Whatchamacallit

In Greek mythology, the underworld may be the land of the dead, but it has living botanical items like meadows with asphodel flowers (see picture below) and geographical features. I don’t know why this particular flower was picked instead of, say, roses or marigolds. Probably because the leaves are grey and, perhaps, blend in with the general atmosphere which has necessarily to be glum and drab.

There are also five rivers: Styx, Lethe, Acheron, Phlegethon and Cocytus. Of the five, Lethe is the river of oblivion. The dead would drink the waters of Lethe to forget their earthly existence.

I have a strong feeling that some of the waters of Lethe have seeped into the water system of our apartment because these days it seems as though I can’t find the right word when writing the weekly blog. The word is always “at the tip of my tongue” (or the finger) as I understand the term is. The problem is that it remains at the tip and does not go anywhere.

This condition is known as Lethologica derived from the Greek words Lethe (forgetfulness) and logos (word). I believe that the coinage of this term is attributed to psychologist Carl Jung, but the earliest clear record is in the edition of Dorland’s American Illustrated Medical Dictionary, where Lethologica is defined as the ‘inability to remember the proper word’.

I guess you are going to dismiss this as, “It is not a big deal; it happens to everyone”. Perhaps. “And we do find ways of dealing with the issue”, you might continue. Perhaps.

I recall when we first arrived in Canada in 1965, one of our friends (let us call him George) used to employ the word ‘whatchamacallit’ often. Coming straight from an environment where British English was employed, I was a bit puzzled by this word, which did not appear to be included in any dictionary—British or American. He would say something like, ‘I was looking for the whatchamacallit, but it was not available in the local stores, and so I had to go to Edmonton’. He also would use another strange word ‘thingamajig’. ‘I think you need to change the thingamajig for the lawn mower to start’. I believe he meant the sparkplug.

I have experienced others resorting to nonverbal tactics when the words adamantly remain at ‘the tip of the tongue’. For instance, a lot of people cannot remember my name. After all who can blame them? The name in the Federal and Provincial records is Parameswaran Sukumaran Nayar!!! How I have wished that my name was Jack Rogers or David Amies! (The name ‘Amies’, however, does have a problem. When I type the word, the autocorrect suggests the word ‘Amish’. In my case it is even more hilarious. Autocorrect has recommended ‘surrender’ or ‘cucumber’ whenever I type my name–the name that many people know me by).

But I digress.

When it is difficult to recall the name of a person, the speaker says something like, ‘What’s his name, you know, er, er’?” and snaps the fingers at the listener’s face several times as though to enjoin or encourage her/him to come up with the name.

Others use ‘you know what’. Friends used to say things like, “What you really need is one of those, the, er, er, you know what if you are on vacation in Cuba. No, pal, I don’t know what.

The brain does not function like a computer, where data is neatly stored away and retrieved at the press of a button. Recalling every word in our vocabulary is tough. There are over a million words (and counting) in the English language, but the active vocabulary used by an adult in speech and writing is much less than that, perhaps 50,000. There are many thousands buried in our passive vocabulary, words that we don’t use often. Such words are usually harder to recall at short notice because we have not formed the necessary links to other important bits of information that makes memories easily retrievable.

 

Did You Know?

That the tennis ball is more lethal than an assault rifle. At least it appeared so in Cleveland where the Republican convention concluded on Thursday. The police department had announced a list of 72 items that attendees were prohibited from bringing into the convention centre or indeed, in the environs of the Quicken Loans Arena. But one could carry an assault rifle (see picture). But air pistols were banned.

I can’t fathom this. I would have thought that a baseball could hurt if someone like Aroldis Chapman threw it at someone. I suppose a tennis ball could be a dangerous missile if a Raonic or an Isner hit it with a racket. A tennis racket is not in the list of prohibited items.

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NUMBERS

$14.7 billion. The amount Volkswagen has agreed to pay to settle claims stemming from its diesel emissions cheating scandal in what would be the largest consumer class action settlements ever in the United States. Figures for other countries were not available at press.

60,000. The number of soldiers, policemen, judges, civil servants, teachers and academics who have been suspended, detained or placed under investigation since the coup d’état in Turkey. The President has also closed 1043 private schools, 1229 foundations and associations, 35 medical institutions, 19 unions and 15 universities. Their assets will be seized by the Treasury.