Is This Me — or You?

If every post I made equaled the amount of food I could eat, I would be an anorexic person.  Nay, I would be a dead one!  I really ought to post more often . . .

For today’s post, I want to share a word that I came across when I read the book The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing by M. T. Anderson.  That’s a great book.  I highly recommend it!

The word is rube.  Rube [roob] is a noun that means an unsophisticated person from a rural area.  A hick.  In the book I mentioned above, Octavian was the guinea pig in a test to see if he could be transformed from a rube into an educated person.

I grew up on a farm in southeastern Idaho.  I was a rube.  Hopefully, I’m not one any more now!  I have gotten an education.  However, I do currently live in a rural area . . .

Are you bonhomous?

My nephew recently e-mailed me and used the word ‘bonhomous’ in his message.  I thought that was a fabulous word and decided I needed to write about it here!

Bonhomous (bon-uh-muss) is an adjective that means frank and simple good-heartedness; a good-natured manner; friendliness. (Bonhomous is the adjective form of the noun bonhomie.  Bonhomie comes from the French ‘bonhomme’ which means good-natured man.)

You probably know people whose general personality is good natured, cheerful, and pleasant.  Those types of people are nice to be around and to associate with.  I know a person who is very negative in everything she says and does.  I feel sorry for her.  She seems to be so unhappy.  But, I digress.  Back to bonhomous.

If a clerk in a store or a waitress in a restaurant is cheerful and friendly, you could say they were bonhomous.  I taught a technology class yesterday and every person sat at their computer like the proverbial bump on a log.  None of them were bonhomous.  They didn’t smile.  They hardly even looked at me.  Must have been too early in the morning for them.

Dr. Seus’ Grinch is . . . is . . . well . . .  a grinch.  Definitely not bonhomous!

There are some drivers on the public transportation buses that I ride that are bonhomous — they greet the passengers with a smile and a cheerful ‘Good morning’ or ‘good afternoon.’

Most of the times, we can choose what attitude we have.  Give me bonhomous over being a grinch any ol’ day!