Atlantica - 01.09.2002, Page 10

Funny Old Word: Cool
Despite his love for Scientology, most readers would probably say that Tom Cruise is
cool. Then there’s Brad Pitt. James Dean. And, of course, Elvis (before all those peanut
butter and banana sandwiches).
The list of male cool is much longer. I mean, who could ever forget the king of cool,
The Fonz? You know, the character from the ‘70s TV series ‘Happy Days’, who wore a
leather jacket and wooed women by snapping his fingers.
But how did the slang usage of cool, meaning hipness, derive?
Cool, of Germanic origin (kuhl) and related to Dutch koel, is a versatile word, of which
my dictionary lists 23 definitions. According to www.takeourword.com, cool in its
slang sense first appeared in the title of the 1947 Charlie Parker album Cool Blues,
referring to a relaxed style of jazz. A person who grooved on this type of jazz was later
called a “cool cat”.
And Fonzie certainly proved he was one cool cat when he jumped his motorcycle over
13 garbage cans. Aaaay! EW
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Hótel Esja, in Reykjavík, is not quite looking itself these days. The
scaffolding and air of change might have something to do with
it. In fact, the hotel will never again be the old Esja we once
knew. It will be shedding its skin in March 2003, revealing a stun-
ning new dress. Hótel Esja is set to become the largest hotel in
Iceland, with 284 rooms. Kári Kárason, General Manager of
Icelandair Hotels, says that the hotel will be amongst the best in
the country. He says, “We will be lifting the hotel to a higher
standard. We are moving away from the tourist market towards
the incentive and conference markets. The hotel will have the
largest specially equipped conference and banquet facility in the
country, which will be 2,000 m2 in total. The main conference
room will accommodate approximately 600 guests and many
smaller rooms will be on offer. This complete conference facility
will give the hotel a unique advantage.”
There will be 126 hotel rooms situated in the new wing, which
will be furnished and equipped with the latest in hotel interiors.
Guests can also choose to spend the night in one of the 30 m2
mini-suites, or one of the two 110 m2 presidential suites.
According to Kárason, the hotel will also boast a top class health
spa, with ten treatment and massage rooms, three hot pots, two
steam baths and a complete exercise facility. AÓJ
airmail
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Hótel Esja
007-016 ATL502 Airmail-rm 23.8.2002 14:14 Page 8