Expanding Vocabulary...the Fun Way

I love learning new things. That's part of why I like school, despite the fact that it stresses me out sometimes. Sometimes, though, the most fun way to learn new things is to do it spontaneously. Take, for instance, this morning in my apartment. As my brother and I got ready for school, we each learned a new word. He learned that "paisley" is the pattern of my unbelievably bright (relative to the rest of my wardrobe, anyway) new shirt. Before today he had referred to the pattern as "scrambled eggs." But the light went on for him today, and now he understands why Brad Paisley has such a funny looking guitar. I, on the other hand, learned that a "jihad" is an Islamic holy war. This came about because my brother was referring, somewhat dramatically, to a potential personal conflict as a jihad. In fact, he was making up a song about it to the tune of "Rawhide," and substituting "jihad" for "rawhide"...it was rather funny even when I didn't know what on earth a jihad was. (He's so bouncy on mornings when he's had enough sleep. He was poking me with his deodorant stick this morning and giggling when I made faces. Funny boy.) So now we're both more well-rounded people...he's being educated on fashion, and I'm learning about wars. Go figure!