Uncle Garabed’s Notebook (July 14, 2012)

C’est Tout!

I have a simple philosophy. Fill what’s empty. Empty what’s full. Scratch where it itches.

—Alice Roosevelt Longworth

German Proverb

The hunt is a masculine ball, and the ball is a feminine hunt.

Slim Chance

Suzie had many suitors, among them a very fat man. Although he knew he didn’t stand high in her esteem, he took the opportunity one evening when they were together sitting on the sofa to drop to his knees and plead for her hand in marriage. He asked her to look beyond his physical appearance and try to perceive what he felt in his heart. When she made it quite clear that she would on no account accept a fat man, he hung his head abjectly, and then extended his hand and said, “Well, at least help me to get up.”

An Irish Toast

May you have many children

And may they grow as mature in taste

And healthy in color

And as sought after

As the contents of this glass.

Hepatoscopy

A very ancient form of DIVINATION based upon inspection of the liver from the animal sacrificed. It rested on the belief that the liver was the seat of vitality and the soul.

That may be why Armenians use the word jigerus (my liver) as a term of endearment.

Note: The Persian word for liver is jigar.

What’s in a Name?

Sislian: Armenian in derivation, identified as a geographical location, Sis was the capital of the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia, but is now known as the city of Kozan in Adana province of modern Turkey. Therefore, Sisli, with the added Turkish suffix, is defined as a native of the city.

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CK Garabed

Weekly Columnist

C.K. Garabed (a.k.a. Charles Kasbarian) has been active in the Armenian Church and Armenian community organizations all his life. As a writer and editor, he has been a keen observer of, and outspoken commentator on, political and social matters affecting Armenian Americans. He has been a regular contributor to the Armenian Reporter and the AGBU Literary Quarterly, “ARARAT.” For the last 30 years, Garabed has been a regular contributor to the Armenian Weekly. He produces a weekly column called “Uncle Garabed's Notebook,” in which he presents an assortment of tales, anecdotes, poems, riddles, and trivia; for the past 10 years, each column has contained a deconstruction of an Armenian surname. He believes his greatest accomplishment in life, and his contribution to the Armenian nation, has been the espousing of Aghavni, and the begetting of Antranig and Lucine.

Latest posts by CK Garabed (see all)

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