I didn't expect to experience an epiphany while watching the National Spelling Bee competition on TV the other night, but when one of the finalists got this word, I did.
From Merriam-Webster's online dictionary:
Welt·schmerz
Pronunciation: 'velt-"shmerts
Function: noun
Usage: often capitalized
Etymology: German, from Welt world + Schmerz pain
1 : mental depression or apathy caused by comparison of the actual state of the world with an ideal state
"Hey, that's what I've got!" I said to myself. I've been weltschmerzed without even knowing it!
Appropriately, my next movie outing will be to see the Al Gore vehicle An Inconvenient Truth. Something tells me it's going to be a big popcorn tub full of Weltschmerz, but I've got to vote with my movie ticket and do my civic duty by sitting through the bad news. Fortunately, my friend P-girl and I plan to drown our global warming sorrows post-viewing with a couple of cocktails at the conveniently adjacent theater lounge. Maybe I'll ask the bartender to concoct a drink in honor of the event. Make it a Weltschmerz, straight up (we've got enough melting ice in the world, thank you very much.)
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