quorum

the devils dictionary
A sufficient number of members of a deliberative body to have their own way and their own way of having it. In the United States Senate a quorum consists of the chairman of the Committee on Finance and a messenger from the White House; in the House of Representatives, of the Speaker and the devil.
(also: The Devil's Dictionary)

baptism

the devils dictionary
n. A sacred rite of such efficacy that he who finds himself in heaven without having undergone it will be unhappy forever. It is performed with water in two ways—by immersion, or plunging, and by aspersion, or sprinkling.

But whether the plan of immersion
Is better than simple aspersion
Let those immersed
And those aspersed
Decide by the Authorized Version,
And by matching their agues tertian.
—G.J.

(also: The Devil's Dictionary)

oppose

the devils dictionary
To assist with obstructions and objections.

How lonely he who thinks to vex
With badinage the Solemn Sex!
Of levity, Mere Man, beware;
None but the Grave deserve the Unfair.
—Percy P. Orminder

ginger

orikami
(n.) treatment of which has often been a manifestation of fear of the unknown, fear of "the other." having ginger hair is more common through certain populations, like Scots, Irishmen, Basque.

(link is working, though it appears broken)

A couple of G's, an R and an E, an I and an N
Just six little letters all jumbled together...

godzilla

trustycoffeemug
a fixture of japanese pop culture who may arguably qualify as a middle-tier deity. first reaching movie screens in 1954 as the brainchild of screenwriter shigeru kayama, director ishiro honda, special effects whiz eiji tusburaya, and a nuclear bomb, godzilla traditionally takes the form of an oil-tanker-sized, bottom-heavy lizard with lumpy skin (though his name originally meant "gorilla-whale").

originally intended as a parable for the devastation wrought on the world by the advent of atomic weapons in the mid-20th century, and the lingering trauma felt by those who saw firsthand the dehumanization of war, nowadays he just kinda fights other big monsters and aliens and robots and so on so we can marvel at big flashy explosions. In this way he could be regarded as an inspiration on those rambo movies.

godzilla's long career can be divided into several distinct eras:
* Showa (1954-1975)
* Heisei (1984-1995)
* Millennium (1999-2004)
* And Reiwa, the attempt to bring him back to his arthouse origins. Also, the Americans tried making their own godzilla films, but they tried making their own chocolate too, and look how that turned out.

dove

trustycoffeemug
(n.) a painfully stupid bird prone to screeching, violent spasms and getting itself killed flailing against panes of glass. regarded as a symbol of peace, presumably because they're so fragile and have trouble defending themselves

no

boo
(adverb): A word that means the opposite of "yes" but is often used ironically to actually mean "yes". Because why be straightforward when you can make people guess?



living water

orikami
(n.) step two if your beloved has been cut to pieces in a fairytale: now pour the living water, the water of life. rejoice, for your beloved is with you once more! do not drink the living water. the gods frown on you testing their goodwill so. the water of life is for sacred purposes, not petty thirst. be on your way now, you still have a ways to go on your quest.

https://nicholaskotar.com/2018/10/05/living-and-dead-water/

(also: dead water)
(also: magical water)
(also: slavic folktales)

man

the devils dictionary
An animal so lost in rapturous contemplation of what he thinks he is as to overlook what he indubitably ought to be. His chief occupation is extermination of other animals and his own species, which, however, multiplies with such insistent rapidity as to infest the whole habitable earth and Canada.

When the world was young and Man was new,
And everything was pleasant,
Distinctions Nature never drew
'Mongst kings and priest and peasant.
We're not that way at present,
Save here in this Republic, where
We have that old régime,
For all are kings, however bare
Their backs, howe'er extreme
Their hunger. And, indeed, each has a voice
To accept the tyrant of his party's choice.

A citizen who would not vote,
And, therefore, was detested,
Was one day with a tarry coat
(With feathers backed and breasted)
By patriots invested.
"It is your duty," cried the crowd,
"Your ballot true to cast
For the man o' your choice." He humbly bowed,
And explained his wicked past:
"That's what I very gladly would have done,
Dear patriots, but he has never run."
—Apperton Doke

(also: the devils dictionary)

food

trustycoffeemug
(n.) any of a series of organic substances derived from a specific set of carbon monomer bases which living beings assimilate through digestion in order to perpetuate their lives, as though it will fill the holes in their sad little existences

impacts of the climate

boo
To convey the impacts of climate change, tell your students that if Earth were a pizza, we've been adding way too many "greenhouse toppings" that are making it cook faster than expected, leaving us with a crispy planet that's harder to digest

retribution

the devils dictionary
A rain of fire-and-brimstone that falls alike upon the just and such of the unjust as have not procured shelter by evicting them.
In the lines following, addressed to an Emperor in exile by Father Gassalasca Jape, the reverend poet appears to hint his sense of the imprudence of turning about to face Retribution when it is taking exercise:


What, what! Dom Pedro, you desire to go
Back to Brazil to end your days in quiet?
Why, what assurance have you 'twould be so?
'Tis not so long since you were in a riot,
And your dear subjects showed a will to fly at
Your throat and shake you like a rat. You know
That empires are ungrateful; are you certain
Republics are less handy to get hurt in?
(also: The Devil's Dictionary)

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