Two Wished-for Words
We went out to dinner with Stacie, Andy, Stacie's mom and Fred. Fred is Stacie's mom's... boyfriend? It's odd to call a seventy year old a boyfriend. "Partner" also doesn't cut it. Partner sounds too new and hip to refer to a guy on the darker side of grandpa age.
The word "sambo" would be perfect, except it's a Swedish word that means something very different in English. In Swedish, a sambo is an unmarried person of any sex or age who lives with their significant other. Swedes are good like this. They also have the word "särbo" which refers to a person in a long-term relationship who doesn't live with their other half.
Anyway, I wished for the word sambo.
Then I got into a deep conversation with Fred about temporary tattoos. As you do when you meet your friend's mom's gentleman. I recalled my grandma talking about the temporary tattoos she used to get on Coney Island back in the day. There was a name for them. I couldn't recall what it was. Fred scratched his head. He's from Brooklyn and he knew what I was talking about, but he couldn't remember either.
All evening this missing word bothered me. It bothered me the next morning. And then, wham like a burst of heavenly light it came to me: cockamamie.
Right.
That's what the gramster calls fake ink. I finally remembered cockamamie mainly because I had a vague sense the word sounded, kind of, like another word gram would occasionally drop -- coney. Coney means rabbit fur dyed to look like leopard skin.
According to grammy, it was uncool to wear coney. If coney ever came up, guaranteed it was not part of a compliment. Then again, my grandmother is not known for her compliments. She's more known for non-subtle innuendos. I recall that one time in the middle of a party when she told Cindy Barnick that Cindy's family recipe for liver pate wasn't particularly good.
Also, the gram is the daughter of a midtown furrier.
There could be factors at play beyond fashion choices, is my only point.
The word "sambo" would be perfect, except it's a Swedish word that means something very different in English. In Swedish, a sambo is an unmarried person of any sex or age who lives with their significant other. Swedes are good like this. They also have the word "särbo" which refers to a person in a long-term relationship who doesn't live with their other half.
Anyway, I wished for the word sambo.
Then I got into a deep conversation with Fred about temporary tattoos. As you do when you meet your friend's mom's gentleman. I recalled my grandma talking about the temporary tattoos she used to get on Coney Island back in the day. There was a name for them. I couldn't recall what it was. Fred scratched his head. He's from Brooklyn and he knew what I was talking about, but he couldn't remember either.
All evening this missing word bothered me. It bothered me the next morning. And then, wham like a burst of heavenly light it came to me: cockamamie.
Right.
That's what the gramster calls fake ink. I finally remembered cockamamie mainly because I had a vague sense the word sounded, kind of, like another word gram would occasionally drop -- coney. Coney means rabbit fur dyed to look like leopard skin.
According to grammy, it was uncool to wear coney. If coney ever came up, guaranteed it was not part of a compliment. Then again, my grandmother is not known for her compliments. She's more known for non-subtle innuendos. I recall that one time in the middle of a party when she told Cindy Barnick that Cindy's family recipe for liver pate wasn't particularly good.
Also, the gram is the daughter of a midtown furrier.
There could be factors at play beyond fashion choices, is my only point.
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