Friday, March 25, 2011

bumptious \BUMP-shuhs\, adjective:

• Crudely, presumptuously, or loudly self-assertive.

Bumptious is perhaps a blend of bump and presumptuous.

celebrity lay

• A specific celebrity you and your significant other mutually agreed that it would be okay to have sex with should the two of you ever meet in public and have a one night stand.

My wife won't mind, Kate Beckinsale is my celebrity lay.

Trivia

How did the city of Plymouth, England, get its name?

• From its location at the mouth of the Plym River.

History

• Robert the Bruce: became king of not-yet-independent Scotland; in 1328, after many battles, England's King Edward III finally recognized Scotland's independence and Bruce as its king (1306)
• Maryland: was founded by settlers sent by Lord Baltimore (1634)
• Coxey's Army: the first popular protest march on Washington left Massillon, Ohio, led by Jacob Coxey; the men sought legislation to create jobs in a depression year (1894)
• Bed-In for Peace: John Lennon and Yoko Ono celebrated their marriage with their first weeklong stay in bed, in an Amsterdam hotel with the press onlooking (1969)
• "How long, not long": Martin Luther King, Jr., delivers a speech on the steps of Alabama's state capitol, at the end of the Selma to Montgomery march (1965)
• European Economic Community: was established with the Treaty of Rome; it comprised W. Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, Netherlands & Luxembourg (1957)

Birthdays

• Bela Bartok (1881-1945): composer and ethnomusicologist; conductor Arturo Toscanini (1867-1957) shared this birth date
• Flannery O'Connor (1925-1964): Southern writer of short stories
• Jim Lovell (83): astronaut, commander of Apollo 13
• Gloria Steinem (77): journalist and leading feminist; plus, women's rights activist Matilda Gage (1826-1898)
• Elton John (64): singer/songwriter, "Candle in the Wind"; singers Aretha Franklin (69), Katherine McPhee (27) and Jason Castro (24) were also born on this date
• Marcia Cross (49): Desperate Housewives' Bree Hodge; also, actors Simone Signoret (1921-1985), Paul Michael Glaser (68), Bonnie Bedelia (63), Mary Gross (58), James McDaniel (53), Brenda Strong (51), Lisa Gay Hamilton (47), Sarah Jessica Parker (46) and Lee Pace (32)
• Danica Patrick (29): racecar driver; plus, athletes Tom Glavine (45) and Sheryl Swoopes (30)