Tuesday, April 24, 2012

I'm bringing peevish back



There are lists of the most beautiful words in the English language. One list includes ‘epiphany’ and ‘mellifluous’ and ‘serendipity’.
 

Evocative words may be ‘calm’ or ‘chinook’ ‘snuggle’  or ‘mom’.

Words that are fun to say, like ‘bobolink’ and ‘hornswoggle’ and ‘tinitinnabulation’ are, well, fun to say.
Like ‘mulligrubs’, which means sulky.

But some words are making their way back into my vocabulary because they elevate my emotions and emotional responses above the petty all the way to apposite (or 'appropriate for the circumstances').

Therefore, I am not a worrier. Worry is for bureaucrats and hand-wringers.
I fret. So much more active and deliberate than worrying, with a smidgen of Piglet thrown in.

I’m not timid.
I’m circumspect.

I don’t get moody.
I display ephemeral emotions.

I’m not a grammar nazi.
I’m a grammaticaster.

And I do not get grouchy, irritable or ticked off.
I become peevish.

My sister reminded me of what a great word peevish is and suddenly I am looking for any reason calling for peevishness.
And, just like the traffic cop who isn’t there when you need him, peeve-inducing events are remarkably sparse as of late.
Appliances are behaving, my loved ones are behaving, the weather is behaving, other drivers are behaving.
Serendipity is threatening. It is positively looming.
I’m fretting about the possibility that, unless I can exercise my new-found peevishness soon I may begin to mulligrub.

3 comments:

Susan said...

Haha. So fun!

Sue Vick Finley said...

Delightful! I love your way with words!I have to find an opportunity to tell Aaron not to mulligrub and see if he knows the word. He seems to know them all lately!

Robin Steinweg said...

How can one mulligrub with such Prudish postings to ponder?

Thanks, Prude! I'd nearly forgotten how much I enjoy the word peevish while disapproving the act of it.