It's so comforting to have words to look up and think about and focus on and take my mind off my troubles. Everyone has troubles, I keep reminding myself, even you. Fortunately, I still have words to resort to. I'm on the last 100 pages of my summer thriller (Black Eagle and Grey Falcon, by Rebecca West), still loving it and still finding words, both old and new, to savour.

Gummidgery - hey, I need help with this one. It was described as purple, but the online dictionary is blank. I'll try my dictionaries of slang - later.

cuncatory - another blank. It has something to do with guile. Maybe the big OED will help.

galimatias - oh dear. No idea of the context.

Found a nice expression: "sleight of mind". I'm sure it takes much mental dexterity than the physical exigencies required by sleight of hand. I remember Malcolm Gladwell estimates that one needs 10,000 hours of practice before one can truly (?) - almost - qualify as competent, let alone expert - in anything. Talent would help, too.

bubo noun (pl.buboes) a swollen inflamed lymph node in the armpit or groin. DERIVATIVES bubonic |bjuːˈbɒnɪk| adjective ORIGIN late Middle English: from Latin, from Greek boubōn ‘groin or swelling in the groin’. [I guessed this one though I have never used it, but knew the description of bubonic plague.

profiline: Well, it's from profile, I guess, though this word is not given credit as an adjective . The noun has several definitions: 1 an outline of something, especially a person's face, as seen from one side: the man turned and she caught his profile.• a vertical cross section of a structure: skilfully made vessels with an S-shaped profile.• Geography an outline of part of the earth's surface, e.g. the course of a river, as seen in a vertical section. in soft rocks a profile drawn normally to the beach would show a concave form comparable with the long profile of a river.• a flat outline piece of scenery on stage. 2 a short article giving a description of a person or organisation: a profile of a Texas tycoon.• (on a social networking website) a user's summary of their personal details or current situation: he posted the pictures on his Facebook profile. 3 [ in sing. ] the extent to which a person or organisation attracts public notice: raising the profile of women in industry.4 a graphical or other representation of information relating to particular characteristics of something, recorded in quantified form: a sleep profile for someone on a shift system.• a record of a person's psychological or behavioural characteristics, preferences, etc.: they had been using personal details to build customer profiles.verb [ with obj. ]1 describe (a person or organisation) in a short article: he was to profile a backbench MP.2 represent in outline from one side: he was standing motionless, profiled on the far side of the swimming pool.• (be profiled) have a specified shape in outline: a proud bird profiled like a phoenix.• shape (something), especially by means of a tool guided by a template: (as adj. profiled) : profiled and plain tiles. PHRASESin profile (in reference to someone's face) as seen from one side: a photograph of Leon in profile. DERIVATIVES profiler noun: profilist noun ORIGIN mid 17th cent.: from obsolete Italian profile, from the verb profiler, from pro- ‘forth’ + filare ‘to spin’, formerly ‘draw a line’ (from Latin filare, from filum‘thread’). [I like it.]

iconostasis noun (pl.iconostases |-siːz| )a screen bearing icons, separating the sanctuary of many Eastern churches from the nave. ORIGIN mid 19th cent.: from modern Greek eikonostasis, from eikōn ‘likeness’ + stasis ‘standing, stopping’. [ Rebecca West saw a lot of iconostases during her two-month travels in the Middle East. I knew this word by the time I looked it up, I had seen it so often.]

crepitate |verb [ no obj. ]make a crackling sound: the night crepitates with an airy whistling cacophony. DERIVATIVES crepitant adjective ORIGIN early 17th cent. (in the sense ‘break wind’): from Latin crepitat- ‘crackled, rustled’, from the verb crepitate, from crepare ‘to rattle'. [I think this means fart.]

lustral adjective: relating to or used in ceremonial purification. in certain contexts, lustral basins are more plausibly interpreted as bathrooms. ORIGIN mid 16th cent.: from Latin lustralis, from lustrum. [I love it. It's the kind of euphemism that West would use.]

Aperol - I came across this elsewhere. It's a brand name, I think, and it is an aperitif, suggested to be mixed with champagne and a twist of orange. Sounds okay.

addiction noun [ mass noun ] the fact or condition of being addicted to a particular substance or activity: he committed the offence to finance his drug addiction. addiction to crack cocaine is spreading. [ count noun ] : an addiction to gambling. ORIGIN late 16th cent. (denoting a person's inclination or proclivity): from Latin addictio(n-), from addicere ‘assign’.

FACEBOOK. That's what it is. An addiction. I must be stern. i must give up Facebook. Or at least set limits.

Who ever said life is easy? No one. It's not.

There's a rain delay on the Blue Jays game. So suddenly I have time and energy to write - and I can't remember what I was going to write about. Most of my random thoughts during the day are blogworthy (to me) but if I don't scribble a note to myself, they leave me when I need them.

I'll look up a few words for us but I want to pause a moment and wonder at bloggers who go viral. To touch such a universal chord in people is awesome, especially when there are no graphics: no puppy dogs, sunsets, graffiti, food or sex.

Well, there's always the dictionary and always one or two valuable or useful discoveries. Sometimes I cheat a little and put in a word or two that I already know but do not easily use. I remember some writer I can't remember saying "I always have to look up egregious". After reading that, I never did.

kedgeree 1 a European dish consisting chiefly of fish, rice, and hard-boiled eggs. 2 another term for chichi. ORIGIN from Hindi khichṛī

Phanariot noun a Greek official in Constantinople under the Ottoman Empire. ORIGIN modern Greek phanariōtēs, from Phanar, chief Greek quarter of Istanbul, from Greek planarian ‘lighthouse’ (one being situated in this area). [I checked this one before . It's not sticking. No use for it. I don't play Scrabble.]

hubble-bubble noun a hookah. ORIGIN mid 17th cent.: imitative repetition of bubble [Now this surprises me. I expected it to be the origin of the abbreviated hubbub.]

hubbub noun [ in sing. ] a chaotic din caused by a crowd of people: a hubbub of laughter and shouting.• a busy, noisy situation: she fought through the hubbub. ORIGIN mid 16th cent.: perhaps of Irish origin; compare with the Irish exclamations ababú, abú, used in battle cries.

Well, you learn something every day!

"have a letch" used by Rebecca West (I'm still reading that book), followed by to and a verb. [There again ,my assumption was that a letch uses for and a noun.

lech (also letch) informal, derogatory noun a lecher. he was not the booze-swilling lech that he appeared to be.• a lecherous urge or desire: I think he has a kind of lech for you. verb [No obj.] act in a lecherous or lustful manner: businessmen leeching after bimbos. ORIGIN late 18th cent. (denoting a strong desire, particularly sexually): back-formation from lecher.

So where did West come up with letch to? [My Spel-Chek doesn't like that; I've had to reprimand it twice. It may change the spelling before I leave.]

turves plural form of turf. turf noun (pl. turfs or turves) [ mass noun ] 1 grass and the surface layer of earth held together by its roots: they walked across the springy turf.• [ count noun ] a piece of turf cut from the ground.• peat used for fuel. the smell of turf burning on a winter night. [ as modifier ] : a turf fire. [ count noun ] : each turf was cut and stacked. 2 (the turf) horse racing or racecourses generally: he spent his money gambling on the turf. 3 informal an area or sphere of activity regarded as someone's personal territory: he did not like poachers on his turf.verb1 [ with obj. and adverbial ] informal, chiefly Brit.force (someone) to leave somewhere: they were turfed off the bus. 2 [ with obj. ] (often as adj. turfed) cover (a patch of ground) with turf: a turfed lawn. ORIGIN Old English, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch turf and German Torf, from an Indo-European root shared by Sanskrit darbha ‘tuft of grass’.

Now I love words like that..

The rain has stopped and the Jays game has begun (Red Sox again). So that's that, for now.