alaláw (Quechua) – an exclamation that people say when they feel cold (it is pretty close to “brrr!” though it’s more fun to say and more expressive); also, people say it when they hear someone describe a cold place, even if they are not cold at that moment themselves.
had an interesting conversation with my friend. we took turns coming up with one word that defined each of us, and he immediately blurted out the following word that he felt was me: rigmarole.while i had a somewhat negative image of what this word meant, i always liked the sound of it and it was an interesting word to say the least. i decided to look it up for further clarification. after referring to a traditional source, the oxford english dictionary, i found that i rather liked the definition, appreciated the origin of the word, and finally, embraced it as my own. i took it to mean that i simply live life, with all of its complications, and i share my stories, and though not all are long and rambling, i’m quite happy with that.
rigmarole
Syllabification: (rig·ma·role)
Pronunciation: /ˈrig(ə)məˌrōl/
noun [usually in singular]
Origin:
mid 18th century: apparently an alteration of ragman roll, originally denoting a legal document recording a list of offenses
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Stories are a communal currency of humanity. – Tahir Shah
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as i teacher, i enjoy spending time in the summer walking outside and have noticed that the great majority of people sharing the streets with me are off-seasonal workers. what an interesting bunch of characters we are. street performers, tax guys, mall santas, elves, reindeer, grinch, children, dogs, fellow teachers, train hoppers, sumos?. these are my people.
somehow, once again, i found myself trapped and wandering through the rat maze that is ikea, and with my incredible lack of anything even resembling a vague sense of direction, it took on a whole new level.
it’s definitely an extreme sports experience in itself, and after following the trail around and around, and eating a horse meat-laced meatball or two, and collecting lots of odd colorful plastic springsprongthingamajigs and blonde wood-ish items, i was left wondering what they were and what were meant to do.
i chose the items i did simply because they looked cool and really no other reason. and the fact that i felt like i had to get something so that i would be allowed to find my way out again. now that the olympic committee has dumped some of it’s current sports events, i’m considering proposing this whole experience to them for their consideration as an indoor winter sport. maybe a better match for the x-games though?
along the way, i swear i saw people nervously look over their shoulders and skitter through what looked like secret shortcuts and potential passageways out, only to never return. possible slides right to the checkout line or the parking lot?
whew – i need a swedish cocktail, if only i could figure out if that glass thing i put in my giant blue plastic bag was meant to be used as a cup or oil change pan?
skoal!!!!!!
Worry compounds the futility of being trapped on a dead-end street. Thinking opens new avenues.
while some might see this as a cheap way of getting out of buying a new toy, felix sees it otherwise. instead of going to the store, he took his giant pipe cleaners and created his own new stuffed friend, ‘crazyanimal’ and they are very happy together.
‘your imagination is your preview of life’s coming attractions’ – albert einstein
I didn't have my glasses on.... 