briss

Ritual, ceremonial circumcision. Yiddish pronunciation of "berith" = "covenant."

3 men fainted at the last briss I went to.

by octopod March 05, 2004

call someone who cares

Politer version of call someone who gives a shit.

Your homework is late again, Douggie.
Call someone who cares.

by octopod November 22, 2003

dog's dinner

A mess, a fiasco. British.

The European Union has made a dog's dinner of its economic policy.

by octopod June 17, 2004

megillah

Something long complex, and possibly tedious. Fr. Yiddish/Hebrew, for "scroll." Certain scrolls are read on particular holidays; it takes a long time, hence the secondary meaning.

I asked for instructions, and he explained the whole manual to me, the whole megillah, from beginning to end. It took two hours.

by octopod August 30, 2008

Twentieth Century

1. The ~ Limited, an extinct luxury train from New York to Chicago.
2. Hell on Earth, 1900-1999, or 1901-2000, for would-be purists.

In the Twentieth Century fools prated of progress, and mass murder was an athletic event.

by Octopod November 08, 2003

snot rag

handkerchief; tissue; kleenex

Throw that filthy snot rag in the trash, piggo!

by Octopod November 07, 2003

Bzzistan

Any Central Asian place where there are deserts, Bactrian camels, fermented mare's milk, and a name ending in "-stan."

Our correspondent, just back from Bzzistan, is here in our studio, having had just enough time to wipe off the camel spit.

by octopod March 06, 2004