A crabwise and a crustacean foolish.
Today's word of the day:
crabwise \KRAB-wyz\, adjective:
1. Sideways.
2. In a cautiously indirect manner.
"Without taking his eyes from the road his left hand moved seamlessly from the old-fashioned gear stick to Sally's lap where, after a brief professional rummage, it moved crabwise on to me in the back seat."
-- Sue Arnold, "The difference between a grope and a caress", The Independent, October 4, 2003
First, awesome word. Second, awesome quote. Third, awesome article title.
I assume The Independant runs somewhere other than the US, though, as our friend the groper's left hand is on the gearshift (and in laps), indicating that if he's in the U.S. he's got bigger problems than just a sexual harassment suit.
Namely, a head-on collision and/or major traffic violation.
3 comments:
I would think crabwise would refer to someone particularly knowledgeable about crustaceans. "How did he make that recipe?" "he's very crabwise." "How is he so good at finding rotten chicken?"...etc
Great quote that. I just wish I could read the whle article.
I like the idea of a "professional rummage" through someone's lap. Perfunctory, punctual and accurate without being overbearing, but still successful. No emotion involved.
That is funny.
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