Having to have your teeth filled is an uglet; you wait and wait, trying to find the time—and the courage.
Getting up early in the morning is an uglet; inquiring regularly about convalescents; and getting a spring hat, or a new fall suit—delaying until you are the last one in town. (See Vorge.)
It’s an uglet to clean your top bureau drawer; and calling on the Wilsons—darning your stockings—or buying a wedding present, or having your picture taken. (See Digmix.)
“Oh, I’ve simply got to do that!” But—how long you delay in inviting the Ransoms to dinner! It’s an uglet.
Paying the doctor’s bill is the universal uglet. (See Igmoil.) But answering letters from people you haven’t seen for a long time is worse.
It was an uglet that I feared;
It grew, and grew, and grew,
And long I had to dree my weird—
That deed I dared not do;
And yet it must be done! In fear,
Unto my wife, I said:
“Your hat is NOT becoming, dear—
You never should wear red!”
Unk, n. 1. An unwelcome present, an inappropriate, undesirable or distasteful gift. 2. A duplicate wedding present. 3. A souvenir, or picture postcard.
These are the classic unks that women give to men—unwearable neckties, hand-embroidered suspenders, smokeless cigars—“La Flor de Chinatown!” They give them sleeve-button unks, unks made of shiny black leather. “It’s so hard to find gifts for a man!” (See Gefoojet.)
Men give in return, feminine unks—flowers that don’t match a girl’s gown; perfumery in fancy bottles; a dozen pairs of gloves of an off color; souvenir jewelry boxes with pictures of the State Capitol on top; impossible paper cutters; ivory handled nail files elaborately carved, that will not file. (See Quisty and Diabob.)