What does this quote mean? | Miscellany

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#213859 - 01/07/14 11:10 AM What does this quote mean?
momi1234 stranger Registered: 10/29/13 Posts: 12	I dreamt that my hair was kempt. Then I dreamt that my true love unkempt it
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#213863 - 01/07/14 12:06 PM Re: What does this quote mean? [Re: momi1234]
tsuwm Carpal Tunnel Registered: 04/03/00 Posts: 10538 Loc: this too shall pass	kempt :: neat, tidy (combed) it looks to me as though kempt is actually an old word that went obsolete or unused for several hundred years, and then was recovered via back-formation from unkempt.
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#213866 - 01/07/14 01:56 PM Re: What does this quote mean? [Re: momi1234]
Faldage Carpal Tunnel Registered: 12/01/00 Posts: 13803	FWIW, the kempt part seems to come from an Old English verb meaning 'to comb'. Not to mention humorously reviving the obsolete word kempt.
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#213873 - 01/08/14 05:53 AM Re: What does this quote mean? [Re: momi1234]
momi1234 stranger Registered: 10/29/13 Posts: 12	So it means, "this is what happened in my dream. My hair was in order but my sweetheart disorganized it.?" What does it want to say?
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#213874 - 01/08/14 06:19 AM Re: What does this quote mean? [Re: momi1234]
tsuwm Carpal Tunnel Registered: 04/03/00 Posts: 10538 Loc: this too shall pass	what does it 'want' to say? it seems to say what it says about lovers mussing each other's hair.. it could also be euphemistic, I can't tell what the dream(s) have to do with it without seeing this 'quote' in context; it could mean that the dreamer was dreaming of being ravished by their lover. using a rare 'opposite' of unkempt makes me think this author wasn't being very serious; see Quinion and How I met my wife. edit: I assume that this is the source of your quote: This is my dream, It is my own dream, I dreamt it. I dreamt that my hair was kempt. Then I dreamt that my true love unkempt it. -Ogden Nash Ogden Nash was well known for his humorous poetry. Edited by tsuwm (01/08/14 07:18 AM)
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#213877 - 01/08/14 07:57 AM Re: What does this quote mean? [Re: momi1234]
momi1234 stranger Registered: 10/29/13 Posts: 12	So my literal interpretation was correct and it's just that?
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#213878 - 01/08/14 08:11 AM Re: What does this quote mean? [Re: momi1234]
tsuwm Carpal Tunnel Registered: 04/03/00 Posts: 10538 Loc: this too shall pass	to quote someone, it is what it is. : grin :
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#213879 - 01/08/14 08:12 AM Re: What does this quote mean? [Re: momi1234]
Faldage Carpal Tunnel Registered: 12/01/00 Posts: 13803	Plus the play on kempt meaning 'combed'.
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#223680 - 02/29/16 05:39 AM Re: What does this quote mean? [Re: momi1234]
Beatrix stranger Registered: 02/26/16 Posts: 1	It doesn't just refer to hair though does it. It almost means scruffy, i.e he's very unkempt, he looks like a hobo. Not cared for?
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#223684 - 02/29/16 11:25 AM Re: What does this quote mean? [Re: Beatrix]
LukeJavan8 Carpal Tunnel Registered: 06/23/08 Posts: 8433 Loc: Land of the Flat Water	Welcome _________________________ ----please, draw me a sheep----
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