What is this?
The Glossary of Sticky Ideas where I can house and define some of the most idiosyncratic things that show up repeatedly in my writing.
I try to explain every new or unusual term that pops up in my writing. However, I frequently keep writing about these new and unusual terms. This presents a predicament:
I don’t want to bore the person who reads a lot of what I put out, by making them sit through the same definitions over and over.
I don’t want to exclude new readers by not defining something I’ve talked about before.
This Glossary is an attempt to reconcile that.
(I need cover art for this page. Ideally, it would evoke an arcane, fantastical library, but I am open. Send me an email with your rates if you’re passionate about it and I could link to your art here.)
Browse by letter
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Glossary
A
American Chestnut Trees
The American chestnut tree was once a dominant species in the Eastern United States, with an estimated 4 billion trees covering over 200 million acres. These trees were incredibly important for both ecological and economic reasons. Their chestnuts were a staple food source for both humans and wildlife, and were also used in traditional Christmas celebrations. In addition, chestnut wood was highly valued for its strength and rot-resistance, making it a critical resource for the Appalachian economy, where it was used in construction, furniture, and other industries. However, in the early 20th century, a fungus called chestnut blight was accidentally introduced to the United States, and it quickly spread, killing almost all of the American chestnut trees within a few decades. This devastating loss had a profound impact on the ecosystem and the economy of the region, and efforts are currently underway to breed a blight-resistant strain of the American chestnut tree. Also known as Eastern Redwoods.
B
C
Castle in the Sky
Castle in the Sky is a metaphor for a new idea so powerful that it changes the way we see the world. (See also: Psychological Richness.)
Chestnut Trees
(See American Chestnut Trees)
D
E
Eastern Redwoods
(See American Chestnut Trees)
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Psychological Richness
Psychological richness refers to the depth and diversity of one’s mental and emotional experiences, characterized by a variety of novel, perspective-changing experiences. It is distinct from the more commonly recognized conceptualizations of the good life, which include a happy life and a meaningful life. Recent research suggests that psychological richness is related to, but partially distinct from, both happy and meaningful lives and is more strongly correlated with curiosity, openness to experience and experiencing both positive and negative emotions more intensely. The study also showed that many people desire a psychologically rich life, but when forced to choose, most chose a happy or meaningful life. (See also: Castles in the Sky.)
Q
R
S
Sonder
Originally from The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows:
the realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own—populated with their own ambitions, friends, routines, worries and inherited craziness—an epic story that continues invisibly around you like an anthill sprawling deep underground, with elaborate passageways to thousands of other lives that you’ll never know existed, in which you might appear only once, as an extra sipping coffee in the background, as a blur of traffic passing on the highway, as a lighted window at dusk.