whisk, curio, bric-a-brac, bunch, prophetess, priestesses, seer ,

Matisse in the Studio review – genius crowded out by bric-a-brac


At Vatican, Discord Remains as Pope Departs

By RACHEL DONADIO 8:41 PM ET
VATICAN CITY — As the sun set on Rome and on his turbulent eight-year papacy, Pope Benedict XVI, a shy theologian who never seemed fully at home in the limelight, was whisked by helicopter into retirement.



The men of old, reported Socrates, saw madness as a gift that provides knowledge or inspiration. “It was when they were mad that the prophetess at Delphi and the priestesses at Dodona achieved so much; . . . when sane they did little or nothing.” Today, insanity can still bring the gift of knowledge, but in a different manner. Much of what we know about the brain comes from seeing what happens when it is damaged, or affected in unusual ways. If the Delphic seer were to turn up tomorrow, neuroscientists would whisk her straight off into a brain scanner.



King Tut's Curios to Return to Egypt
Items whisked from the boy king's tomb are leaving the Metropolitan Museum in New York and going on display in Egypt.


German president's circle of friends a powerful bunch

Business leaders and political leaders are often better friends than we'd
like to think. Now such friendships dating back to President Christian
Wulff's time as Lower Saxony's state premier have come back to haunt him.


Extraordinary coastal living from Iceland to Chile

Inhale deeply: no, that's not the smell of a book, that's the delicate scent of the ocean's breeze. You have been whisked off on a journey through the world's loveliest seaside homes and perhaps (no promises) you're never coming back.... Relax into the lazy pace of living by the water while you soak up our selection of delectable coastal interiors from all five continents.

curio
n., pl., -os.
A curious or unusual object of art or piece of bric-a-brac.

[Short for CURIOSITY.]

bric-a-brac (brĭk'ə-brăk')
n.
Small, usually ornamental objects valued for their antiquity, rarity, originality, or sentimental associations.

[French bric-à-brac, expressive of confusion.]

whisk
v., whisked, whisk·ing, whisks. v.tr.

1. To move or cause to move with quick light sweeping motions: whisked crumbs off the table; whisked the children away.
2. To whip (eggs or cream).

v.intr.
To move lightly, nimbly, and rapidly.

n.

1. A quick light sweeping motion.
2. A whiskbroom.
3. A small bunch, as of twigs or hair, attached to a handle and used in brushing.
4. A kitchen utensil, usually in the form of stiff, thin wire loops attached to a handle, used for whipping foodstuffs.

[Middle English wisken, of Scandinavian origin.]

whisk (REMOVE)
verb [T usually + adverb or preposition]
to take something or someone somewhere else suddenly and quickly:
Our coffees were whisked away before we'd even finished them.
We only had half an hour to see her before she was whisked off to some exotic location.
Her husband whisked her off to Egypt for her birthday.

bunch

(bŭnch)
n.

1. 1. A group of things growing close together; a cluster or clump: a bunch of grapes; grass growing in bunches.
   2. A group of like items or individuals gathered or placed together: a bunch of keys on a ring; people standing around in bunches.
2. Informal. A group of people usually having a common interest or association: My brother and his bunch are basketball fanatics.
3. Informal. A considerable number or amount; a lot: a bunch of trouble; a whole bunch of food.
4. A small lump or swelling; a bump.

v., bunched, bunch·ing, bunch·es. v.tr.

1. To gather or form into a cluster: bunched my fingers into a fist.
2. To gather together into a group.
3. To gather (fabric) into folds.

v.intr.

1. To form a cluster or group: runners bunching up at the starting line.
2. To be gathered together in folds, as fabric.
3. To swell; protrude.

[Middle English bonche, probably from Flemish bondje, diminutive of bont, bundle, from Middle Dutch. See bundle.]

bunchiness bunch'i·ness n.
bunchy bunch'y adj.