Bluffing at Skrabble
Rubbeling: “taking a whole lot of stuff out and just leaving it on the floor and walking away”.
This definition is courtesy of my 5 year old son. Although I had never heard the term “rubbeling” I thought perhaps I should Google it (both of my dictionaries currently residing at my office).
Although it does not appear to be a proper English word (and we are oh so proper in my house), I was a little perturbed to find it is a word in Low German: rubbeling "rough, uneven".
So why should I find this disturbing? My in-laws are of German descent (although both were born in Canada) and if I ever again have to hear them discuss some translation from Low German to English it will be too soon. I can only imagine the unmitigated glee in their household if they were to know that my son is coming up with words from Low German (who knows the source???). At least his definition is wrong – I will hold tight to that thought.
So from now on, I think I will adopt his terminology along with the definition. After all, what better word to describe exactly what I do with this blog? Dump everything out and then walk away from it (and damn, it feels good).
It also solves my dilemma of what I tell my husband when he is around and hears the keyboard buzzing away. “Oh, I’m just rubbeling dear”.
Now can someone just tell me why "blog" is not in my spell check dictionary? (Well, it is now, along with rubbeling but it wasn’t initially). Yes, I know all about the short for web log thing but still, shouldn’t it already be in the spell checker?
And so I occupy my mind (what little there is)
DinoD
Rubbeling: “taking a whole lot of stuff out and just leaving it on the floor and walking away”.
This definition is courtesy of my 5 year old son. Although I had never heard the term “rubbeling” I thought perhaps I should Google it (both of my dictionaries currently residing at my office).
Although it does not appear to be a proper English word (and we are oh so proper in my house), I was a little perturbed to find it is a word in Low German: rubbeling "rough, uneven".
So why should I find this disturbing? My in-laws are of German descent (although both were born in Canada) and if I ever again have to hear them discuss some translation from Low German to English it will be too soon. I can only imagine the unmitigated glee in their household if they were to know that my son is coming up with words from Low German (who knows the source???). At least his definition is wrong – I will hold tight to that thought.
So from now on, I think I will adopt his terminology along with the definition. After all, what better word to describe exactly what I do with this blog? Dump everything out and then walk away from it (and damn, it feels good).
It also solves my dilemma of what I tell my husband when he is around and hears the keyboard buzzing away. “Oh, I’m just rubbeling dear”.
Now can someone just tell me why "blog" is not in my spell check dictionary? (Well, it is now, along with rubbeling but it wasn’t initially). Yes, I know all about the short for web log thing but still, shouldn’t it already be in the spell checker?
And so I occupy my mind (what little there is)
DinoD
posted by DinosaurD at 11:16 AM
3 Comments:
Because I'm too lazy to look it up, is that pronounced rOObbeling or rUbbeling?
I want to make sure I teach it to my 4 year old correctly, you know.
Well, my son is the expert here and he pronounces it like rubble (from a building demolition) with the "ing" on the end. He is quite keen on demolition sites and things being "blown up" so I imagine that rubbeling probably came from "the act of creating rubble". (I'm hoping they grow out of these types of interests)
If he were pronouncing it the other way, I would be suspicious that he had been around some black markets for Russian currency.
DinoD
Wonderful word. I'm adopting it immediately. In the revised definition, of course.
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