#explanatory notes

...in relation to that last post. This is a lo-o-o-o-ong read, so feel free to skip right by if catharsis bores you.

This starts way before I joined tumblr; in fact, long before tumblr was even a thing.

Twenty years ago, we lived in a huge house backing onto the English Channel. We moved there from Scotland, which turned out to be (probably) the biggest mistake of my life. 

Within nine months of buying the place, the company I’d moved to work for nearly folded. I and most of the workforce were made redundant. That set in motion an existential battle with our mortgage insurer, which refused to pay out because I “must have known” when taking out the insurance. (I didn’t, and they eventually caved in after destroying my credit record, but that’s another story.)

Work wasn’t immediately available; none that would at least cover the bills. We got inventive, wrote a business plan, obtained finance & bought a franchise. It went pretty well for the first three years, but we had to bust a gut to make the required income. It wasn’t easy. Eventually, the franchise operator messed up relations with several key players in our insurance market. Within three months, we lost 75% of our revenue. I had to close the workshop & find part time work to make ends meet. Ultimately, we decided to close the business, sell the house and downsize to something more manageable.

What’s the relevance of this? We tried hard to keep our precarious financial state form the kids. Maybe we didn’t do as well as we thought. Our son had already become withdrawn. He’d fallen in with a group of local lads about whom we had grave misgivings. Of course, there was no discussing it. We were “over-reacting” and unreasonable. It was around that time that he decided to jack in his education. I couldn’t criticise; I’d done the same. I pulled some strings and got him a job at our local Royal Mail delivery office.

We moved to our new place. It was a stressful move. Trying to fit into a house that was literally half the size was never going to be an easy task. One afternoon, our son came home from work and soon after announced he was going out. “See you later.” Only we didn’t. He didn’t come home that night. Nor did he turn up for work the next day. Nor the day after. And nor the day after that. Within a week he was written up for unauthorised absence. We had no way of contacting him. His case was heard in the following weeks. I could offer no mitigation. He was sacked for abandonment of duty. That tag that means he’ll never work for them again. 

We still had no idea where he was. We only knew he was alive because we met a couple of his friends who couldn’t believe he’d not been in touch. Still no word. My wife was in shreds; I suspect any of you who are parents can identify with that. I was alternating between trying to prop her up and stay on top of my job, all the while under a constant barrage of barracking (Oh, we don’t mean anything by it, it’s just banter....)

About three months in I’d had enough. Sleep was a scarce resource so I rose at the crack of dawn and started on a trip, rousting one after another of the friends and acquaintances that I knew, following leads until finally I tracked him down to a sordid bedsit several towns and 40 miles away. At least he answered the door and looked sheepish. He offered no explanation or apology, and has never done so to date. He refused to come back home, but promised to keep in touch. 

We know he bounced from one sofa to another in the next few months. He spent time in some of the worst areas in the county for drug abuse. He fell into a relationship with a girl that looked promising initially and subsequently fell apart. Later, he surfaced in another town with another girl whom he subsequently married. She often spoke of his irascible temperament and moods. Ultimately the marriage was doomed; she was younger than him, found a new interest and moved out. One wonders now how much of that was her and how much she’d put up with before voting with her feet.

He’s stumbled from one financial crisis to another. Money just evaporates. It’s as though adulting is a mystery beyond his reach. I’ve lost count of the times that we’ve thrown money at him and I don’t want to even think about how much. It’s literally thousands, always a loan, yet he never, ever pays back.

He left his job. That was inevitable too; he worked for his ex-father-in-law’s company. Heaven only knows how long the writing was on the wall; it was pretty swift once she left. He drifted again. He chose to live in a squalid flat with no heating rather than move back with us. Absolutely his choice, not ours. 

We moved to Scotland. That meant all his stuff had to go into storage. Quick rewind - he moved all his stuff to ours when he gave up the house he & his ex lived in, but refused to move back home. I had to rent a storage unit to make space for all his gear & when we moved I shifted all his gear into the store, gave him the key & told him I’d paid three months up front; after that it was his to deal with. Apparently, he surrendered the store and moved all his gear into the flat...

Fast forward to a couple of months back. He’d run out of options at the flat. His flatmate was “really difficult” to live with. His ex had moved away, taking their son with her. He had nothing left to stay for and, surprise, he’d lost his job again so he couldn’t afford the rent. 

My wife convinced me we should give him one last shot, citing his fragile mental health. I agreed on the strict understanding that we are simply no longer in a position to support him. He assured us he’d be applying for work as soon as he got here. We rarely see him before midday...

We agreed the end of the first week in March. We knew he’d arrive with a ton of stuff so we had (again) to create space. That’s infinitely more difficult now we’re running a B&B, but we set to the task. Suddenly, two weeks sooner than we’d agreed, he rented a van and was on his way. No discussion, no warning. We only found out because he put something on FB. 

Finally, after trying to reach him most of the day, he phoned. Whilst we should have been relieved, instead we were treated to a barrage of abuse because all the petrol stations were shut. Of course they were. It was in a national lockdown and why would they stay open when there was no one on the roads? JFC, who embarks on a journey in sub-zero temperatures across some of the most inhospitable country in the UK without enough fuel? With a six year old child. Yes, not only did he forget to tell us about his change of plans, he forgot to tell us he was bringing his son too.

We drove south through the night for two hours to find him somewhere in the Cairngorms where he’d run out of fuel. No fuel meant no heaters at 1500 feet in deep snow. The ambient temperature was -5ºC/23ºF & with wind chill that was probably around -10ºC/14ºF. We found him & refuelled his van. No thanks, just another barrage of abuse, because he was tired. We took his son into our car & drove the two hours back in near silence. I think we knew then that it was an awful predictor of what was to come.

We’ve had row after row. He accused me of being passive-aggressive in the last. He actually ticks all the boxes for passive-aggressive behaviour. I’ve never been tagged with that before; if anything I’m too forthright, blunt even. That’s a failing to which I will admit. If by that he meant that I don’t talk about the elephant in the room, it’s only because we fear it’ll lead to another explosion.

He never saw the damage that we sustained during our fostering years. He was never there. Yet here we are, experiencing flashbacks to those traumatic incidents; the parallels are exact. We have the benefit of years of training. We recognise manipulative behaviour when we see it - we were trained by some of the nations best exponents - and we know divisive tactics implicitly.  What he doesn’t know is that he will succeed only in pushing us closer together and alienating himself even further.

There are clear and well-documented links between cannabis and mental health issues. He is allowing the drug to determine his life choices. Although I may be wrong, I think he’s cultivating skunk, which is nothing like the weed that circulated in my youth. The smell that pervades our hallway is instantly evocative of high strength Afghan resin. It’s also going to be acutely difficult to eradicate before we’re due to open.

Post No. 28308

Image: From Law (2012).

Filename: From Simon (1966).

hanginaroundin': Vexingly, a cursory search of relevant records finds no other major use of the verb "to hanginaround." Some connection has been proposed to output by Duritz, Vickrey, Mize, and Bryson (1999, track 1), but this theory is unconvincing and unsatisfactory at best. Another, more likely theory sees the term as idiolectic, perhaps after the work of Gretchen Wieners (as cited in Michaels & Waters, 2004).

objects ... been forgotten.: The disappearance of objects has seen study in paraphysical circles, including both cases with and without reappearance, with anomalist D. Scott Rogo terming them "spontaneous dematerialization" (as cited in Clark, 1999). Free, meanwhile, calls attention to cases where, specifically, the dematerialized object was forgotten, first (Gavin Free, n.d.; Rooster Teeth, 2015).

I did something with The Zanari Inheritance I don’t normally do: I included some notes about calendars and weird words at the back. If you didn’t notice them (no pun intended), take a look. Was it helpful? What I’m writing at the moment has a load of weird stuff in it and I’m wondering whether explanatory notes is actually useful to the reader. PS. I’m saying as little as possible about what I’m…

Post No. 28187

Image: From a critique of fashion excerpted from Shenson & Lester (1964).

Filename: That is, the change of intervocalic /t/'s and /d/'s to a flap, [ɾ], with which the tongue makes brief contact with the alveolar ridge; flapping is dialect-specific, occurring in American English much more often than in British English (Scott & Cutler, 1984).

windpipe sproinginess.: See the analysis of tracheal mechanics by Holzhäuser & Lambert (2001).

enjoy- ... -you-too: This error could be termed an "action slip;" for further information, including specific categorization, see Norman (1981).

Say 'yes' ... that.": After Pearson (1966, side A).

electric ... sayin' anything: Due to a miscommunication, the Electric Light Orchestra's debut album was initially released in the United States under the title "No Answer" (Bevan, 1980).

Post No. 28204

Image: Image of unknown title and origin, but apparently after Nemesis, zeiţa răzbunării by Gheorghe Tattarescu (1853).

Filename: See above note.

Sometimes dudes ... Amputation.": See McQueen, Gaston, & Court-Brown (2000), Heemskerk & Kitslaar (2003).

topplin' ... stone Lenin.: The dissolution of the Soviet Union saw the removal of a number of monuments featuring Soviet icons, including those of Vladimir Lenin (Forest & Johnson, 2002).

bad news bearer,: Not to be confused with Southern California Little League team the Bears, though the circumstances surrounding their 1978 Japanese match are widely considered unfortunate (Jaffe & Ritchie, 1976; Ritchie & Berry, 1978).

anti-Rapunzel ... gouged,: In reference to "Rapunzel," wherein the titular character facilitates tower window passage via the climbing of her overly lengthy hair; in the course of the story a prince falls from this window and is blinded by thorns outside the tower, though his sight is later recovered (Grimm & Grimm, 1886/2006).

Nemesis.: A Greek goddess who "avenges by bringing punishment to those who have acted outrageously" (Shea, 1998, p. 107).

Can't ... without pants.: Christoferson is mistaken. A variety of activities may be achieved in a state of pantslessness, from simple, if ostentatious walking to the use of public transportation (Tisch, Avnet, & Brickman, 1983; Todd, 2007).

Post No. 28213

Image: Wells (2013).

"Respect knuckles.": The term is cromulent, though more often utilized among marine-oriented circles; see usage by Quinn (as cited in Reed & Thompson, 2004).

passive contamination.: Ironically, respect knuckles result in a notably lower pathogen transmission in comparison to the traditional handshake (Ghareeb, Bourlai, Dutton, & McClellan, 2013). Of course, it might be supposed that an even lower transmission could be accomplished through bowing, without hand-to-hand contact of any kind.

punchin'.: For example, see Linson, Chaffin, Bell, & Fincher (1999).

keepin' ... fingers attached.": See Nielsen & Miller (2011).

Viva la revolución—: In Spanish, "may the revolution live." The phrase is associated with the Cuban revolution (Shattuck, 2009).

Kimball ... kid's Brown,: In reference to the juvenile detective Leroy Brown and his junior partner and bodyguard Sally Kimball (Sobol, 1994).

Lead on ... either.: Christie is correct. See The Tragedy of Macbeth, Act V, Scene VIII.

Post No. 28242

"Say 'where ... she?": A tried and true model of interrogation and/or coercion; see Bender and Tarantino (1994).

So ya do.: Another interrogation technique, the "good cop, bad cop" ploy confronts the interrogatee with a pair of interrogators, one angry and threatening, the other nicer and friendlier (Rafaeli & Sutton, 1991). Gruzdev notes that this technique is well-established, and may cause compliance even in cases where the interrogatee is aware of it (as cited in Vaĭner, Vaĭner, & Govorukhin, 1979).

fods: According to various sources, "fods" are defined as "couples at amusement parks who wear identical T-shirts, presumably to keep from getting lost" (Christensen, n.d.; Kunchithapadam, 2004). Christoferson appears to utilize the word in a more generalized sense, as well as using the singular to refer to one member of the couple rather than both collectively. More research into this matter is required.

straighten up and fly right: Observations by Mills and Cole (1944, side A) theorize a correlation between these actions and the further actions of "cool[ing] down" and "[not] ... blow[ing one's] top."

doesn't know he knows: Following the pattern set by Rumsfeld (as cited in U.S. Department of Defense, n.d.), Daase and Kessler (2007) term instances wherein facts are largely known but this knowledge is neglected, suppressed, or forgotten "unknown knowns."

Kevin Bacon shift: Hungarian author Frigyes Karinthy can be considered the originator of the concept of "six degrees of separation," having written on the position that any two individuals could be connected through at most five acquaintances (Barabási, 2002/2014). Further investigation, famously utilizing popular figure Kevin Norwood Bacon as a central figure, was carried out by students at Albright College (Wagaman, 2015).

Post No. 28303

Image: Huang (2011).

lovely little blue flowers: Possibly Mors ontologica (Dick, 1977/2011).

mojamatize: To move quickly (The Bellman, 2009).

soap in a sock.: An alleged technique used to assault a person without leaving apparent marks (MacDonald, 1999).

havin' fury: A potentially dangerous situation for those whom fury is had toward (Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, 2003).

Judas'd: In reference to Judas Iscariot, disciple and, infamously, betrayer to religious leader Yeshua ben Yosef (Mt 26:14-26:16; Mt 26:47-26:49).

peanut gallery,: That is, the cheap seats (Straight Dope Science Advisory Board, 1999).

continental collision, ... Kangchenjunka.: See United States Geological Survey (2015).

hipster doofus: A difficult-to-qualify term, though some guesses toward its exact meaning can be tenatively hypothesized by other instances of its use; see, for example, David & Cherones (1993).

twenty-three: That is, skidoo ("twenty-three, n.," 1989).

Ark of the Covenant: An ark constructed by the Israelites per their god's instructions (Ex. 25:1-25:22). The Ark's presence was correlated with miraculous and supernatural events (Josh. 3:14-3:17; 1 Sam. 5:1-6:19; 2 Sam. 6:6-6:7; 1 Kings 8:6-8:11). It also saw correlation with the Israelites' victory in battle, and was at times taken along during war (Josh. 6:2-6:21; Judg. 20:27-20:48; 2 Sam. 11:11). The whereabouts of the Ark in contemporary times remained unknown until 1936, when competing groups of archaeologists working for the United States and German governments and led by Henry W. Jones, Jr. and René Belloq, respectively, uncovered its location in Tanis, in Egypt; following events during which Belloq and a number of persons belonging to the German team died of grotesque and apparently supernatural means, the Ark was taken into the custody of the United States government (Marshall & Spielberg, 1981).

Benedict.": In reference to Benedict Arnold, a general during the American Revolutionary War who infamously defected from the Continental Army to the British; as a consequence, his name has become associated with traitorous behavior ("Benedict Arnold," 2017).

“Cliff cliff notes—: CliffsNotes is a series of American student study guides, based on a preexisting "Cole's Notes" published in Canada and named after its founder, Clifton Keith Hillegass (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2016). One supposes that if CliffsNotes (or, erroneously, "cliff notes") summarize media, CliffsCliffsNotes must, in turn, summarize those summaries.

Parthia: Parthia was a region of the Achaemenian empire and later a kingdom in present-day Iran; a famous fighting tactic of Parthians on horseback involved loosing projectiles while riding away from the enemy in retreat or the appearance thereof ("Parthian, n. and adj.," 2005).

Rubicon'd.: That is, a point was reached at which circumstances could not be undone without consequence. Christoferson alludes here to Caesar leading his troops across the Rubicon River from Gaul to Italy in 49 BCE, an action which was illegal and which served as the opening to civil war (Goldsworthy, 2006).

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Tisch, S., Avnet, J. (Producers), & Brickman, P. (Director). (1983). Risky business [Motion picture]. Burbank, CA: Warner Bros.

Todd, C. (2007, January 13). No Pants 2k7 [Blog post]. Retrieved from http://improveverywhere.com/2007/01/13/no-pants-2k7/

Twenty-three, n. (1989). In OED Online (2nd ed.). Available from http://www.oed.com/

United States Department of Defense. (n.d.). DoD news briefing - Secretary Rumsfeld and Gen. Myers. Retrieved from http://archive.defense.gov/Transcripts/Transcript.aspx?TranscriptID=2636

United States Geological Survey. (2015, September 3). The Himalayas: Two continents collide. Retrieved from https://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/dynamic/himalaya.html

Vaĭner, A. A. (Writer), Vaĭner, G. A. (Writer), & Govorukhin, S. S. (Director). (1979). Chetvertai͡a serii͡a [Fourth episode; television miniseries episode]. In Mesto vstrechi izmenit' nel'zi͡a [The meeting place cannot be changed]. Moskvá, SSSR: Pervai͡a Programma T͡SТ SSSR.

Van Duzer, C. (2013). Hic sunt dracones: The geography and cartography of monsters. In A. S. Mittman, & P. J. Dendle (Eds.), The Ashgate research companion to monsters and the monstrous (pp. 387-435). Farnham, England: Ashgate. (Original work published 2012)

Wagaman, A. (2015, April 17). After more than 20 years, 'six degrees of Kevin Bacon' endures. Reading Eagle. Retrieved from http://www.readingeagle.com/news/article/after-more-than-20-years-six-degrees-of-kevin-bacon-endures

Wallawalla, n. (1993). In OED Additions Series (Vol. 2). Retrieved from http://www.oed.com/

Walla Walla... then & now [Web page]. (2013). Retrieved from http://www.wallawallawa.gov/visitors/history

Weinstock, J. A. (Ed.). (2014). The Ashgate encyclopedia of literary and cinematic monsters. Farnham, England: Ashgate.

Wells, K. (Producer). (2013). The professional fist bump [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RNUzwek5P0

Whitehead, A. N., & Russell, B. (1910-1912). Principia mathematica (Vols. 1-2). Retrieved from http://name.umdl.umich.edu/AAT3201.0002.001

Williams, F. (n.d.). SCP-968. In SCP Foundation. Retrieved August 25, 2015, from http://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-968

Wilson, D. (1998). Closing time [Recorded by Semisonic]. On Feeling strangely fine [CD]. Universal City, CA. (1997)

Windows 95 [Computer software]. (1995). Redmond, WA: Microsoft Corporation.

Werner, J. & Mars, R. (2014, April 17). The design flaw that almost wiped out an NYC skyscraper. Slate. Retrieved from http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_eye/2014/04/17/the_citicorp_tower_design_flaw_that_could_have_wiped_out_the_skyscraper.html

Wolfman, M. (1982). From Qward with hate! Green Lantern, 2(150), 1-34.

Wong, E. (Producer), & Ruben, J. (Director). (2010). Nazi zombies [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.collegehumor.com/video/5886111/nazi-zombies

Wootton, A. C. (1910). Chronicles of pharmacy (Vol. 1). Retrieved from http://www.archive.org/stream/chroniclesofphar01woot

Yuki, D. R. (n.d.). The Martyrs' Hill Nagasaki [Web page]. Retrieved from http://210.136.236.116/NewMartyrsHP/26-martyrs--story.html

Post No. 28086

relic ... the Precambrian: Contrary to Christoferson's statement, little evidence has been found placing mobile phones within the Precambrian Eon, about 4.6 billion to 541.0 ± 1.0 million years ago; while research has confirmed the existence of phones simultaneous with non-avian dinosaurs, even these phones only operated through landline connections (Henson, Jacobs, & Young, 1991-1994).

Graham Bells: In reference to Alexander Graham Bell, inventor known for his advancements in telephone technology ("Alexander Graham Bell," 2017).

ghoulies- ... -leggedy-beasties-: From a traditional prayer of unclear origins, often described as Scottish. One version, in full: From ghoulies and ghosties / And long-leggedy beasties / And things that go bump in the night, / Good Lord, deliver us! (Ashliman, 1997).

Oz ... and cyclones): Referencing The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, a children's novel by L. Frank Baum (1899/2008); in this publication, the protagonist, Dorothy Gale, is caught up and transported to the magical Land of Oz by a meteorological phenomenon which the author ascribes the word "cyclone" to before proceeding to describe characteristics of a tornado.

Dorothy had ... needs, ever: Referencing the same publication, in which Dorothy, among other activities, kills two witches, however accidentally, and is forced to contend with the second witch's slave army of flying monkeys before discovering a method to return to her home in Kansas (Baum, 1899/2008).

here-be-lions: Van Duzer (2012/2013), writing on the reflection of Western ideas regarding geographical monster distribution on maps, notes the placement of monsters and monstrous creatures occurring around the edges of known territory, lions included.

seven steps ... door: After Siberry (1985, side A, track 2).

Silver Shoes: Referencing the same publication, in which Dorothy takes the Silver Shoes from the Wicked Witch of the East's corpse after the latter is crushed by the former's house; at the closing of the story, it is revealed that said Silver Shoes have the means to transport Dorothy wherever she wishes to go, Kansas included (Baum, 1899/2008).

Japanese saints ... twenty-six: Referencing the Twenty-six Martyrs of Japan, a group of Roman Catholic Christians executed in Nagasaki in 1597; of the 26 individuals, 20 were Japanese (Yuki, n.d.).

the door ... applause: Though the concept of an individual triggering applause merely though entering a structure may seem ludicrous, a nine-year study by Shapiro et al. (1989-1998) saw development of a method of consistently creating such a positive response in a large body of human observers.

Electric Boogaloo: The use of "Electric Boogaloo" to denote subpar, unnecessary, unwanted, or merely oddly named sequels originated with the 1984 breakdancing film Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo, produced by Pieter Jan Brugge and directed by Sam Firstenberg.

Post No. 28150

Filename: Apparently Latin for "dog's bolt;" in other words, an overly literal interpretation of the word "dogbolt."

Lady Luck: The contemporary personification of fortune as a goddess, following the Latin habit, is not a recent creation ("fortune, n.," 1989). The French appellation "Dame Fortune" traces back to the beginning of the fifteenth century and the Spanish "Señora Fortuna" to 1619; "Lady Luck" is rare before the twentieth century, though "lady, n." (2008) cites a use by Thomas More prior to 1535.

every October: That is, on and around Halloween, a festival occurring on October 31 that features the wearing of costumes, among which those of witches are common.

frozen ... razor-sharp needles: The placement of a large number of needles within a room is an established method of eliminating unwanted intruders, especially in the United Kingdom where breaking and entering through chronological displacement is more common than in the United States (Lambert et al., 1963-1989; Ridgewell, 2011).

four bells: That is, at full power. The term is naval, famously used during the American Civil War's Battle of Mobile Bay by Rear Admiral David G. Farragut; though the exact wording is disputed, Farragut's son, Loyall Farragut (1879/1882), provides "Damn the torpedoes! Four bells! Captain Drayton, go ahead! Jouett, full speed!" (pp. 416-417). Over time, the quotation has been paraphrased and shortened to merely "Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead" (Knowles, 1999/2001, p. 307).

C.C.: For data correlating witches and initialisms, see Morotomi et al. (2006-2007).

demolitions-expert- ... -speed: Though their ultimate origins are unclear, shirts describing their wearers as bomb technicians or similar and recommending readers follow quickly in the event that said wearers are seen running are common enough that the joke is easily referenced; for example, see Neufeld & Robinson (2002).

Post No. 28160

Filename: Dragon Warrior (1989).

601 Lexington: In reference to the uniquely stilt-style based 601 Lexington Avenue, formerly the Citicorp Center, which was discovered in June 1978, at the approach of hurricane season, to be structurally unsound due to a design oversight and changes during its construction, necessitating quick, semi-clandestine repairs (Morgenstern, 1995; Werner & Mars, 2014).

homunculus: That is, a minature human being created through alchemy (Newman, 1999).

molds ... cherry slushie: The use of molds and colored liquid to create miniature beings has some precedent; see Frye (2015).

shikigami: Though Japanese texts ascribe varying characteristics to shikigami, the most common idea presented by scholars sees them as supernatural beings who carry out tasks under the command of onmyōji, practitioners of Onmyōdō (Pang, 2013).

Does alchemy ... magic?: Newman & Principe (1998) point out that associations of alchemy with occultism and psychology are relatively recent, and that until the last two decades of the seventeenth century the terms "alchemy" and "chemistry" were used largely interchangeably, with both including, for example, the induction of dissolution or fusion and the production of medicine; only by the third decade of the eighteenth century did the two terms reach a differentiation close to the modern one, with "alchemy" used almost exclusively in topics related to metallic transmutation and "chemistry" used to define the the discipline of analysis and synthesis.

Adam: Though Frankenstein's creation does explicitly compare himself to the biblical Adam, Victor Frankenstein never appears to have actually bestowed a name upon him, nor does the creation seem to have given himself a name according to the doctor's recollections (Gen. 2:7; Shelley, 1818/2008). References to what may be the same being, but named or calling himself "Adam," appear in following records, however; for example, see Logan & Bayona (2014), Rosenberg et al. (2014).

stoichiometry: "In mod. use, the quantitative relationship between the substances in a reaction or compound" ("stoicheiometry, n.," 1989).

You're gonna ... rag: Compare Zanuck, Brown, & Spielberg (1975): "You're gonna need a bigger boat." (1:21:28).

Post No. 28181

Image: An example of a word square referred to as a "Sator Square", taken in Oppède, France by one M Disdero (2003). Though translations from Latin have been less than certain, the phrase has seen use in magic (Fitzgerald, 1885; Hohman, 1820/2010).

Filename: Probably a reference to the 1875 French opera Carmen by Georges Bizet, playing on the presence of the Latin word "opera" in the aforementioned image of the Sator Square.

the Decalogue: That is, the Ten Commandments, the set of commandments biblically described as having been given to the Israelites by God ("Decalogue, n.," 1989; Ex. 19:1-20:17).

CO2: The use of freezing temperatures in combating amorphous beings has precedence (Harris & Hagman, 1972; Harris, Kastner, & Russell, 1988; Harris & Yeaworth, 1958). However, the efficacy of this strategy is by no means guaranteed; for an extreme example, see Williams (n.d.), wherein freezing temperatures in fact ameliorated mobility. In addition, see next note.

flamethrowers: For an example of the use of high temperatures in combating amorphous beings, see Larson & Milo (2012).

Armstronged: In reference to Stretch Armstrong, an action figure notable for its ability to be stretched to a considerable length, especially by its limbs (Heiler, n.d.).

Abracadabra: This incantation dates back at least to the second or third century A.D., when Quintus Serenus Sammonicus suggested that a patient suffering from malaria should wear an amulet around the neck with the word inscribed upon it; he directed that the word be repeated over additional lines, with each line after the first omitting another letter off the word's end (Wootton, 1910).

alakazam: The use of this word in a magical context dates back at least to the beginning of the twentieth century, placed by McDougall (1902) as part of a "wishing-spell," in full, "ALAKAZAM BAZAZZA KI! HICKORY DICKORY DOCK. OMEGA OM OPEEKA PI? O DONNERWETTER HOCH" (p.20). However, the word and its variants also saw use as a facetious denoting of foreignness or sophistication, e.g. "sooflay de allakazam" ("A Wild Revel," 1896, p. 17).

Hocus pocus: Ady (1656) notes the use of this phrase in the context of an incantation during the reign of King James VI and I; in full, "hocus pocus, tontus talontus, vade celeriter jubeo" (p. 29).

Walla Walla Washington: In an incantational context, this phrase is known to have transformative properties (DePatie & Jones, 1963).

"'Walla ... means something!": The name of the city of Walla Walla, Washington is derived from the Wallawalla, a North American people from parts of Oregon and Washington whose names translates to "the little rivers" in Sahaptin ("Wallawalla, n.," 1993; "Walla Walla... then & now," 2013). The state itself was named after United States president George Washington ("Territorial Timeline: Settlers met at Cowlitz Landing," n.d.).

Everything sounds ... Latin!": Compare "Altum Videtur" (n.d.), specifically, "quidquid latine dictum sit, altum videtur," (Epigraph) and "omnia dicta fortiora, si latina" (Music [Musica] section).

"Fuego!": In Spanish, "fire."

Nobody learns ... anymore!: Despite claims that have been made regarding a decline in the use of the Latin language, Christie is mistaken (Beard, 2012; Congregation for Divine Worship, 2004; Enya & Ryan, 2000).

"Omnibus!": The formal or historical term for a bus, among other definitions, derived from the classical Latin meaning "for all" ("omnibus, n. and adj.," 2004).

Pax Romana!: In Latin, "Roman Peace," the name given to the historic period of relative peace in the Mediterranean from the reign of Augustus, 27 B.C. to 14 A.D., to that of Marcus Aurelius, 161-180 A.D. ("Pax Romana," 2015).

Ipso facto!: In Latin, "by the fact itself."

Caveat emptor!": In Latin, "let the buyer beware." The phrase is of unknown origin; it is known to have appeared alongside English at least as far back as the sixteenth century, when it was used in the context of a legal discussion involving horse trading (Hamilton, 1931).

with her ... sat: For example, see Park & Wright (2004).

someone ... feet alright.: In reference to the Greek hero Achilles, whose mother, Thetis, dipped him into the water of the Styx in order to render him invulnerable but failed to submerge him completely, leaving his heel an ultimately fatal point of weakness (Hansen, 2002).

telepompin' ... with him.: The term "telepomping" refers to conveyance via telepomp, a device able to transmit materials over a distance through rearrangement at the atomic level; while initial testing of the device saw success, including the transmission of a cat into an adjoining room, the unsatisfactory results of the second attempt to transmit living biological matter precluded the device's introduction to the public (Mitchell, 1877/1973). Forays by other inventors into similar technology often saw similar failures; one notable case is that of André Delambre, whose accidental simultaneous tranmission alongside a second organism via a device of his own invention resulted in the transference of matter between the two bodies involved (Langelaan, 1957/1964).

cromulent: Acceptable or valid, as utilized by both Hoover and Skinner (as cited by Collier & Anderson, 1996, 1:39, 4:24).

horse stuff.": The character has made what might be unusual application of equine elements, as according to De natura rerum, a work published, or possibly republished, in 1572 and attributed to Paracelsus, it is specifically the womb of a horse that serves as a ingredient in the creation of a homunculus (Newman, 1999).

Edvard Munch.: Possibly in reference to the imagery from Munch's best-known series of paintings, The Scream (1893).

Pietà: The depiction of the Virgin Mary holding the dead body of Christ in her lap post its retrieval from the cross, first appearing in Italo-Byzantine painting (Forsyth, 1995).

the end ... Kübler-Ross,: As outlined by Kübler-Ross (1969/2014), the five stages of confrontation with death are denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Contrary to common misinterpretation, however, the model does not state that a person will necessarily visit the five stages in that order, or even all five at all (Kübler-Ross & Kessler, 2005).

Post No. 28086

Like shampoo: In reference to the contemporary "no poo" movement advocating the avoidance of shampoo, usually for dermatological reasons, and despite some authorities arguing that such actions could provide opposite the intended effect (Aubrey, 2009; Grossman, 2008). Kane, for example, notes the protective qualities of selenium disulfide, a compound found in certain shampoos (as cited in Goldberg, Medjuck, & Reitman, 2001).

still have . . . kidneys: Mikkelson (2008) dates the urban legend featuring a drugged victim who wakes to find that one or both of their kidneys have been stolen back to at least 1991, theorizing an origin in reports of a Turkish man having had a kidney harvested in Britain; though the man claimed the procedure had been carried out unwillingly on his part, the discovery of his having previously placed an advertisement in a Turkish newspaper offering to sell one of his kidneys eventually came to light. Organ theft is not wholly fictional, however (Hymon, 2003; Joyce, 2012).

zombie or . . . vampire: The spread, often through bite, of certain bloodborne pathogens resulting in the victim taking on characteristics of the original host and possibly spreading the pathogen further in turn has long been a subject of interest (Bergerman & Walker, 1935; Hardman, Streiner, & Romero, 1968; Stoker, 1897/2013). Surprisingly little research, however, has been carried out regarding what effects these pathogens might have on each other. That said, Wong and Ruben (2010) have made some inroads into the matter through focusing primarily on the aspect of zombiism.

Post No. 28097

Image: SemisonicVEVO (2009).

Filename: For further reading on associations between Roman Stoic philosophy and contemporary alternative rock, see Schlansky (2010).

supposed . . . the gills: Chistoferson is perhaps not entirely correct. In a symposium regarding the subject in part, Davies recommends punching a hypothetical shark in eye, and while Fry notes the gill as an acceptable alternate target, he, too, recommends punching, rather than simply ruffling (as cited in Lorimer, 2010).

that music video: See SemisonicVEVO (2009).

every . . . beginning's end: Wilson (1997/1998, track 1).

The Running Man: A fictional game show from the book of the same name wherein the contestant is declared an enemy of the state and pursued by hitmen employed by the television station, earning money for each hour of their survival (King, 1982/1999).

"Me Christie . . . sphere?": Compare the famous "Me Tarzan, you Jane." Contrary to popular belief, this particular quote never occurred in the novels by Edgar Rice Burroughs or the Tarzan films starring Johnny Weissmüller; rather, Weissmüller used the phrase to sum up his role in Tarzan, the Ape Man in a June 1932 interview with Photography Magazine (Knowles, 1999/2001).

Post No. 28107

that starship . . . guys do: For example, see Taylor & Chalmers (1991).

bluescreened it . . . blackscreened: While black does not seem an inexplicable color for use in indicating failure to further function, similar use of the color blue only gained popularity with the advent of the digital age; for example, see Windows 95 (1995). For a contemporary use of black in a similar purpose, see Pokémon Red Version (1998).

black . . . its insides: Dunn notes an association between spherical objects and Japanese drinking culture through the hard-carving of ice balls (as cited in "How to Carve," 2013). In addition, techniques for producing black ice have been well-established (Dror, 2013). However, little material exists on the results, hypothetical or otherwise, of combining this research.

Post No. 28114

those walls . . . rectangles: See Pierce (1898), and perhaps in particular Gregory & Heard (1979).

dogbolt: "A worthless person, a wretch, a knave" ("dog bolt, n. and adj.," 2010). A cursory search for the word "dogboltness" elsewhere bears no results, while "dogboltedness" returns only a reference to a beer called "Dogbolter" (Christie, 2013). Presumably, both extensions are inventions of the author.

add . . . Brit mathmen: See Whitehead & Russell (1910-1912).

Youkai: Also romanized "yōkai," the word is "variously translated as monster, spirit, goblin, ghost, demon, phantom, specter, fantastic being, lower-order deity, or, more amorphously, as any unexplainable experience or numinous occurrence" (Foster, 2009, p. 2).

anti-lantern: Attempts to negate light of this sort have generally failed, though limited successes have been seen in cases where the emitted light fell within specific wavelengths to begin with. In Wolfman (1982), for example, participants were able to render light with a predominant wavelength between 495 and 570 nanometers ineffective. This achievement was only temporary, however, and of yet remains unreproduced.

Narcissus: By allusion, Christoferson compares her newest encounter to Echo; see specifically Book III, lines 359-401 of Ovid's Metamorphoses.

Post No. 28124

Image: Kubrick (1980).

Filename: Compare King (1977/2001): "'Hi, Lloyd,' he said. 'A little slow tonight, isn't it?'" (p. 357).

nature- . . . -public-freakouts: Das Racist (2010, track 2).

X-ray vision: There exists a possibility that X-ray vision might fit the emission theory model of visual perception as per fragment 84 of Empedocles and Plato's Timaeus rather than our current understanding. If so, research into anomalous electromagnetic radiation penetration indicates that desired results may be achievable (Spengler & Donner, 1978).

blond hair: For continuing research regarding, in part, apparent occurrences of low pheomelanin and eumelanin levels in Japanese individuals, see "Implausible Hair Color" (n.d.).

Kubrick: Stanley Kubrick, American film director and producer ("The Kubrick Site," 2014).

alcoholic dad: In reference to Jack Torrance, portrayed by actor Jack Nicholson in Stanley Kubrick's The Shining (1980).

trolls: Possibly oni. Though often described as Japanese ogres or demons, the author's word choice holds cromulence; see, for example, Weinstock (2014).

long necks: In reference to rokurokubi; see Joly (1912).

that one . . . butt: The shirime; see Murakami (2005).

zone: See Serling (1959-1964).

born . . . wrong planet: See Spengler & Donner (1978), in particular the otherplanetary origin theory described in relation to anomalous electromagnetic radiation penetration. Though opportunities for further research through this approach are lacking at best, findings in Goodman & Riba (1997) show some support.

The window . . . open: Anders provides an analysis of the use of windows as points of accessibility (as cited in Cohn, Johnson, Darby, Bamberger, & Kriegman, 1991-1994).

Kangchenjunga . . . in Tibetan: Kangchenjunga, in the Himalaya, stands as the third highest mountain in the world (Freshfield, 1903). The romanization of its name may be suspect, however. According to the Wikipedia page for "Kangchenjunga" (n.d.), Tashi Namgyal, the ruling Chogyal of Sikkim from 1914 to 1963, stated that "junga" had no meaning in Tibetan but agreed to leave the accepted romanization be after consultations with "a Lieutenant-Colonel J.L.R. Weir, British agent to Sikkim" (Names section); that said, no citation is provided to support this.

plastic brick . . . antenna: The first commercial handheld cellular phone, the Motorola DynaTAC 8000x, saw availability in 1983; it "weighed 1.75 lb., stood 13 in. tall, stored 30 numbers, took 10 hours to recharge and cost $3,995" (Ha, 2010, para. 1). Due to its weight and size, it was referred to as the "brick" phone, a moniker later applied to older-generation and larger phones in general (Green & Haddon, 2009). Presumably, the phone offered Christoferson would find company under that umbrella.