The following technical update...

is provided for you by direction of my editor, also known as the technical writer, Mr. Fix It, and husband.

Husband read my post on the coffee incident and believed it was important that I correctly identify terms. Here is his expository explanation.

1) Thingamabob is the proper terminology for the coffee maker piece that allows the coffee to drip out. To break the word down for you: "thing" is reference to the noun characteristics that identify this piece as not a person, not a place, but definitely a thing. "ama" refers to the guttural utterance that occurs frequently amongst the mechanically challenged in awkward but usual technical situations as a result of brain freeze. "bob" is a suffix that connotes a rounded part on any "thing" but in this case, this particular plastic piece.

2) Doohickey is the proper terminology for an object that has an elongated or dangling aspect in its characteristics. "doo" is an ancient Latinoic prefix that means "this longish thing". "hickey" on the other hand has gone through some various transformations in meaning but before having teenage angst attached to it, was originally in its two syllabic form meant to indicate the double metered swinging effect of dangling. Ie. swing left, "hick"; swing right, "ey". Repeat.

3) Whamblooey is the proper terminology to indicate an action performed on either a thingamabob or a doohickey. While not quite a verb, it certainly has gerundic characteristics. "wham" provides a certain onomatopoetic effect related to the hitting, whacking or thumping action while "blooey" does the same for the exhalation of breath that occurs in the exertion of said action.

It works like this: in order to get a thingamabob to fit into a slot intended for a doohickey, you may have to apply a whamblooey.

I hope that these technical definitions have contributed to the more accurate use of terms in describing the various mechanical failures that plague the nation.