Gobo

Cover image for the Gobo word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Gobo

n.
the delirium of having spent all day in an aesthetic frame of mind— watching a beautiful movie, taking photos across the city, getting lost in an art museum—which infuses the world with an aura of meaning, until every crack in the wall becomes a commitment to naturalism, and every rainbow swirling in a puddle feels like a choice.

Short for go-between. In theatrical lighting, a gobo is a layer inserted into a lamp that shapes the pool of light that hits the stage. Pronounced “goh-boh.”

Exulansis

Cover image for the Exulansis word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Wildred

Cover image for the Wildred word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

La Cuna

Cover image for the La Cuna word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Ne’er-Be-Gone

Cover image for the Ne’er-Be-Gone word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Volander

Cover image for the Volander word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

The Kick Drop

Cover image for the The Kick Drop word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Kairosclerosis

Cover image for the Kairosclerosis word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Aubadoir

Cover image for the Aubadoir word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Scabulous

Cover image for the Scabulous word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Harmonoia

Cover image for the Harmonoia word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Elsewise

Cover image for the Elsewise word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

The Til

Cover image for the The Til word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Chrysalism

Cover image for the Chrysalism word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Ameneurosis

Cover image for the Ameneurosis word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Zielschmerz

Cover image for the Zielschmerz word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Ghough

Cover image for the Ghough word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Mahpiohanzia

Cover image for the Mahpiohanzia word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Plata Rasa

Cover image for the Plata Rasa word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Nyctous

a person walking in the middle of a street

Bye-Over

Cover image for the Bye-Over word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Fensiveness

Cover image for the Fensiveness word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

The Standard Blues

Cover image for the The Standard Blues word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Karanoia

a neat stack of white paper

Clockwise

a close-up of flower along with polaroid pictures

Keta

a hand reaching through paper with a flower drawing

Arroia

people standing on a stage