DAM DICTIONARY

DAM DICTIONARY

Copyright 2018 by Lori-Ann Willey 

A list of words we use around camp since our purchase in 2004.  I'm sure I've missed some, but as we use and remember, I'll add to the list.

COMMONLY USED WORDS / PHRASES / REFERENCES

16-Mile Loop -  Trip we make with snowmobiles or our Polaris 4-wheeler to our truck and back during the winter months.

A FUNNY -  A telling of an amusing experience.

A Stiffel - A process of building using more nails than wood.

Allen's-way - A clever way of doing a complicated or cumbersome task.

Aunt Flo -  Monthly period.  AKA - Aunt Dot

Baby X -  A temporary name for an unborn child.

Bedspread -  What one creates when they sprawl out on the bed leaving no room for the other.

Big People's Drink - Any alcoholic beverage.

Big Potty - Composting Toilet

Bladdah-Gladdah - What you do when you go pee.  You make your bladder gladder.

Bob Hope - A specific husband/wife in the cove.

Bubbles - Snow. (Ellie)

Cannable vs. Cannible - Paul wondered if eels were cannable.

Cheatah Pizzah - Store bought pizza

Climatized - When you are used to it being cold out.

Cling-Ons - What you call little kids when they cling to you.

Coffee Burner - The process in which green coffee beans are roasted.

Coffee Pot -  The Luggable-Loo with deodorizing coffee grounds.

Cordon-Blue - The heating cord is on the face shield  of the blue snowmobile helmet, therefore, cordon-blue.

Cuskasaurus - Cusk fish that is larger than average size. (Bruce -Katahdin General)

Dam Camp Husband – Paul

Dam Camp Wife – Lori-Ann

Dam Hill - Hill going up from the dam.

Dangling Participles - What I told Paul to watch for when he wears boxers (without snaps) ..."Dangling Parts-visible".

Deep-Throat - When a fish takes the hook, line and sinker deep in the throat.

Dickles  - A mixture of  Wickles (red relish) & Dill (green relish)

DOH!ment - The moment you realized your previous thought was a "DOH!"

Dolby - Way out to town in the winter.

Double-Dipping -  Fishing with two poles at once.

Downers - Ice Fishing:  When you lower the bait to the bottom.

Drive-By-Shooting - What we do when friends come within picture shot while on the lake with our boats.

Drop ‘em & Go -  Act of going pee outside.

Eagle -  Name of an island where we often see eagles.

Eelin' - Eel fishing.

European - What the other spouse says when the other is peeing (You're-ah-peeing)

Fat Jumpers -  Little, jumpy, hard bumps on snowmobile trails where sledders drastically increase speed, leaving snow sprayed and heaped in the trail! 

Fishit - 1.  What comes out of a fish when you clean them. 2.  What you do in a stream...fish it. 

Fishy-Fit - What you have when you pull up a lake chub thinking it was a big trout.

Four Corners - The point where the Stacyville Road and Huber Road meets.

Going Horizontal – Time for bed.

Goofy - Way out to town in the summer.

Go-Postal - What we say when we need to make the one hour round trip to the Post Office in Summer.  A good 30-45 minutes longer than that in winter.

Gray Water – Drainage water -washing, cleaning, dishes, etc.

Green-Eye - An underwater fluorescent green light used for night fishing.

Gunky Potty - Litter Box

Guzinta - This "goes into" that.  Also known as a, "Guzinta problem". 

Hangover - When sleeping at the Gateway (Hotel in Medway), we always wake up with a hangover.  (Feet hanging over the end of a double sized bed.)

Hip Fart -  The noise your hip makes when it pops back into the socket! (Florice)

Holy-Hannah! - What is yelled when you catch a small fish, and want everyone to think you caught a big one. (Dave)

Hopper-Hop - What we do in the bathroom in the winter.  The Luggable-Loo is for going #1, and the composting toilet is used for going #2.  

I'm on! - Statement to indicate being "online" or "connected" to the Internet.

Ima – “I’m a ….”

In the Now -  What's happening at that very moment. (often showing a picture)

IVIG -  Immuno gamma globulin “treatments”

Jumping-off-rock - The pyramid-shaped rock to jump from while swimming. (Stiffel’s)

Kinky Fish - The fish that are attracted to the vibrations of the snowmobile upon the ice.

Lap Dance - What your paper plate does when your lap tries to hold it during the eating process!

Lap-It  - When you do a Lap Dance

Lips - Anything that goes on the lips.  "My tongue took my lips away."  (What Autumn said after she licked chapstick off her lips.)

Lip-Stuff - Lip moisturizers.

Little Potty - Luggable-Loo (Piss Pot, Coffee Pot)

Millinocket Lake Piranha - Sunfish

Mt. K -  Mount Katahdin

Muchcuskluk - When the cusk fishing is good.

M-wow - What the cat (Gunky) says when Josh cleans his room!

Nose Douche - The process of cleaning out the sinuses using a bulb syringe, warm water and salt. (Thea)

Off Eagle - Location of ice shack.

"Peas" and Poops -  The name of Lori-Ann's garden.

Patoot -  Butt

Perchin' - White perch fishing.

Pink Medicine - What kids hope for at each doctor visit. (liquid Amoxicillin).

Quimby - A 6-letter swear word.

Sea Turtle -   Big snapping turtle

Silly Poop - Poop that is shaped like a “j” . (Ellie)

Squeepee -  (or Squeepy)  That last-ditch attempt to squeeze out a little "pee" before a trip to town, etc, in hopes you won't have to "go" until you get back. 

Stitch -  Straw or Corn brooms with painted faces.

Strap-ons - Bungee chords

Sunspot - Where the cat and Lori-Ann sit to feel the "warmth" of the winter sun.

The Beast -  Polaris Ranger

The Dam Willey’s -  Paul and I as referenced by others.

The Point - The endpoint on the camp road.

Three-Way - What happens when three fishing lines cast at the same time, in the same spot, then get tangled together, leaving the three fishermen thinking they have fish (Marc)

“Too Pooped to Poop” -  Exhausted

Traumatized - When it's REALLY cold out!

Triponable - Anything at ground level that can cause tripping, therefore it's trip-on-able.

Up Mud - A nice secluded boat ride.

Up Sandy - Going trout fishing.

Uppers - Ice Fishing:  When you lower the bait to just under the ice.

Uppin’attem -  Time to get off the patoot and get stuff done.

Uppinaddah -  When you are up and out of (bed).

Vikings - Those who take Vicodine.

Weeds - Wild Edibles.

Wet Back Hill - Hill on the Stacyville Road that is always wet with water seepage.

Zombie -  In a stupor, too tired to think.

BUILDING REFERENCES

Ami – Shed made by the Amish

Ellie-Aut – Shed named after our granddaughters -Autumn & Ellie

Home-home - Our legal residence.

Little House - Cottage

Pauly – Shed made by Paul and Lori-Ann

Plywood Palace – What our camp was called before we purchased it. (Brian M.)

Telephone Booth – Outhouse

ANIMAL REFERENCES

Ah-Choo – Name of our cat.

Bebe – Red Squirrel

Blurds - When birds get blown around with the snow in wicked high winds, you see blurry birds.

Bob & Bobbette – Raven mates

Caw - A certain seagull that comes to our boat when we yell "Caw".

Chippy - Chipmunks

Cyril – Red Squirrel

Gunky-Butt – The name of our cat.

Hand-Warmer - Name of a still warm dead squirrel.  When cold, it goes into a pot of water.

Jumpy – Red Squirrel

Rainbow – Seagull

Sammy Jay -  Blue Jays (Thorton Burgess)

Snorkeling Bear - A tree stump/root protruding from water.

Target Practice - When red squirrels steal the bird food!

Thal - Name given to a short and stubby red squirrel. (short for Thalidomide, a 1960’s morning sickness medicine, resulting in stunted limbs of the offspring.) 

Tonto - Name of the red squirrel with the tail hairs that stick straight up in the shape of a feather.

Twister - Name of a mourning dove that has a white bread twist-tie around her/her left leg.

IMAGINARY CHARACTERS

Daylight – Teller of outside conditions at dawn.  Bringer of light.

Haste – Helps get stuff done in a hurry

Mother Nature – Mother Earth and all that she holds

Night – Concealer of Daylight. 

Up & At’em – Prodders to get my butt moving

Waste – A time waster

PAMOLA - Protector of Mt. Katahdin

PAMOLA -Protector of Mt. Katahdin

Copyright 2018 by Lori-Ann Willey

Mt. Katahdin Summit, Knife's Edge,
and Pamola Peak

From time to time, I will casually, or even comically mention the name, Pamola.  Those who are familiar with Mount Katahdin,  the history and folklore of the Penobscot Indians know the legend well.  

In accordance with the Penobscot people, Pamola was an evil spirit that roamed the mountain.  He was a Penobscot god of thunder and protector of Mt. Katahdin. Pamola had the body of a man, head of a moose, and the wings and feet of the almighty eagle. 

(An Internet Photo)

It is said that Pamola resided on the eastern peak of Mount Katahdin where he protected to such great extent that those who dared climb to the summit were devoured by the beast itself.  Therefore, those tribesmen never returned.  If you look at the photos below, you see "Knife's Edge" and can certainly begin to understand why people did not return.  

Looks like Pamola is playing
with a ball.  (A Cloud Formation)

I know of many hikers who said they have climbed Mount Katahdin many times, all her trails, and annually, even.  Some, hike during the winter months, though I can't for the life of me understand why.  It is said by many, 'I crawled across Knife's Edge.  I'll never do it again.'  Comments such as, 'I'll never climb Knife's Edge again'.  'All was fine until the wind blew.  I thought I'd fall to my death'. 'The climate is different there.  Even during the summertime, the rocks are iced!'  'I reached Pamola Peak, saw Knife's Edge and turned around. I can think of many other ways I would rather die.'  

Knife's Edge
(An Internet Photo)

Such comments are nerving even to the bravest.  Yet, they also invite a challenge that so many accept.  Yet, I look at Pamola Peak, Knife's Edge, and what I call the summit-summit every day.  While I gaze, I am in awe of the history of the people, the mountain, and of their past.  What will become of Mt. Katahdin, if one day, they install a tramway for tourists?  I've heard of such mention, and, though that would be the only way I'd ever reach the top, or even cross Knife's Edge, I would not be in favor of that obstructed view.  I'm one that enjoys the thought of preservation of nature as she is, and I do not enjoy the thought of my view obstructed by anything except for a passing cloud, rain, or snow.  However, I fear that day will come.  I just hope that it is not in my lifetime.

Trail across Knife's Edge
(An Internet Photo)

The Penobscot Indians believed that Pamola, even at her base, prevented humans from scaling his mountain home.  There are references that even at the base, Pamola stirred up such blizzard-like conditions that were unsurvivable.  So harsh, that hikers could not advance another step.

I must say that I appreciate and enjoy the folklore of the Penobscot people, and so did a man by the name of Leroy Dudley.  His "yarns" are enjoyed by any reader of his book, "Chimney Pond Tales".  His stories are quite amusing, and I must admit, he is an inspiration for me as well.  For, since I read his book, I started a couple of my own.

A few years ago, I wrote a book about a young boy who was to become the leader of his tribe.  The story takes the young boy through trials surviving a harsh storm never before experienced by his people.  Lost, he spends many weeks in search of his tribe.  As a reader, you journey with him. In the book, Pamola is mentioned -evolved around two old women who curse the beast for the loss of their mother as they vow to see revenge.  That book is in the editing process.  I have also started another book that directly involves Pamola as one of the main characters.  Though, well on its way,  that will take a while to write.

The Penobscot people and their Pamola inspired me, but it wasn't until I read Leroy Dudley's book many years ago that set me in motion to write a couple writing pieces of my own.  And, of course, one winter day, I had to "tame the beast", too!

If you chance upon the book, Chimney Pond Tales, it is an amusing read.

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