Saturday, June 12, 2010

juggernaut \JUHG-er-nawt\, noun:

1. Any large, overpowering, destructive force.

2. Something, such as a belief or institution, that elicits blind and destructive devotion.

3. An idol of Krishna, at Puri in Orissa, India, annually drawn on an enormous cart under whose wheels devotees are said to have thrown themselves to be crushed.

Juggernaut is a borrowing from Hindi with dramatic roots. The Hindu source Jagannath, is a name of the divinity Krishna, literally "lord of the world." Reputably, Jagannath also refers to an idol of Krishna, at Puri in Orissa, India, annually drawn on an enormous cart under whose wheels devotees are said to have thrown themselves to be crushed.

roommate chicken

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  The condition where a group of people sharing a living space each avoid doing a household chore for an extended period because each believes it's someone else's responsibility. The idea is that eventually the situation will reach a critical mass where the guilty party will cave in and do the chore. In practice, the situation can escalate to extreme levels.

"I'm not going to do the dishes. It's your turn."

"Yeah, but 90% of them are from the dinner you made for your girlfriend. I'm not cleaning up your mess."

"I'm not playing roommate chicken with you on this. Clean it up!"

"I'll die before I clean your mess."

"Fuck you!"

"Fuck you!"

Trivia

What famous movie star donated a bloodstained, sweat-drenched undershirt to the Smithsonian Institution?

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  Bruce Willis, in 2007. The undershirt, worn by Willis in his role of cop John McClane in the 1988 film Die Hard, was included in the Smithsonian’s 2007 Treasures of American History exhibition and is now part of its permanent movie memorabilia collection.

History

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  Virginia: became the first state to adopt a bill of rights — the Virginia Declaration of Rights (1776)
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  Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum: shrine to the US national pastime was dedicated in Cooperstown, New York (1939)
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  Loving v. Virginia: US Supreme Court struck down all bans on interracial marriages (1967)
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  Gossamer Albatross: human-powered aircraft was flown by Bryan Allen across the English Channel (1979)
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  "Tear down this wall": challenge was issued by US President Ronald Reagan to Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev; the Berlin Wall did indeed come down two years later (1987)
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  $50 bill: new and improved design was unveiled by the US Treasury to help the elderly and hinder counterfeiters (1997)

Birthdays

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  Adriana Lima (29): hottest supermodel now, Brazilian.
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  John A. Roebling (1806-1869): civil engineer who designed the Brooklyn Bridge
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  Johanna Spyri (1827-1901): author of Heidi; other writers born on this date include Harriet Martineau (1802-1876) and Djuna Barnes (1892-1982)
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  George H.W. Bush (86): US president who promised a "kinder, gentler nation"; another world leader who shared this birthday was Anthony Eden (1897-1977)
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  Chick Corea (69): Grammy-winning musician who helped develop jazz fusion; also, musicians Vic Damone and Richard Sherman (both 81), Jim Nabors (80), Junior Brown (58), Meredith Brooks (52), John Linnell (51) and Kenny Wayne Shepherd (33)
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  Timothy Busfield (53): actor/director, thirtysomething, The West Wing; actor Frances O'Connor (43) shares this birth date
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  Kendra Wilkinson (25): former Girl Next Door