On being … the 2024 Alpha List

By Ingrid Sapona 

How it can be the end of the year already is beyond me – but here we are. And so, here’s my annual review of some of the words, expressions, and phenomenon that hit my radar during the year. I’ll be interested to hear how many of these things you might have noticed – and what other things were remarkable to you but that aren’t included here.  

A is for assortative mating – this phrase came up in an opinion piece about soon-to-be vice president J.D. Vance – author of The Hillbilly Elegy, and his wife, Usha Chilukuri Vance. Assortative mating is the process by which people of similar backgrounds, such as educational attainment or financial means, select a partner. Given how Mr. Vance is so anti-elite, funny that he would have met his wife at Yale Law School, the kind of elite place folks like him are quick to condemn.  and

B is for border – Vivek Ramaswamy was recently in Vermont and he discovered that the Canada/U.S. border is WIDE OPEN! Who knew??  I wonder if anyone’s told him that – in fact – it’s the LONGEST undefended border in the world. Horrors! 

C is for civic pollution – that’s the noise you hear from people using speakers on their cellphones and tablets with no headphones (to the annoyance of those within earshot).  

D is for doxing – this is the public release(typically on-line) of identifiable information (for example, a home address or phone number) about a person usually with the intent of exposing them or punishing them. This disturbing trend is often accompanied by threats of violence. See the entry for the letters I and R. 

E is for evangelical – for a long while I was puzzled about how it is that Trump appeals to evangelicals. I always associated evangelicalism with religion but a Washington Post opinion piece helped me understand that in the age of Trump, the definition of evangelical has changed. Now, it seems, evangelicalism has become about shared political convictions – not religious convictions  

F is for frociaggine – that’s a term Pope Francis used in a meeting with priests in June. The term is considered by many to be an offensive slur against gays. But, in a move of empowerment, the gay community of Rome decided to adopt the word as the slogan of 2024 Pride. Great way of changing the narrative! 

G is for gender affirming care – this phrase has become a loaded term in both the U.S. and Canada. I wonder how many people who throw it around have a good idea of what gender affirming care is. Here’s a link to an informative article I read this year about what it is and the types of things professionals assess in providing it.  

H is for hurkle-durkle – this fun-to-say phrase was trending in social media earlier this year. Apparently, it’s a Scottish colloquialism meaning “to lie in bed or lounge about when one should be up and about”.  

I is for intimidation – this was the first entry I wrote on this alphabetical list – it related  to bomb threats that were made to eight state capital buildings on Jan. 3, 2024! Well, I’m sad to say that intimidation has taken quite a variety of forms throughout the year and is on an upward trend. Trump’s declarations about his intention to impose 25% tariffs on goods from it trading partners Canada and Mexico and his assertions about taking back the Panama Canal are just a few examples of the word in action.   

J is for journalists – 2024 has been a deadly year for journalists around the world. The figures vary, but they’re all disturbing. According to the UN, at least 68 journalists and media workers died doing their jobs this year. Of those, 42 were killed in conflict zones and 18 of those were in Palestine. The International Federations of Journalists reports that as of Dec. 10, 2024 worldwide 104 journalists were killed.  

K is for kaffiyeh – those of us old enough to remember Yasser Arafat know the kaffiyeh as the headscarf he wore. In 2024 it became the symbol of protests on campuses and beyond.  

L is for LISDIN – A friend of mine is a stickler about people mis-using the term acronym, so I don’t dare refer to LISDIN as an acronym (at this point). It’s a term I first noticed in an opinion piece by the survivor of a gunshot wound. It stands for: Life Is Short, Do It Now. Personally, I’m pulling for LISDIN to become an acronym (BOGO and FOMO have pretty much become acronyms, after all). Acronym or not, LISDIN is a sentiment I think more of us should live by.  

M is for mercurial – this is how Reuters described Elon Musk in a June article about his $56 Billion pay package from Tesla. When I read the Reuters article I had to look up the word because I thought of it more like the Shakespeare character Puck. Well, it turns out the definition includes thievishness. Wow, so the term is apt for Musk! 

N is for nativist – the politer word for racist these days.  

O is for opioid – Trump’s team thinks the solution to the opioid crisis is a border wall because they think that would cut off supply. If solving addiction problems is just about cutting off supply, then we could probably deal with food addiction and obesity by limiting the supply of food – no need for Ozempic. 

P is for Prevalence Inflation Theory – this is a term coined by some research psychologists. The theory basically is that too much news and discussion about mental health in children and adolescence can have negative consequences. The researchers say that while mental health awareness campaigns help some young people identify disorders that need treatment, over reporting of mild or transient symptoms might create the message that teenagers are vulnerable. I should note that the article also pointed out that this view remains a minority view among specialists in adolescent mental health. 

Q is for qualified – Trump’s proposed candidates for high-level posts re-define what constitutes being qualified. I guess Roget’s Thesaurus will be adding the word “qualified” as a synonym for friends of Trump. 

R is for rage and retribution – these emotions are certainly not new but in 2024 they clearly became normalized. They’ve also been supercharged thanks to social media. The results? Well, see letters D and I… 

S is for SneakerCon – that’s the name of the “convention” at which Trump introduced Trump Sneakers. A more appropriate name there never was…  

T is for tradwife – the term is short form for “traditional wife”. It popped up a few years ago and was attributed to women who believe their place is in the home and so they were choosing to take a “traditional role” in their marriage. Funny enough, in a not-so-traditional way, they went out of their way to post about it on social media. Anyway, this year the notion of tradwife took off among certain men. Indeed, in a commencement speech in May the Kansas City Chiefs’ place kicker attributed his success to the fact that he married a woman who embraced one of the most important titles of all: homemaker. 

U is for Ukraine – my hope is that at this time next year Ukraine will still be a country. These days, nothing is certain… 

V is for victim agnostic – this is a concept that explained why the U.S. warned Russia about a possible attack at a venue (Crocus Concert Hall). It will be interesting to see whether the new administration continues to apply a victim agnostic approach.  

W is for word salad – a common criticism of Kamala Harris. Meanwhile, Trump’s rambling incoherency on the campaign trail was described simply as the “weave”.  

X is for King Frederik X of Denmark – Before his coronation the King joked on social media about his “Musk-y moniker” saying that he would henceforth be known as “King Frederik X (formerly Twitter)”. What’s not to like about a King like that??  

Y is for yelling – though one of the dictionary definitions of yelling is to cheer and shout, these days yelling is more about anger and outrage. It’s also the default method many people use to express their views (and to intimidate). 

Z is for Zelenskyy – I realize this is the third year in a row that I’ve chosen Zelenskyy for the letter Z. It may seem like a lazy choice, but given that the war is over 1000 days old, how can the plight of Zelenskyy and his countrymen not be recognized. 

So, a random list for sure, though I fear that a handful of the items foreshadow what 2025 might bring. One thing I’ve learned the older I get is that about the best we can do is to take life one day at a time (and if you’re so inclined, pray a bit). 

Happy New Year! I hope to see you here (if not in person) in 2025. Thank you for reading. 

© 2024 Ingrid Sapona

On being ... insufficiently self-sufficient?

By Ingrid Sapona 

Unexplained water on the floor near one of my toilets has been of concern and puzzlement. About eight months ago I stepped on the bathmat by the toilet and my sock immediately felt wet. When I bent down to feel the memory foam bath mat, I realized it was totally soaked. I dried the floor and tried to figure out where the water came from. I checked all the things one would normally check and I could find no obvious source for water. 

I then laid paper towels around the base of the toilet and continually (ok, maybe obsessively) monitored them for moisture. Three or four days passed and there was no wetness. Strange… The only thing I could think of was perhaps I had knocked over the toilet brush holder and perhaps it had water in it and I didn’t even realize it until the mat had absorbed the spill. Anyway, the floor remained dry and eventually I put the bath mat back and relaxed a bit. 

Because I got a new toilet when I did the en suite renovation in September, I had the plumber move the old toilet into the guest bathroom. (It’s taller than the original one that was in there.) I used the guest bathroom during the en suite renovation and all was well. 

Then, about a month ago I happened to be putting something in the guest bathroom and I noticed that the bath mat near the toilet looked darker than usual. With a bit of trepidation, I stepped onto it and my sock got soaked. Ugh… What now? 

I knew that when the plumber moved the old toilet, he used a new seal gasket, which explains why there wasn’t a visible pool of water. (In fact, he didn’t use a wax one, he used one that’s more durable.) So, as with the incident back in March, it seems there must be a trickle that’s unnoticeable but that the memory foam absorbs over time. 

I called the contractor to give him a heads up that there was maybe something wrong with the toilet that had been moved. He had me check the typical possibilities (condensation, dripping from the water line, etc.) and I assured him there was no obvious moisture. Ironically, he had been here the day before because he was finishing some grouting in the en suite. He said that, in fact, he had poured a bucket of water down that toilet and flushed it and it seemed fine. Though he didn’t think he had spilled any water, at least that was a possible explanation. I said I’d monitor it. After a few days with all the paper towels still dry, I put the bath mat back and (again) breathed a sigh of relief.  

Well, one day this week the bath mat was soaked again. This time the contractor came over to see for himself. I took some solace in watching him checking all the things I had checked and – like me – he was stumped. He didn’t have time or the equipment with him to disconnect the toilet but his best guess is that the water shutoff valve or the hose is the cause of the ever-so-slow dripping. He put down some new paper towels and said we should wait to see. 

I told him I’d just as soon get a new one. I pointed out that it’s happened three times now in two different locations (which is why I don’t think it’s the water shutoff valve) and that I find it worrisome – and stressful – to just wait. He indicated that if he were me, he’d wait because even a new toilet can be defective. I appreciated his looking out for my wallet – not to mention not adding unnecessarily to landfills – but I don’t want to take the chance. He relented, saying he’ll come install it Monday. 

The next day, as I was waiting for Home Depot to deliver the new toilet, I noticed the paper towels were wet! At that point I turned off the water to the toilet, as I don’t need any more proof that there’s a problem. When the contractor comes on Monday, I truly hope that whatever the problem is it will be obvious – but I doubt it will be. 

I have a strong need to feel self-sufficient and this whole toilet thing has really challenged me on that front. Making matters worse is that there are all sorts of YouTube videos – and believe me I’ve watched many – that explain that toilets are so straightforward that only a few things that can cause problems. And of course, they make it look like all you need is a wee bit of strength and nerve and you should be able to tackle the job yourself. 

Though I know that when the contractor comes on Monday, part of me will feel like a wimpy female because maybe a guy would have waited. But I think at the end of the day there are two things that will help me salvage a bit of self-respect: first, I’m mature enough to admit when a task is beyond my ability, and second, I’ve worked hard all these years so at least I’m in the position where I can afford to buy a new toilet and to pay someone to install it. Here’s to a dry bathroom this Christmas! 

Happy Holidays to you and yours… 

© 2024 Ingrid Sapona