The Washington Post has published its latest list of neologisms (new uses for old words), and there are some doozies (full list is here thanks to Pharma Gossip — can’t find it on the Post site for some reason). A few that meeting planners might enjoy:

1. Coffee (n.), the person upon whom one coughs. (Get that hand sanitizer ready!)
2. Flabbergasted (adj.), appalled over how much weight you have gained. (Happens to me after pretty much every industry meeting I’ve attended lately)
14. Oyster (n.), a person who sprinkles his conversation with Yiddishisms. (This reminds me of someone in the biz I know…)

Then there’s the contest The Post’s Style Invitational runs that asks readers to take any word from the dictionary, alter it by adding, subtracting, or changing one letter, and supply a new definition.

I wish these didn’t apply to meetings, but they all-too-often do:

1. Bozone (n.): The substance surrounding stupid people that stops bright ideas from penetrating. The bozone layer, unfortunately, shows little sign of breaking down in the near future.

and

12. Dopeler effect (n): The tendency of stupid ideas to seem smarter when they come at you rapidly.

Anyone feeling creative? I think we could add to this list…

By now everyone’s heard about, talked about, and probably are sick of, the party crashers at the recent White House state dinner. While that turned out to be pretty innocuous, having uninvited attendees at any event is at best going to throw off your F&B, and at worst could be a real security concern. I just read Crush Party Crashing with Tips from Security Experts from Special Events, and it has some good tips to keep this from happening to your event.

Here’s hoping they still look to your conferences for the answers instead of Google. With that said, it can be useful to get a feel for what the world in general is looking to know more about by checking out the 2009 Year-End Google Zeitgeist. It is an analysis of what people have used Google to search for this year, which not suprisingly means Michael Jackson, Lady Gaga, and acai berries.

The economy hasn’t been good for most of us, and that includes hotels. Hotels are going into foreclosure at an escalating rate as occupancies and revenues decline. From the article:

And it could get worse next year. An oversupply of guestrooms could keep room rates low, making 2010 a high-risk year for hotel foreclosures. Demand should gain 1.6%, according to hotel research firm STR Global, but average room rates are likely to fall 3.4%. The result would be the greatest spread between demand and rates in the 20 years STR Global has been collecting data.

But what does it all mean for meetings? My colleague Dave Kovaleski did a good job of outlining the issues, including declining service levels and cost-cutting where you may not want it. Do your due diligence, and get some language into your contract that will protect you from any unwanted fallout (read the article for more tips. It’s pretty useful stuff!)