‘A shemozzle of thoughts’

Recently while reading a novel, I came across this fantastic word: shemozzle. It was in the sentence, “A shemozzle of thoughts.” As in, a jumble or confusion of thoughts.

I love it!

I immediately thought that this was a completely new-to-me word. I was thrilled by it. It’s fun to say, and it sounds like what it means: chaos.

A bit later the theme song to Laverne & Shirley came to mind. For those not familiar with that catchy little tune, the first two lines go:

“One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight.

Schlemiel! Schlimazel! Hasenpfeffer Incorporated!”

Schlimazil and shemozzle are not exactly the same words, but I discovered the second likely derives from the first, which is a Yiddish term. A schlimazel is an unlucky or inept person, while shemozzle refers to something confusing, a mess. (Parents and teachers may call the entire month of May a shemozzle.)

Neither has super high use in modern written English, although I totally think we should bring them back.

What does this mean as it relates to writing and communications messages in the professional world? I’m sad to say it’s not likely that you’ll find a use for “shemozzle” in your professional communications. Most of my clients need to write the way people speak — using common, everyday language that is well-recognized and easily understood.

But that doesn’t mean you can’t occasionally catch attention with a properly placed, less-often-used term. Part of our job as communicators is to be attuned to what will work best for our audience and know when — and when not — to give them room on the page.

And if you feel like dropping “shemozzle” into more casual conversation, by all means, do it!

Any guesses on what book I was reading where shemozzle appeared? A few hints…

• It was published 20 years ago.
• I’m reading it along with my daughter who is reading it for school.
• It is fiction and takes place during WWII.

I’ll share the answer in next month’s newsletter. 😉

Check It Out: The Great Spaces-After-Periods Debate

While it used to be common practice to include two spaces after periods and colons, that’s no longer the case. This dates back to how typewriter characters appeared on the page. But computer programs now use fonts that are proportionally spaced, which means the extra space after periods (and colons) is no longer necessary.

Today most major style guides, including both AP and Chicago, call for just one space after periods and colons. One of the first things I do when proofing certain documents is a search-and-replace on double spaces. Give that extra space the boot!

What’s Been on My Plate

I had the extreme pleasure of working with bilingual poet Manuel Iris on this Q&A recently. Even simple email replies from him sounded poetic. What a delight!

Discussion Questions

What’s up? I’d love to hear from you! Some things you might want to share:

• Had you heard of the word “shemozzle” before reading this?
• What is a word you love?
• How would you use “shemozzle” in a sentence?

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