On my favorite and least favorite words

I was recently listening to a podcast focused on the topic of my favorite television show.  The television show happens to be of the fandom variety, and so, the podcast was discussing a recent "con" (as it is called in the fandom universe).  The question asked to most of the "talent" at the con was the question, "what are your favorite and least favorite words?"  This got me thinking, what are my favorite and least favorite words?  Often I find myself realizing while writing a word in context that I really love a word I've used, though I'm not sure that feeling has as much to do with the word as with how fitting the word is in context (and how awesome I am for knowing the word).  I also realize sometimes when I hear a word how annoyed it makes me feel, again, in context.  The problem is, when thinking about what my favorite and least favorite words are out of context, the challenge is a bit larger.  So, I've been thinking about these two words for a while, and I'm still not sure I'm satisfied with my two chosen words (though I'm fairly certain it doesn't matter either way).  

Anyways, for my least favorite word I came up with the word good.  Counter-intuitive probably, but when have I ever cared about conforming to that status quo or making sense?  So, the word good, despite having a positive connotation and the power to describe something, is in my opinion, the weakest descriptive word out there.  What does good actually mean in the end?  It's so relative.  One person's good is going to be different from another person's good.  And something described as good in one situation may be described as adequate in another situation and stellar in even another.  For example, I ate ice cream yesterday.  If I described that ice cream as good, what does it tell you?  It tasted delicious?  It had a positive outlook on life and a genial personality?  It was not disgusting?  I don't know.  But put gelato from Grom gelateria (my favorite gelato in the whole world!) next to it and call the gelato good and the quality of the ice cream I had yesterday can no longer be defined as good.  Anyways, all of that is to say that the word good lacks adequate descriptive power and is therefore a fairly useless word in my vocabulary, and maybe your vocabulary as well if I've been convincing enough.  If that wasn't convincing enough just consider how you would feel if your boss described your work as good...I'd feel unsure about how my work's matching up to expectations.  I'd rather hear, inadequate, or adequate, or fantastic, or abysmal.  At least then I'd know where I stand.

For my favorite word I looked high and low.  I did research because the word that kept coming to my mind seemed a bit anticlimactic and uninspiring, but I think my favorite word is the word simple.  I think that there are so few things in my life right now that happen simply that the word is like music to my ears.  Everything is complicated.  There are always hoops to jump through, things to do, people's expectations to meet, complicated instructions for everything, five forms of malfunctioning technology per person, so simple has become more extraordinary than it was at one time.  I think it's pretty special when a word can go from meaning lack of excitement or intricacy to lack of complication. Simple things are, in my mind, the best kinds of things, and so it would be silly of me (another one of my favorites) to pick any other word as my favorite.  I also love that the word simple looks simple.  I always liked when the appearance of a word reflects its meaning.  

So I guess simple is as good a word as any.

Keep on thinking,

Josie