Speaking of The New Yorker, Yesterday I read Strangers In Your Brain

(Cliff hanger, bites nails....)

Hogen-mogen. Speaking of the devil, as a Dutchman I think it's fun to see a week of Dutch words on the menu.

The hogen- part of yesterday's word lives on in today's Dutch language as hoog, adjective, meaning high. The mogen- part survives in it's original form, but the usage has changed.
Mogen is now a verb meaning to have permission, to be allowed to.......whatever

It is also captured in the word vermogen,
meaning as a verb : to be capable of,
meaning as a noun: capital/ equity

Have a nice week.

Stepping lightly over toenadering, ( nothing to do with toe) which is of current day-to-day use in the Netherlands, I'd like to add some poppy-cock.
I've searched and followed quite a number of lively online guessings on the word ; it all keeps turning around this:

1840-1850
Americanism; perhaps from < Dutch pappekak, equivalent to pappe- + kak excrement. Nothing more defined. In Dutch dictionaries and etymologies the word pappekak is not to found. (so far)

On the other hand, there is Dutch word in traditional and actual use: poppestront - doll's shit. (not exactly the same connotation as poppy-cock but in the same direction). The word kak is still alive but not considered a refined word to use in table conversations like here on this board.

I asked the river
About its destination
And came out lucky:
It babbled about nothing
And never came to a point....