Anagrammary

I've always been tickled by any form of word play (homonyms, palindromes, alliteration, ambigrams, you name it!) and a recent Facebook application reminded me of one of the more mystical forms of word play: anagrams. Throughout human history, various groups of people have investigated the potential of an anagram to reveal some kind of hidden inner nature of a person/thing. Louis XIII, one of France's 17th century kings, was a creator and connoisseur of fine anagrams, and even went so far as to appoint an official Anagrammist to the King! Even if the only thing anagrams are hiding is some Mad Libs-esque nonsense, they're still a lot of fun to think about. Here are a few I came up with the other day, using full names (middle names included).

For my artistic, dramatic brother: A Vetted Jubilant Mind, OR Dim, Jubilant Vendetta

(other, single words that emerged: invent, jam, jive, deviant, band)

For my science-minded sister, a prediction of career: Alter Nuclei to Emit, OR Total Nuclei Metier ('metier' is the French word for vocation)

(other, single words that emerged: electron, numeric)

For my father: Utterly Bald Got Retro

For my mother: Settle, Nutty Achiever!

For one of the St. Mary's hippies dearest to my heart: Hello, Sandy Henna

And for me...

A potential campaign slogan, should I ever choose to go into politics: Elect Cute Brat

A few cryptic but cool-sounding options: Celebrate Cute Light; Huge Electric Battle; Hectic Rebuttal Glee

A prediction of my future prodigious offspring?: Curl Begat Tech Elite

A slightly Shakespearean sandwich order: Bagel Lettuce Thrice

Keeping with the Shakespearean vein, a modern day adaptation of Hamlet's 'get thee to a nunnery!':"Get Her Celibate Cult!"

Instructions for my summer vacation (lecture means "reading" in French): Beach, Lecture, Get Lit

And finally, the telling hodgepodge of single words I was able to pull out: baguette, teach, brie--and then, of course, electric eel.