brad pitt pictures The home of fun, hunky, sexy, huggable brad pitt pictures . The Word of the Day for January 24 is: ascetic • \uh-SEH-tik\ • (adjective) 1 : practicing strict self-denial as a measure of personal and especially spiritual discipline *2 : austere in appearance, manner, or attitude Example sentence: Ms. Walter's plain, dark clothing and tight bun give her an ascetic appearance, but she is actually very warm and fun-loving. Did you know? "Ascetic" comes from "asketikos," a Greek adjective meaning "laborious." Ultimately, it comes from the Greek verb "askein," which means "exercise" or "work." There aren't many other English words from "askein," but there's no dearth of synonyms for "ascetic." "Severe" and "austere," for example, are two words that share with "ascetic" the basic meaning "given to or marked by strict discipline and firm restraint." "Ascetic" implies abstention from pleasure and comfort or self-indulgence as spiritual discipline, whereas "severe" implies standards enforced without indulgence or laxity and may suggest harshness (as in "severe military discipline"). "Austere" stresses absence of warmth, color, or feeling and may apply to rigorous restraint, simplicity, or self-denial (as in "living an austere life in the country"). Today is Monday, Dec. 31, the 365th and final day of 2001. Today's Highlight in History: On Dec. 31, 1879, Thomas Edison first publicly demonstrated his brad pitt pictures electric incandescent light in Menlo Park, N.J. On this date: In 1775, the British repulsed an attack by Continental Army generals Richard Montgomery and Benedict Arnold at Quebec; Montgomery was killed. In 1862, President Lincoln signed an act admitting West Virginia to the Union. In 1946, President Truman officially proclaimed the end of hostilities in World War II. In 1961, the Marshall Plan expired after distributing more than $12 billion in foreign aid. In 1974, private U.S. citizens were allowed to buy and own gold for the first time in more than 40 years. In 1978, Taiwanese diplomats struck their colors for the final time from the embassy flagpole in Washington, marking the end of diplomatic relations with the United States. In 1985, singer Rick Nelson, 45, and six other people were killed when fire broke out aboard a DC-3 that was taking the group to a New Year's Eve performance in Dallas. In 1986, 97 people were killed when fire broke out in the Dupont Plaza Hotel in San Juan, Puerto Rico. (Three hotel workers later pleaded guilty to charges in connection with the blaze.) In 1997, brad pitt pictures on Aspen Mountain in Colorado. In 1998, Europe's leaders proclaimed a new era as 11 nations merged currencies to create the euro. Ten years ago: Representatives of the government of El Salvador and rebels reached agreement at the United Nations on a peace accord aimed at ending 12 years of civil war. President Bush arrived in Australia as part of a 12-day Pacific trip. Five years ago: Leftist rebels in Peru released two diplomats, leaving 81 hostages in the besieged Japanese embassy residence in Lima. One year ago: The United States finally agreed to sign a treaty creating the world's first permanent international war crimes tribunal, joining most other countries of the world. Former Sen. Alan Cranston died in Los Altos, Calif., at age 86. Flemenco dancer Jose Greco died in Lancaster, Pa., at age 82. Today is Friday, Dec. 21, the 355th day of 2001. There are 10 days left in the year. Winter arrives in the Northern Hemisphere at 2:22 p.m. EST. Today's Highlight in History: brad pitt pictures On Dec. 21, 1620, Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower went ashore for the first time at present-day Plymouth, Mass. On this date: In 1898, scientists Pierre and Marie Curie discovered the radioactive element radium. In 1913, the first crossword puzzle was published, in the New York World. In 1945, Gen. George S. Patton died in Heidelberg, Germany, of injuries from a car accident. In 1948, the state of Eire (formerly the Irish Free State) declared its independence. In 1958, Charles de Gaulle brad pitt pictures was elected to a seven-year term as the first president of the Fifth Republic of France. In 1968, Apollo 8 was launched on a mission to orbit the moon brad pitt pictures. In 1971, the U.N. Security Council chose Kurt Waldheim to succeed U Thant as secretary-general. In 1976, the Liberian-registered tanker Argo Merchant ran aground near Nantucket Island, spilling millions of gallons of oil into the North Atlantic. In 1988, 270 people were killed when a terrorist bomb exploded aboard a Pam Am Boeing 747 over Lockerbie, Scotland, sending wreckage crashing to the ground. In 1995, the city of Bethlehem passed from Israeli to Palestinian control. Ten years ago: Eleven of the 12 former Soviet republics proclaimed the birth of the Commonwealth of Independent States and the death of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics brad pitt pictures. El Sayyid Nosair was acquitted in New York of killing Jewish extremist Rabbi Meir Kahane (Nosair was later convicted in a federal trial). Cable TV and sports magnate Ted Turner married actress Jane Fonda near Capps, Fla. (they divorced in May 2001). Five years ago: After two years of denials, House Speaker Newt Gingrich admitted violating House ethics rules. AIDS researcher Dr. David Ho was named Time magazine's "Man of the Year." One year ago: President-elect Bush resigned as governor of Texas; Lt. Gov. Rick Perry was sworn in to replace him. Today's Highlight in History: On Dec. 24, 1814, the War of 1812 officially ended as the United States and Britain signed the Treaty of Ghent in Belgium. On this date: In 1524, Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama - who had discovered a sea route around Africa to India - died in Cochin, India. In 1851, fire devastated the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., destroying about 35,000 volumes. In 1865, several veterans of the Confederate Army formed a private social club in Pulaski, Tenn., called the Ku Klux Klan. In 1871, Giuseppe Verdi's opera "Aida" had its world premiere in Cairo, Egypt, to celebrate the opening of the Suez Canal. In 1906, Canadian physicist Reginald A. Fessenden became the first person to broadcast a music program over radio, from Brant Rock, Mass. In 1920, Enrico Caruso gave his last public performance, singing in Jacques Halevy's "La Juive" at the Metropolitan Opera in New York. In 1943, President Franklin Roosevelt appointed Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower supreme commander of Allied forces as part of Operation "Overlord." n 1951, Gian Carlo Menotti's "Amahl and the Night Visitors," the first opera written specifically for television, was first broadcast by NBC TV. In 1968, the Apollo 8 astronauts, orbiting the moon, read passages from the Old Testament Book of Genesis during a Christmas Eve television broadcast. In 1980, Americans remembered the U.S. hostages in Iran by burning candles or shining lights for 417 seconds _ one second for each day of captivity. Ten years ago: A day before resigning, Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev briefed Russian President Boris Yeltsin on nuclear weapons-firing procedures. Gorbachev also held a farewell meeting with staff members. Five years ago: The streets of Belgrade, Yugoslavia, turned violent as demonstrators traded blows with supporters of President Slobodan Milosevic and then were clubbed by riot police. One year ago: Bombs exploded outside churches in nine Indonesian cities and towns, killing at least 19 people. Nick Massi, an original member of the Four Seasons, died at age 73.