A dictionary/glossary/lexicon as sort of a cosmic, meeting of the minds, collaboration of the likes of Dan Webster, Sam Johnson, Ambrose Bierce, Hunter S. Thompson, Wm. F. Buckley, Grouch Marx, W. C. Fields and many more... even though its editors are obscure unknowns with dreadfully dangerous senses of humor. WARNING: This website may contain some slightly adult content - get parental viewing approval if you are 18 or under!
The Passage of our Senior Editor's Father: Though not a true dictionary entry, we thought we should make note of the passage of our Senior Editor's father. George James passed away on Sunday December 19, 2010 (though the COD says Monday December 20, 2010) and he was just 76 years young. Though an autopsy would have been requested by our editor, the rest of his family passed on it without asking his opinion (!).
At the time, GJ had been suffering from two pneumonias (Serratia and Pseudomonas) as well as the now dreaded MRSA! Although Dad seemed to have responded successfully to treatments with massive doses of Vancomycin and 5 days treatment with Tobramycin. He was eventually discharged from his 4th hospital stay and housed in a very good medical facility. Unfortunately, the MRSA must have entered his bloodstream on or about the 19th as our editor found GJ foaming badly at the mouth - which appears to have meant that his organs were shutting down.
His father responded positively to a request for an ambulance (which he never does!) and the ambulance came and took him away on a portable ventilator. GJ was placed on a CPAP Ventilator once in the trauma room and remained so in the ICU. No amount of 'pressors' could have preserved him as he appeared to be in complete shutdown - though our editor hoped desperately and tearfully otherwise. He probably had no conscious mind nor spirit during this time and passed on probably that day. Which is why an autopsy may have been helpful (or not). Perhaps it could have positively identified MRSA in the bloodstream at that time - or not...
Looking back over the previous events, two of GJ's doctors at two of his previous hospital stays had predicted his death within a short while - possibly months. Which came true just before this Christmas...
Hospital Nomad / Medical Odyssey: It is hoped that this posting/definition will give you some insight as to where we have been just over the past 2 months. Our Senior Editor's 70+ years young father took very sick in early September and had to be whisked away to an emergency room. He was having severe nausea and chronic vomiting (guess who got to clean the bucket?...) for a period of over 24+ hours. Having suffered this way, he finally asked for medical care - and got it that day.
Our Senior Editor and his father found out that he had a partial bowel obstruction - along with several other chronic medical conditions. A naso-gastric tube was installed & removed about 1500 ml. of dark bile over a period of 30+ hours - thus avoiding surgery. The recovery in the hospital took about 6 days. Plus, we also found that Dad had lost his core/trunk strength (he had displayed some kyphosis earlier in April), leg strength, became dysphagic and was declared NPO. Dad has basically been a bed-bound invalid, unable to swallow, since this time. We will refer to this hospital as HSJ.
A swallow evaluation/study was done on Dad in their fluoroscopy dept. which determined that he aspirated when swallowing. Even worse, he displayed no symptoms (asymptomatic). Thus, he might have been dysphagic for a long time without even knowing it. He has the possibility of contracting aspiration pneumonia if he attempts to swallow anything - which could even be lethal.
Thus was the beginning of Dad's medical odyssey. Our Senior Editor and his brother being so concerned (this is their last living parent) that our Editor slept over many, many nights in more than one hospital with his father. Thus giving rise to the term Hospital Nomad. In the periods between hospitalization, Dad has spent three separate occasions in Medical Skilled Care Rehabilitation Centers as required by Medicare. The long and short of it is that our Senior Editor has spent 63 of the last 65 days or so in the hospitals and Rehab Centers with his sick, invalid father during this medical odyssey. His father is currently staying at his fourth hospital in this time.
A special warning to all who may have a similar situation existing or arising with a loved one. If you see your elders in decline you may wish to visit their primary care physician with them and discuss the option of in-home rehabilitation before you reach this state of affairs. One of the undiscussed (?) issues with Rehabilitation Centers and similar communities is the potential for infection by communicable organisms/pathogens/microbes shared by that community. Each time Dad was sent to one of these centers he developed pneumonia or MRSA.
Early in November/late October, he developed pneumonia due to a species of Serratia. Fortunately our senior editor was present when he began to sink and kept requesting an ambulance. When Dad stopped talking, they finally called for Rapid Response. When in hospital, you can usually request Rapid Response by dialling 141. See your hospital staff for instructions before you panic and need this service - it can be a life saver.
As it turned out, Dad 'coded' in the emergency room at a different, nearby hospital ('HSM'). There appeared to be only respiratory arrest - no cardiac arrest - but stopped breathing all the same. Dad was then intubated, heavily sedated and put on a ventilator. The ER team at HSM basically saved his life - for which our Editor nominated them for a recognition award. The Rapid Response team remained in the ER room during the entire revival. It was quite a moving experience. But, our Senior Editor's father looked like one of those horrible rubber dummies in a horror movie and our Editor was about to freak out.
He was eventually transferred to Intensive Care where he remained on the ventilator for about a day. He coded again the next day and had to be placed on a ventilator again. The IC team was excellent and they were also nominated for a recognition award. Dad was eventually transferred to the hospital - for 13 days.
He qualified for a specialty rehabilitation hospital where he may receive constant hospital care along with therapy for as long as they feel fit. He is visited almost daily by the doctor, an RN and other professional staff. Unfortunately, he acquired MRSA in his sputum and lungs at the start of this go-round. Which is quite fearsome, as MRSA can then enter the bloodstream in this fashion. But the antibiotics appear to have it under control. Hopefully, Dad is coming to the end of his medical odyssey in a positive way and may be released to sub-acute care. And our Senior Editor is hoping that he does not have to be a Hospital Nomad much longer - again in a positive way.
Blog of Note: No, no, no...not us. But Cycle Chic from Copenhagen has been for the past week... Did Google lay everybody off? Is anybody watching the store? Helllloooo.... Oh, that's right Mr. Hooper and Mr. Whipple were killed in that horrible Milk Delivery Truck and Pepperidge Farm Delivery Truck crash.... Milk, cookies and bodies were just everywhere.... Horrible, horrible...
Battubery or Fattery: The cumbersome conceptual collision of battery and nanotubes and fabric. A new kind of fabric-based battery made from nanotube dyes.
University of California - Davis (2009, December 30). Dominant Chemical That Attracts Mosquitoes To Humans Identified. ScienceDaily. Retrieved December 30, 2009, from http://www.sciencedaily.com /releases/2009/10/091026172056.htm
Peptidia: Suggested name for a novel nanotech invention based on polypeptides. Capabilities include but may not be limited to: self-washing windows, improved batteries... From the original greek word for peptides: πεπτίδια
Artificial Neutrinos / Neutrino 'Universe': Physicists at the J-PARC facility have recently created a 'neutrino beam'. Not only were they able to artificially create a beam of neutrinos, they were even able to detect it. Which is more astonishing? Is the universe primarily made of darkmatterbecause it is mainly a neutrino 'universe'? Is matter actually a 'fluke', making anti-matter even more rare?
Nucleospecific Reagent Polymer / NSRP: A concept for a "new" group of polymeric reagents specifically designed to capture radioactive elements in the decontamination process, thus mitigating the decontamination. See the work of Sellergren and Narasimhan (Technische Universitaet Dortmund, via http://www.alphagalileo.org/) on their polymer designed to remove radioactive Cobalt.
Shazizzle / Boba Nott!/Bobizzle: What happens when your 'jet wing' fizzles out and you get dumped in the ocean. Or the unfortunate portmanteau of Boba Fett and the same.
Snail Snot or Mermaid’s Necklace: Disgusting? Not if this form of protective snail mucus turns out to be the lifesaver it can be. Mermaid's necklace name probably came from its distinctive 'string-of-pearls' appearance when found in the water.
Nunqulus: The very unfortunate portmanteau of Never (from the Latin) and Stimulus (referring to the Washington stimulus in the USA). We received some extra food stamps, but that was it. Sorry, but for some of us, the Stim is not working. We know, we know, we should give it more time...but, we think we have to make some 'end-of-life' decisions...that is to say, packing one's bags...
Female Gigantism: Do you need a thesis for a biology dissertation? How about the (combined) topics of female gigantism? Observe the recently discovered orb weaver: Nephila komaci - for one instance of this interesting occurence in nature. Instances in biological species where the female is gigantic in comparison to the male.
Instant Peace Prize / 10-Day Prize: The slightly unfortunate portmanteau of Instant coffee and Nobel Peace Prize. With reference to President Obama's unprecedented winning of the prize even though only in-office (officially...) for ten days prior to the deadline for nomination. As we have publicly stated, would Mr. Obama be seen as 'courageous' (and generous) if he offered to share the prize with other champions of peace? Do these events in the timeline diminish the prestige of the prize?
Unality: The conceptual collision of unanimity and net neutrality. Will the internets remain 'free' if this panel's advice is heeded? The concept that a 'neutral' internet may be maintained if everybody in a democracy is online.
Badvertising / Negliminal: The portmanteaus of bad with advertising and negative with subliminal. With reference to the greater effect of negative subliminal messages.
In case you missed it, one of our tweets was mentioned on The Twitter Report on MSNBC's Countdown with Keith Olbermann. We were thrilled that they chose it. Please see the video embed below.
Again, Fair Use of the video embed is claimed for humorous self-reference. We thought Keith did a very humorous on-air performance after the tweet (acting as though our avatar is President James Garfield).
Fair Use of Video Claimed for Humorous Self Reference
Hello, if you keep up with The Anti-Zen Dictionary, you probably noticed a strange new twist to it. That is because we have experienced a sudden burst of creativity and we are writing a novel set in the year 3084 called The China Party. Unsure of where to put some of the new definitions being used in the novel we decided to put them in our Dictionary. We apologize for any inconvenience. Hope you find it interesting.
Lives of the Lexicographers
Samuel Johnson: (Updated: Monday, May 18, 2009). Recently checked out of our local library: Samuel Johnson - The Struggle by Jeffrey Meyers. The prolific Mr. Meyers outdoes himself right in the introduction and zaps us with a very intimate glimpse into the sex life of the great Samuel Johnson. Some very florid comments and great pathos by Samuel Johnson are reported almost right at the start. Well, he's still our hero. We're still wading through this 500+ page tome - but it is keeping our interest. Not for the 18 and under crowd - the language is a little too graphic and a little too suggestive, at times.But, we think it is worth the cover price ($ 35.00) of purchase if you are into Johnson or great biographies. However, we do suggest checking it out at your library or purchasing a second-hand copy. Caveat emptor - we offer no guarantees - it may not be worth your purposes! Of course, if you're into Johnson, biographies, literature, intellectualism or even pseudo-intellectualism (like us! - actually our senior editor has an IQ of 131, but we digress...) you don't need the hyperlinks. Our apologies. Also, we have not read Boswell'sLife of Johnson! If you care to donate us a copy, please do and we'll review it here and credit your donation if you wish.
More: Sam began his academic career at Oxford. Unfortunately - in that time period - Oxford had an abysmal reputation for teaching. Even the great Edward Gibbon (possibly the greatest author of his day) left this institution after one year. Most students used tutors, but even these were inadequate at times.
Physical/Medical Indications: Due to his wild gesticulations and mannerisms, Sam may have suffered from Tourette Syndrome. Even so, though this repulsed most other folk, it seemed to make the author/playwright Frances Burney adore him all the more. For an image of a bust of Sam Johnson, link here. For image of a statue of Sam, link here. Johnson was well known for his physical prowess (for example, his horsemanship) and his physical power. Not one to take insults or sarcasms lightly, Johnson was reputed to have knocked over his adversaries or even to have delivered severe beatings upon them (if he felt they were deserving of it...)
Other women: Hester Thrale. He did have an extraordinary 18 year relationship with a married woman.
Rating of this biography: Excellent. We believe the book deserves this rating (or any biography that causes this sensation) because we felt as though we had lived with the man himself.
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