Superior Person's Tuesday!

Ustulate a. Scorched. The Superior Person’s word for sunburned.

It's the sure sign of a bad day when you have ustulate toast for breakfast.

Each Tuesday, we’ll offer up a Superior Word for the edification of our Superior Readers, via the volumes of the inimitable Peter Bowler. You can purchase all or any of the four Superior Person’s Books of Words from the Godine website. Ustulate appears in the First.

Superior Person's Tuesday!

Nostrificate v. To accept as one’s own. “Don’t lean too far over the edge of the monkey pit, children; they are all too likely to nostrificate you."

Nostrification at its cutest.*

*If you like cute pictures of inter-species friendships, you're in luck – the Internet is loaded with them.

Each Tuesday, we’ll offer up a Superior Word for the edification of our Superior Readers, via the volumes of the inimitable Peter Bowler. You can purchase all or any of the four Superior Person’s Books of Words from the Godine website. Nostrificate appears in the Second.

Superior Person's Tuesday!

Cicurate v. To tame, or reclaim from a state of wildness. “Belinda, I’m not having that young man of yours in the house until he’s been thoroughly cicurated.”

The circus lion looked ferocious, but he was as harmless as a kitten once he was cicurated.

Each Tuesday, we’ll offer up a Superior Word for the edification of our Superior Readers, via the volumes of the inimitable Peter Bowler. You can purchase all or any of the four Superior Person’s Books of Words from the Godine website. Cicurate appears in the First.

Handy Tip: Easter Egg Dolls

There are plenty of crafts around Easter, but coloring eggs can get messy, and if no one in the family eats hard-boiled eggs, they can go to waste. To incorporate an egg-themed craft into the holiday without having to boil any eggs or break out the coloring kit, try this activity from The American Girls Handy Book.

The authors of the book preface this activity as a means to mimic the dolls and toys in the toy stores of New York. For those unable to visit the Big Apple or who can’t afford such a luxurious toy, Lina and Adelia Beard recommend this creative Easter craft.

Step 1: Prepare the egg

• “Begin with several nice large eggs … blown or emptied of their contents
• To do this, “make a small hole in each end of the shell … put one hole to the lips; then blow, not too hard, but steadily until the egg has all run out of the other end.”

Step 2: Paint the egg
This is where we can get creative with materials or design. For classic, vintage looks, try these instructions:

• Lay tracing paper over a face from a picture book and trace the lines and features of the face with a soft lead pencil.
• Place the tracing paper (pencil-side down) on the shell (with the more narrow end of the egg facing down so that it mimics the shape of a face). Transfer the lines by tracing the lines that you’ve drawn on the tracing paper with “a hard pencil” or “knitting needle.”
• “Touch up and strengthen the features with a fine paint-brush and india-ink” or with the medium of your choice.

Step 3: Decorate

• Use a small box (or make one) and cut a hole in the bottom large enough to fit the small end of the shell (this supports the head and makes shoulders)
• Add material for hair if you’d like (The Handy Book suggests raw cotton dyed with india-ink)
• Create clothing, headdresses, or a hat for your egg doll. This can be done by creating a diagram like the one illustrated in the book, pictured here. Use materials like wrapping or tissue paper.

Be creative with your designs. The authors suggest a few friendly characters seen above, like an owl, Miss Roly-Poly (who cannot be knocked down!), Humpty Dumpty, and so forth. Enjoy!

The American Girls Handy Book, first published in 1887, was written by two of the founders of the Girl Scouts of America. It's a beloved, vintage Americana guide book, filled with activities that transport readers back to a time before TV and are guaranteed to keep kids busy and entertained. You can purchase it on the Godine website.

Superior Person's Tuesday!

Jargogle v. To befuddle or mess up. “Congratulations, dearest; I wouldn’t have thought it possible, but you’ve found something else to jargogle.”

Wile E. Coyote always seemed to jargogle his plans to catch the Road Runner.

Each Tuesday, we’ll offer up a Superior Word for the edification of our Superior Readers, via the volumes of the inimitable Peter Bowler. You can purchase all or any of the four Superior Person’s Books of Words from the Godine website. Jargogle appears in the Second.

Superior Person's Word of the Week!

Quakebuttock n. A nicely scornful word for a coward.

"If only I weren't such a quakebuttock," thought the Cowardly Lion.

Each Tuesday, we’ll offer up a Superior Word for the edification of our Superior Readers, via the volumes of the inimitable Peter Bowler. You can purchase all or any of the four Superior Person’s Books of Words from the Godine website. Quakebuttock appears in the First.

Superior Person's Tuesday!

Defenestration, n. The act of throwing someone or something out of a window. A word that is neologism's paradigm and justification. If the word were not needed to describe the act, the act would need to be performed to justify the word.

Defenestration seemed like the only solution for the slow computers at the office.

Each Tuesday, we’ll offer up a Superior Word for the edification of our Superior Readers, via the volumes of the inimitable Peter Bowler. You can purchase all or any of the four Superior Person’s Books of Words from the Godine website. Defenestration appears in the First.

A "Handy Tip" for the Approaching Storm

Today’s handy tip comes from The American Boy’s Handy Book, Chapter 27

By now you've probably heard about a little storm that is quickly approaching, potentially dropping two feet (or more!) of snow across the Northeast. Many of us will be stuck at homes for the next 36 hours – what can you do to pass the time?

If you have kids (or just a strong connection to your inner child), they'll probably be itching to get outdoors and start creating anything they can out of snow. What could be more fun than building a snow fort? In a snow fort, you can rule over your snow kingdom or strategize for your next snowball fight. The American Boy's Handy Book has us covered for winter fun, including this handy tip for the perfected creation of a snow fort. With the impending blizzard approaching the Northeast, it seems like the perfect time for this handy tip! (Disclaimer: we recommend waiting until after the white-out conditions have passed before venturing outside. Stay safe!)

The proper building of a snow fort:

1. For a group of ten boys, it is recommended that a square fort foundation be determined with sides of 10 feet. Trace lines in the snow to create the foundation.
2. Tip: “Care must be taken to have the corners of the square opposite the most probable approach of the enemy. This will leave the smallest point possible exposed to the attack.”
3. Start rolling large snowballs: “as large and dense as possible.” Roll the giant snowballs into place on the traced lines.
4. After all four sides have been covered with large snowballs; the company of boys may pack the crevices and holes with snow until the walls have been filled.
5. Using spades and shovels; the next step requires the walls to be flattened and trimmed out into perpendicular shapes on each side, in order to give the fort the appearance of the base of a pyramid. For example: “the top of the wall may be two feet broad and the base four feet.”
6. To complete the snow fort, a mound of snow should be made in the very centre of the fort to support the flagstaff.

A young female snowball warrior has created a weak point in her fort where enemy snowballs may enter, but demonstrated her skills in packing crevices quite nicely. 

The American Boy's Handy Book was first published in 1882, and was written by one of the founders of the Boy Scouts of America. It's a beloved, vintage Americana guide book, filled with activities that are guaranteed to keep kids busy and entertained. You can purchase it on the Godine website.