Adam Sharp

Yeah she mentioned that and was raving about your session

There’s a modern Swedish word, skämskudde, which is a pillow that you use to cover your face in an embarrassing situation (for example, a sex scene in the middle of a film you’re watching with family). You could translate it as “shame pillow” or, if you prefer, “cringe cushion.”

Was in Hebden Bridge (such a lovely place) with @drkatherinelucyg.bsky.social this weekend. I hope your titles make it to every part of the globe

The Chinese word for oxymoron, 矛盾語, means “spear and shield word.” It refers to a story of a weapons merchant who claimed he had both shields no spear could pierce and spears that could pierce anything.

A list of seven oxymorons...

1. Pretty ugly
2. Fairly unjust
3. Kind of mean
4. Charm offensive
5. Microsoft Works
6. Government intelligence
7. Fun run

Until they actually find a way to make goblet squats include wine I’m just going to stick to doing my long favoured type of squat… diddly.

My favourite Hungarian phrase for describing karma at work is dexr is visszanyalt a fagyi. It means “the ice cream licked back.”

Icelandic uses various animal poop in insults. Examples: Sparðatíningur (lamb poop picking) = you’re nitpicking. Kríuskítur (arctic tern poop) = you’re super pale. Tittlingaskítur (small bird poop) = doesn’t matter/small fry. Taðskegglingur (horse poop beard) = you’ve such a bad/nonexistent beard.

A Catalan phrase that describes a situation where things go badly despite many people helping is set eren que l'agontaven i encara pixava tort. It means “seven were holding his dick, and still he was pissing crooked.”

The meanings of seven different types of animal poop in English…

7. Apeshit = angry
6. Batshit = unhinged
5. Bullshit = lies (or unfair)
4. Horseshit = bigger lies (or totally unfair)
3. Chickenshit = cowardly
2. Dogshit = inferior quality
1. Catshit = what you do when someone throws a ball at you

Alanis Morissette’s Ironic, but more literary…

🎵And isn’t it Byronic
Don’t you think
It’s like Twain on your Hemingway
It’s a free McBride when you’ve already Kincaid
It’s the Malcolm Pryce that you just didn’t take
And Hughes would’ve thought, Dave Eggers🎵

Author names that became adjectives include Kafkaesque, Shakespearean and Byronic (and isn’t it Byronic, don’t you think?).

Here are 10 suggestions for new ones…

1. Woolfish
2. Dickish
3. Orwell-endowed
4. Austentacious
5. Mannic
6. Audenary
7. Dahlicious
8. Remarqueable
9. Seusspicious
10. Poetic

I shall now go to look it up!

This is who runs this account.

I very much now wish to read this - immediately putting it at the top of my “publishes in the next year or two wishlist” (alongside Richard Heart Julianne by @ronanhession.bsky.social)

This is who runs this account

That was my sartorial high point I think, along with this dungaree-sandal combo…

This is who runs this account:

Just now finished Where You Once Belonged by Kent Haruf (oof what a gut punch of an ending) and about to start Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

I’ve also heard it as ‘Well THIS won’t get the baby ironed!’

My favourite way of saying “we’re on it” or “we’ll take care of that for you” is the Dutch we zullen dat varkentje wel even wassen. It means “we will certainly get that piglet washed.”

I hadn’t heard this before but very happy to learn of it - thank you!

My favourite way of saying “we’re on it” or “we’ll take care of that for you” is the Dutch we zullen dat varkentje wel even wassen. It means “we will certainly get that piglet washed.”

I've always preferred "Assault Possum".

I really appreciate that (it's tough out there in publishing right now so will take any help I can get!)

A little armored one / turtle rabbit in the wild

The word armadillo is borrowed from Spanish and simply means “little armored one.” But an even better word for an armadillo, in my opinion, is the Nahuatl ayotochtli. It means “turtle rabbit.”

A Venezuelan equivalent to “that’s like the pot calling the kettle black” is cachicamo diciéndole a morrocoy conchudo. It means “that’s like the armadillo calling the tortoise shelly.”