Portmandon't: /n/

The rain / in Spain / falls mainly / on the plain! Master that and you're good to go for things like horseraces circa 1910. But nowadays it takes a lot more to impress people at fashiony parties. And now that everyone is so covered up for winter, the holiday fashion party is the toughest nut to crack. One's mouth has to sound good, not just look pretty and plump! Luckily, T Magazine’s Web site stays abreast with the trendiest lingo so we don’t have to. We’ve included here T's three words, which are sure to tickle the tip of your tongue for months to come. But trying to get by with only three words would be a nightmare! So you’ll also find an important neologism from your friends at The Daily Transom at the end.

T Magazine’s:

• schadenbasel: /n./ A new coinage expressing the satisfaction or pleasure felt at the inevitable collapse of the inflated art world, as in: “Call it schadenbasel, but the market has become so vulgar, I can’t wait for the bubble to burst. In the meantime, let’s have another Absolut Currin.”

• staycation: /n./ A neologism used by modern-day Mrs. Mortimers and real-life Homer Simpsons who choose not to travel and prefer to unravel the mysteries of the world from the comfort of their living room couches, e.g., “I can’t deal with all the hassles of airports—this Christmas, I’m taking a week off and going on staycation.”

• pop: /n./ A short, explosive sound; part of a compound modifier for a temporary location, as in, “Have you heard about the new pop-up restaurant near the Comme de Garçons guerilla store?”; [slang] each; a piece: “Elizabeth Peyton fanny packs are a steal at only $30,000 a pop”; of or pertaining to Pop Art—a descriptor that’s never been more relevant as the spirit of Warhol hands over the culture like ectoplasm, e.g., “There was more Pop in that show than in a 7-Eleven Big Gulp.”

Here's one of our own!

• portmandon't: /n./ The practice of integrating copy from style magazines into your ordinary vernacular, later prompting other hard-up journalists to feats of pseudolinguistics (using nexis) that turn up old pieces and make them legendary. (See: metrosexual.) Ex.: "You didn't just say schadenbasel! That's a big, big portmandon't." /interj./ An exclamation aimed at stopping the use of style-section verbiage in everyday conversation.