

Indian-style
in the lotus position of yoga

Page 705

novenas
In Roman Catholicism, a novena is a devotion or set of prayers said over nine days.

crank cocaine
Methamphetamine and cocaine (the use of ether and baking soda implies freebase cocaine and crack cocaine, respectively; both of these freebase products are water insoluble and therefore cannot be introduced to the bloodstream via injection or snorting).

Endnote 290

stock
commonplace

Page 705 (cont'd)

matins and vespers
two of the nine prayer services a day in Catholic abbeys and monasteries

Trappists
members of the Order of Cistercians of Strict Observance, who do not, by the way, all take vows of silence

montage
a type of film sequence where a period of time is covered in short order with short (a few seconds) scenes, usually over music

Page 706

Promethean
boldly original

'Getting to Know You'
from The King and I

saccharine
sickeningly sweet

Lorimar's Dynasty
Lorimar was a production company and Dynasty a prime-time soap opera that aired in the 1980s.

shibboleths
Shibboleth is any language usage indicative of one's social or regional origin, or more broadly, any practice that identifies members of a group. (see Judges 12:4-6); Wikipedia

Page 707

Endnote 291

aperture
a small opening

Page 707 (cont'd)

catexic
This is an apparently made-up word, although "cathexic" means "emotionally charged."

Endnote 292

Endnote 292a

covalence-hungry isotopes
Isotopes of certain atoms combine with others to form covalent bonds.

gnomes
aphorisms

Waterloo
a city in Belgium where Napoleon suffered his final defeat — the term has come to mean "final defeat"

Page 707 (cont'd)

tannin
vegetable compounds tending to have a red color

Page 708

Raytheon
a major American defense contractor

float
i.e., the money keeping them afloat (figuratively)

rye
whiskey made from rye grain

Page 709

Ford Mystique
See one here.

Endnote 294

apostrophe
direct address of an absent person, in rhetoric

Page 710

autodidactic
self-taught

Logan
the major airport of Boston

Page 711

711 · Blood Sister Synopsis Continued

Page 711

novitiate
a novice of a religious order

recidivism
the state of falling back into a life of crime

de-mufflering
removing the muffler from her motorcycle, thus making it extra loud

Harley Hawg
a repetition in terms

jiggers
about an ounce and a half of liquor

Endnote 296

ferric oxide
i.e., iron oxide, or rust

F/X
a show business term for special effects

Page 711 (cont'd)

inimical
adverse in tendency or effect

accretes
increases

mace
a medieval weapon, basically consisting of a stick with a ball covered with spikes at the end

verger
a church official, such as a caretaker

Page 712

Marseillese
more properly Marseillaise, i.e., from Marseilles, France

octogenarian
in one's eighties

Confiteor
a penitent prayer said by Roman Catholics

Endnote 297

cowled
hooded

Page 712 (cont'd)

Kabuki
a form of Japanese theater

habitements
a neologism, probably just referring to the habits the nuns wear

Page 713

Champlain-era
of the era of Samuel de Champlain

Huron
the more common name for the Wyandot Indians

mahogany Christian object
i.e., the aforementioned crucifix

lapsarian
another neologism, probably referring to lapsing, as with one's faith

obeisance
a bow symbolizing obedience

nave
the part of the church with the pews on either side, facing the altar but not on the altar

"...with a sword and a plowshare..."
A plowshare is the cutting part of a plow; the reference is from Isaiah 2:4

Page 714

Smothergill
i.e., Phillip T. Smothergill, the former E.T.A. who starred in Himself's movies and whose name Hal couldn't remember

714 · Kate and Ruth Continued

Page 714

gargoyle
a small statue of a monster used to adorn churches and other buildings to ward off evil

Page 715

deft
dexterous or nimble

mafun ho
i.e., mother-fucking whore

Page 716