"Eggness"?

Posted by Victoria S Dennis on October 06, 2009 at 18:30

In Reply to: "Eggness"? posted by Ellen So on October 05, 2009 at 14:40:

: : : : : Why do people say 'lemon-juice message' and 'eggness'?

: : : : Do they? In what context? I know that you can use lemon juice as "invisible ink" - you can't see what has been written until you heat the paper or paint it over with iodine. So a
: : : : 'lemon-juice message' could be a secret message decodable only by someone who knew how. Does that fit the context in which you have heard it?

: : : Eggness, even more than "lemon-juice message," needs some context. Eggs have many properties which, if not unique, are at least characteristic. But in any case the word is not a phrase.

: : ["Eggness" - never heard it: could be it has something to do with "Eggs is eggs." Perhaps someone across the pond (a trans-ponder?) would atempt to explain this phrase. - B.]

:
: I saw an example from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey:

: "Did the captain come?" Reynie asked. "Or did I dream that?"
: "No, he came by this morning. Do you not remember? You sat up and something like 'eggness', then fell back to sleep."

In this instance, it appears that "eggness" isn't a word at all. The character specifically doesn't say that Reynie said "eggness", only that s/he, in a state of semi-consciousness, mumbled something unintelligible that *sounded like* "eggness", just as people roused out of sleep sometimes say something that sounds like "hufflewump" or "korbleworble." (VSD)

• "Eggness"? Smokey Stover 07/October/09