What’s the good word?

Lee A. Dean screendoor@sbcglobal.net

It’s confession time: I’m an incorrigible logophile. Now before you go to the phone and call the cops, the definition of “logophile” is simple: someone who loves words. This is certainly a useful behavior trait for a writer, but not one not shared by everyone who practices the craft. Some writers obsess over larger pieces of the puzzle, such as sentences and paragraphs. I get nerdy about finding the most fitting word for the occasion.

Other times, I simply enjoy using certain words because they’re fun to say and write. This kind of pizzazz (marvelous –all those z’s) goes against my Quakerish value of plain speaking, but a little color never hurt anyone.

My father planted the seed for the use of what he called “50-cent words.” Instead of threatening me with a spanking, he would proclaim, “If your behavior does not change, I will chastise your posterior extremity.” I looked up the new words and altered my behavior accordingly. Most of my favorite words are multisyl- labic (more than one syllable) — for example, “multisyllabic.” A person can sound quite smart when all those syllables roll off the tongue. Here are two prime examples.

Skullduggery: We could say that someone is “up to no good” but this phrase doesn’t convey the same sense of menace as “skullduggery.”

Preposterous – The minor league way to express displeasure about a statement is to say, “That’s stupid!” Why settle for that sophomoric taunt when you can employ, “That’s preposterous!” The double “p” gives the word extra punch. No one used it with more skill than the late great Charles Krauthammer.

There are a series of older words perfectly suited for a political debate. Instead of banal recent examples like “Why don’t you shut up, man?” or “There’s nothing smart about you,” candidates could turn the clock back and find words with more snap and style.

I would seriously consider voting for candidates who use any of the following words in reference to their opponent: knave, poltroon, mountebank, and nincompoop. Want my vote? Look at your opponent and say, “You sir (or madam) are a scoundrel and a calumniator!”

Certain writers are masters of invective, including one of my journalistic heroes, H. L. Mencken. The Sage of Baltimore would often employ such gems as balderdash, flapdoodle, and piffle on his targets.

For example, Mencken cudgeled President Warren Harding for the quality (or lack thereof) of his written English: “It drags itself out of the dark abysm of pish, and crawls insanely up the topmost pinnacle of posh. It is rumble and bumble. It is flap and doodle. It is balder and dash.” This isn’t kind language, but if you’re going to be mean, at least be artful about it. The most recent presidential debates are a stark reminder of two of my other favorite phrases, both coming from the American South: hissy fit and conniption fit. A hissy fit is when someone yells and waves their arms. A conniption is when someone yells, waves their arms, and throws things.

English has borrowed liberally from other languages to add spicy words to our common speech. Yiddish has given us words like schmuck and putz, each of which has a rather earthy bodily origin. Other words come from acronyms, such as snafu and fubar (look them up yourself for the meaning, as this is a family publication).

A set of other words related to “skullduggery” denote someone who engages in certain antisocial activities. A scalawag or a rapscallion stays out late at night, traipsing or gallivanting in search of nefarious pleasure. However, if this activity persists, these miscreants run the risk of encounters with the constabulary and subsequent incarceration.

There is one complimentary word that should be far more prominent, but I rarely see or hear it. This is a word that describes someone who operates with self-confidence or assurance in a challenging situation. The word is “aplomb,” and it is the direct opposite of a hissy fit. My bias in favor of the older words supports a belief that older people should not use young folks’ slang. We should act, and speak, our age. Phrases such as “cray cray” (slang for “crazy”), natty (as in “national championship”), and trudat (“true that”) should be avoided at all costs. We don’t need to be hip. We’ve outlived most of you.

A final classification of favorite words is known as “onomatopoeia.” (Whose idea was it to coin a six-syllable word to describe words of one syllable?)

If you remember your ninth grade English, onomatopoeia words are those that sound like what they describe. These words are wonderful little descriptive darts: splat, clang, grunt, fizz. Followers of modern music may be familiar with “skronk,” which describes a discordant trebly guitar tone.

I hope you enjoyed this exploration of my favorite words. In fact, I hope you got a bang out of it.

Rosemary Magic!

by Laura Kurella

Perhaps best of all, as one of the most aromatic of the herbs, rosemary helps us to elevate the flavor of our food! offering a pungent taste that is a bit lemony-piney-mintysagey-peppery, rosemary can help counteract richness and fattiness, enabling it to pair well with poultry, oily fish, lamb, beef, and game, especially when roasted. Rosemary also enhances tomatoes, grains, spinach, peas, onions, potatoes, and mushrooms as well. Whether to use fresh or dried is dependent upon convenience, and recipe use.

Beautiful Rosemary Chicken Con Broccoli

Approximate servings per recipe: 4.

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, butterflied into 4 pieces flour for dusting

2 tablespoons light olive oil

2 cloves of garlic, minced

4 large sprigs of fresh rosemary (2 for garnish)

14 ounces low-sodium chicken broth

1/2 pint heavy cream

1/4 cup butter

1 cup Orecchiette pasta, cooked al dente

3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan, divided use

1 fresh crown of broccoli, cut into small florets

Dust chicken cutlets with flour. Heat oil in a large skillet on a high flame for 2 minutes. Add minced garlic and chicken. Sear on high flame for five minutes. Flip meat. Add chicken broth and the needles of one sprig of rosemary. Bring to a boil. Simmer for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan on a low flame, melt butter. Add your milk choice and cook on the lowest flame possible, until needed, about 30 minutes. In a large pot, bring 2 quarts of water to a boil. Add pasta and cook, stirring, for approximately 12 minutes or till they become “al dente” (noodles will finish cooking later in recipe).

Place broccoli florets in a heat-safe bowl. When pasta reaches al dente, strain pasta, over the bowl of broccoli, so that hot pasta water completely covers broccoli florets. Let broccoli bathe in the hot pasta water bath until it turns bright green, about 3 minutes, then drain.

Meanwhile, rinse pasta with cold water to stop the cooking process. Returning to the chicken skillet, remove chicken to a warm plate. Add milk mixture to skillet then add the minced leaves of one rosemary sprig then the Parmesan. Over medium heat, bring the skillet to a boil. Add pasta and stir, cooking for two minutes, then add chicken. Strain broccoli and add it to the skillet as well. Let the skillet cook for a minute or two to ensure all ingredients come up to the same temperature. Serve immediately.

DISH ENHANCEMENT: To further elevate this dish, try adding in a little spinach (fresh or frozen) too!