Wednesday, June 19, 2013

ken \ken\, noun:

1. knowledge, understanding, or cognizance; mental perception: an idea beyond one's ken.
2. range of sight or vision.

verb:

1. Chiefly Scot. a. to know, have knowledge of or about, or be acquainted with (a person or thing). b. to understand or perceive (an idea or situation).
2. Scots Law. to acknowledge as heir; recognize by a judicial act.
3. Archaic. to see; descry; recognize.
4. British Dialect Archaic. a. to declare, acknowledge, or confess (something). b. to teach, direct, or guide (someone).
5. British Dialect. a. to have knowledge of something. b. to understand.

Ken comes from the Old English cennan meaning "to make known, declare." It is related to the common English word "can." Today this verb is chiefly used in Scotland.

devil is beating his wife

• This expression is used to describe the weather when it is raining and sunny, also referred to as a "sunshower."

"Looks like the devil is beating his wife today," muttered the old coot as he felt the rain hit the back of his neck.

Trivia

What creature uses its eyes to help it swallow food?

• The frog, which can’t chew its food or use its tongue to get food down its throat. Instead, the frog’s eyes sink down to the roof of mouth to help push the meal into its stomach.

History

• Belmont Stakes: had its first running (1867)
• Julius and Ethel Rosenberg: were executed in New York's Sing Sing prison for conspiracy to commit espionage for the USSR (1953)
• Civil Rights Act of 1964: was approved after outlasting an 83-day US Senate filibuster
• The Rocky Horror Show: romped for the first time, on stage in London (1973)
• John Neumann: Philadelphia bishop became the first US male saint when he was canonized by Pope John Paul II (1977)
• Garfield: Jim Davis's comic strip about a lazy, overeating cat debuted (1978)

Birthdays

• Blaise Pascal 1623
• Moe Howard 1897
• Charles Cunningham Boycott 1897
• Elbert Hubbard 1856
• Guy Lombardo 1902
• Lou Gehrig 1903
• Earl Bascom 1906
• Mildred Natwick 1908
• Abe Fortas 1910
• Martin Gabel 1912
• Lester Flatt 1914 - Musician (Flatt and Scruggs)
• Pat Buttram 1917
• Pauline Kael 1919
• Louis Jourdan 1920
• Shelley Mayfield 1924
• Nancy Marchand 1928
• Pier Angeli 1932
• Marisa Pavan 1932
• Gena Rowlands 1930 - Actress
• Tommy DeVito 1936 - Singer (The Four Seasons)
• Robert Aspromonte 1938
• Al Wilson 1939
• Spanky McFarlane 1942 - Musician (Spanky and Our Gang)
• Aung San Suu Kyi 1945 - Politician
• Salman Rushdie 1947 - Author
• Walt McKechnie 1947
• Phylicia Rashad 1948 - Actress
• Ann Wilson 1951 - Musician (Heart)
• Larry Dunn 1953 - Musician (Earth, Wind & Fire)
• Kathleen Turner 1954 - Actress
• Doug Stone 1956
• Mark DeBarge 1959 - Musician (DeBarge)
• Paula Abdul (Paula Julie Abdul) 1962 - Singer, dancer, judge on "American Idol"
• Brian Vander Ark 1964
• Andy Lauer 1965
• Robin Tunney 1972 - Actress
• Bumper Robinson 1974
• Poppy Montgomery 1975 - Actress ("Without a Trace")
• Zoe Saldana 1978 - Actress ("Avatar" "Star Trek")
• Lauren Lee Smith 1980 - Actress ("CSI")