C’mere—the quick, reduced version of Come here—is an example of what linguists call an allegro form, a sped-up, casual pronunciation or spelling created through phonetic reduction. The lento form, in contrast, is the longer version. In musical notation, allegro refers to “fast” and lento refers to “slow.” http://waywordradio.org

1671-Caller-Wanda-C'mere

Susie Dent’s murder mystery Guilty by Definition (Bookshop|Amazon) includes the word grob, an obsolete word meaning “to in the dark search by the sense of touch,” as when feeling around in one’s pocket for change. http://waywordradio.org

1671-Grob

Susie Dent’s murder mystery Guilty by Definition (Bookshop|Amazon) follows a lexicographer in Oxford who becomes a sleuth of a different kind, seeking the culprit in a long-unsolved killing. A lexicographer herself, Dent includes lots of obscure and obsolete words, such as conjobble, a verb that in the 17th century meant “to eat, drink, and talk.” http://waywordradio.org

1671-Intro-Guilty-by-Definition

League of the Lexicon is a wide-ranging trivia game for language lovers with thousands of questions on all matters linguistic. Creator Joshua Blackburn has also compiled a treasure trove of linguistic delights in a companion volume called The Language-Lover's Lexipedia (Bookshop|Amazon). http://waywordradio.org

1671-Lex-Bag-League-Of-The-Lexicon

Temperature blankets are a visual and tactile mirror of the day's weather. Knitters use specific shades of yarn to match daily temperatures, creating a colorful, cozy record of weather over a given period of time. Plus, a new book chronicles the history and uncertain future of modern dictionaries. And: try replacing the term bucket list with bliss list. It’s a great strategy to help you focus on finding joy in small, meaningful moments every single day. Also, Your epidermis is showing, a puzzle about funny pronunciations, efficacy vs. effectiveness, voiceless labial-velar approximants, gig economy, the meaning of 73 among ham radio operators, go gunnybags, to Elmer someone, the historical present, and better than snuff, but not near as dusty. http://waywordradio.org

Safe as Houses (Full Episode)

Melissa in Charlotte, North Carolina, remembers her grandfather would describe something excellent as  better than snuff, but not near as dusty. The snuff in this case refers to finely ground smokeless tobacco. Variants include finer than snuff, not near as dusty and better than snuff, gooder than taters, as well as gooder than taters, better than snuff, and gooder than snuff, sweeter than a Sunday hymn. All of these arose at a time when snuff was regarded as a healthy, fashionable stimulant, an idea echoed in phrases like up to snuff. http://waywordradio.org

1672-Caller-Melissa-Gooder-Than-Snuff

Miley in The Dalles, Oregon, asks about going gunny bags meaning to “break down” or “go haywire.” Her mother uses this expression, but has no idea where she picked it up. The term gunny sack, referring to a bag made of coarse material such as jute, comes from an East Indian term meaning “sack,” so gunny sack is a pleonasm that means “sack sack.” The Dictionary of Canadianisms on Historical Principles includes an entry for gunny-bag meaning to “beat out a fire with gunny sacks,” suggesting frantic improvisation. The mystery writer Judith Jance uses the term go gunnybags quite frequently in her work, and since Miley’s mother is a big fan of Jance’s novels, it’s quite possible that’s where she picked up the phrase. http://waywordradio.org

1672-Caller-Miley-Going-Gunny-Bags

Stefan Fatsis has made a career out of participatory journalism. For his book Word Freak (Bookshop|Amazon) about the world of competitive Scrabble, he became an expert player. For A Few Seconds of Panic. : A 5-Foot-8, 170-Pound, 43-Year-Old Sportswriter Plays in the NFL (Bookshop|Amazon), he trained for a season as a placekicker for the Denver Broncos. So it’s perhaps not surprising that, given his passion for dictionaries, he embedded himself as a lexicographer-in-training at the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, writing or revising definitions for such words as microaggression, alt-right, and burkini. He writes about this in UNABRIDGED: The Thrill of (and Threat to) The Modern Dictionary (Bookshop|Amazon). http://waywordradio.org

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I'm excited to share my brand new Sketch: The Reprise EP. Produced by veteran Nashville producer and musician Paul Scholten, Sketch: The Reprise is a re-release of my 2013 debut EP Sketch, featuring re-produced and re-mastered songs, originally from the Sketch EP, as well as an exclusive new track titled ‘Forever’.

Sketch was always that -- a sketch, rough, unfinished, a prelude to something fuller, to a more complete image. A body of work good enough to give a sense of my direction as an artist, yet devoid of completeness. Something clear enough to let the observer see basic forms and perspective, yet begging to not be used as total definition for my creative intent or ability.

Recorded in Lagos, Nigeria and Nashville, Tennessee, with original production by some of West Africa’s finest new producers: Atta LeNell, IBK Spaceshipboi, Laitan Dada and Amos Kantiok.

Cover Illustration by Arina Tarasova.

Buy on iTunes

04 Always

“I have drunken deep of joy,
And I will taste no other wine tonight.”

― Percy Bysshe Shelley

04 Always

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