groak - verb - to stare at someone eating in the hope he or she will invite you over to share
I just got off the phone with a close male friend of mine, whom I have known for fifty years–no exaggeration. No, he isn't an ex-husband, but a member in good standing of Platonic Anonymous. If you are reading this blog for the first time, P.A., not to be confused with A.A. or N.A. or any other combination of A's, is my club of men friends. (I am the only female member.) In any case, he and I were confabulating about words, mainly our mutual fascination with them, and he casually mentioned groak, which should not be confused with croak as there is no relation at all albeit the rhyming aspect. It's okay. I told him I would include an allusion to him in this entry. When I asked him if he had ever been accused of being a groaker, he laughed and said that women have often misinterpreted his quixotic gaze for groaking. ("I was trying to be Cuomo." He, he, he. Obviously, he was kidding, extending the joke with "I am a rehabilitated groaker." Since he made the remark, I am not sure if he has considered the notion that he would have had to be a groaker in order to be a rehab graduate.) In any case, words like groak can certainly provoke some chuckles simply because they don't sound serious.
I know what you are thinking, though. Have I ever groaked? I want to say yes. In 1976, I was on a concert tour in Communist Poland. Owing to the political situation, food was scarce. Being that we were mainly a bunch of displaced American high school students, our food was scarce and unsavory. On one occasion, we happened to be walking through the restaurant of a government-owned hotel, and I recall groaking at some of the patrons consuming substantial amounts of borsch and perogies, but just until we were seated and served ourselves. The edibles turned out to be inedible, so I had groaked needlessly. Oh, well. It happens sometimes. Unnecessary groaking.
I hope that no one reading this blog has ever been hungry enough to groak earnestly. Although the word may appear funny, it points to something that isn't. The motivation of a serious groaker is no laughing matter. And if you find one, you might consider asking him or her to join you at your table so that you can satiate his or her hunger at least tentatively.
May you always have enough to eat no matter what.
Enjoy your Thursday!
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