a legendary monster made up by the people of far-off wisconsin in a desperate attempt to convince people to go there and buy merchandise. clear parallels can be detected between the aliens supposedly seen in roswell, new mexico; mothman in parts of west virginia; and leonardo dicaprio in hollywood.

in any case, supposedly the hodag looks a bit like someone added a lot of spikes and fangs to a bull.

(noun):

A small yet mighty word that possesses the power to render previous statements utterly irrelevant.

(also: nice guys)

“You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one. I hope someday you'll join us. And the world will live as one.”
― John Lennon
(author: John Lennon)

(adj.) persistent, dogged, and not easily dispelled or dissuaded. like a stall vendor in a latin american tourist trap. or a d, i suppose.

No longer used by the timid. Said chiefly of words. A word which some lexicographer has marked obsolete is ever thereafter an object of dread and loathing to the fool writer, but if it is a good word and has no exact modern equivalent equally good, it is good enough for the good writer. Indeed, a writer's attitude toward "obsolete" words is as true a measure of his literary ability as anything except the character of his work. A dictionary of obsolete and obsolescent words would not only be singularly rich in strong and sweet parts of speech; it would add large possessions to the vocabulary of every competent writer who might not happen to be a competent reader.

What's normal anyways?
(also: life)
(also: the universe)
(also: humans)

Greek poet who wrote Iliad and Odyssey
(also: 100 most influential people in the world)
(also: homer quotes)

six hundred two sextillion, two hundred fourteen quintillion, seventy-five quadrillion, and eight hundred sixty-two trillion

a battle between the greeks and the trojans which probably never happened, but remains one of the most famous battles not in history.

the war allegedly began (sometime in the 12th century BC) over helen of troy, a queen who jilted her greek husband, king menelaus, for a trojan prince named paris. menelaus, incensed, declared war on the trojans and summoned his fellow greeks (including his brother agamemnon, who sacrificed his own daughter to the gods to get them some favorable sailing winds) to lay siege to the shining city of troy.

what follows is a long complicated story involving guys with long greek names, and is most notably summed up in homer's "iliad." the famous conclusion of the war, which actually isn't in said story, involved greeks sneaking themselves into troy inside a big wooden horse and massacring the populace. some of the participants got their own little self-contained sequels; for example, the tale of odysseus' return home in homer's "odyssey," and agamemnon getting iced by his wife in a play by aeschylus

To speak quietly enough so as not to be heard, yet loudly enough so as to make the people on the adjacent table aware they are being complained about.

Not to be confused with "shoomble", which refers to black markets exclusively trading in niche items.

Ex. "I swear they stole our wine menus," she shumbled from Table 7. "I'm going to steal them back when they're not looking."
"I swear they stole our wine menus," he shumbled from Table 5. "That's why I stole them back when they weren't looking."
"Fools", shumbled the waiter from the foyer. "With all these wine menus, I could start a shoomble."

(n.) one who's for hire by anyone with cold hard cash, especially a soldier

(adj.) describing one who's in it for the cold hard cash

(also: privateer)

(also: disco)

(also: techno)
(also: punk)

(also: 80s hair)
https://www.allure.com/gallery/80s-hairstyles-trends
(also: roller skates)
(also: scratch and sniff stickers)
http://www.liketotally80s.com/2008/08/scratch-sniff-stickers/

https://mentalitch.com/top-political-events-of-the-80s/
(also: war on drugs) (at its height)
https://drugpolicy.org/issues/brief-history-drug-war
https://slimemoldtimemold.com/2021/04/19/higher-than-the-shoulders-of-giants-or-a-scientists-history-of-drugs/

(also: hiv/ aids crisis)
https://www.history.com/topics/1980s/hiv-aids-crisis-timeline
(also: Tiananmen Square Massacre)
(also: cults)
https://www.arcgis.com/apps/Cascade/index.html?appid=7b33d5df643842a8875ff9f675ce6ae2
https://medium.com/s/how-to-cult/by-the-decade-notorious-20th-century-american-cults-d62939b065e5

sitting on a moving truck-car on a seat covered with hay not because you enjoy it but because you're not going to let fall pass by without once sitting on a moving truck-car on a seat covered with hay

An imaginary state or quality distinguished from the actual by an element known as excellence; an attribute of the critic.
The editor of an English magazine having received a letter pointing out the erroneous nature of his views and style, and signed "Perfection," promptly wrote at the foot of the letter: "I don't agree with you," and mailed it to Matthew Arnold.
(also: The Devil's Dictionary)

(n.) a device used to do a thing. the use of tools is a major component of intelligence.

the four main tools include the lever, the pulley, the inclined plane and their older brother the internal combustion engine. tools without good agents include hammers, screwdrivers, gimlets, tongs, other hammers, backscratchers, and many more.

Anyone not from 'round these parts. And we don't like those types 'round here.

The fall guy in either his best friend's (freedom fighter) causes or his girlfriend's (terrorist) machinations.

(also: freedom fighter)
(also: terrorist)

(noun) A majestic era of cultural rebirth, where art, intellect, and creativity danced the tango in ornate ballrooms. A time when great minds, bedecked in velvet and quills, waltzed through the corridors of history, leaving behind a tapestry of stunning masterpieces, towering intellect, and questionable fashion choices. A period that birthed both enlightened ideas and questionable hairdos, reminding us that even the greatest minds are not immune to the occasional style blunder.


Teaching Tip: Bring the Renaissance to life by incorporating artistic activities like painting or sculpting that allow students to experience the creativity and innovation of the time period firsthand. Additionally, consider using primary sources, such as artwork or literature, to spark discussions about the cultural, intellectual, and societal changes during the Renaissance.

an 1881 novel written by mary shelley. arguably one of the earliest known works of science fiction and the origin point for one of fiction's greatest monsters, nobody has read it, because there's a more popular movie.

the plot concerns an obsessive doctor who believes he can synthesize his own life form, but upon doing so, he fails to raise it properly, leading to a very bad wedding, an expedition to the north pole, and many ponderous philosophical arguments.

differences from the source material: in the book, the monster was motivated by revenge outright, and was pretty chatty. since the 1931 movie, people have thought of frankenstein's monster as a voiceless, child-brained hulk who doesn't fully realize the consequences of his own actions.

to be absolutely clear, the monster is not named frankenstein. the monster is never given a name. but we can call him dave, if you like. in any case he is widely acknowledged as one of the all-time groovy ghoulies, like dracula and the wolf man

A rich (and usually bald) old gentleman who has trained himself to grin while his conscience is picking his pocket.
(also: The Devil's Dictionary)