Thursday, January 4, 2024

patrician [puh-trish-uh n] noun 

1. a person of noble or high rank; aristocrat.
2. a person of very good background, education, and refinement.

ORIGIN: The Latin adjective and noun patricius, patritius dates to the comedies of the Roman dramatist Plautus (c254-c184 b.c.). The word means having the rank and dignity of the patrēs (Roman senators), or a person with that dignity, a noble. According to the Roman historian Livy (59 b.c.–17 a.d.), Romulus, the legendary founder of Rome, appointed the first 100 senators and named them patrēs (fathers). From the time of the reign of the emperor Constantine (288?–337 a.d.) onward, patricius was a high honorary title that entailed no specified duties and was only occasionally awarded. Patrician entered English in the 15th century. 

Brand Dropping

• Mentioning that you're wearing an expensive brand of clothing, using an expensive piece of technology, or bragging about other items that you own which are of high value. Brand Dropping is similar to name dropping, the main difference is mentioning merchandise in lieu of a person.

Jon: Dude! Watch it, if you spill that drink on my $ 350 Zegna shirt I'm gonna lose it.

Dave: Stop brand dropping Jon. No one cares what kind of shirt that is.

History

• McDonald Islands: uninhabited, barren, volcanic islands were discovered in the Indian Ocean near Antarctica (1854)
• appendectomy: the first such surgical removal of the appendix was performed in Iowa (1885)
• Great Society: President Lyndon B. Johnson outlined his domestic policies in his State of the Union address; he aimed to "end poverty and racial injustice" (1965)
  FRAGILE album by YES was released in the USA (1972)
  
• Nancy Pelosi: became the US's first female Speaker of the House (2007)

 

Birthdays

• Jakob Grimm 1785
• Louis Braille 1809
• Charles "Tom Thumb" Stratton 1838
• Augusta John 1878
• Sterling Holloway 1905
• Jane Wyman 1914
• Barbara Rush 1927
• Don Shula (NFL) 1930
• Ray Starling 1933
• Jean Chretien 1934
• Floyd Patterson 1935
• Dyan Cannon 1937
• Grace Bumbry 1937
• John McLaughlin 1943
• Arthur Conley 1946
• Barbara Ann Cochran 1951
• Kathy Forrester (The Forrester Sisters) 1955
• Ann Magnuson 1956
• Bernard Sumner (New Order) 1956
• Patty Loveless 1957
• Matt Frewer 1958
• Denise Matthews 1959 (aka VANITY)
• Michael Stipe (R.E.M.) 1960
• Patrick Cassidy 1961
• Dave Foley 1963
• Julia Ormond 1965
• Deana Carter 1966
• Benjamin Darvill (Crash Test Dummies) 1967
• Jeremy Licht 1971