Prepare to enter the wild and wooly world of an adult with Aspergers Syndrome, a form of autism characterized by intellignce, quirks, social difficulties and downright strange and oddish behaviours.

People with Aspergers generally are high functioning in everyday life but have great difficulty connecting with others due to the inability to read faces, body language and subtle verbal clues. They also tend to take words literally and have a hard time multi-tasking.

Oversensitivity to touch (clothing has to be soft and often the tags removed), light (do not leave home without the sunglasses), sound (loud noises and noisey places are avoided), taste (many Aspies have quite a limited diet and are frequently very picky eaters) and smells makes the everyday existence more of a challenge.

Fasten your seatbelts and come on in...
To find out more about what Aspergers is..please check out my earliest blog entries

Tuesday, November 16, 2021

Fun Words and Quotes from Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell

I started reading Cloud Atlas tonight. As I looked up the new and unfamiliar words like Sheog, I found a blog that featured words from the first ten pages. Then it stopped. Thus I write and record to look up and clarify the words of Cloud Atlas.
pusillanimity- lack of courage or determination; timidity

guerno- ???

penurious- extremely poor; poverty-stricken 

bilged- to break a hole in the bilge of; the lowest point of a ship's inner hull

ordure- something regarded as vile or abhorrent


vassals- a person in a subordinate position to another

Chatham Island- the largest island of the Chatham Islands group, in the south Pacific Ocean off the eastern coast of New Zealand's South Island

fecundated- fertilize; make fruitful

"Peace, though beloved of our Lord, is a cardinal virtue only if your neighbors share your conscience."

extirpation- local extinction 

"The merciful plowing shoots a trusty horse grown too old for service."

ameliorate- make (something bad or unsatisfactory) better

aborgate- repeal or do away with; evade

renege- go back on a promise, undertaking, or contract


"As many truths as men."

simulacrums- an image or representation of someone or something

bestirs- makes a physical or mental effort

salt-horse - salted beef

despotism- the exercise of absolute power, especially in a cruel and oppressive way

victualing- providing with food

Aesculapian- relating to medicine or physicians

befell- to happen or occur

circumambulating- walk all the way around

mollyhawk- a medium-sized albatross 

diaphanous fog- light, delicate, translucent 

nebulous quilts- in the form of a cloud or haze; hazy

summery pillows- characteristic of or suitable for summer

bosky- wooded, covered by trees or bushes

hawser- a thick rope or cable for mooring a ship

ketch- a two-masted sailboat

fo'c'sle- the forward part of a ship below the deck, traditionally used as the crew's living quarters

thitherwards- toward that place

tempest- a violent storm; tumult, uproar

usurous- practicing usury (the illegal action of lending money at unreasonably high rates of interest

jackwood- a rainforest tree of Eastern Australia whose bark is dark brown or reddish-brown and often scaly

bowsprit- a spar extending forward from a ship's bow, to which the forestays are fastened

pique- interest or curiosity

lamentable- deplorable bad or unsatisfactory 

commodious- roomy and comfortable 

Friday is a Jonah amongst sailors; Jonah meaning bad luck

fripperies- showy or unnecessary ornaments

appurtenances- an accessory or other item associated with a particular activity or style of living

spectra of powders- spectrums or bands of colors, as seen in a rainbow 

unguents- soft greasy or viscous substances used as ointments or for lubrication

furtive- attempting to avoid notice or attention, typically because of guilt or a belief that discovery would lead to troubles; secretive

gratis- without charge; free

trice- in a moment; very quickly

desiderata- something that is needed or wanted

pillory- a wooden framework with holes for the head and hands, in which an offender was imprisoned

affright- frightened 

gaoler- someone who guards prisoners

certitude- absolute certainty or conviction that something is the case

cacophony- a harsh discordant mixture of sounds

alarum- alarm

arrack- an alcoholic liquor typically distilled from the sap of the coconut palm or from rice

dolorous- feeling or expressing great sorrow or distress

"Pain is strong, aye- but friends' eyes, more strong."

pidgin- denoting a simplified form of a language

vicissitudes- a change of circumstances or fortune, typically one that is unwelcome or unpleasant 

scrofula- a disease with swollen glands, probably a form of tuberculosis 

subjugation- the action of bringing someone or something under domination or control

condign- (of punishment or retribution) appropriate to the crime or wrongdoing; fitting and deserved 

storiated- decorated with historical, legendary, or emblematic designs

putative- generally considered or reputed to be

bestir- make a physical or mental effort; exert or rouse oneself

arras- a rich tapestry, typically hung on the walls of a room or used to conceal an alcove

"To fool a judge, feign fascination, but to bamboozle the whole court, feign boredom."

percipience- good understanding of things; perceptiveness

lunatick- lunatic, one who is foolish, dangerous, crazy

odiously- in an offensive and hateful manner

admixture- a mixture

laphrydictic ???

valetudinarian- a person who is unduly anxious about their health

"My doctor is an uncut diamond of thr first water."

Lethean- causing oblivion or forgetfulness of the past

"Homer lulls me"

phosphorescence- light emitted by a substance without combustion or perceptible heat

sinnet- braided cordage in flat, round, or square form

supernuminaires- exceeding the usual, stated, or prescribed number

satyr- a male nature spirit with ears and a tail resembling a horse

erudite- having or showing great knowledge 

mal de mar- another phrase meaning seasickness

bon gré mal gré-.good grace, bad grace; like it or not; willingly or not

harum-scarum - reckless; impetuoud

Delphic- ambiguous

astraddle- with the legs stretched widely on each side of

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