Kumquats

Is there a name for when you mis-hear or mis-read a word and end up with something that makes no sense and can sometimes be very funny? There are malapropisms and spoonerisms, but that's on the other end of the action. Do you guys know? I guess I'll just call them "kumquats", after Colleenie's memorable hearing test incident. :)

Anyway, yesterday was apparently a day for kumquats. In an online conversation with Colleenie, I really thought she was complaining about how hard it was to find good soy boots (instead of snow boots). The best part is that it almost made sense in the context. We were talking about how she's turned into a soft-core vegan and how difficult it is to find nice things (such as boots) that don't have leather. Soy's an acceptible substitute for protein, so why not for outerwear?! :D

Later that same day, a labmate ignored me for 20 minutes because he couldn't figure out why I was talking about hypnotism. Yeah... Hypnosis is a frequent subject of mine... Riight... I'd actually asked him if he'd hypothesized anything lately (not hypnotized anything...).

I was hoping I could remember some more good example kumquats to share, but alas, my mind's a blank. Which is strange since they happen to me all the time. I guess some of us have dirtier ears than others... :)

What great kumquats have you had?