Sunday March 25, 2012

Tellurian \te-LOOR-ee-uhn\, adjective:

1. Of or characteristic of the earth or its inhabitants.

noun:

1. An inhabitant of the earth.

Tellurian was first used by Thomas DeQuincy in 1846, even though it has classical Latin roots literally meaning "one of the earth."

The Airport Effect

• The temporary increase in self importance that individuals assign to themselves while waiting at airports. Future passengers suffering from the airport effect often portray more serious facial expressions, increase their cell phone speaking volume if discussing business matters, and perform fake work on their laptop near heavily populated areas.

James and Preston sit at the Chilis bar near gate 17:

James: "Preston, please excuse me for a moment. I'm going to get my shoes shined in the elevated wooden chair while I read the journal"

Preston: "James are you alright? You seem to be coming down with the airport effect..."

Trivia

What famous American and ex-congressman died defending the Alamo?

• Davy Crockett.

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

• William Bell Wait 1839
• Arturo Toscanini 1867
• John Gutzon Borglum 1871
• Bela Bartok 1881
• Ed Begley, Sr. 1901
• Frankie Carle 1903
• David Lean 1908
• Jeanne Cagney 1919
• Howard Cosell 1920
• Nancy Kelly 1921
• Simone Signoret 1921
• Eileen Ford 1922
• Jim Lovell 1928 - Astronaut
• Flannery O’Connor 1925
• Gene Shalit 1932 - Movie critic
• Bonnie Guitar 1934
• Gloria Steinem 1934 - Feminist author
• Johnny Burnette 1935
• Hoyt Axton 1938
• Anita Bryant 1940 - Singer
• Aretha Franklin 1942 - Singer
• Paul Michael Glaser 1943 - Actor ("Third Watch", "Starsky and Hutch")
• Bonnie Bedelia 1948 - Actress ("Parenthood")
• Nick Lowe 1949 = Singer
• Elton John 1947 - Singer, musician
• Kelly Garrett 1948
• Neil Jones 1949 - Musician (Amen Corner)
• Maisie Williams 1951 - (Boney M)
• Mary Gross 1953 - Actress, comedian
• James McDaniel 1958 - Actor ("NYPD Blue")
• Brenda Song 1960 - Actress ("Desperate Housewives")
• John Stockwell 1961 - Actor, writer, director
• Marcia Cross 1962 - Actress ("Desperate Housewives")
• Lisa Gay Hamilton 1964 - Actress ("The Practice")
• Sarah Jessica Parker 1965 - Actress ("Sex and the City", "Failure to Launch")
• Tom Glavin 1966 - Baseball player
• Jeff Healey 1966 - Musician
• Debi Thomas 1967 - Olympic bronze medal figure skater
• Sheryl Swoops 1971 - Basketball player
• Melanie Blatt 1975 - Singer (All Saints)
• Lee Pace 1979 - Actor ("Pushing Daisies")
• Danica Patrick 1982 - Auto racer
• Katherine McPhee 1984 - Singer ("American Idol")
• Jason Castro 1987 - Singer ("American Idol")
• Aly Michalka 1989 - Actress, singer ("Aly and AJ")