Recent Comments:
Woman Faces Foreclosure on House She Bought for $1 {AOL Real Estate}
Sep 9th 2011 1:27PM I too feel for Linda H. She may be beyond the point of just paying off the bill, but if not, and she can't find the white knight, good Samaratian, or sugar daddy to bail her out . . . how about selling off a few of the antiques she has collected to pay off the house? Yes it will break her heart to part with them, but it is better than giving them away at a forced sale or handing them over to the bank. If she survives the cancer she can always buy them back when her health and job situation permit. At least she has a nice place to live once it is paid off.
A lawyer should be able to stop forclosure and make this possible if it is past due, but there goes one more antique unless she can get it probono.
She Got a Car (!) and Built a Dream {BV on Money}
May 6th 2011 9:20PM OK, so Oprah uses other people's money (OPM) to do good things for her audiences and some special individuals in need. We get it. But isn't that SMART? Are we not told that using OPM to do your work is what the BIG players do?
Do you think the first give-aways were done without her asking for product? After that, it may have been other's corporate greed that sought her out for their own advertizing advantage; but so what? If it is cheaper, more cost efficient, and valuable to them to have her endorsement of their product as a give-away than to put their money at wholesale cost into other forms of product promotion then -- Wow! It is a double win.
GM, tourism, and many other donors could also be considered less than generous if you are a glass-half-empty pessimist. They got their money's worth and more in advertizing with tax write-offs. AND it helped others in the process; a triple win for the recipients, Oprah, and the donors.
If Oprah takes a little credit for the give-aways in exchange for her product endorsement, what is wrong with that? (Read the scrolling fine print or listen to the voice-overs during the credits. These will usually tell you who the promotional items were provided by; not only for Oprah, but shows like The Price is Right, Wheel of Fortune, etc.--all OPM.) Welcome to the world of PR, spin-doctoring, marketing, advertizing; i.e. the real world with a bit of fantasy, excitement, and, in Oprah's case, topped off with touch of class!
The Transitioning Vegetarian {Kitchen Daily}
Apr 8th 2010 2:54PM As a vegetarian of 30 years, with an added transitional period of another 3 1/2 years, I will add some long term observations.
1. Being a vegetarian does not automatically mean weight loss. Eating healthfully and sticking to complex, as opposed to simple, carbohydrates helps in many ways. But diet and exercise along with basic moderation and temperance will go a long way to better health including the establishment of optimal weight.
2. Humans need complete protein sources with amino acids often associated with meats. Many of these are not directly available through vegetarian sources. HOWEVER, when the human body is supplied with the right resources (namely a complex whole grain and a whole legume) within either the same meal or within up to no more than 8 to 12 hours of each other, the normal healthy body will make its own complete proteins and necessary amino acids from these. This holds true for body building athletes as well. Treadmill tests show vegetarians to have a stamina that out lasts those who get their proteins from meats in a ratio of as much as 2 to 1. The terms “strong like and ox” or “the strength of an elephant” both refer to animals whose natural protein source is exclusively vegan.
3. Vegetarians, but especially vegans, must take special care to get vitamin B12. It is the only item currently known to be missing in most vegan diets. Vegan diet B12 supplements can be purchased and this is generally the better option health wise. The alternative is eating raw organic veggies right from the ground UNWASHED. Or simply eat the dirt - yuck. I vote for the pill.
Finally, look up Seventh-day Adventist and diet on line. Many of them are vegetarians to one degree or another. Studies show they live longer, healthier, more productive lives with less illness, less osteoporosis, less heart problems, diabetes, and etcetera than any other population group. They also have a host of even tastier recipes than Michelle’s beginner ones and are a good source for vegetarian meat analogues, most of which actually taste good.
I could say so much more, but this, along with Michelle's article, should get anyone interested in being a vegetarian off to a good and healthy start.
The Transitioning Vegetarian {Kitchen Daily}
Apr 8th 2010 2:20PM It is true that starches and sugars can cause problems in transitioning diets; mostly as pseudo comfort foods. They do not provide the satiation needed, and in fact, new studies show sugars especially with the right amount of oils or fats can so completely turn off the feeling of full that unscrupulous entrepreneurial types often deliberately use this to get consumers to gorge themselves on their products. HOWEVER, the problem does not exist, and the cancer and colon problems also attributable to such consumption disappear, when simple sugars and starches are replaced with more complex carbohydrates. See my thread below for more complete information.
'Man Makeunder' Survival Challenge -- Metrosexual Stops Grooming for 14 Days {Asylum}
Mar 25th 2010 9:22PM His facial color looks far more normal, friendly, and appealing in the challenge photo. The over exfoliated look is not great. The irritated redness is a strange tone and makes his nose look bigger too. The skin is too tight; even the eyes look pinched/pulled like an over-done facelift. The more laid-back look is better with two exceptions. 1) One can groom and clean to healthy non-blackhead levels without salon products. He just needs to learn how. 2) In both cases, the beard shadow must go or grow out. Especially visible is the scar on the upper lip. If he has hormonal hair-growth issues then shave more often with a good clean triple action lubricated blade. Or be bold and grow and nicely groom a beard. (My personal option, saving time and money: Razors last months and an electric home style clipper maintains a consistent length.)
The wardrobe, rather than the personal grooming, was likely the greater issue in people's negative reactions. A more realistic workday solution to a tailored suit would be a nice pair of dress slacks and a bargain dress shirt and tie. See the reaction, even with the grooming part of the makeunder, which a little respect and sensitivity for the business environment would make. Clearly the challenge went beyond what was appropriate workplace attire. IMO, that was the real issue. The more normal hair, skin, etcetera was better for the most part (except the stubble).
I never watched the TV show. I reject the very premise. Previews showed me it was too forced, artificial, limited, and pressurized to even be called "reality." So, therefore, I have no opinion on him outside of this article. PS. I assume everyone else knows, but what is his name? Cousin is Mike, Kiehl is his skin care guru, but who is "Dude?"
Freud Flops at Sotheby's Surges in Contemporary Art Auction {Luxist}
Feb 14th 2010 2:08PM Redman is right. I had to look up "Weltanschauung" to find out that it is roughly the German equivalent of "World View," which I understand to basically mean one's motivation and reason along with their resulting actions based on one's perspective and philosophy of everything taken into consideration simultaneously. In other words, it is the total life Gestault—the big picture in which the insights informing the current conclusion are more than the sum of the parts and yet constantly morphing as new information and insights develop the individual's conceptualization and integration of these same facts. Applied to "Art Appreciation," Redman's statement is quite profound. It not only speaks to the wealthy who are able to invest and preserve works found to be credible investment speculations, but also to all who, for reasons of their own, assign value to any work of art. Any painting's real value could be based on aesthetics, historical significance, personal and general recognition of the commentary and expression of the artist's own World View, the popularity of the artist and the volume of their body of work, innovative artistic technique or use of their chosen or mixed medium, or a host of other criterion. However, to paraphrase a old cliché – Artistic and monetary value, personal appeal, and beauty are all in the eye of the beholder – and hopefully also in the eyes of potential future buyers of these same paintings when the time comes to place them once again on the auction block.
Surprise: Your Biological Father May Be Charles Manson {ParentDish}
Nov 26th 2009 3:46AM Matthew Roberts looks like a lot of guys I know. His parantage from looks alone do not validate the Manson connection. The mom says she was drugged out at a party when raped so Manson may not have been the (only) guy at one of those orgies who had her.
If it bothers you, which it shouldn't because you are who you have always been and knowing need not change you, get a DNA test. Manson's DNA may even be on record, but you might need to ask for it from him or at least get his permission.
Surprise: Your Biological Father May Be Charles Manson {ParentDish}
Nov 26th 2009 3:39AM OK move on and forget it if you can -- but siunce you are unsure and want to know a simple DNA test would confirm or disprove it -- ask Manson for a sample or perhaps his is on record somewhere that could be accessed through some government agency.
Life-Size Lego House Built...and Demolished {Shelterpop}
Sep 24th 2009 5:55PM Somebody should have checked with Disney. They have a nice Legoland in the Epcott area. I wonder if Euro-Disney would have wnated it?
Companies that vanished: Montgomery Ward, offering quality goods for 130 years {BloggingStocks}
Jun 9th 2008 3:18PM I remember Wards as the only place that would give us a credit card when my new bride and I wanted to buy some appliances for our new home. It was also the best place to buy clothes for our kids as they were growing up - all five of them. Wish they were still around as the last of them was and is still growing. It also had decent suits that did not require dry cleaning.
