Monday, May 2, 2011

dandle \DAN-dl\, verb:

1. To move (a baby, child, etc.) lightly up and down, as on one's knee or in one's arms.

2. To pet; pamper

Dandle is first recorded in the 1500s, but is of unknown origin.

olly olly oxen free

• Olly olly oxen free is a phrase used in children's games, which is generally used to indicate that people who are hiding (in a game of hide and seek, for example) can safely come out into the open.

Olly Olly oxen free!!! Nate yelled to get Gary out of hiding.

Trivia

What TV personality, as a high school student, had “L8 NITE” on his vanity license plate and decorating his 18th birthday cake?

• Talk show host Jimmy Kimmel, in admiration for his talk show idol, David Letterman.

History

• Martin Luther: the 23-year-old German theologian and future Protestant reformer was ordained (1507)
• Good Housekeeping: first went on sale (1885)
• Berlin: surrendered to Russian forces during WWII; the war in Europe ended less than a week later (1945)
• Nelson Mandela: won in South Africa's first multiracial election (1994)
• GPS: President Bill Clinton announced that US citizens and the military would have equal access to the positioning system (2000)

Birthdays

• Alessandro Scarlatti (1660-1725): composer
• Catherine the Great (1729-1796): empress of Russia who described herself as an "enlightened despot"; plus, Spanish PM Antonio Maura (1853-1925)
• Henry Martyn Robert (1837-1923): author of Robert's Rules of Order
• Dr. Benjamin Spock (1903-1998): pediatrician who wrote The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care
• Christine Baranski (59): Tony winner for The Real Thing and Rumors, Emmy winner for Cybill; also, actors Theodore Bikel (87), Roscoe Lee Browne (1925-2007), David Suchet (65), The Rock (39), Gaius Charles (28) and Kay Panabaker (21)
• David Beckham (36): soccer superstar; and, athletes Sarah Hughes and Ashley Harkleroad (both 25)