A.Word.A.Day Archives
from https://wordsmith.org/awad
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Date: Thu Sep 1 00:01:07 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--refulgent
X-Bonus: Do not keep the slanderer away, / treat him with affection and honor: / Body and soul, he scours all clean, / babbling about this and that. -Kabir, reformer, poet (late 15th century)
This week's theme: Miscellaneous words
refulgent (ri-FUHL-juhnt) adjective
Shining brilliantly.
[From Latin refulgere (to radiate light, to reflect), from re- (back) +
fulgere (to shine). Ultimately from the Indo-European root bhel- (to shine
or burn), which is also the source of blaze, blank, blond, bleach, blanket,
and flame. Earliest documented use: before 1500.]
"Michael slowly walked into the water yesterday, his board tucked under his
arm, and his sun-kissed blond hair refulgent even in the dull light."
Mark Bode; Surf Tribute Farewells a Great Dad; The Sunshine Coast Daily
(Maroochydore, Australia); May 9, 2011.
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Date: Fri Sep 2 00:01:10 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--plenary
X-Bonus: If you want to build a ship, don't drum up people together to collect wood and don't assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea. -Antoine de Saint-Exupery, author and aviator (1900-1944)
This week's theme: Miscellaneous words
plenary (PLEE-nuh-ree, PLEN-uh-ree) adjective
1. Full; complete; absolute.
2. Having all members of a meeting in attendance.
[From Latin plenarius (fully attended, complete), from plenus (full).
Earliest documented use: 1425.]
"Mr. Kadirgamar said the rebels' demand for plenary powers in the northeast
would lead to an 'erosion of powers' of the Sri Lankan Government."
V.S. Sambandan; Chandrika Declares Short-term Emergency; The Hindu
(Chennai, India); Nov 6, 2003.
"Inigo de Oriol had presented his resignation but it had yet to be accepted
as the meeting was not a plenary session."
Fallout from Spanish Energy Takeover; Agence France Presse (Paris, France);
Sep 14, 2005.
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Date: Mon Sep 5 00:01:06 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--cowabunga
X-Bonus: Most people are mirrors, reflecting the moods and emotions of the times; few are windows, bringing light to bear on the dark corners where troubles fester. The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows. -Sydney J. Harris, journalist and author (1917-1986)
In the past 17 years of A.Word.A.Day we have never had a whole week of
interjections. Sure we had an occasional interjection as part of some
other theme, but that's it. This week we'll try to remedy that injustice
to this important part of speech.
The word interjection literally means "something thrown in", from inter-
(between) + jacere (to throw), though usually interjections stand apart
as a single word sentence. We are familiar with everyday interjections
such as oh, ah, ouch, and wow, but there are more than a thousand
interjections in the English language. In a typical day we use some of
them without a thought.
This week we'll feature some of the uncommon interjections. You may already
be familiar with these words but may be surprised about their origins.
cowabunga (kou-uh-BUHNG-guh) interjection
An expression of surprise, joy, or enthusiasm.
[The word was the cry of Chief Thunderthud, a character in the children's
television program Howdy Doody. The word was later adopted by surfers.
It was popularized by its use on the animated show Teenage Mutant Ninja
Turtles. Earliest documented use: 1954.]
"Malaysia reported its first case of a cow giving birth to triplets last
week."
Alina Simon; Cowabunga! It's Triplets; New Straits Times (Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia); Oct 24, 2010.
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Date: Tue Sep 6 00:01:05 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--huzzah
X-Bonus: Don't mistake pleasure for happiness. They're a different breed of dog. -Josh Billings, columnist and humorist (1818-1885)
This week's theme: Interjections
huzzah or huzza (huh-ZAH)
interjection: Used to express joy, applause, encouragement, etc.
noun: An instance of appreciation or applause.
verb tr., intr.: To cheer.
[Of undetermined origin. Perhaps used originally as a sailor's hoisting cry.
Earliest documented use: 1682.]
"Huzzah! The Royal Tournament is back!"
Lucy Mangan; I Love a Man in Uniform; The Guardian (London, UK);
Jun 26, 2010.
"And the Democrats, at their convention will undoubtedly give John Kerry
a big huzza and a temporary bump in the polls."
William Rusher; Kerry's Problem; The Gadsden Times (Alabama); Mar 27, 2004.
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Date: Wed Sep 7 00:01:08 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--gesundheit
X-Bonus: The art of medicine consists in amusing the patient while nature cures the disease. -Voltaire, philosopher (1694-1778)
This week's theme: Interjections
gesundheit (guh-ZOONT-hyt) interjection
Used to wish good health to someone who has sneezed.
[From German Gesundheit (health), from gesund (healthy) + -heit (-hood).
Earliest documented use: 1914.]
"'A friend was on an Aeroflot flight crossing Russia when the woman next to
him sneezed. He said 'Gesundheit!' She said: 'Thank goodness, someone who
speaks English.'"
Peter Spencer; Column 8; The Sydney Morning Herald (Australia); Jul 23, 2011.
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Date: Thu Sep 8 00:01:10 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--bada-bing
X-Bonus: He who listens to truth is not less than he who utters truth. -Kahlil Gibran, poet and artist (1883-1931)
This week's theme: Interjections
bada-bing (ba-duh-BING) interjection
Used to suggest something happening effortlessly, emphatically,
or predictably, implying "Just like that!" or "Voila!"
[Of uncertain origin. Perhaps imitative of the sound of a drum roll and
cymbal crash or a rimshot. Earliest documented use: 1965.]
There's a website for everything on the net. Here's one for a rimshot:
http://www.virtualrimshot.com/
"You try your hand at screenwriting, because your old mate David Simon has
asked you to and -- bada-bing! -- it's The Wire and every person who's seen
it reckons it's the best drama series there's ever been on television."
David Robinson; Voices of America; The Scotsman (Edinburgh); Aug 13, 2011.
"Bada-bing, bada-boom -- the search for another Earth should be easy now,
right?"
Lucianne Walkowicz; A Good Planet is Hard to Find; CNN (Atlanta, Georgia);
Aug 21, 2011.
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Date: Fri Sep 9 00:01:06 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--attaboy
X-Bonus: A great deal of intelligence can be invested in ignorance when the need for illusion is deep. -Saul Bellow, writer, Nobel laureate (1915-2005)
This week's theme: Interjections
attaboy (AT-uh-boi) interjection
Used to express approval or encouragement.
[Alteration of "That's the boy." Earliest documented use: 1909.]
"The employees are not asking for a whole lot -- just an Attaboy! or an
Attagirl! And news of this small gesture moves like wildfire through
the ranks."
Labonita Ghosh; Five Ways to Reward the B-player in Your Team;
The Economic Times (New Delhi, India); Feb 1, 2011.
"Dr. Burton refutes the notion that present-day parents have coddled and
attaboyed their children."
Michael Tortorello; Mom, You're One Tough Art Critic; The New York Times;
Jan 27, 2011.
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Date: Mon Sep 12 00:01:05 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--iridescent
X-Bonus: I keep my ideals, because in spite of everything I still believe that people are really good at heart. -Anne Frank, Holocaust diarist (1929-1945)
According to an old joke (perhaps a true story), there's this ad in a magazine:
Learn to write novels.
Easy-to-understand instructions.
Send $20.
You send money to the given address and in return they send you a dictionary
with the instructions "Some assembly required."
Joke aside, that's all there's to it really, whether you want to write
stories, poems, or novels, though learning that assembly takes time and
practice, often years.
Writing is crafted by putting together small blocks to make bigger ones,
letters to words, words to sentences, sentences to paragraphs, and so on.
This week we'll feature five words made using combining forms.
What are combining forms? You can think of them as Lego (from Danish,
leg: play + godt: well) bricks of language. As the term indicates, a
combining form is a linguistic atom that occurs only in combination with
some other form which could be a word, another combining form, or an affix
(unlike a combining form, an affix can't attach to another affix).
iridescent (ir-i-DES-uhnt) adjective
Displaying a rainbow of colors that change when seen from different angles.
[From Latin irido- (rainbow), from iris (rainbow, iris plant, diaphragm of
the eye), from Greek iris. Iris was the goddess of rainbows in Greek mythology.
Earliest documented use: 1794.]
An iridescent soap bubble https://wordsmith.org/words/images/iridescent_large.jpg
Photo: Jeff Kubina http://www.flickr.com/photos/kubina/166394942/
"Coast Guard pilots who have flown over the spill describe it as an
iridescent sheen on the water."
Travis Griggs; Crist: 'It is in God's Hands'; Pensacola News Journal
(Florida); Apr 28, 2010.
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Date: Tue Sep 13 00:01:06 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--heterodox
X-Bonus: Poetry is a deal of joy and pain and wonder, with a dash of the dictionary. -Kahlil Gibran, poet and artist (1883-1931)
This week's theme: Words made with combining forms
heterodox (HET-uhr-uh-doks) adjective
1. Different from established beliefs or opinions.
2. Holding unorthodox opinions.
[From Greek hetero- (different) + doxa (opinion), from dokein (to think).
Ultimately from the Indo-European root dek- (to take or accept), which is
also the root of words such as paradox, orthodox, doctor, disciple,
discipline, doctrine, dogma, decent, decorate, dignity, disdain, condign
https://wordsmith.org/words/condign.html , and deign
https://wordsmith.org/words/deign.html . Earliest documented use: 1619.]
"Batku's response was to cast himself as a defender of the faith, railing
against heterodox sects."
Praveen Swami; Piety, Paranoia, and Kashmir's Politics of Hate; The Hindu
(Chennai, India); Jul 1, 2008.
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Date: Wed Sep 14 00:01:05 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--kleptocracy
X-Bonus: A man who takes away another man's freedom is a prisoner of hatred, he is locked behind the bars of prejudice and narrow-mindedness. -Nelson Mandela, activist, South African president, Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1918)
This week's theme: Words made with combining forms
kleptocracy (klep-TOK-ruh-see) noun
A government by the corrupt in which rulers use their official
positions for personal gain.
[From Greek klepto-, from kleptes (thief) + -cracy (rule). Earliest
documented use: 1819.]
"Mubarak was the leader of a brutal dictatorship and kleptocracy. He
enriched himself and his family and friends at the expense of the people."
A Trial Tyrants Will Heed; Winnipeg Free Press (Canada); Aug 4, 2011.
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Date: Thu Sep 15 01:12:04 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--polymath
X-Bonus: Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. -Leonardo da Vinci, painter, engineer, musician, and scientist (1452-1519)
This week's theme: Words made with combining forms
polymath (POL-ee-math) noun
A person who is learned in many fields.
[From Greek polymathes (learned), from poly- (many) and manthanein (to learn).
Ultimately from the Indo-European root mendh- (to learn) that is also the root
of mathematics, chrestomathy https://wordsmith.org/words/chrestomathy.html ,
philomath https://wordsmith.org/words/philomath.html ,
and opsimath https://wordsmith.org/words/opsimath.html . Earliest documented
use: 1624.]
"If ever there was a gifted polymath, it was Prof. Gift Siromoney. He may
have been Professor of Mathematics at MCC (Madras Christian College), but
his interests were from A to Z, from archaeology to zoology."
S. Muthiah; A Gifted Polymath; The Hindu (Chennai, India); Apr 10, 2011.
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Date: Fri Sep 16 00:01:13 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--necropolis
X-Bonus: A writer -- and, I believe, generally all persons -- must think that whatever happens to him or her is a resource. All things have been given to us for a purpose, and an artist must feel this more intensely. All that happens to us, including our humiliations, our misfortunes, our embarrassments, all is given to us as raw material, as clay, so that we may shape our art. -Jorge Luis Borges, writer (1899-1986)
This week's theme: Words made with combining forms
necropolis (ne-KROP-uh-lis) noun
A burial place, especially a large and elaborate cemetery belonging
to an ancient city.
[From Greek necro- (dead) + -polis (city). Earliest documented use: 1819.]
Necropolis of Pahlavan-Mahmud, Uzbekistan:
https://wordsmith.org/words/images/necropolis_large.jpg
[Photo: Loic Brohard http://www.brohardphotography.blogspot.com/]
"This merchant lived a long life in Egypt and was buried in the Saqqara
necropolis."
Nevine El-Aref; Ancient Egyptians in Arabia; Al-Ahram Weekly (Cairo, Egypt);
Nov 11, 2010.
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Date: Mon Sep 19 00:01:07 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--vade mecum
X-Bonus: If only there were evil people somewhere insidiously committing evil deeds and it were necessary only to separate them from the rest of us and destroy them. But the line dividing good and evil cuts through the heart of every human being. And who is willing to destroy a piece of his own heart? -Alexander Solzhenitsyn, novelist, Nobel laureate (1918-2008)
Though just a few ounces of paper and ink, books can be threatening to some.
Governments try to ban them. Religious leaders try to shield their followers
from them.
Of course, it's not the container, it's what's in them -- the ideas -- that
frightens those in power. A good gauge of a free society is the freedom it
enjoys to publish and read a book, even one some people don't agree with.
As an antidote to the banning of books, Banned Books Week
http://bannedbooksweek.org/ is celebrated in the US every year. This year
it's Sep 24 - Oct 1. Does your country observe a Banned Books Week? If not,
why not start one yourself?
To mark this week we'll feature five words to describe various forms of books.
For previous years of words featured in A.Word.A.Day for the Banned Books
Week, see here https://wordsmith.org/words/fatwa.html and here
https://wordsmith.org/words/comstockery.html .
vade mecum (VAY/VAH-dee MEE/MAY-kuhm) noun
A book for ready reference, such as a manual or guidebook.
[From Latin vade mecum (go with me), from vadere (to go) + me (me) + cum
(with). Earliest documented use: 1629.]
Ladies' Vade Mecum "Useful in repairing lost beauty":
https://wordsmith.org/words/images/vade_mecum_large.jpg
Photo: Paul K http://www.flickr.com/photos/bibliodyssey/2362053970/
See more pictures: http://www.bookn3rd.com/?p=665
NOTES: An iPad may serve as the modern vade mecum, but in earlier times there
was no Wi-Fi with easy access to reference material. A moneylender may have
had to carry a book of interest tables, a doctor a book of treatments, and so
on. A vade mecum was often folded like an accordion or a map and suspended
from the belt or girdle.
"The U.S. Senate, over which Dallas presided, ordered twelve thousand
copies of Hickey's pro-slavery vade mecum."
Jill Lepore; The Commandments; The New Yorker; Jan 17, 2011.
http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/atlarge/2011/01/17/110117crat_atlarge_lepore
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Date: Tue Sep 20 00:01:09 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--enchiridion
X-Bonus: There is surely nothing quite so useless as doing with great efficiency what should not be done at all. -Peter Drucker, management consultant, professor, and writer (1909-2005)
This week's theme: Words about books
enchiridion (en-ky-RID-ee-uhn, -kih-) noun
A handbook or a manual.
[From Latin enchiridion, from Greek encheiridion, from en- (in) + cheir (hand)
+ -idion (diminutive suffix). Ultimately from the Indo-European root ghes-
(hand) that also gave us cheiromancy/chiromancy (palmistry), chiral (not superimposable
on its mirror image), and surgeon (literally, one who works with hands).
Earliest documented use: 1541.]
NOTES: In the beginning an enchiridion was a book concise enough to be carried
in one's hand, as its origin from Greek cheir (hand) suggests. Both 'handbook'
and 'manual' are literal equivalents of the word from English and Latin (from
Latin manus: hand) respectively.
An enchiridion by Pope Leo: https://wordsmith.org/words/images/enchiridion_large.jpg
Photo: Wierus http://www.wierus.com/catalog/demonology/leo.htm
"What to read: Toronto Life has been the enchiridion for Toronto's savvy
since 1966."
Alexander Besant; Canada's Capital of Cool; Times Union (Albany, New York);
May 16, 2010.
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Date: Wed Sep 21 00:01:11 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--roman-fleuve
X-Bonus: But what then is capital punishment but the most premeditated of murders, to which no criminal's deed, however calculated it may be, can be compared? For there to be equivalence, the death penalty would have to punish a criminal who had warned his victim of the date at which he would inflict a horrible death on him and who, from that moment onward, had confined him at his mercy for months. Such a monster is not encountered in private life. -Albert Camus, writer, philosopher, Nobel laureate (1913-1960)
This week's theme: Words about books
roman-fleuve (roe-MAAN*-fluhv) noun, plural romans-fleuves
[* this syllable is nasal]
A long novel, often in several volumes, that tells the story of an
individual, family, or society across several generations.
[From French roman (novel) + fleuve (river). Earliest documented use: 1936.]
"And it'd be a shame to miss out on the delights of the roman-fleuve as
summer reading: there's a thrill in buying 12 volumes [A Dance to the
Music of Time] to read end-to-end."
Tim Martin; I'll be Joining the Dance Online; The Daily Telegraph
(London, UK); May 17, 2008.
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Date: Thu Sep 22 00:01:09 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--chapbook
X-Bonus: Absence diminishes commonplace passions and increases great ones, as the wind extinguishes candles and kindles fire. -Francois, duc de La Rochefoucauld, moralist (1613-1680)
This week's theme: Words about books
chapbook (CHAP-book) noun
A small book or pamphlet containing stories, poems, or religious tracts.
[From chapman book, a small, cheap book sold by
a chapman https://wordsmith.org/words/chapman.html or
a colporteur https://wordsmith.org/words/colporteur.html .
Earliest documented use: 1824.]
A chapbook: https://wordsmith.org/words/images/chapbook_large.jpg
Photo: Cornell University Library http://rmc.library.cornell.edu/Paper-exhibit/chap.html
"Gloucester writer and editor David Rich will read from and discuss his new
chapbook of poems."
Ann Gail McCarthy; Rocky Neck Tradition Kicks Off Busy Weekend; Gloucester
Times (Massachusetts); Aug 10, 2011.
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Date: Fri Sep 23 00:01:11 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--omnibus
X-Bonus: Style is time's fool. Form is time's student. -Stewart Brand, writer and editor (b. 1938)
This week's theme: Words about books
omnibus (OM-ni-bus)
noun: 1. A volume reprinting several works by one author or works on one theme.
2. A public vehicle designed to carry a large number of people.
adjective: Including or dealing with many things at once.
[From French, from Latin omnibus (for all). Ultimately from the Indo-European
root op- (to work, produce) that is also the ancestor of words such as opera,
opulent, optimum, maneuver, manure, operose https://wordsmith.org/words/operose.html
and inure https://wordsmith.org/words/inure.html . Earliest documented use: 1829.]
"Say I'm reading an omnibus edition, where three novels are published as a
collection. Does that count as one book or three? As far as I'm concerned
it's three."
Glen Humphries; Last Word on Speed Reading; Illawarra Mercury (Australia);
Jan 13, 2011.
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Date: Mon Sep 26 00:01:08 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--boswell
X-Bonus: We are usually convinced more easily by reasons we have found ourselves than by those which have occurred to others. -Blaise Pascal, philosopher and mathematician (1623-1662)
Eponyms are little capsules of history. They capture a bundle of stories in
just a word or two. These are terms derived from the names of people, from
ep- (upon) + -onym (name). They summarize their characters and the qualities
that made them stand out.
In the five eponyms we explore this week, we'll meet people, real and
fictional, from a diverse world that includes a biographer, an army major,
a Biblical figure, a mythological king, and a loving shepherd.
Boswell (BOZ-wel) noun
A biographer, especially one who records in detail the life of another
and who obtains information through close observation of the subject.
[After James Boswell (1740-1795), Scottish lawyer, diarist, and author, who
was a companion and biographer of the lexicographer Samuel Johnson. He wrote
the biography "Life of Samuel Johnson". Earliest documented use: 1858.]
James Boswell with Samuel Johnson, detail from the painting A Literary Party at Sir Joshua Reynolds's
https://wordsmith.org/words/images/boswell_large.jpg
By D. George Thompson after James William Edmund Doyle
"There has been a cooling of relations between Mr. Buffett and Ms. Schroeder,
his Boswell, who spent five years researching and writing his biography."
Leslie Wayne; Buffett Cancels Event With Biographer; The New York Times;
Feb 3, 2009.
"Thierry Guetta is both their Boswell and their stalker, filming, filming,
filming, always."
Michael Phillips; Movie Review: Exit Through the Gift Shop; Chicago Tribune;
Apr 29, 2010.
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Date: Tue Sep 27 00:31:06 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--quisling
X-Bonus: Faced with the choice between changing one's mind and proving that there is no need to do so, almost everyone gets busy on the proof. -John Kenneth Galbraith, economist (1908-2006)
This week's theme: Eponyms
quisling (KWIZ-ling) noun
A traitor, especially one who aids an invading enemy.
[After Major Vidkun Quisling (1887-1945), Norwegian army officer who
collaborated (1940-1945) with the German occupying forces during World
War II and ruled Norway as head of the puppet government. He was
shot for treason after the German defeat. Earliest documented use: 1940.]
Benedict Arnold was another army officer whose name has turned into an
eponym as a synonym for a traitor: https://wordsmith.org/words/benedict_arnold.html
Quisling visiting a German propaganda exhibition in Oslo, Aug 15, 1944
https://wordsmith.org/words/images/quisling_large.jpg
Photo: National Archives of Norway
http://www.flickr.com/photos/national_archives_of_norway/5492195359/
"Zoran Djindjic will be remembered as a quisling who enriched himself by
selling his country to those who had waged war against it."
Neil Clark; The Quisling of Belgrade; The Guardian (London, UK); Mar 13,
2003.
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Date: Wed Sep 28 00:11:07 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--schlemiel
X-Bonus: When a man is wrapped up in himself he makes a pretty small package. -John Ruskin, author, art critic, and social reformer (1819-1900)
This week's theme: Eponyms
schlemiel or schlemihl or shlemiel (shluh-MEEL) noun
An inept, clumsy person: a habitual bungler.
[From Yiddish shlemil, from Hebrew Shelumiel, a Biblical and Talmudic figure
who met an unhappy end, according to the Talmud. Earliest documented use: 1892.]
NOTES: No discussion of schlemiel would be complete without mentioning
schlimazel https://wordsmith.org/words/schlimazel.html , one prone to
having bad luck. In a restaurant, a schlemiel is the waiter who spills
soup, and a schlimazel is the diner on whom it lands.
"Warren is an endearing schlemiel who is all awkward gestures, inexpressive
shrugs, and with a physical clumsiness."
Set Misses Mark But Cast's Touch is Sure; Dominion Post (Wellington,
New Zealand); Mar 3, 2008.
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Date: Thu Sep 29 00:11:10 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--augean
X-Bonus: Time has a wonderful way of weeding out the trivial. -Richard Ben Sapir, novelist (1936-1987)
This week's theme: Eponyms
Augean (aw-JEE-uhn) adjective
Extremely difficult, unpleasant, or filthy.
[After King Augeas in Greek mythology. Augeas had a herd of 3000 oxen, but he
neglected to clean his stables for thirty years. Hercules was asked to clean
them up, and he diverted two rivers to wash away the decades of accumulated
compost. Earliest documented use: 1599.]
"Rajiv Gandhi gave an impression that he would clean the Augean stables
that the Congress had come to represent."
Game-Changer That Wasn't; The Pioneer (New Delhi, India); Sep 19, 2011.
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Date: Fri Sep 30 00:11:06 EDT 2011
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--celadon
X-Bonus: Be the master of your will and the slave of your conscience. -Hasidic saying
This week's theme: Eponyms
celadon (SEL-uh-don) noun
1. A pale green color.
2. A type of ceramics having a pale green glaze, originally made in China.
[After C�ladon, a character in the novel L'Astr�e by the French novelist
Honor� d'Urf� (1568-1625). C�ladon is a shepherd who wears green clothes.
Earliest documented use: 1768.]
A celadon vase https://wordsmith.org/words/images/celadon.jpg
Photo: Kim http://www.flickr.com/photos/somethingtosee/2103258289/
"The 4,000-square-foot apartment isn't all white. There is some cream and
beige, too, Novick said, and a celadon-colored couch."
Michael Tortorello; Speck by Speck; The New York Times; Feb 9, 2011.