In the News, May 31st, 2008

YES! He Guerdoned it!
There is a winner in the National Spelling Bee.
After watching his sister try three times to win the Scripps Nationals Spelling Bee, Sameer Mishra put himself on a mission. "I told my mom I was going to do the bee," Sameer said. "And if I was going to do it, I was going to win it one day. And I guess it happened." Sameer spelled "guerdon" — a word that appropriately means "something that one has earned or gained" — to win the 81st version of the bee Friday night.

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This is serious stuff.
A Fox News worker is suing over bedbugs in the office. The employee who says she suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder after being bitten by bedbugs at work filed a lawsuit on Thursday against the owner of the Manhattan office tower where she worked. Think O'Reilly got bitten?
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Um...Why?
A former nurse in Texas is accused of intentionally injecting bleach into two patients at a dialysis center .Both patients survived, but one required treatment at a hospital, police said.

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Seems as if we are all getting taken at the pumps.

The average U.S. gas prices have gone up 144 percent in the past five years — from $1.67 in May 2003 to $4.02 a gallon this month, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Over the same period, gas prices in France went up 117 percent to $9.66 a gallon. (WHAT???)
Gas in the world's No. 2 oil producer, Russia, runs about $3.68 a gallon — nearly that in the United States, where the average wage is about six times higher.

Much of the Russian cost comes from taxes, which run between 60 and 70 percent.

Turkey faces $11.29 a gallon, which for a full tank in a midsize car can reach nearly $200, enough for a domestic plane ticket.


In Venezuela a gallon costs just 12 cents thanks to long-held government subsidies and plenty of oil.

Other countries are paying up too for gas.
Japan is paying $5.77. Germany $11.49. India $4.16. Britain $8.31.

In the News, May 30 2008

Comic Harvey Korman dies at 81 AP -

Korman, the versatile comedian who won four Emmys for his outrageously funny contributions to "The Carol Burnett Show" died . He was 81.

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world’s last uncontacted tribe photographed


Uncontacted Indians in Brazil
© Gleison Miranda/FUNAI

Members of one of the world’s last uncontacted tribes have been spotted and photographed from the air near the Brazil-Peru border. The photos were taken during several flights over one of the remotest parts of the Amazon rainforest in Brazil’s Acre state.The images released on Thursday show them painted bright red and brandishing bows and arrows.

A Brazilian official involved in the expedition said many of them are in increasing danger from illegal logging.

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Steven Tyler back in Rehab?


Steven Tyler checked into a rehab facility in search of a "safe environment" to recover from several foot surgeries and physical therapy, the Aerosmith frontman said in a statement Thursday.

Tyler said the surgeries were to correct long-time foot injuries resulting from his physical performances.

"The doctors told me the pain in my feet could be corrected but it would require a few surgeries over time," Tyler said in the statement. "The 'foot repair' pain was intense, greater than I'd anticipated. The months of rehabilitative care and the painful strain of physical therapy were traumatic. I really needed a safe environment to recuperate where I could shut off my phone and get back on my feet."

The 60-year-old was known for heavy drug and alcohol abuse in the 1970s and early 1980s, but completed rehabilitation in 1986 .

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She's the Oldest driver in America

Lilian Cox has been driving since she was 8. Now she's 101 and still behind the wheel. She's the oldest driver in America, at 101 years of age, & resides in Tallahassee, Florida. She just got her driver's license renewed, so she's good to go until the year 2011.

In the News, May 29, 2008

Oil dipped so why are gas prices no going down?

Seems that in the past, after a holiday weekend gas prices would go down a few cents. Not so this year. The gasoline price record keeps getting broken with each passing day. AAA puts the national average for a gallon of regular at a record $3.95. It's jumped 35 cents in the past month and is 76-cents-a-gallon higher than a year ago. The auto club says the national average for premium is $4.35. That's an 84-cent-a-gallon jump over last year.
The oil barrel closed at $131.03 yesterday . At its low in the floor session, oil was more than $9 off the record high it hit last week above $135 a barrel.

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Is it worth $150,000?
City officials in Houston are apparently willing to dig deep to defend the police department's ban on beards. The Houston City Council on Wednesday unanimously authorized spending up to $150,000 to defend the city in a lawsuit challenging the no-facial hair policy.

"The lawsuit is pending and we have to defend ourselves," Councilman Ron Green said. "But we're basically saying we want new police officers, but we don't want police officers with beards."

Four police officers filed a federal civil rights lawsuit claiming the policy is discriminatory. The officers say the prohibition on beards and goatees is unfair for men who suffer a skin condition that reacts negatively to shaving. The condition can cause severe irritation, rashes and ingrown hair. The police department instituted the policy in 1993 so uniformed officers would look conservative and professional, according to a city memo.
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It's all about the second hand smoke and children.
According to a study from the University of Hong Kong, whose findings are published online May 28 in the journal Tobacco Control, in addition to developing asthma and respiratory infections, children in households where someone smokes are more likely to catch a whole range of severe infections, including meningococcal disease. Many even have to be hospitalized, a new study found.

Being around smoke during the first few months of life was most dangerous, especially if the newborn was born underweight or premature.

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A New York lawyer is suing Delta Air Lines for $1 million, saying his family vacation turned into a nightmare after they were stranded in an airport for days and treated disdainfully by airline employees. The family spent three days in airports, went days without their luggage, were treated rudely by airline employees and were forced to spend $21,000 on unused hotel rooms in Argentina, replacement clothes, and other costs.


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Where did she hide it?

Wife goes away to care for her ill mother. Husband needs to clean the house before she returns. Husband hires a maid to do it for him. Husband thinks with the wrong part of his body and hires a NUDE maid.The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said the 50-year-old man hired the maid from the Internet to clean his Tampa home.


Authorities said the woman arrived at the home in a one-piece, light colored dress. She took off the dress and cleaned the house for $100-per-hour. A sheriff's office spokeswoman said the man told deputies he left the maid alone in the bedroom to clean. Um, duh, do we need to ask?

When the man's wife came home from vacation, she discovered $40,000 in jewelry missing from their bedroom

Police are investigating. Wife took off for good :) .

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FOUL CALL: NO FOUL CALL

Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times

Spurs forward Brent Barry grabs a rebound from Lakers forward Luke Walton during Game 4 on Tuesday night. The NBA acknowledged Wednesday that a foul should have been called on the final possession of Game 4 in the Western Conference finals, which would have given the San Antonio Spurs a chance to even the series.Trailing 93-91 on Tuesday night, the Spurs inbounded the ball with 2.1 seconds left to Brent Barry, who was bumped by Los Angeles Lakers guard Derek Fisher on the floor. No foul was called, and Barry missed badly on the shot.

In the News, May 28, 2008

Yes, I am blogging on a Dell.
A New York state judge ruled Dell Inc. deceived customers in a massive "bait and switch" scheme to increase sales of its computer and electronic products .

State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo sued Dell in 2007 on behalf of hundreds of customers who claimed that the electronics company lured them into buying products with promises of attractive deals and promotions. In reality, the lawsuit alleged, most customers were denied or misled into believing that they had been approved for low interest or financing rates.

The lawsuit also accused Dell of depriving customers of technical support that they were entitled to, in some instances, by pressuring them into performing repairs on their own or subjecting them to long wait times on the phone. In my opinion, and I've been there, the wait was due to the call being forwarded around the world.


"Dell has engaged in repeated misleading, deceptive and unlawful business conduct, including false and deceptive advertising of financing promotions and the terms of warranties, fraudulent, misleading and deceptive practices in credit financing and failure to provide warranty service and rebates," The judge said in his decision.


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Can criminal behavior be due to lead poisoning?

Exposure to lead in early childhood or in the womb can cause permanent brain damage that may even cause criminal behavior, researchers reported on Tuesday.


Two studies showed that people with high levels of lead in childhood grew up with blocks of missing brain cells -- and they also were far more likely to be arrested for crimes, especially violent crimes.

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Selling their baby on Craigslist?
A couple has been arrested in what Canadian police said was an apparent offer to sell a seven-day-old baby girl on Craigslist for C$10,000 ($10,100).
A woman who saw the offer on the popular website alerted police who tracked down the 23-year-old mother and 26-year-old father using a cell phone number that was listed in the advertisement. DUH. Police said the advertisement described the baby as "very cute" and "unexpected" and that its parents, who could not afford to care for it, wanted to give it a good home.
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How much does our galaxy weigh?

The Milky Way galaxy weighs about 1 trillion times as much as our sun, according to a new estimate.

Previous estimates had ranged from 750 billion solar masses to up to 2 trillion. Astronomers have used a more refined method to conclude that our galaxy's mass is slightly less than 1 trillion solar masses.

FYI: the galaxy's mass is a mix of stars, gas, dust and mysterious dark matter.


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Wanna buy a jail?

The Somerset County Jail in downtown Skowhegan is for sale. It has a price tag of $200,000.

The 14,000-square-foot lockup, which was built in 1897, is scheduled to shut down later this year when a new 200-bed county jail opens in Madison.

A hill of blooming flowers in Temecula, California on May 8 signals the approach of Spring.

(Photo and caption submitted by Catherine Anderson)

In the News, May 25 2008

AP photo

Memorial Day, 2008. President Bush will lay a wreath at Arlington Cemetery's Tomb of the Unknowns for one last time today on Memorial Day.

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Soldiers are treated to High Rollin' Weekend.
A few dozen fellow soldiers took a private jet to Las Vegas over the weekend for an all-expenses-paid getaway with all the perks normally saved for casinos' richest regulars.

They were greeted at the airport by Wayne Newton, chilled backstage with the guys from Blue Man Group and hobnobbed with Sheldon Adelson, the billionaire casino mogul who runs Las Vegas Sands Corp. and paid for the trip.

The trip, organized by the Armed Forces Foundation, brought 40 wounded soldiers from Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington and the National Naval Medical Center at Bethesda, Md., to the Venetian Resort Hotel Casino on the Las Vegas Strip.

Armed Forces Foundation officials said the trip was a dream distraction from the everyday life at the hospitals, where the soldiers lived while recovering from their injuries.

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We salute out oldest living Veteran on Memorial Day.

AP Photo: Frank Buckles poses for a photo as he tours the National World War I Museum.
Frank Woodruff Buckles, the last known living American-born veteran of World War I, was honored Sunday at the Liberty Memorial during Memorial Day weekend celebrations. The 107-year-old veteran said at a ceremony to unveil his portrait which was hung in the main hallway of the National World War I Museum. Buckles toured the museum for the first time, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States presented him with a gold medal of merit.

Born in Missouri in 1901 and raised in Oklahoma, Buckles visited a string of military recruiters after the United States entered the "war to end all wars" in April 1917.
He was rejected by the Marines and the Navy, but eventually persuaded an Army captain he was 18 and enlisted, convincing him Missouri didn't keep public records of birth.

Buckles sailed for England in 1917 on the Carpathia, which is known for its rescue of Titanic survivors, and spent his tour of duty working mainly as a driver and a warehouse clerk in Germany and France. He rose to the rank of corporal and after Armistice Day he helped return prisoners of war to Germany.Buckles later traveled the world working for the shipping company White Star Line and was in the Philippines in 1940 when the Japanese invaded. He became a prisoner of war for nearly three years.

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"Indiana Jones" hits it big this weekend

Harrison Ford stars in Paramount Pictures' "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull." The fourth installment of the epic saga "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," grossed an estimated $101 million from Friday to Sunday, plus $25 million from its opening Thursday, distributor Paramount Pictures said. The company expects it to earn another $25 million on Monday.

BOX OFFICE TOP 10

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers LLC. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," $101 million.
2. "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian," $23 million.
3. "Iron Man," $20.1 million.
4. "What Happens in Vegas," $9 million.
5. "Speed Racer," $4 million.
6. "Made of Honor," $3.4 million.
7. "Baby Mama," $3.3 million.
8. "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," $1.7 million.
9. "Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay," $900,000.
10. "The Visitor," $800,000.

"'Indiana Jones' did incredibly well for a film that comes 19 years after the previous installment," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of tracking firm Media By Numbers LLC.


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More Storms Hit the Plains.
Powerful storms packing large hail, heavy rain and tornadoes made for a deadly Memorial Day weekend across the nation's midsection, killing at least seven people in Iowa and a 2-year-old child in Minnesota.

This old barn stands in a wheat field as a sever thunderstorm passes in the distance near Ogallah, Kan., Thursday, May 22, 2008. Severe thunderstorms dropped tornadoes across much of northwest Kansas.

In the News; May 24, 2008

Bad weather is sharing the headlines with the usual gas, election and economy stories.
Emergency workers were picking through debris after tornadoes rampaged in western and central Kansas and northern Oklahoma for a second night in a row. In northern Colorado, meanwhile, officials were thankful the tornado that damaged 596 homes .
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They are still rescuing people in China. Rescuers rushed to reach 24 coal miners trapped underground by China's' earthquake almost two weeks ago. The quake's death toll, warning it could exceed 80,000.
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Listed their baby on eBay.
Police in southern Germany say they have removed a seven-month-old boy from his parents after they tried to sell him for one euro (US$1.57) over eBay.

Needless to say, a police spokesman says that the baby has been put in care of youth services and was doing well .

Authorities have launched an investigation into possible child trafficking against the parents.

The mother told police she had only intended the Internet ad as a joke. No offers were made for the child in the two hours and 30 minutes the ad was posted. Ebay deleted the posting afterward.

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Memorial Day Weekend marks the The Indy 500
Here are some facts about the race.

The first Indianapolis 500 took place in 1911. Ray Harroun won in the Marmon "Wasp."
It has been an near annual event. The race did not take place in 1917-18 and 1942-45 due to America's involvement in the world wars.
The distance of 500 miles was chosen when speedway leader Carl Fisher and his partners envisioned an event that would appeal to the public by lasting approximately seven hours between mid-morning and late afternoon. A distance of 500 miles was settled upon, and Ray Harroun won the first Indianapolis 500 in 1911 in six hours, 42 minutes and eight seconds.

Each lap is 2.5 miles. Drivers drive 200 laps in the event. The track has four distinct turns and straightaways, a layout unchanged since the facility opened in 1909. The front and back straightaways are 5/8th of a mile each, with the "short chute" straightaways between Turns 1 and 2 and Turns 3 and 4 at 1/8th of a mile each. Each of the four turns is 1/4th of a mile long.
Each of the four turns on the oval is banked at exactly 9 degrees, 12 minutes, the same dimensions as when the track opened in 1909.

Three drivers have won the Indianapolis 500 four times each: A.J. Foyt (1961, 1964, 1967, 1977); Al Unser (1970, 1971, 1978, 1987) and Rick Mears (1979, 1984, 1988, 1991).
Troy Ruttman was 22 years, 80 days old when he won the 36th Indianapolis 500 on May 30, 1952. He is the youngest winner on record. The oldest was Al Unser who was 47 years, 360 days old when he won the 71st Indianapolis 500 on May 24, 1987.

Five women have raced in the Indianapolis 500: Janet Guthrie (1977-79), Lyn St. James (1992-97, 2000), Sarah Fisher (2000-04, 2007), Danica Patrick (2005-07) and Milka Duno (2007).
Yes. Eight drivers have won as Indianapolis 500 rookies: Ray Harroun (1911, inaugural race), Jules Goux (1913), Rene Thomas (1914), Frank Lockhart (1926), George Souders (1927), Graham Hill (1966), Juan Pablo Montoya (2000), Helio Castroneves (2001).

After 40 cars started in the inaugural race in 1911, the Contest Board of the American Automobile Association (AAA), the sanctioning body at the time, mandated a formula for limiting the size of a starting field according to the size of the track. It was determined that the safe distance between each car spread equally around a course would be 400 feet, thereby limiting the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway to 33 cars. Speedway President Carl Fisher, however, placed a limit of only 30 cars for the "500" between 1912 and 1914 and did not adopt AAA's 33 maximum until 1915. Although there had been numerous occasions between 1912 and 1928 when the field was not filled, the allowed number was increased during the Depression years to 40 cars between 1930 and 1932 (only 38 made it in 1930) and further to 42 in 1933. The maximum has been at 33 ever since 1934, although extenuating circumstances expanded the field to 35 starters in 1979 and 1997.

This year Honorary Starter Kristi Yamaguchi Waves the Green Flag to Start the 92nd Indianapolis 500-Mile Race 1:11 p.m.

In the News; May 23, 2008

It's tornado season and the people in Colorado can tell you all about it. A massive tornado tore into the northern Colorado town of Windsor killing one person and damaging many homes and businesses.

CNN/KUSA Photo
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Is there no end? The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight says that home prices fell 3.1 percent in the first quarter compared with last year. This home-price index is considered by many to be the most comprehensive reading of the U.S. market. They said that this is the sharpest decline in its 17-year history. Analysts say housing has yet to bottom out.
Rapidly falling home prices in California, Florida and Nevada skewed the national results.
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A mother from Jacksonville, Fl was sentenced to 20 years in prison for keeping her 17-year-old adopted son caged in her home. The teen weighed 49 pounds when child welfare workers found him in 2005 in what appeared to be a cage. Two other adopted children, both testified they were kept in similar cages.
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John McCain appears cancer-free. The three-time melanoma survivor , has a strong heart and is in otherwise general good health, according to eight years of medical records reviewed by The Associated Press.
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AP Photo:
The beach at Caladesi Island State Park in Florida has been named the best beach according to the 2008 ranking for an annual list made by a Florida International University professor dubbed "Dr. Beach,".

In the news, May 22, 2008

Get use to it.

AP Photo: A car drives past a Marathon gas station where regular gasoline is just under $4.

The price of a barrel of oil roseabove $135 a barrel for the first time with supply worries, global demand and an ever weakening U.S dollar driving crude futures up. I think it may be a good time to acknowledge the recession.

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Have you seen this?


AP Photo
Bizunesh is 3 and weighs less than 10 pounds. "There is nothing ... I beg for milk," her mother says. She is one of many children hit by this year's double blow of a countrywide drought and skyrocketing global food prices that has brought famine, once again, to Ethiopia.

The U.N. children's agency said in a statement that an estimated 126,000 Ethiopian children urgently need food and medical care because of severe malnutrition -- and called the crisis "the worst since the major humanitarian crisis of 2003."

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The 5-year-old daughter of Grammy-winning Christian music star Steven Curtis Chapman was struck and killed Wednesday by a sport utility vehicle driven by her brother, according to authorities .The five year old was hit in the driveway of the family's home by a Toyota Land Cruiser driven by her teenage brother.No charges are expected.

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Another American Idol has been crowned. David Cook claimed the "American Idol" title beating 17-year-old David Archuleta by a margin of 12 million votes. Much to the dismay of Simon Cowell who at one time declared song choices had sunk Cook, and then told Archuleta that he'd scored a "knockout" in the boxing-themed performance finale. Just before the winner was announced, Cowell uncharacteristically backtracked. He offered Cook an apology and said that the competition "wasn't quite so clear cut as we called it" — even letting on that, for the first time, he felt either finalist would have been a worthy winner.

In the news May 21, 2008

Is it over for the Dems?

The latest poll:

Oregon
Obama (W) 58%
Clinton 42%
88% of precincts reporting
Kentucky
Clinton (W) 65%
Obama 30%
100% Reporting

Obama is said to have all but declared victory .He needed just 17 delegates to capture a majority of the 3,253 pledged delegates.
After passing that threshold Tuesday, he now finds himself within eyesight of the magic number of 2,025, the number of delegates and superdelegates needed to clinch the nomination under the rules set by the Democratic National Committee.The Clinton campaign disputes that figure and instead insists on using 2,210 as the key metric--a number predicated on the counting of delegates from Michigan and Florida--but Obama's victory Tuesday left her at the mercy of the DNC's Rules and Bylaws Committee, which meets May 31 to determine appeals from the two wayward states.
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Oil closed at a record $130/barrel. That is more than a 30% increase so far this year.
$4/gallon will now be looking good to many of us.
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A parrot in Japan flew his coupe, so to say, only to tell police who he belonged to.

AP Photo: Yosuke the parrot rests in his cage at his home.

Police rescued the African grey parrot near Tokyo. After spending a night at the station, he was transferred to a nearby veterinary hospital.
He kept mum with the cops, but began chatting after a few days with the vet.

"I'm Mr. Yosuke Nakamura," the bird told the veterinarian, according to Uemura. The parrot also provided his full home address, down to the street number, and even entertained the hospital staff by singing songs.

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The Kristi Yamaguchi was named the new "Dancing" champ on "Dancing With the Stars," season finale. She becomes the first woman to win and she did it with a perfect score .

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a $175 (89 pounds) hamburger.

Reuters Photo: A $175 Hamburger is shown at The Wall Street Burger Shoppe in New York

The Wall Street Burger Shoppe is offering the costliest burger in New York.

The burger, created by chef and co-owner Kevin O'Connell, seeks to justify its price with a Kobe beef patty, lots of black truffles, seared foie gras, aged Gruyere cheese, wild mushrooms and flecks of gold leaf on a brioche bun.
They sell s 20 or 25 per month in the fine dining room upstairs versus hundreds of $4 burgers each day at the diner counter downstairs.

In the News; May 20 2008

Do you "click it?"
More than two-thirds of young drivers and passengers killed in nighttime car crashes aren't wearing seat belts. This is according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Sixty-eight percent of drivers and passengers between the ages of 16 and 20 who were killed in car crashes at night in 2006 were unbuckled. Ironically, seat belt use actually is rising nationwide.Total belt use rose to 82 percent last year. During daytime, 57 percent of the young motorists and passengers who were killed were not wearing seat belts.

The problem isn't just with teens. The percentage of unbuckled drivers and passengers who died at night is well up in the 60s through the age of 44. It declines to 52 percent for people 55-64 and 41 percent for those older than that.

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China raised the number of dead or missing from a devastating earthquake to more than 70,000.The death toll from last week's earthquake in China has gone up to 40,075, according to state media .
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A Lester No-Hitter.
He beat chemotherapy . Jon Lester has made a remarkable recovery.

AP Photo: Boston Red Sox starter Jon Lester pumps his arms after throwing a no-hitter.

The 24-year-old lefty added another accomplishment to his list when he pitched the first no-hitter in the majors this season. Lester shut down the Kansas City Royals 7-0 in his first career complete game.



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News about women and their heart health.

Women who want to keep their hearts in tip-top shape face the fewest challenges in Minneapolis, Washington, D.C., and San Francisco, the cities which top the list of the 10 most heart-healthy U.S. metropolitan areas for women.

The list, released by the American Heart Association, also found the 10 metropolitan areas that did not fair so well. They are Nashville, Tenn., St. Louis and Detroit deemed the least friendly major cities for women's heart health.

The most heart-friendly metro areas for women are:

1. Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, Minn.
2. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, District of Columbia
3. San Francisco-San Jose-Oakland, Calif.
4. Denver-Aurora, Colo.
5. Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, Mass.
6. Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Wash.
7. Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, Ore.
8. San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, Calif.
9. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, Calif.
10. Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, Ariz.

Minneapolis-St. Paul, Boston and Phoenix have the lowest heart-disease mortality rates for women, while women in San Francisco, Denver and Los Angeles are the thinnest.

Women in San Francisco, San Diego and Washington, D.C., are the healthiest eaters, and those in Sacramento, Los Angeles and San Francisco smoke the least.

The least-friendly metropolitan areas for women are:

1. Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro, Tenn.
2. St. Louis, Mo.
3. Detroit-Warren-Livonia, Mich.
4. Pittsburgh, Pa.
5. Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas
6. Columbus, Ohio
7. Cincinnati-Middletown, Ohio
8. Las Vegas-Paradise, Nev.
9. Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor, Ohio
10. Indianapolis, Ind.

The researchers reported that women in Cleveland, Columbus, Ohio, and San Antonio, Texas, are among the most overweight in the country.


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You just can't make this stuff up....

Guests line up at the opening of The Simpsons Ride at Universal Studios Hollywood in Universal City, California May 17, 2008.

Yes, it's true. Krusty the Clown has his own ride at Universal.
He now ranks up there with Jaws and Kong.

In the news May 19, 2008

AP Photo

China stood still in mourning over tens of thousands of earthquake victims.

The Chinese government is appealing for more international aid to cope with the country's deadliest disaster in a generation.
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The National Association for Business Economics says that the worst of the painful housing slump and the credit crunch might come to an end this year.
They also predict that the economy will weaken further and unemployment will rise.

The group says that 56percent of the economists think the economy has started or will enter a recession this year. That's up from 45 percent in a survey in February.

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The U.S. military is holding about 500 juveniles suspected of being "unlawful enemy combatants" in detention centers in Iraq and has about 10 detained in Afghanistan, the United States has told the United Nations. A total of 2,500 youths under the age of 18 have been detained.

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School officials say they are appalled by altered photos — including heads on different bodies — in hundreds of McKinney High School yearbooks delivered this week.

Yearbook photos for 583 McKinney High School students were altered by the company.

Some girls' heads ended up on boys' bodies, and vice versa. Some necks were stretched, and some outfits were altered.

Besides the head and body switching, some necks were stretched, one girl's arm was missing, and another girl's head was placed on what appeared to be a nude body, with the chest blurred.

A spokeswoman for Minnesota-based Lifetouch National School Studios Inc. said the alterations were "an unfortunate lapse in judgment" by an employee but didn't believe it was malicious.

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1. 
   

   AP - Mon May 19, 12:50 AM ET

   Kenny Chesney won entertainer of the year for a fourth straight time Sunday.He then promptly took issue with the way the Academy of Country music awarded the honor: through fan votes.
   

In the News; May 18, 2008

AP Photo
Sen. Edward Kennedy was rushed to the hospital yesterday after suffering from a seizure.

Doctors are still working to determine the cause of a seizure that sent the Senator to the hospital. The 76-year-old Massachusetts Democrat spent the night at Massachusetts General Hospital, a top aide said.

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As of Saturday, May 17, 2008, at least 4,079 members of the U.S. military have died in the Iraq war since it began in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count.

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Sun May 18, 1:03 AM ET

In this image provided by Tony Maddox Photography,

Loni Anderson and Bob Flick are shown at their wedding, Saturday May 17, 2008 in Bel Air Calif. Anderson, famous for her role as Jennifer Marlowe in the TV series 'WKRP in Cincinnati,' wed 'Brothers Four' famed folk singer Bob Flick Saturday at the Bel-Air hotel.

(AP Photo/HO -Tony Maddox)

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An American soldier used a Quran, for target practice.

The use of the Islamic holy book for target practice prompting an apology from the U.S. military. Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Hammond, commander of U.S. forces in Baghdad, apologized for the staff sergeant who was a sniper section leader assigned to the headquarters of the 64th Armored Regiment. He also read a letter of apology by the shooter.

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China has announced three days of national mourning as the death toll from last week's devastating earthquake. Another strong aftershock hit the region and the death toll has risen to nearly 32,500, with a further 220,000 injured.

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It's 2 out of three in an attempt at the crown.
Big Brown came from third place around the final turn to score a decisive victory.

Jockey Kent Desormeaux sneaked a peak to see if anyone was gaining on Big Brown.

"I looked between my legs, under my arms, and they were eight [lengths] behind me," Desormeaux said. "I stopped pushing. I said, `That's enough."'

His big bay colt ran away with the Preakness on Saturday and now is pointed squarely down the path toward the Triple Crown.

In The News, May 17 2007

Gas Prices on the rise.

President Bush is in the Mid-East on a peace quest and oil quest.
President Bush say that the Saudis' modest increase in oil production is "something but it doesn't solve our problem" of soaring gas prices. No kidding. News that Saudi Arabia had boosted its oil output by 300,000 barrels a day was greeted as a non-event on oil markets as the barrel closed at $128.
Meanwhile, in the US., average gas prices are hovering around $4/gal. That's around $1 more than a year ago.
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Lucky winner.
Check your ticket if you purchased in Ohio.
A lucky lottery player who stopped into a suburban Cincinnati liquor store has a Mega Millions ticket worth $196 million. The ticket was purchased from Main Street Wine & Spirits in Amelia in southwest Ohio. Lottery officials say just one ticket won the jackpot. Seventeen players who matched five numbers but not the Mega Ball number will receive second-place prizes of $250,000 each. Still works for me.
The numbers were 6, 11, 39, 46 and 47. The Mega Ball number was 26.

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Did you ever go to a carnival and wonder how safe the ride your were on actually was?
A carnival ride spinning with people collapsed at a county fair Friday night, injuring all 24 people aboard it. The carnival ride, called the Yo-Yo, has metal arms, each with a seat at the end attached by a chain, that swing outward as the ride picks up speed. The arms rise and fall as they spin around a center pole, putting the seats horizontal to the ground.

The pole apparently collapsed, causing the arms to crash back toward the center.
The riders — mostly children — were hurt when their seats struck the ground or other parts of the machine , according to authorities. Scroll down for video.
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A pear-shaped blue diamond has sold for 5.2 million Swiss francs ($4.93 million), setting a new world record price per carat for any gemstone, according to Sotheby.

AP Photo: In this May 7, 2008 file photo, a Sotheby's employee displays a vivid blue 3.7-carat...

The buyer of the 3.73 carat blue stone was British jeweler Laurence Graff, who also picked up a light pink diamond weighing 6.26 carats for 1.67 million francs, the auction house said. Such a bargain.
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Updates:
In China- Thousands of Chinese fled to the hills amid fears a lake formed near the epicenter of this week's earthquake would burst its banks.

Myanmar-France criticized Myanmar's military junta on Friday for refusing to allow a French Navy ship with 1,500 tons of aid for victims of Cyclone Nargis to deliver food and medicine with small boats and helicopters. Diplomats witnessed "huge" devastation in the Irrawaddy delta on Saturday and the toll of dead and missing from the cyclone rose above 133,000 people, making it one of the most damaging to hit Asia.

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Fri May 16, 2:20 AM ET (AFP/William West)

A protest by pensioners, which disrupted traffic in Melbourne against the Rudd government's lack of support for seniors. The protesting pensioners brought traffic to a stand still in Australia's second largest city on Friday when some stripped to demand more money from the government.

The scantily-clad seniors braved the autumn weather in a 150-strong protest against this week's federal budget, which offered them little despite a 21.7 billion dollar (20 billion US) surplus.

In the news, May 16, 2008

Double - amputee can compete in the Olympics.
Sprinter Oscar Pistorius won an appeal and can compete for a place in the Beijing Olympics.

Getty Photo

South Africa's Oscar Pistorius competing last July in the men's 400m race during the Athletics IAAF Golden Gala in Rome's Olympic Stadium

The Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled that the South African is eligible to race against able-bodied athletes, overturning a ban imposed by the International Association of Athletics Federations.

The sprinter still must reach a qualifying time to run in the individual 400 meters at the Aug. 8-24 Beijing Games. However, he can be picked for the South African relay squad without qualifying.

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MORE $ MORE $ MORE $
Oil prices soared more than $3 a barrel, surpassing $127 for the first time .

What's the latest reason ?
Pushing oil prices up were speculation that China's demand for diesel needed to fuel its power plants would rise due to reconstruction efforts after this week's earthquakes.
President Bush is appealing to oil-rich Saudi Arabia to increase production just as oil prices have hit the record high. The average price is $3.75/gal.
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The MySpace mom. A Missouri woman was indicted for her alleged role in perpetrating a hoax on the online social network MySpace against a 13-year-old neighbor who committed suicide.
The woman, from suburban St. Louis, allegedly helped create a MySpace account in the name of someone who didn't exist to convince to convince a girls that she was chatting with a 16-year-old boy named Josh Evans.

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It's back.
Osama bin Laden said in a new audio recording that al-Qaida will continue its holy war against Israel and its allies until it liberates Palestine.

Not surprisingly to the idea of Mid-East peace, the terrorist leader’s third statement this year came as President Bush was wrapping up his visit to Israel to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Jewish state.

Bin Laden said the fight for the Palestinian cause (and probably his deviated ego) was the most important factor driving al-Qaida’s war with the West and fueled 19 Muslims to carry out the suicide attacks against the United States on Sept. 11 .


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AP photo

Denis Rodman is in trouble again. Prosecutors say they have charged former NBA star Dennis Rodman with domestic violence for allegedly hitting his girlfriend at a hotel last month.

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Now that same-sex couples across California begin making plans to tie the knot,
Ellen DeGeneres is putting the California Supreme Court ruling into action . DeGeneres says that she and Portia de Rossi plan to wed.

DeGeneres was taping the episode of "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" on Thursday, the day the state's high court struck down California laws against gay marriage, and it was to air Friday, a person close to the production said.


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Charles Barkley acknowledged he owes a $400,000 gambling debt to a Las Vegas Strip casino and promisesto repay it after a prosecutor said the retired NBA star faced criminal charges. "My mistake," Barkley said in an interview at a pro-am golf tournament in Hoover, Ala. "I'm not broke, and I'm going to take care of it."


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Joshua Packwood knows what it's like to be a minority.

Joshua Packwood, 22, will be the first white valedictorian at the historically black Morehouse College.

This weekend he'll be the first white valedictorian to graduate from the historically black, all male Morehouse College in the school's 141-year history.

Morehouse, in Atlanta, Georgia, is one the nation's most prestigious universities of its kind.

"Because I'm one of the only white students, it's easy to call me 'the white boy,' I'm naturally going to stand out," says Packwood.

In the news, May 15, 2008

Chinese Death Toll. China says that the death toll from this week's earthquake could be as much as 50,000. The Chinese government issued a public appeal for rescue equipment as it struggled to cope with the disaster.
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Embryo in her stomach? A 9-year-old girl who went to hospital in central Greece suffering from stomach pains was found to be carrying her embryonic twin, according to doctors .
Doctors examined the girl and surgically removed a growth they later discovered was an embryo about six centimeters (more than two inches) long. Cases where one of a set of twins absorbs the other in the womb occurs in one of 500,000 live births.

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A Girl Scout with a Business Future. A Girl Scout sold 17,328 boxes of cookies this year. It is not known if she set a national record. Troop 813 raised about $21,000 in cookie sales, paying for its 10-day trip to Europe this winter.
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Gay Gov can't Pay his Ex. The nation's first openly gay governor tried to convince the judge in his divorce case that he's too poor to pay alimony. Former New Jersey Gov. James McGreevey says he's been financially crippled by his resignation and marital troubles.
He and his wife, have been separated since he left office in November 2004, three months after he said he had an affair with a male staffer and planned to resign. The staffer denies he had an affair with McGreevey and accused him of sexual harassment.

The couple have agreed on custody of their only child, 6-year-old and are fighting over alimony, child support, and how to divide their assets and liabilities.

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Put at risk by global warming, the polar bear is getting a life line as the government officially has declared it a threatened species in need of increased protection.

AP Photo: In this Nov. 7, 2007 file photo, a polar bear mother and her two cubs...

The Interior Department put the bear under the protective umbrella of the Endangered Species Act. It's just what what biologists have been saying for years: the bear is on the way to extinction because of the rapid disappearance of the Arctic sea ice upon which it depends.

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The Wall Street Journal is reporting that General Electric Co. is getting out of the aplliance business. They have plans to auction off its appliances business and has hired Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to run an auction for the appliance division, according to the newspaper . The sale could yield between $5 billion and $8 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported.

In the news, May 14, 2008

In case you have not heard, Hilary Clinton won big in WV yesterday. Is it still a race, and if so, a tight one? They are in need of 2,025 delegates to nab the nomination. So far, it's Obama 1,881 Clinton 1,721. (NBC) CNN says Obama: Pledged 1599 Superdels.282 Total 1881
Clinton Pledged 1440 Superdels 273 Total 1713.

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Have you used your house phone lately?
Accosding to new federal figures, 3 in 10 households, rarely use a landline phone. They either only have a cell phone or seldom if ever take calls on their traditional phone. These figures show reliance on cells is continuing to rise at the expense of wired telephones. In the second half of last year, 16 percent of households only had cell phones, while 13 percent also had landlines but got all or nearly all their calls on their cells.

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It seems that more Americans are taking prescription drugs.
Medco Health Solutions Inc., which manages prescription benefits for about one in five Americans says that for the first time, it appears that more than half of all insured Americans are taking prescription medicines regularly for chronic health problems,.

The most widely used drugs are those to lower high blood pressure and cholesterol — problems often linked to heart disease, obesity and diabetes.

Why? Experts say the data reflect not just worsening public health but better medicines for chronic conditions and more aggressive treatment by doctors. And of course, there is the pharmaceutical industry's relentless advertising. With those factors unlikely to change, doctors say the proportion of Americans on chronic medications can only grow.

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More Foreclosures in April.
More U.S. homeowners fell behind on mortgage payments last month, driving the number of homes facing foreclosure up 65 percent versus the same month last year. The results contributing to a deepening slide in home values.

Nationwide, 243,353 homes received at least one foreclosure-related filing in April, up 65 percent from 147,708 in the same month last year and up 4 percent since March, RealtyTrac Inc. said.

Nevada, Arizona, California and Florida were among the hardest hit states, with metropolitan areas in California and Florida accounting for nine of the top 10 areas with the highest rate of foreclosure, the company said.
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I'm sorry but, DUH.

A family boarded a flight on Monday in Canada, and forgot their tot at the Vancouver international airport, according to local media .

The 23-month-old boy's family had just arrived in Canada from the Philippines, but they were forced to repack their overweight bags before catching a connecting flight to Winnipeg, causing them to run late.

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Check this kid out.

AP Photo: Moshe Kai Cavalin, 10, takes statistics college classes at the East Los Angeles College.

Cavalin is only 10 years old.

"I'm studying statistics," says the alternately precocious and shy Cavalin, his textbook lying open on the living room desk of his parents' apartment in this quiet suburb east of Los Angeles.

Within a year, if he keeps up his grades and completes the rest of his requirements, he hopes to transfer from his two-year program at East Los Angeles College to a prestigious four-year school and study astrophysics.

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Ongoing;

• New cyclone may hit storm-ravaged Myanmar
• 26,000 buried under China quake debris
• Firefighters gain upper hand in Florida

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Smart receives top crash scores AP photo
The 2008 Smart fortwo micro car, the smallest car for sale in the U.S. market. Scroll down.
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Tue May 13, 2:53 PM ET

Manuel Uribe chats with a reporter during an interview at his home in the suburb of San Nicolas de los Garza, in Monterrey May 9, 2008.

(Tomas Bravo/Reuters)

The 42-year-old Mexican, who lives in a reinforced bed and has been housebound for the last six years, started cutting out junk food in March 2006, opting for a diet of fruit, vegetables, fish, chicken and omelettes. At his peak weight, Uribe was the world’s heaviest living man and one of the largest people ever recorded in medical history tipping the scales at 1,265 lbs, the weight of seven average-sized men. Since 2002, Uribe has been bedridden, relying on his mother and friends to feed and clean him. He drew worldwide attention when he pleaded for help on television in January 2006. With the help of doctors and nutritionists, Uribe embarked on the Zone diet and progressed beyond medical expectations, losing a whopping 460 lbs (40 stones) over the past year. He’s now down to a much-improved 800 lbs (50 stones).

In the News; May 12 2008

In the news this morning.

They are at the polls in the West Virginia to find us the best possible Dem. candidate. While Hilary may get the popular vote, Obama seems to be getting the important support from the delegates. Barack Obama is now focused on the general election on of course, John McCain. Even if Hillary beats Barack in West Virginia, as predicted by polls, she will probably not win in the delegate race.

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Florida fires are creating a dangerous situation. Firefighters in the Brevard County town of Palm Bay have spent more than 48 hours battling the state's biggest blaze, which has damaged about 70 homes and scorched 3,500 acres, or about 5 1/2 square miles.

AP Photo: Plumes of smoke rise as as wildfires burn hundreds of acres of a residential community.

A 34-mile stretch of Interstate 95 in Brevard County and a portion of U.S. Highway 1 were closed . All 18 schools in Palm Bay are closed today.

Just south of Palm Bay, a 3,000-acre blaze destroyed at least four homes in nearby Malabar. 80 miles north in Daytona Beach, an 800-acre fire forced an evacuation order for about 500 homes .

Authorities were investigating the fire as a possible arson. There is a $10,000 reward in place for information leading to the arrest and conviction of anyone responsible for starting the fire.

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The United Nations is saying that that only a small portion of international aid needed for Myanmar's cyclone victims is making it into the country, amid reports that the military regime is hoarding good-quality foreign aid for itself and doling out rotten food.
The problem is that the country's military regime has agreed to accept relief shipments from the U.N. and foreign countries, but has largely refused entry to aid workers who might distribute the aid.
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More information is coming out about China's worst earthquake in three decades.
The official Xinhua News Agency said the death toll exceeded 12,000 in Sichuan province alone, and 18,645 were still buried in debris in the city of Mianyang, near the epicenter of Monday's massive, 7.9-magnitude quake.

The Sichuan Daily newspaper reported on its Web site that more than 26,000 people were injured in Mianyang.


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A foreclosure auction scheduled this week for Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch was canceled after an investment company bought the loan.

Jackson had gone into default on the $24.5 million he owes on the 2,500-acre spread in Santa Barbara County. He has struggled to pay his debts in recent years after his financial empire crumbled following his arrest in 2003 on child molestation charges. A jury later acquitted him and he hasn't lived there for the past two years.

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Did you see the Cleveland Indians play last night?
Indians second baseman Asdrubal Cabrera turned the 14th unassisted triple play in major league history, accomplishing the feat Monday night in the second game of a doubleheader sweep against Toronto.

In the News; May 12, 2008

A 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit central China . According to reports the quake has killed more than 8,500 people, trapping nearly 900 students under the rubble of their school and spilling ammonia from a chemical plant, state media reported.

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A new BlackBerry is coming soon. The Bold, a high-end model that further demonstrates the company's desire to make tools for both work and play. The Bold, or 9000, has twice the screen resolution of the current Curve model, making for a very sharp display. It matches the resolution, but not the size, of the screen on Apple Inc.'s iPhone, which has emerged as a potent competitor in the "smart phone" category.


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An East Carolina University biologist has discovered a new species of spider and has named it after his favorite musician, Neil Young. It's official name is Myrmekiaphila neilyoungi.


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Veterans are costing more despite the decline in total vets — as soldiers from World War II and Korea die. Because of worse wounds and more disabilities, vets aware of the benefits and quick to file for them. Troops are coming home with injuries that might well have killed them in earlier wars. The government expects to be spending $59 billion a year to compensate injured warriors in 25 years, up from today's $29 billion, according to internal documents obtained by The Associated Press. ed in physical therapy wait for..

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Gas prices hit 5th straight record. The price for a gallon of gas sets a new record high at $3.718, according to AAA. Retail gasoline prices increased for the sixth straight day and hit their fifth consecutive record, according to the AAA's Web site .

The national average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline rose to a new all-time high of $3.718, up 1 and one-tenth of a cent from the previous day.

Drivers now pay 21% more for a gallon of gas than they did a year ago, when a gallon of gas cost on average $3.064, according to AAA. Consumers have been pinched at the pump as the price of a barrel of crude oil has doubled in the past year.


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