I don't know why I like to bet so much, but I do. I don't bet for money; first, it's boring and second, I usually don't have it to toss around. So I bet things like getting the laundry done, having dinner made for me, getting the dishes washed, going fishing or sailing. I usually win. But this time, with the Great Margarita Drink bet, I lost, very publically. This was the deal...
Sitting at Bottoms Up, having a drink, somehow the word sardonic was used. I thought it was used inaccurately, and Rob defended his use of it. I thought it meant sarcastically ironic, and he said it held a nastier, darker meaning. Of course, I had to bet. What did he want to bet? A margarita, any place of his choosing on either St. Thomas or St. John. That sounded fair, I could drink a margarita on St. John. I had 48 hours to make my case. I lost.
Sardonic means (as I immediately went home and looked up in my dictionary of all knowledge, a Webster's Home, School & Office Dictionary, circa1939): forced, bitter, or heartless: said of a laugh or smile; from a Sardinian herb, reputed to cause convulsive motions of the cheek and lips when eaten.
It was pretty obvious there was no room for argument. I emailed Rob my gracious acceptance of defeat, which he didn't get. Instead, the next morning over coffee, the breakfast crew of Bottoms Up was treated to his email to ME, printed out, which I hadn't gotten either. I never lost a better bet!
Rob's Defense
Well, M.J., you certainly put your wordsmith reputation on the line time. How are you going to convince the world that a rather straight forward definition is not what it seems to be?
Let me quote from the easiest souce, Webster's Tenth Edition: Sardonic: adj. disdainfully or skeptically humorous, derisively mocking
Of course, you can seek out other dictionaries, but I respectfully suggest the use of a large, unabridged dictionary, if you entertain any hope of finding some semblance of solace in this literary impass.
What about Oxford's Dictionary! Alas, the one I found in Michael Hall's house [Rob & Roxanne are housesitting during the hurricane season, their boat Windolee on the hook] had more of the same. Even Chamber's (?) 1941 abridged dictionary had a similar theme.
Perhaps, you should seek out more modern sources. Often new generations can lose sight of the true sense of a term and eventualy they become the scholars. How about something from a Jimmy Buffet novel?
Have you tried Alta Vista yet? Drat. You will find little hope on the Internet, unless you want to know about someone's book with that word in the title. Of course, the Internet will tell you that somebody has the first name of "Sardonic." Are his siblings "Myrthful" and "Ironic"? That's an angle.
I am well aware you will not take this dark message lightly. (How poetic) You are not in the habit of losing bets, especially to the likes of an endlessly taunting rascal such as myself. [note: Rob is a lawyer] I expect you will transpose many hours into highly imaginative efforts to change the reality of the situation. After all, they did it with O.J., so anything is possible.
Perhaps you should seek out derivation words, using the French term (sardonique) and Greek word (sardonios) to analyze the root of the word and find that the true meaning was missed by Webster, et al. Bottoms Up scholars are always impressed with first hand sources.
You could try to make an association between the lighthearted musicals of the French composer Victorien Sardou (1931-1908), making the argument that the word came from his work. This, however, will not succeed. The word was in existance long before Victorien's father had that proverbial "twinkle in his eye." Oo la la.
Thirty four hours. An endless amount of time for an imaginative mind...
Sincerely, Your mentor, R.
So, where did he want to go for his margarita? His house. He and his wife Roxanne, Tim and me, and our friend Cheryl, minus Rick who got a doggie dish later on (way, way later on), along with Perry and Christie, who we ran into as we shopped, ended up having a dinner party. Cheryl made sushi and tuna sashimi, Roxeanne made a Thai dish and Perry made his *best in the world* seviche, along with the pitchers of margaritas we brought along. I smiled all night, not in the least sardonically.
