Friday, January 8, 2010

gesticulate \juh-STIK-yuh-layt\, intransitive verb:

• To make gestures or motions, especially while speaking or instead of speaking.

transitive verb:

• To indicate or express by gestures.

Gesticulate is from Latin gesticulatus, past participle of gesticulari, "to gesticulate," from gesticulus, diminutive of gestus, "gesture, action."

Nearsighted Date

• As opposed to a blind date, where you have no idea what the other person looks like, a nearsighted date is one where you've seen a photo or chatted via web cam before meeting in person. This can often lead to disappointment if one person or the other has supplied misleading documentation.

"Well, I saw her profile pics on Facebook, so it was more of a nearsighted date than a blind date"

"That's the last nearsighted date I ever go on...her profile pic must have been 5 years, 3 hair colors and 2 kids ago.""Went on a nearsighted date last night. The picture he emailed me must have been from before he quit the gym."

Trivia
Who is pictured on the bestselling U.S. commemorative stamp ever issued?

• Elvis Presley. The 29-cent stamp was issued in 1993 on Presley’s birthday, January 8. More than 124 million of the 517 million commemoratives that were sold have not been used for postage—they’re being saved by collectors and Elvis fans, according to the U.S. Postal Service.

Today in History

• Battle of New Orleans: the US defeated the British in the final battle of the War of 1812; a peace treaty had already been signed, but the news hadn't yet reached New Orleans (1815)
• 14 Points: US President Woodrow Wilson presented his plan for post-WWI peace in Europe; it held the Allies together for the remainder of the war and established him as their moral leader (1918)
• Charles de Gaulle: became the first president of France's Fifth Republic (1959)
• Music City Miracle: controversial pass won an NFL post-season game for the Tennessee Titans; the team subsequently made it to the Super Bowl (2000)

Today's Birthdays

• John Curtin (1885-1945): Australian prime minister
• Sander Vanocur (82): veteran broadcast journalist; journalist Charles Osgood (77) shares this birthday
• Stephen Hawking (68): theoretical physicist who specializes in the physics of black holes
• Wilkie Collins (1824-1889) father of the detective novel, The Moonstone; plus, writer of the Goosebumps books, R.L. Stine (67)
• David Bowie (63): rock star and actor also known as Ziggy Stardust; other rockers born on this date include Shirley Bassey (73), Anthony Gourdine (69) and Robby Krieger (64) and The King, Elvis Presley (1935 - 1977)

Quote:

• I don't know anything about music. In my line you don't have to. — Elvis Presley