A.Word.A.Day with Anu Garg

marplot  noun   A meddlesome person who spoils a plan by interference.  After Marplot, the titular character in the 1709 play The Busy Body by Susannah Centlivre (1669-1723).  Marplot means well and tries to help only to get in the way of others and foul things up.  Earliest documented use:  1709.

Panglossian  (pan-GLOS-ee-uhn)  adjective  Blindly or unreasonably optimistic.  noun  One who is optimistic regardless of the circumstances.  After Dr. Pangloss, a philosopher and tutor in Voltaire’s 1759 satire Candide.  Pangloss believes that, in spite of what happens--shipwreck, earthquake, hanging, flogging, and more--“All is for the best in the best of all possible worlds.”  The name is coined from Greek panglossia (talkativeness).  Earliest documented use:  1831.

open sesame  (oh-puhn SAYS-uh-mee)  noun  Something that is an easy and effective way to bring out a desired result, gain access, etc.  From the phrase “Open sesame” that opened the door to the robbers’ cave in the story “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves”.  Earliest documented use:  1722.  

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From:  Jude Anne Cassidy  Nearly every episode of the Frasier show involved Frasier being a marplot.  In his case, it was his own plans that he was usually torpedoing, and the cause of his interference was that he was so smugly confident that he could make things/do things better than more inferior people could.  This theme started with Diane Chambers in Cheers.  I think these shows were so popular because it was both so satisfying and so tragic to see these marplots get their comeuppance. 

From:  Robert Beren   Excellent examples of marplot(s) are in the French movie Le Dîner de Cons, which is the original version of the American film Dinner for Schmucks.  It’s incredibly funny.  “Losers” are invited to dinner at the home of a rich man who, with his peers, ridicules these men.  These men (schmucks in the English version, but a lousy remake) get the rich men’s marriage, taxes, and lives destroyed by their actions and integrity and “good intentions”. 

From:  Marc Chelemer  Industrial Revolution aficionados will recall that Tom Thumb was the name given to the first steam locomotive built in the United States.  It was constructed in 1829.  Due to a mechanical failure partway through a supposed competition against a horse-drawn wagon, it lost an 8-mile race sponsored by the B&O Railroad in mid-1830s.  I was unable to find information as to why the locomotive’s builders named their machine “Tom Thumb,” though perhaps it was an ironic jape at themselves . . . calling what they hoped would be a technological breakthrough a name which meant “insignificant.”  The creation of a working steam locomotive DID turn out to be hugely influential in the movement of goods throughout the young America and paved the way for developments in railroads that transformed the country.

From:  Henry M. Willis  You offer the following definition for Tom Thumb:  “An insignificant or unimportant person, especially one who lacks the power or ability in spite of high rank.”  But General Tom Thumb, who toured with P.T. Barnum, defied that definition.  While his rank may have been fictitious, he was a genuine star of his era who relied on his artistic talent as well as his small stature to draw audiences.  And he could command respect.  Nearly 140 years ago, when the General’s tour brought him to San Bernardino, my grandfather snuck into the stable where the General’s carriage was being housed to get a closer look at it.  As he was about to climb in it a high-pitched voice challenged him by asking “What are you doing here?”  Not having a good answer, my grandfather ran off as fast as he could. The General’s small size didn’t matter, at least not to my grandfather. 

The history and development of Puerto Rican cuisine begins with the Taíno Indians, the natives Columbus found at discovery.  Some Taíno foods still used today include yuca, peppers, and corn.  The Spaniards brought a variety of new ingredients including olives, garlic, bacalao, and cilantro.  The various culinary specialties of the Iberian peninsula also had an important role in the development of the Puerto Rican food.  Link to recipes at http://www.elboricua.com/recipes.html 

14 Authentic Puerto Rican Recipes  https://insanelygoodrecipes.com/puerto-rican-recipes/ 

12 Easy Puerto Rican Recipes  https://izzycooking.com/puerto-rican-recipes/ 

Puerto Rican Recipes  https://www.foodnetwork.com/topics/puerto-rican 

Louis Prang (1824–1909) was an American printer, lithographer, publisher, and Georgist.  He is sometimes known as the "father of the American Christmas card".  In 1856, Prang and a partner created a press, Prang and Mayer, to produce lithographs.  The company specialized in prints of buildings and towns in Massachusetts.  In 1860, he bought the share of his partner, creating L. Prang & Company and began work in color printing of advertising and other forms of business materials.  The firm became quite successful, and became known for war maps, printed during the American Civil War and distributed by newspapers.  See graphics at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Prang 

Crayons are sticks of colored wax, charcoal, chalk or some other material used for drawing and coloring.  If they are made of oiled chalk then they are called “oil pastels”.  The word "crayon" was mentioned for the first time in 1644 but using wax with colors was a method known to Ancient Egyptians.  This method was not a crayon but more of a way to fix a color to a surface.  They used hot beeswax combined with colored pigment to bind color into stone.  Binney & Smith (today known as Crayola) started selling their crayons in 1903.   Eberhard Faber Pencil Company, which brought German lead pencil-making techniques to the United States, also sold wax crayons in 1883 but theirs were cedar wood encased crayons.  Prang Educational Company, founded by Louis Prang who is one of the fathers of art education in United States, manufactured watercolor crayons and sold them from the late 19th to the early 20th century.  http://www.historyofpencils.com/writing-instruments-history/history-of-crayons/ 

A group of 11 artists and activists has claimed the prestigious Turner Prize after transforming a gallery space into an Irish pub.  Array Collective, which uses installations, performance art and protest to explore social issues, was announced this year's winner at a ceremony in Coventry, UK, on December 1, 2021.  Oscar Holland  https://www.cnn.com/style/article/turner-prize-2021-array-collective/index.html  

December 3 is the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, which is recognized by the United Nations to promote an understanding of disability issues and mobilize support for the dignity, rights, and well-being of persons with disabilities.

http://librariansmuse.blogspot.com  Issue 2464  December 3, 2021