January 6, 2009

beleaguer \bi-LEE-ger\, verb:

1. to surround with troops; besiege
2. to surround or beset

by 1589, from Dutch belegeren "to besiege," from be- "around" + legeren "to camp."

RDF

• Short for reality-distortion field. An expression used to describe the persuasive ability of managers like Steve Jobs (the term originated at Apple in the 1980s to describe his peculiar charisma). Those close to these managers become passionately committed to possibly insane projects, without regard to the practicality of their implementation or competitive forces in the marketpace.

Steve Jobs is extremely demanding of all those around him and has a very low tolerance for anything but excellence. Because he can be shockingly blunt in his dealings with others, he is often portrayed as abusive, but this is dead wrong. He simply demands/expects great things from everyone around him. I honestly believe he can't understand why anyone would want to waste their time doing anything less than great.

Trivia

How many passengers could be seated inside the stagecoaches operated by Wells, Fargo and Company?

• Up to nine. There was also seating on the roof—unless there was too much luggage.

Today in History:

• George Washington: wed wealthy widow Martha Dandridge Custis (1759); on the same date, WWII Navy pilot George H.W. Bush married Barbara Pierce, who had dropped out of college to solidify the union (1945)
• Four Freedoms: in a speech to Congress, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt described his goals for all humanity: freedom of speech and expression, freedom of religion, freedom from want, and freedom from fear (1941)

Today's Birthdays:

• Jakob Bernoulli (1654-1705): Swiss mathematician responsible for the law of large numbers
• Khalil Gibran (1883-1931): philosopher and poet, The Prophet; other writers born on this date include Carl Sandburg (1878-1967) and E.L. Doctorow (78)
• Rowan Atkinson (54): comedian and actor, Mr. Bean; also, actors Loretta Young (1913-2000), Danny Thomas (1914-1991), Bonnie Franklin (65) and Rinko Kikuchi (28)
• Nancy Lopez (52): LPGA hall-of-famer
• Kathy Sledge (50): R&B singer, Sister Sledge; bluegrass musician Earl Scruggs (85) also celebrates his birthday today
• Nigella Lawson (49): TV chef

Quote:

• "Never help a child with a task at which he feels he can succeed." — Maria Montessori