There is hardly a word that is more fun to say than Nicaragua. You can say it with almost any accent or inflection you can think of, and it’s pure joy. And then you can start rolling the “r” and you get to start all over.
An equally as fun word to say is, shenanigans, but I submit shenanigans is a much better word, because not only can you say it so many different ways with inflections and all, you can participate in the word wherever and whenever you want. If you want to participate in Nicaragua you’ll need to pack your bags, fly there, be searched like never before, and for the present time, deal with a high rate of crime and lawlessness, and maybe even kidnappings. So, plan on brining a change of underwear if you choose to party with Danny and the Sandinistas.
Of course, if you must live dangerously, you could choose to make your shenanigans lawless and crime ridden, but if you want to keep your enjoyment on this side of everything legal, you can still say you participated in shenanigans, and probably won’t have ongoing consequences of your actions, plus lawyer bills.
What exactly are shenanigans, you ask? Well, they can be just about anything you can think of that’s fun and maybe have a little bit of a devious side to them. And of course, you must include friends in your plans, so they can get in trouble and have fun with you.
Shenanigans do have to involve a little more activity than just going to dinner or strolling through Walmart trying to find the best deal on toilet paper. They have to involve an element of excitement and getting slightly out of your comfort zone. And you can certainly participate in shenanigans in Walmart, like the time I was trying to photograph someone who looked like Curly from the Three Stooges. I walked by this guy 3 times in the same aisle trying to get a picture of him with my phone. That was a low level shenanigan.
A high level shenanigan, if you’re in a band, just might include something like playing My Sharona by the Knack. Why is that a shenanigan, because no one plays that lame song anymore, duh. It could also involve something like throwing axes with a friend and then pretending like you’re vikings ready to conquer all of Northern Europe. I’m pretty sure conquering Northern Europe as a viking would involve a bit more training, like how to start a fire without matches, than just throwing an ax for an hour, but you have to use your imagination here.
Even higher level shenanigans would involve deciding to go to Daytona Beach spring break just because you’re watching MTV coverage from Daytona, but making that decision when you’re 2 hours away, and it’s already 9 pm, and you have no hotel, and decide to take your friend’s mom’s car, and alcohol is involved. I wouldn’t ever recommend doing something so foolish involving alcohol, I’m just playing Walter Cronkite here and telling you, “That’s the way it is” when you’re hanging out with your wingman, and drinking. Please don’t shoot the messenger.
There’s something about “shenanigans” that makes it a power word. Just hearing the sound of it makes you want to be involved. It has the ability to transform a mundane event into an exciting happening that makes you want to ask, “Are we there yet?” If someone asked me, “Hey, you wanna go to open mic tonight?” I’d be like, “Meh, been to it before.” But if someone asks, “You want to create shenanigans at open mic tonight?” I’d be like, “Save me a seat!”
It seems as though shenanigans has won the battle of words and can conclusively be deemed as more “fun filled” than Nicaragua. However, I’m sure someone could make a good argument that “shenanigans in Nicaragua” could produce quite a bit of fun, if you don’t mind your fun involving third world prisons.
Or, to play it safe, how about we just do shenanigans at happy hour tonight and when we’re deep into margaritas, we just start going over all the fun ways you can say, Nicaragua: Niiicarahwhaaa, Nicarrrrragwha, Nih-harrrr-ahhg-whaaa!
