Harmonica har-mon-i-ca /  hɑrˈmɒn ɪ kə / Noun a hand-held rectangular musical instrument played by exhaling and inhaling through a row of metal reeds “I daydream about a high school where everybody plays the harmonica: the students, the teachers, the principal, the janitor and the cook in the cafeteria.” Richard Brautigan (1935-1984)

Propriety prop-pri-e-ty /p(r)əˈprīədē/ Noun respectability, modesty, correct conduct “Without an acquaintance with the rules of propriety, it is impossible for the character to be established“ Confucious (551-479 BCE)

Chevron chev-ron /ˈSHevrən/ Noun a pattern with a V or inverted V shape “The sea glides along far below, spattered with the countless chevrons of whitecaps.” Anthony Doerr (1973-)

Heroism her-o-ism / ˈherəˌwizəm/ Noun courage, boldness, bravery “In short, heroism means doing the right thing regardless of the consequences.” Brandon Mull (1974-)

Serenade sere-nade /serəˈnād/ Noun/Verb Noun a piece of music played in the open air, oftentimes under a window “The Roman form of serenade is to race a motorcycle motor under the girl’s window, but mufflers are not common in any situation.” Eleanor Clark (1913-1966) Verb  to charm, to court, to play music under a window “May the songbirds serenade you every step along the... Read More

Stanza stan-za / ˈstanzə Noun a verse, a refrain “Poetry makes its own pertinence, and a single stanza outweighs a book of prose“ Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)  

Beguile be-guile /bəˈɡīl/ Verb to divert or to entertain “Imperceptibly the hours glide on, and beguile us as they pass.“ Ovid (43 BC- 17 AD)

Contortion con-tort-ion /kənˈtôrSHən/ Noun something bent or twisted out of shape, a distortion “All the contortions we go through just not to be ourselves for a few hours.”- Keith Richards (1943)

Facsimile fac-sim-i-le /fakˈsiməlē/ Noun a copy or likeness of anything “The best way to learn is live, in person, cooking, feeling, smelling and tasting, but TV is the second-best thing to that; it’s a halfway facsimile.”- Ted Allen (1965)

Horticulture hor-ti-cul-ture/ˈhôrdəˌkəlCHər/ noun the study of growing fruits, vegetables, flowers “An artist cannot speak about his art any more than a plant can discuss horticulture.” Jean Cocteau (1889- 1969)