Quotes, URL's, Links And References-by:older Femmes, Butches, Ftms, Mtfs, Queer, Etc. [Archive] - Page 12

sweetlady

10-18-2006, 05:51 PM

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Small Wonder

By Margaret Guroff, September & October 2006

For years she fought for respect. Now, as an empty nester, actress Sally Field is facing new challenges—and itching for new fights.

Sally Field sits cross-legged in an armchair in her airy, bougainvillea-draped Malibu ranch house. The actress's straight hair—dark, scattered with individual strands of gray—is clutched in a tortoiseshell clamp; her toenails are painted pink. At nearly 60, her forehead is laddered with expression lines, and yet she is such a cherub, and so tiny, that you kind of want to put her in your pocket for safekeeping.

That sense of fragility, friends say, is an illusion.

"You tend to feel like you need to protect her," says actress Jane Fonda, a dear friend. "Then you realize she is very strong and extremely smart and capable. You end up saying, 'She's the one who needs to help me.' "

And Field is doing a lot of helping these days, as an impassioned spokesperson on osteoporosis (a disease from which she suffers), a mentor to young filmmakers at Robert Redford's Sundance Institute, a daughter, a mother, a grandmother, and a friend. "I'm becoming typical of women in my generation," laughs Field, a California native with an inherited Texas twang. "My last son is leaving to go to college; my grandchildren are being born. My mother is living with me."

Field's passion as a mentor is typical of how she approaches the projects and people in her life, says longtime friend Pat Mitchell, now president of the Museum of Television and Radio in New York City and a fellow Sundance board member. "She has this ability to absolutely focus on the person in front of her," Mitchell says. "They call her in the middle of the night; they call her crying. She is just in there grappling with them."

Such intensity can be intimidating. "She's like half my size, and she totally scared the sh-t out of me," says Michael Kang, a young director who studied with Field at Sundance in Utah. While filming, Kang wasn't getting the performance he needed out of a child actor, and Field wouldn't have it. "She grabbed me by the throat and said, 'Whatever you have to do to get a good performance out of the kid, do it. It doesn't matter if he ever wants to act again.' " (The results are visible in Kang's new film, The Motel, currently accumulating awards on the festival circuit.)

Field is famously driven. This quality explains her well-known passage from Gidget to Norma Rae: she's the teen surfer-chick sitcom star who studied Method acting by night and ended up with two Best Actress Oscars (that's one more than Meryl Streep has). But it also explains lesser-known aspects of Field's career, such as why, with nothing to prove, she still leaps at the toughest roles, recently winning raves onstage in The Glass Menagerie and onscreen in a recurring role as Dr. Abby Lockhart's bipolar mother on ER. (Her latest TV role is the mother on ABC’s drama Brothers & Sisters, which premieres in September.) Easy roles are embarrassing, Field says: "If it's too easy, you have time as a human being to stop and think, 'This is really stupid that I'm standing here pretending to be somebody else. Gosh, I feel like an idiot.' "

Though "the consummate professional" on the set, Field can be willful, says actress Joanna Kerns, a friend who directed Field in a recent episode of ER. "Talking her into something she doesn't want is a near impossibility." Frequently described as "fierce," Field has a temper—she once punished an unreliable dishwasher by "beating the crap out of it" with a hammer, she has said. And she admits to being spiteful: "If someone treats me with disrespect, I never forget it. If they try to call me, I pick up the phone and tell them 'Not in your wildest dreams.' "

To hear Field tell it, her forceful side emerged as a reaction to her stepfather. Her parents divorced when she was only four, and she rarely saw her father after that. Her mother, Maggie, married Jock Mahoney, a stuntman and TV cowboy who demanded worshipful obedience from Field, her older brother, and their younger half sister. "I would stand on the coffee table and scream at him," Field once told Playboy. "I was so frightened of him that the only way to get to myself at all was to be louder than he was, bigger than he was." But Field later admitted that learning to stand up for herself probably changed her life: "If I hadn't fought back, I might have been Gidget forever."

Field grew up in the San Fernando Valley and was cast as the lead in TV's Gidget after being discovered in an acting class. Next came The Flying Nun, a trifle. "You knew the minute you worked with her that there was this incredible talent bursting to come out," recalls actress Shelley Morrison, who played a fellow nun on the show but who is best known as Rosario, the maid on Will & Grace. Madeleine Sherwood, who played the mother superior, saw Field's promise and brought her to the Actors Studio, where Field studied at night with the acting coach Lee Strasberg, who became a sort of surrogate father for her.

Her breakout performance, as a woman with multiple personalities, came in the 1976 TV movie Sybil. She topped that by winning her first Oscar in 1980, for her portrayal of a union activist in Norma Rae. Field's second Oscar, and her life's most ridiculed (and misquoted) moment, came in 1985, when she reveled in her peers' approval of her performance in Places in the Heart. "You like me!" she sobbed. "Right now, you like me!" Next came producing—her first effort was Murphy's Romance, in which she starred with James Garner—and leads in high-grossing films such as Forrest Gump and Mrs. Doubtfire. Field also has directed one feature film, 2000's Beautiful, and a few TV dramas.

If Field's career has been about exceeding expectations, her love life (so far) may have been about not having any expectations. "I've never had my heart broken," she said recently. "I think that's very sad, that I haven't allowed my heart to be broken. I have broken a few." Field married her high-school sweetheart, Steven Craig, in 1968 and had two sons with him: Peter, a novelist and the father of Field's two granddaughters, and Eli, an actor and the father of Field's new grandson. Field and Craig were divorced in 1975.

Two years later, on the set of the car-chase romp Smokey and the Bandit, Field met Burt Reynolds, and the unlikely duo began a five-year romance. It ended when she got angry about her role in the relationship, as the perpetually sweet southern belle who "made brownies and rubbed his feet and never asked for any space," she once said. "It wasn't fair of me, because I had never professed to need anything."

In 1984, Field married the film producer Alan Greisman, with whom she has one son, Sam, a freshman at New York University. Field and Greisman were divorced in 1994, and she has not had a public companion since. "I'm not really good at that," she says. "I've allowed myself to be so busy with my grandchildren, my sons, and my family, and work, that I really don't know where I would fit anyone in."

Along with devoting time to work and family, Field has brought attention to political causes, from the antinuclear movement to V-Day, an annual February observance to protest violence against women. Says playwright Eve Ensler, the creator of V-Day and the author of The Vagina Monologues: "What's so moving about Sally is how committed she is to bringing people together. Women who are that powerful, that talented, that fierce—I think the world isn't fully ready for them yet."

Field's latest crusade is more personal. Last year she was diagnosed with osteoporosis, a dangerous bone-thinning disease that is common among postmenopausal women. Shortly after she began taking a drug to prevent bone fractures, she was approached about joining a campaign to raise awareness of this silent condition. As the face of the campaign, Field does ads for her drug, speechifies on the importance of bone scans and prevention, and keeps a monthly journal at www.bonehealth.com.

"People think, 'Oh, osteoporosis, that's when you get old and bend over, and everybody kind of has it.' Like it really isn't a big deal," she says. "But it's a very big deal. If you're not getting bone-density tests, you don't realize that your bones are like chalk. And they just crumble at the most insignificant stress."

Calling baby boomers to action on osteoporosis has allowed Field to reclaim membership in a generation that, in some ways, she missed out on. "I was in The Flying Nun and everybody was out eating granola"—she pronounces it "grain-ola"—"and protesting, and I was kind of stuck," she says. "I did miss a part of my young adulthood." So it is fitting, if also surprising, that she has lately grown so close to Fonda, a baby boomer icon of a completely different kind.

"She was flying as a nun while I was flying as Barbarella," jokes Fonda. "I didn't know her intimately, but I identified with her. What I sensed was a woman who was wounded, had scars, and instead of those scars making her disabled, they were making her stronger."

Lately the two and their group of friends have sought to understand a feeling of "becoming whole" that came unexpectedly with age, says Fonda. "You feel like you are starting to live wholly inside yourself, and it feels fabulous and new and strange," she says. "You need to talk about what it feels like, talk about what it means, talk about why it's happening, talk about what you need to do to keep it happening." One thing this has meant for Field and Fonda is a pact they made in 2005 to age naturally from then on, without plastic surgery.

This fall, as Field gets used to a child-free house for the first time in 36 years, she seems steeled for new challenges, though she doesn't know what they'll be. "Change is never easy," she says. "You lose your habitual behavior, which allowed you to sort of zone out. You have to be here, you have to be now, you have to be present." Her friends wonder whether life in an empty nest will make Field lonesome for a partner. "That's a real question mark," she says. A notorious hermit, Field says she can't imagine how or where she would meet someone new. "But maybe that will be one of the transitions that occurs now," she says.

"When you're old, you are more certain of who you are, and that may be a good thing or a bad thing," she adds. "Because you've lived your life, you're independent, you're not looking for anyone to 'complete you,' as the saying is. There isn't anybody who would complete me. I am so way completed."

http://www.aarpmagazine.org/entertainment/small_wonder.html

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SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-18-2006, 05:53 PM

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Tour de Frantic

By Nancy Griffin, November & December 2006

Robin Williams’s kidlike curiosity has led him on a very grownup quest for life’s meaning.

Robin Williams plunks himself down for our "interview"—the term is used loosely—wearing striped pants, sneakers, and a T-shirt proclaiming himself a "human-animal hybrid." At first he's affable and soft-spoken, almost like a normal person, thoughtfully answering questions about new projects. Then, without warning, his brain shifts into free-association mode and he transforms into one screwball character after another—capping his performance with a special treat for AARP The Magazine readers: an ancient dude who burps loudly, making the sound "Aaaarp!"

"He bounces around a room like light off a mirror" is how Williams's close friend Billy Crystal describes his pal's trademark lunacy. "After all these years it's not gotten tired, and it's pretty wild to be around."

With a 30-year movie career that has included starring roles in Good Morning, Vietnam; Dead Poets Society; and Good Will Hunting (his Oscar-winning triumph), Williams is hotter than ever. He's showcased his exceptional range this year in the family comedy RV, the dark thriller The Night Listener, the political satire Man of the Year, the animated Happy Feet, and the kid-oriented Night at the Museum.

"It's wonderful," says Williams of life at 55. He's achieved an enviable balance of work, family, and giving back as a public figure, while still carving out time for voracious reading and other personal interests. A dedicated father of three, Williams and his wife (and occasional producer), Marsha, live in San Francisco, where he indulges his passion for cycling. The chaos of his younger years—which included hard partying, cocaine abuse, and tabloid headlines about him falling in love with his child's nanny after his first marriage crumbled—is behind him: he's been married to that former nanny for 17 years now. They have two teenage children, Zelda and Cody, along with his son Zak, 23, from his first marriage.

During this interview Williams betrays no hint that in two weeks he will check himself into an Oregon rehab facility to treat a relapse of his alcoholism after 20 years of sobriety. There had been no foreshadowing tales of unprofessional behavior emanating from his movie sets, no drunk-driving arrests. But he had quietly slipped back into drinking after making back-to-back movies and decided on his own to enter a sobriety program. "He realized, 'I'm drinking again and I'm not supposed to be,' " says a close acquaintance. " 'And I have to deal with it.' Marsha and the kids fully support him in this."

Beloved figure that he is, Williams has countless fans rooting for his recovery. He is a unique force in American culture, transcending divisions by making fun of everyone without seeming to offend anyone. His standup shows are blistering commentaries on the touchiest areas of contemporary life, from politics to race, from sex to religion. He's an antiwar lefty (on Bush: "We have a president for whom English is a second language"), but he doesn't flinch from skewering himself ("Cocaine is God's way of telling you you're making too much money").

"Robin can be provocative and edgy and inflammatory in his comedy," says Shawn Levy, the director of Night at the Museum, "but he's a fundamentally huge-hearted person. Even at his most manic and out there, there is a core sweetness. That's why he has family appeal."

Williams will chatter nonstop to amuse you, but he says little about his charity work. He's made three trips to Afghanistan and two to Iraq to entertain the troops, regularly visits sick children through the Make-A-Wish Foundation, and founded Comic Relief—which has raised $50 million for the homeless—20 years ago with Crystal and Whoopi Goldberg. Williams is also on the board of the Christopher Reeve Foundation (CRF), which is devoted to spinal-cord-injury research. He and Reeve were roommates at Juilliard, where they became lifelong friends. Now Williams and his wife are in constant touch with the Reeves' 15-year-old son, Will.

"I remember a few years ago when Chris was speaking at a fundraiser," recalls CRF president Kathy Lewis, "and Chris went into a spasm, which happens, and he couldn't control it. It was embarrassing. Robin was in the audience, and suddenly he leaped onto the stage, grabbed hold of Chris's arms, and said, 'Look! It's a bird, it's a plane, it's Superman! He's trying to fly!'

"Robin was able to make Chris comfortable, and the spasm passed. And that's the kind of friend Robin is."

Q: What does getting older feel like to you?
A: When I turned 50 and I got an AARP card in the mail, I went, "Hell! That's what I get? Thank you!"

Actually, it's been great. Hitting 50 was not a wall; it was like [eyes roll back blissfully]… Because I had my midlife crisis when I was about 30, so I got that over with. But when I hit 50, it was like "This is cool."

Q: How so?
A: It feels like the prime of your life, literally. Things are going great; you've come to the point where it's no longer a struggle. As Rodney Dangerfield said, "Why am I sweating? I own the club!" You're there, so you don't have to worry as much. And yet, the object is to keep working. Find interesting parts, and obviously it's skewed more for men than women to find character parts at my age. And, hey, supporting parts are just as interesting as the lead.

Q: Is that actually you singing "My Way" [as the voice of an animated penguin] in Happy Feet?
A: That's me. Yeah, we recorded "My Way" by the Gipsy Kings. I sang, and the other penguins came in behind me. It's pretty great, and the landscapes are amazing. The sad thing is, the landscapes are probably history now, given the fact that Antarctica is mostly melting.

Q: What is the movie about?
A: It's like March of the Penguins meets Riverdance. There's one young penguin named Mumble [voiced by Elijah Wood]. He can't sing, but he can tap-dance. He goes on a quest because all the fish are missing. Turns out they are being overfished by industrial fishing boats. Me and a bunch of Argentine Adélie penguins—we're smaller than emperors; we're like Chicano comics—help him on his quest.

There's a lot of music, a lot of big dance numbers. We'll sing at the drop of a feather. Because we are Latino penguins, we talk [smooth Antonio Banderas voice:] "like thees, because, as you see from Argentinean soccer, we are fierce, but very emotional. Although we are the leetle ones, we have the passion. I know the females—they know me."

Another character I play, the Reverend Lovelace, is kind of a Barry White penguin—with a six-pack ring around his neck that he treats as a talisman. [Deep, seductive voice:] "It allows me to have magic healing powers, especially with the females."

But it was fun. Good times.

Q: You segued from playing a penguin to playing Teddy Roosevelt in Night at the Museum.
A: Yes, he's a wax figure that comes to life. The great news is, I got to read about Roosevelt, and he was an extraordinarily gifted and courageous man. He was put into office by major industrialists who make Enron's leaders look like children, and they thought that as vice president he couldn't do any harm. Then President McKinley was assassinated, and as president, Roosevelt really broke apart the monopolies.

Q: Do you think that today a leader could buck the big corporations and prevail?
A: Yes, if you have a courageous individual, with luck and will. Today, people like that are targeted early on because they don't play the game. The Hill takes its toll. They come out of there worn down.

Q: I found a quote of yours: "Comedy is acting out optimism." Are you optimistic about our country?
A: Yes. There are still a lot of good people out there doing good things. And there exists the potential to turn things around, as people gain information and step outside the spin. It's a question of getting a system that will find someone and get him out in front of people and not worry about "Well, he's not that attractive" or "He doesn't have the cute factor down." But he's actually a very brave, intelligent man who will inspire us to do things that may not seem comfortable but may be necessary.

Q: Where do you think such a person might come from?
A: From someplace where you least expect it. I don't think anyone expected Teddy Roosevelt to do what he did. There may be a moderate Republican—maybe McCain will come back and regain the frontal lobe they took away from him when they ruined him, then said, "Come back to the party—we're just kidding." Because McCain was standing up against the military-industrial complex. He was the one that said, "You cannot allow torture. I have been the victim of torture, and we cannot condone it and still maintain our humanity."

Bush said, "You're either for us or against us." No, actually, we are all trying to make it through the same thing together. We're "us"—it's U.S.—red states and blue states.

Q: You play a "fake news" show host who runs for president in Barry Levinson's comedy Man of the Year.
A: It's not skewed to one party or the other; it's just basically saying that the system as it stands doesn't work. If you disagree, you are called unpatriotic. At one point my character makes a joke that if we didn't disagree, we'd still be English. Our country was founded by a bunch of very angry people throwing tea in the harbor, going [Cockney accent:] "F--- you and your tax! Here's your tea!" It was built on protest. Man of the Year is basically about a comic who runs for office because he's fed up with the system. Initially he talks very seriously about the issues, and no one listens. It's like the old Bob Crane joke: "How do you know when a politician is lying?" "When his mouth is moving." Eventually my character starts to go "Screw it; I'll use my tools. I'll start to be funny."

The movie is a satire, working off the idea that there's a computer glitch that elects him. [Conspiratorial whisper:] "Could it happen? A computer malfunction? No—not in Ohio!"

Q: Have you always felt that your brain works differently from other people's?
A: No, I thought my brain worked like everyone else's and sometimes was lazier. And then at a certain point I went "I've got to catch up!" [Neurologist and Awakenings author] Oliver Sacks thinks I have voluntary Tourette's, that it's just an excess of a neuro-stimulant and that I can turn it on. When it's working well it feels like an athlete when he is in the zone. All of a sudden it's like everything else slows down and you're just going…"Yeeaah."

Q: So you're observing it as it's happening?
A: Yeah, it's like a millisecond ahead or even a millionth of a second. It's just that oop! Because you are traveling at the speed of thought; you're just flying. But yet you still can connect it, when you are at the top of your game.

Q: Do you feel at the top of your game as much now as when you were younger?
A: Yeah, obviously as you get older there are times when you go [panicked voice:] "Oh, no—not now!" When it will slip.

Q: Like you can't remember someone's name?
A: Bigtime, once in a while: "I need more ginkgo biloba!" It's amazing that medical science can develop a drug to give you an erection but can't develop a drug to give you mental clarity.

Q: Do you do yoga?
A: No, I have friends who do it and love it. I ride my bike. For me, that's mobile meditation.

Q: You ride with your friend Lance Armstrong?
A: Oh, my God! He starts off going 25 miles an hour, he's on the phone, and I'm, like [panting and pedaling furiously:] "-kich-a, kich-a, kich-a—" [As Armstrong:] "Yo, homie—what's up?" He's flying. It's crazy.

Q: In San Francisco do you ride in the city?
A: The city is fairly bike-friendly. But the main thing for me is to go over the Golden Gate Bridge and head out to Marin. There's places you can go, in just 20 minutes you're, like, in incredible hills, with views for days—it's wonderful stuff.

Q: What are the kids and Marsha up to?
A: Cody is in Senegal right now, in a village with ten of his classmates, working and studying and helping the village. They are digging a well or something. It's a school project. Zelda is in London visiting friends. Zak is at home in San Francisco with his dog, Louis. Marsha just had her 50th birthday party.

Q: Did you throw it for her?
A: No, she had 39 women at a spa for a week—no men. They had a great time. By the end I think they were all, like [makes loony whistle]. You can spa out. Most spas, I last about three days, and then it's "Thanks, it's been great, time to keep going." So Marsha just hit 50, and she gets her AARP card!

Q: As a boomer, do you think our generation will redefine aging?
A: I don't think work defines us as much as it did our parents. For my father, work was everything. He had amazing hobbies, but even after he retired from the Ford Motor Company he worked again for a bank because that was still his modus operandi; that was the thing that kept him going. My mother was different, because she always had charities and tennis and other stuff. The boomers—I mean, work is incredible, but there's always been another level of something, other aspects of our lives. You can see in these new retirement communities, they are much more oriented toward outdoor activity—tennis, golf, basketball, gyms, and pools—all these different things.

Q: It will be interesting to see if boomers gravitate toward communal living arrangements.
A: They are already doing it on the right—there's that one community of heavily armed people somewhere in Arizona. [Laughs.] It's based around owning guns, and it has a shooting range. It's a "we're armed and proud of it" gated community. Smith & Wesson Village.

The other thing is that in the next five to ten years, if biological research continues, there will be an extension of life or at least an improvement in the quality of life.

Q: Although the full benefits of longevity technology might come too late for the boomers.
A: It could be. I imagine you are right. Because even with Chris [Reeve], he was hoping they would cure paralysis. [Pauses to think.] That's wonderful, just as we are fading, there will be amazing breakthroughs!

[Old guy, burps loudly:] "Aaaarp!"

[Doctor:] "What were his last words?"

[Old guy, rasps:] "Total cellular regeneration—when is it available?"

[Doctor:] "In an hour."

[Old guy:] "Oh, f---." [Expires.]

[Normal voice:] Yeah, I think that's why all these bioengineering companies, especially in San Francisco, are huge. That's our generation going "How shall we sustain?!"

Q: Exactly. "Us...die?"
A: Yeah, it's like those science-fiction novels where there's a wealthy guy saying [pompous rich guy:] "I will sustain myself—I will live on! Even if it's as a brain in a box."

[Secretary:] "Hello, Tim."

[Tim:] "Good morning, Susan. Would you open the box? I'm still here!"

[Secretary:] "I know you are, Tim."

[Tim:] "I'm 194!"

[Secretary:] "And you don't look a day over 200!"

[Normal voice:] Yeah, and it used to be when people retired, they went to warmer places. [Brooklyn accent:] "It's Miami for me! I want to be in a nice place, a warm place."

But as the climate changes, where are people going to go—where you won't get soaked, you won't get blown away, you won't get burned?

Q: After the attacks of 9/11 it seemed that just about everyone in Hollywood talked about buying ranches in New Zealand or Australia.
A: New Zealand is great, except it's still 1980 there. [Down under accent:] "If you want to go back and live the simple life, you can do it—just don't be looking for massive stimuli. And Australia is a long haul, if you're thinking it's a place you'll flee to. There's no ozone. F---ing great place to cook! Get a tan in an hour or so if you're a doer!"

Q: What are you looking forward to?
A: Still just working.

Q: Any significant "yets" in your life?
A: Yeah, travel. But first learn the languages, so you're not just like [loud American tourist:] "Oh, Margaret, what's thaaat?" Get to know more about this planet that's changing as we speak. With our generation I think a lot of people are continuing their education, not necessarily for work but to learn. Philosophy, theoretical science, history.…

Q: What would you like to study?
A: Languages: Spanish, Italian, Mandarin.

Q: But we know you speak Spanish!
A: ¡Un poco, si! I have to really learn to speak—not fake Spanish, not wrestling Spanish. And I'd take other courses, something useful and then one purely esoteric one, just for the mental exercise, especially history.

Q: Can you travel anonymously?
A: Fairly much so. If you are not afraid of looking slightly damaged, you can go anywhere. If I look like this [distorts face into a grimace; slobbers], people don't want to look at me.

Q: You don't really do that!
A: I do a version of that. Someone once described walking down the sidewalk in New York with Robert Redford, and no one was noticing. The guy said, "No one is bothering you." And Redford said, "Do you want to see Robert Redford?" Within two seconds people said, "Robert Redford!" He had just made a mental adjustment; he just turned it on. I can go anywhere. Some places people know me, but it's not intrusive. It's not like "Oh, my God—it's Brad!" People are sweet, except for drunks. Sometimes drunks can be mean. They will put you in a headlock and say "Kiss my wife." They can be scary.

Q: What was the last great thing that you read?
A: I haven't finished it yet; I'm reading this biography of Mao, a not very flattering portrait of old Chairman Mao, by a husband-and-wife team named—I can't remember their names. I'm having a senior moment. Aaaarp!

Q: You were so close to Chris and Dana Reeve. Do you miss them?
A: Yeah, bigtime.

Q: Talk about an inspiring guy.
A: Huge. And her, too. Both. All for people. It was that idea of take what you're given and go with it. He said, "Part of it is I want to walk—the other part is there's a whole group of people like me." He used to have a T-shirt that said "Find Another Hero."

Q: I suppose a comedian can be a hero. I talked with Jack Nicholson after 9/11, and he said he wanted to work exclusively on comedies for a while because the situation was so grim he felt people needed to laugh—he needed to laugh.
A: We did a show in Washington, D.C.—it was about two months after 9/11. And people said it was like we had broken a siege. With comedy you are allowed to laugh about the insanity. You realize how absurd it all is, the painful stuff and the wonderful stuff, too. For a brief moment everyone is connected, and you all go "Hey, we're human."

Nancy Griffin is West Coast editor of AARP The Magazine.

http://www.aarpmagazine.org/entertainment/robin_williams.html

(*) (*) Enjoy! Have a lovely evening and restful sleep.

({) (}) 's....however virtual,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer Pup (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-21-2006, 02:47 AM

:) :)

October 19, 2006

A Virtual World but Real Money

By RICHARD SIKLOS

It has a population of a million. The “people” there make friends, build homes and run businesses. They also play sports, watch movies and do a lot of other familiar things. They even have their own currency, convertible into American dollars.

But residents also fly around, walk underwater and make themselves look beautiful, or like furry animals, dragons, or practically anything — or anyone — they wish.

This parallel universe, an online service called Second Life that allows computer users to create a new and improved digital version of themselves, began in 1999 as a kind of online video game.

But now, the budding fake world is not only attracting a lot more people, it is taking on a real world twist: big business interests are intruding on digital utopia. The Second Life online service is fast becoming a three-dimensional test bed for corporate marketers, including Sony BMG Music Entertainment, Sun Microsystems, Nissan, Adidas/Reebok, Toyota and Starwood Hotels.

The sudden rush of real companies into so-called virtual worlds mirrors the evolution of the Internet itself, which moved beyond an educational and research network in the 1990’s to become a commercial proposition — but not without complaints from some quarters that the medium’s purity would be lost.

Already, the Internet is the fastest-growing advertising medium, as traditional forms of marketing like television commercials and print advertising slow. For businesses, these early forays into virtual worlds could be the next frontier in the blurring of advertising and entertainment.

Unlike other popular online video games like World of Warcraft that are competitive fantasy games, these sites meld elements of the most popular forms of new media: chat rooms, video games, online stores, user-generated content sites like YouTube.com and social networking sites like MySpace.com.

Philip Rosedale, the chief executive of Linden Labs, the San Francisco company that operates Second Life, said that until a few months ago only one or two real world companies had dipped their toes in the synthetic water. Now, more than 30 companies are working on projects there, and dozens more are considering them. “It’s taken off in a way that is kind of surreal,” Mr. Rosedale said, with no trace of irony.

Beginning a promotional venture in a virtual world is still a relatively inexpensive proposition compared with the millions spent on other media. In Second Life, a company like Nissan or its advertising agency could buy an “island” for a one-time fee of $1,250 and a monthly rate of $195 a month. For its new campaign built around its Sentra car, the company then needed to hire some computer programmers to create a gigantic driving course and design digital cars that people “in world” could actually drive, as well as some billboards and other promotional spots throughout the virtual world that would encourage people to visit Nissan Island.

Virtual world proponents — including a roster of Linden Labs investors that includes Jeffrey P. Bezos, the founder of Amazon.com; Mitchell D. Kapor, the software pioneer; and Pierre Omidyar, the eBay co-founder — say that the entire Internet is moving toward being a three-dimensional experience that will become more realistic as computing technology advances.

Entering Second Life, people’s digital alter-egos — known as avatars — are able to move around and do everything they do in the physical world, but without such bothers as the laws of physics. “When you are at Amazon.com you are actually there with 10,000 concurrent other people, but you cannot see them or talk to them,” Mr. Rosedale said. “At Second Life, everything you experience is inherently experienced with others.”

Second Life is the largest and best known of several virtual worlds created to attract a crowd. The cable TV network MTV, for example, just began Virtual Laguna Beach, where fans of its show, “Laguna Beach: The Real O.C.,” can fashion themselves after the show’s characters and hang out in their faux settings.

Unlike Second Life, which emphasizes a hands-off approach and has little say over who sets up shop inside its simulated world, MTV’s approach is to bring in advertisers as partners.

In Second Life, retailers like Reebok, Nike, Amazon and American Apparel have all set up shops to sell digital as well as real world versions of their products. Last week, Sun Microsystems unveiled a new pavilion promoting its products, and I.B.M. alumni held a virtual world reunion.

This week, the performer Ben Folds is to promote a new album with two virtual appearances. At one, he will play the opening party for Aloft, an elaborate digital prototype for a new chain of hotels planned by Starwood Hotels and Resorts. The same day, Mr. Folds will also “appear” at a new facility his music label’s parent company, Sony BMG, is opening at a complex called Media Island.

Meanwhile, Nissan is introducing its Nissan promotion, featuring a gigantic vending machine dispensing cars people can “drive” around.

And some of this is likely to be covered for the outside world by such business news outlets as CNet and Reuters, which now have reporters embedded full-time in the virtual realm.

All this attention has some Second Lifers concerned that their digital paradise will never be the same, like a Wal-Mart coming to town or a Starbucks opening in the neighborhood. “The phase it is in now is just using it as a hype and marketing thing,” said Catherine A. Fitzpatrick, 50, a member of Second Life who in the real world is a Russian translator in Manhattan.

In her second life, Ms. Fitzpatrick’s digital alter-ego is a figure well-known to other participants called Prokofy Neva, who runs a business renting “real estate” to other players. “The next phase,” she said, “will be they try to compete with other domestic products — the people who made sneakers in the world are now in danger of being crushed by Adidas.”

Mr. Rosedale says such concerns are overstated, because there are no advantages from economies of scale for big corporations in Second Life, and people can avoid places like Nissan Island as easily as they can avoid going to Nissan’s Web site. There is no limit to what can be built in Second Life, just as there is no limit to how many Web sites populate the Internet.

Linden Labs makes most of its money leasing “land” to tenants, Mr. Rosedale said, at an average of roughly $20 per month per “acre” or $195 a month for a private “island.” The land mass of Second Life is growing about 8 percent a month, a spokeswoman said, and now totals “60,000 acres,” the equivalent of about 95 square miles in the physical world. Linden Labs, a private company, does not disclose its revenue.

Despite the surge of outside business activity in Second Life, Linden Labs said corporate interests still owned less than 5 percent of the virtual world’s real estate.

As many as 10,000 people are in the virtual world at a time, and they are engaged in a gamut of ventures: everything from holding charity fund-raisers to selling virtual helicopters to operating sex clubs. Linden also makes money on exchanging United States dollars for what it calls Linden dollars for around 400 Linden dollars for $1 (people can load up on them with a credit card). A typical article of clothing — say a shirt — would cost around 200 Linden dollars, or 50 cents. As evidence of the growth of its “economy,” Second Life’s Web site tracks how much money changes hands each day. It recently reached as much as $500,000 a day and is growing as much as 15 percent a month.

On Tuesday, a Congressional committee said it was investigating whether virtual assets and incomes should be taxed.

But many inhabitants simply hang out for free. For advertisers worried about the effectiveness of the 30-second TV spot and the clutter of real world billboards and Internet pop-up ads, Second Life is appealing because it is a place where people literally immerse themselves in their products.

Steve F. Kerho, director of interactive marketing and media for Nissan USA, said the Second Life campaign was part of a growing interest in online video games. “We’re just trying to follow our consumer, that’s where they’re spending their time,” Mr. Kerho said. “But there has to be something in it for them — it’s got to be fun; it’s got to be playful.”

Projects like the Aloft hotel, an offshoot of Starwood’s W Hotels brand, are designed to promote the venture but also to give its designers feedback from prospective guests before the first real hotel opens in 2008.

The new Sony BMG building has rooms devoted to popular musicians like Justin Timberlake and DMX, allowing fans to mingle, listen to tunes or watch videos. Sony BMG is also toying with renting residences in the complex, as well as selling music downloads that people can listen to throughout the simulated world.

Sibley Verbeck, chief executive of the Electric Sheep Company, a consultancy that designed the Aloft and Sony BMG projects, said the flurry of corporate interest stemmed from the 10 to 20 percent growth in the number of people who had gone into virtual worlds each month for the last three years. Though exact numbers are difficult to come by, the figure should top a few million by next year, he said.

The spread of these worlds, however, is limited by access to high-speed Internet connections and, in Second Life’s case, software that is challenging to master and only runs on certain models of computers.

“If it doesn’t crash and burn then it will become real,” he said. “So now’s the time to start experimenting and learning ahead of your competition.”

As part of that process, businesses are learning that different rules apply when they venture into an arena where audiences are in control. “Users are the content — that’s the thing that everybody has a hard time getting over,” said Michael Wilson, the chief executive of Makena Technologies, which operates the virtual world There.com and helped build Virtual Laguna Beach.

For example, Sun Microsystems kicked off the opening of its Second Life venue with a press conference online hosted by executives and Mr. Rosedale of Linden Labs. But by the time the event was in full swing, several members of the audience had either walked or flown onto the stage, where they were running roughshod over the proceedings.

Even Mr. Rosedale got in on the act: he conjured a pair of sunglasses that he superimposed on a video image of a Sun representative talking on a screen behind the stage. (In virtual world lingo, such high jinks are known as “griefing.”)

Some corporate events have been met with protests by placard-waving avatars. And there is even a group called the Second Life Liberation Army that has staged faux “attacks” on Reebok and American Apparel stores. (The S.L.L.A. says it is fighting for voting rights for avatars — as well as stock in Linden Labs.)

Companies in this new environment have to get used to the idea that they may never know exactly who they are dealing with. Most of those in Second Life have chosen their names from a whimsical menu of supplied surnames, resulting in monikers like Snoopybrown Zamboni and Bitmason Pimpernel; males posing as female avatars and vice versa are not uncommon.

Another issue companies have to contend with is that their brands may already be in these virtual worlds, but illegally. Henry Jenkins, a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Media Lab, said one Second Life habitué created a virtual reproduction of the Ikea catalog to help people decorate their digital pads.

Mr. Verbeck of Electric Sheep said copyright infringement was rampant. His company runs an online boutique where Second Life residents sell each other pixelized creations of everything from body parts to home furnishings to roller skates — many of them unauthorized knockoffs.

So far, the boutique has not had many requests to stop selling fake products. But “we did have a request from the Salvador Dali Museum — which was great,” Mr. Verbeck said. “Second Life is so surreal that it was perfect.”

(*) (*) Interesting especially for branding and market research. It was not a surprise that the U.S. gov't will be trying to tax "virtual money". Talk about silly.:| :| Virutal taxation.

<sigh> Been doing lots of research for this week's unit posts. The assigned text book chapter didn't provide much of what I needed to better understand the topic.:o

A few more posts yet this early morning and I think some cold milk and a quick trip outside for Wyatt. and then under the covers! I have become more and more a night person - not lady of the evening...;)

Pleasant evening to the Left Coasters....but then it's only 1:00 am....

Adieu,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the sleeping Boxer Pup (S) (l) (&) (l) (S)

sweetlady

10-21-2006, 02:55 AM

:| :|

Q U O T E D

"I did stick socks in my pants."

-- Former HP CEO Carly Fiorina recalls her days at Lucent and silently wonders how many HP board members were pulling the same stunt.

http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/15807000.htm

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601088&sid=anakk7M.pCEM&refer=muse

(n) (n) There is absolutely no comparison between Fiorina's mis-steps with the Compaq acquisition HP did under her tenure and the lies HP attorneys told Dunn on pretexting.(n) I think HP's latest lady-CEO got a bum rap.

GRRR.

......and now back to the usual irreverent, strongly-opinionated programming......:) :)

Carpe Diem,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-21-2006, 02:57 AM

:| :| :| :| :|

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZnxNfBVr0U

:o :o

;) 's,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-21-2006, 03:00 AM

:| :| :|

http://www.techeblog.com/index.php/tech-gadget/video-hydrogen-peroxide-powered-bicycle-0-60-in-6-seconds#more-5072

(*) (*) Have fun the rest of your evening and morning, wherever you are and where your travels might take you today.

(f) (f) Have a lovely weekend! (f) (f)

(k) (k) 's,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer Pup (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-21-2006, 03:05 AM

:| :| :| :|

Lightning exits woman's bottom

October 09, 2006 12:00am

A WOMAN has suffered severe burning to her anus after being struck by lightning which hit her in the mouth and passed right through her body.

Natasha Timarovic, 27, was cleaning her teeth at in her home in the Croatian city of Zadar when lightning struck the building.

She said: "I had just put my mouth under the tap to rinse away the toothpaste when the lightning must have struck the building.

"I don't remember much after that, but I was later told that the lightning had travelled down the water pipe and struck me on the mouth, passing through my body.

"It was incredibly painful, I felt it pass through my torso and then I don't remember much at all." Doctors at the city hospital where she was treated for burns to the mouth and rear said: "The accident is bizarre but not impossible."

She was wearing rubber bathroom shoes at the time and so instead of earthing through her feet it appears the electricity shot out of her backside," a medic told local newspaper, 24 Sata.

"It appears to have earthed through the damp shower curtain that she was touching as she bent over to put her mouth under the tap. If she had not been wearing the shoes she would probably have been killed by the blast."

24 Sata said the young woman had been released from hospital after being kept in overnight and was expected to make a full recovery.

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,20548077-13762,00.html

:o :o Only in Australia.......

;) 's,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-21-2006, 03:08 AM

(h) (h) (h)

(p) (p) (p) Especially B-F's:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7dnGo_2tZA

(y) (y) (y) Definitely brought a big smile.

Adieu,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-21-2006, 03:19 AM

(h) (h) (h)

http://www.foldabikes.com/CurrentEvents/Story/Photos/Tibet/Himalayas.jpg

http://places.mongabay.com/nepal/himalayas_1.jpg

http://www.thisisthelife.com/photos/experiences/large/trekking-himalayas.jpg

Take my breath away gorgeous:

http://www.goldenhilltravel.co.uk/everest-new-year-gallery/images/Thamserku%20Nepal%20Himalayas.jpg

http://www.nature.com/news/2003/030929/images/himalayas_180.jpg

(p) (l) (p) My favorite and HUGE! http://www.roadjunky.com/india/himalayas_india.jpg

(p) Another one: http://i1.treklens.com/photos/3873/himalayas-ii.jpg

(p) From a plane window:

http://www.studyatusa.org/gallery/asiantrip/Bhutan/images/himalayas%20from%20plane-0258_img.jpg

(*) (*) There....I have not only beautiful images in my head for bed....but will drift off to restful sleep thinking of these images and upcoming trip. (y) (y)

Sun thoughts,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer Pup (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-21-2006, 02:09 PM

:o :o :o :o

Microwave Cloaking is Now a Reality

01:45 PM, October 20th 2006

Scientists have made a breakthrough towards creating an invisibility device, as they succeeded easier than was thought possible to construct a microwave cloaking device. The device works only in two dimensions and only on microwaves. This first device is far from perfect in that it is barely 8-cm wide and can only reduce back scatter and forward scatter, the researchers said.

"By incorporating complex material properties, our cloak allows a concealed volume, plus the cloak, to appear to have properties similar to free space when viewed externally," said David Smith, a professor at Duke University who led the study.

Cloaking devices are built on the principle that radiation can be made to go around an object, by using special materials that are set in a circular pattern. The waves propagate through the material and to the other side, bending around the shielded object, partially the same way light can be directed through bent fiber optics with minimum losses.

The scientists at Duke University's Pratt School of Engineering manufactured their cloak using "metamaterials" precisely arranged in a series of concentric circles that confer specific electromagnetic properties. Metamaterials are artificial composites that can be made to interact with electromagnetic waves in specific and controlled manner, which is impossible to realize with naturally occurring materials. Developed just seven years ago, the materials use a matrix of exceptionally tiny, sometimes nanoscale, metal wires and loops to control electromagnetic radiation in ways natural substances can't.

A metamaterial shell with the right gradient of metal elements should cause light of a particular wavelength to wrap around the shell's interior.

"The concept that you can cloak something and make something invisible can now be demonstrated by this method," said Duke University physicist David R. Smith. "This is the first time where we show that you can actually take electromagnetic waves and wrap them around some region that you want to conceal and restore them on the other side."

An uncloaked object would cause an interruption in the waves, creating a "shadow" behind the object. But the cloak succeeded in making the waves reconnect on the other side. The scientists say their invisibility cloak represents one of the most elaborate metamaterial structures yet designed and produced, as well as the most comprehensive approach to invisibility yet realized.

Engineers David Schurig and David Smith of Duke University say they were concealing something themselves last May when they and their colleagues reported their proposal: "We had a cloak we liked pretty well in May, and it got better from there," Schurig reveals. In the group's current version a central copper ring--the object to be cloaked--is surrounded by concentric rings of metamaterial standing one centimeter tall and spanning 12 centimeters. The rings are sandwiched between two plates so that microwaves can only travel through the cloak in the plane of the rings, as described in a paper published online October 19 by Science Express.

The team reports its findings in Science Express, the advance online publication of the journal Science.

The researchers sampled the electric field component of the microwaves at many points in the apparatus to see how the radiation was affected, and the results match well with their simulations, they report. "We don't say anything quantitatively about how well this is cloaking, but we've reduced both the reflection and the shadow generated by the object, and those are the two essential features of the invisibility cloaking," Schurig says.

To assess the cloak's performance, the researchers aimed a microwave beam at a cloak situated between two metal plates inside a test chamber, and used a specialized detecting apparatus to measure the electromagnetic fields that developed both inside and outside the cloak. By examining an animated representation of the data, they found that the wave fronts of the beam separate and flow around the center of the cloak. It was similar to river water flowing around a smooth rock, they said.

The challenge now resides in making a cloaking device which is able to handle a wide range of electromagnetic radiation. This poses exceptional difficulties, because for different wavelengths you theoretically need very different materials. To make an object literally vanish before a person's eyes, a cloak would have to simultaneously interact with all of the wavelengths, or colors, that make up light. That technology would require much more intricate and tiny metamaterial structures, which scientists have yet to devise.

However, the recent breakthrough should prove it's doable and worth financing, and as such we can expect rudimentary invisibility devices in the near future. Next, the researchers plan to develop a real three-dimensional cloak and further perfecting the cloaking effect.

http://www.playfuls.com/news_002596_Microwave_Cloaking_is_Now_a_Reality.ht ml

(y) (y) (y) Perhaps in my lifetime, I can actually be that little mouse in the corner observing undetected....;) ;) (h)

(h) (i) (i) On second thought, I'd get a long cape with hood for me and a fleece coat for my boxer pet so we could take walks in peace anywwhere we wanted. Ah! need the invisible poop-scoop bag as well....being a good citizen and all. ;)

(o) (o) I must be spending WAY too much time researching lately - I'm feeling punchy. ;)

Time to get outside again in that bracing air and wind with Wyatt.

Carpe Diem,

SWeetlady & Wyatt the Boxer Pup (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-21-2006, 02:11 PM

:) :)

If your imagination is stirred by the baby steps being made in quantum computing (see "Beam me half a meter to the left, Scotty"), you'll also want to keep an eye on another exotic form of calculation: biological computing. Today's mindbender comes from researchers at Columbia University and the University of New Mexico, who have just finished an upgrade to a DNA-based computer called MAYA that can whup your sorry, highly evolved butt at tic-tac-toe every time. OK, you do have to give it the first turn so it can claim the center square, and it does take 2 to 30 minutes to figure out each move, but still! As noble a pastime as it is, tic-tac-toe dominance is just a stepping stone to technologies that could refine DNA analysis and help identify the genetic markers associated with certain diseases. "MAYA-II moves bio-computation up to the next level of power," said Joanne Macdonald, one of the Columbia researchers. "It's similar to the invention of the first microchips with hundreds of logic gates."

http://blogs.siliconvalley.com/gmsv/2006/10/beam_me_half_a_.html

http://www.newscientisttech.com/article/dn10310-dna-computer-is-unbeatable-at-tictactoe.html

(y) (y) (y) (h)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-21-2006, 02:13 PM

:) :) :)

Ricky Gervais - "Animals"

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7520848619246996399&q=Ricky%20Gervais

:D :D :D

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-21-2006, 02:16 PM

:| :| :|

In addition to the standard earphones, dock adapter and USB 2.0 cable, some of Apple's newer video iPods shipped with a Windows virus as well. This according to Apple, which Tuesday acknowledged a malicious file called RavMonE.exe had been discovered on a few of the iconic media players. "So far we have seen less than 25 reports concerning this problem. The iPod nano, iPod shuffle and Mac OS X are not affected, and all Video iPods now shipping are virus free," Apple said in a statement that predictably pinned the blame for the misstep on Microsoft. "As you might imagine, we are upset at Windows for not being more hardy against such viruses, and even more upset with ourselves for not catching it." Nice, eh? Your contract manufacturer plugs some of your video iPods into a Windows PC for testing, they contract a Windows virus that your QA fails to notice and you blame Microsoft? Classy, Apple. Classy.

Windows virus bites Apple iPods:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/6062074.stm

What Apple Computer said:

http://www.apple.com/support/windowsvirus/

:| :| :| :| :| :| :|

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-21-2006, 02:29 PM

:o :o :o

Reuters' newest foreign correspondent didn't need to get any shots before traveling to his new posting (except, perhaps, for a shot of healthy skepticism). Adam Pasick is stationed in Second Life, the parallel universe where more than 850,000 users engage in community and commerce in the guise of their animated avatars, a place where you can live out your fantasy of being a polar bear in a tutu to enliven your mundane earthly existence as a cost-accounting specialist in a tutu. Pasick's avatar, Adam Reuters, will work out of a virtual bureau modeled to look like a hybrid of Reuters' London and Times Square buildings, and will write for and about Second Life residents and businesses. "The fact that it's in a virtual world doesn't change things as much as you'd think," Pasick told the New York Times. "It's not any different than when Reuters opens up a bureau in a part of the world that has a fast-growing economy that we weren't in before. The laws of supply and demand hold true, it has a currency exchange, people open businesses and get paid for goods and services." The impetus for the bureau came, somewhat surprisingly, from Reuters CEO Thomas H. Glocer, who has "been playing in Second Life since it was a relatively small community." "This is a very serious, old brand that stands for things and has principles, but that doesn't take itself so seriously that it wouldn't play in a gaming space," Glocer said. "This appeals to a younger demographic. Even for people who don't go in and play in Second Life, it shows Reuters has a certain with-it-ness."

Well, maybe. But with it or not, a growing number of companies are setting up shop on the islands that dot Second Life, including Adidas, Reebok, American Apparel and Toyota. Reuters isn't even the first media outlet to plant its flag; the BBC is there, as is CNet. Not quite Stephenson's Metaverse yet, but an interesting sandbox to watch.

http://secondlife.com/

http://secondlife.reuters.com/

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/16/technology/16reuters.html?ei=5088&en=44dcf39d0dbdfac2&ex=1318651200&adxnnl=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&adxnnlx=1161003199-CITdyVWQTF0wWbH4RZXBCQ

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4766755.stm

http://www.3pointd.com/20060926/cnet-launches-second-life-site/

http://www.technovelgy.com/ct/Science-Fiction-News.asp?NewsNum=755

(*) (*) For those without a life, I suppose. ;) Where's my virtual invisible cape when I need it? :) Technology - got to love it. (h) (h)

:) :) 's,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-21-2006, 02:47 PM

:o :o :o

From the Be Careful What You Wish For file: Throughout the long history of the blogosphere, those who think seriously about new forms of communication have been urging corporations and their PR people to jump in and join an open conversation with their customers. Well, some companies seem to have gotten only part of the message, ignoring the "open" part. If you've already got a controversial reputation, open conversation can get messy and out of control. Much easier for some PR folk to use the blog phenomenon as just another arena in which to practice their weaselly ways. The latest to get tripped up is big-box punching bag Wal-Mart, which was getting much favorable and folksy play in a blog called Wal-Marting Across America, charting the travels of an ordinary couple making their way around the country by RV and staying nights in Wal-Mart parking lots. Unfortunately, the couple was a free-lance writer and a photographer from the Washington Post. An unfortunately, they never mentioned that the whole venture was paid for by Working Families for Wal-Mart, an organization that was formed in December by Wal-Mart's public relations firm, Edelman, to counter critics. Oops. "This is so foolish on so many levels, it makes me scratch my head," said corporate blogging consultant Debbie Weil, author of "The Corporate Blogging Book." Everyone involved violated the basic rule: Be transparent. If you're found out, it comes back as a slap in the face." And that may be the ultimate defense against such boneheaded blunders. The blogosphere is not the passive audience that marketers are used to; sooner or later, the truth will out.

http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/oct2006/db20061009_579137.htm?campaign_id=rss_topStories

http://walmartingacrossamerica.com/

http://www.forwalmart.com/

http://publications.mediapost.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=Articles.san&s=49505&Nid=24192&p=82937

(y) (y) (y) (y) (y) (y) (y)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-21-2006, 02:51 PM

:) :)

http://www.vnes.thatsanderskid.com/

(y) (y) For those who play. (versus those who are players.....) :o

;) ;) 's,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-21-2006, 02:52 PM

:) :)

http://www.kotaku.com/gaming/italian-language/the-ultimate-game-desk-206083.php

(y) (y) Well done, but pretty silly. :)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-21-2006, 02:58 PM

:s :s

http://www.productdose.com/article.php?article_id=4534

:) :) Hmm, the crossword one looked kind of ungeeky to me. I really liked those wallets and purses made out of license plates.

Very Cool:

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://us.st11.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/yhst-37299102709844_1909_2997952&imgrefurl=http://purseaholic.com/&h=295&w=250&sz=54&hl=en&start=5&tbnid=uK7kGqnqFo3g0M:&tbnh=115&tbnw=97&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dlicense%2Bplate%2Bwallets%26svnum%3D1 0%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DN

(l) (l) (h) (h) :

http://a1512.g.akamaitech.net/f/1512/124/1h/images.ebags.com/img/6pm/Megas/30365.jpg

(f) (f) Have a lovely rest of your Saturday and weekend.

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer Pup (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-22-2006, 12:23 AM

(h) (h) (h)

http://blog.modernmechanix.com/2006/10/05/miracles-youll-see-in-the-next-fifty-years/?Qwd=./PopularMechanics/2-1950/next_fifty_years&Qif=next_fifty_years_00.jpg&Qiv=thumbs&Qis=XL

Miracles You’ll See In The Next Fifty Years

By Waldemar Kaempffert

Source: Popular Mechanics 2-1950

Science Editor, The New York Times

WHAT WILL the world be like in A.D. 2000? You can read the answer in your home, in the streets, in the trains and cars that carry you to your work, in the bargain basement of every department store. You don’t realize what is happening because it is a piecemeal process. The jet-propelled plane is one piece, the latest insect killer is another. Thousands of such pieces are automatically dropping into their places to form the pattern of tomorrow’s world.

The only obstacles to accurate prophecy are the vested interests, which may retard progress for economic reasons, tradition, conservatism, labor-union policies and legislation. If we confine ourselves to processes and inventions that are now being hatched in the laboratory, we shall not wander too far from reality.

The best way of visualizing the new world of A.D. 2000 is to introduce you to the Dobsons, who live in Tottenville, a hypothetical metropolitan suburb of 100,000. There are parks and playgrounds and green open spaces not only around detached houses but also around apartment houses. The heart of the town is the airport. Surrounding it are business houses, factories and hotels. In concentric circles beyond these lie the residential districts.

Tottenville is as clean as a whistle and quiet. It is a crime to burn raw coal and pollute air with smoke and soot. In the homes electricity is used to warm walls and to cook. Factories all burn gas, which is generated in sealed mines. The tars are removed and sold to the chemical industry for their values, and the gas thus laundered is piped to a thousand communities.

The highways that radiate from Tottenville are much like those of today, except that they are broader with hardly any curves. In some of the older cities, difficult to change because of the immense investment in real estate and buildings, the highways are double-decked. The upper deck is for fast nonstop traffic; the lower deck is much like our avenues, with brightly illuminated shops. Beneath the lower deck is the level reserved entirely for business vehicles.

Tottenville is illuminated by electric “suns” suspended from arms on steel towers 200 feet high. There are also lamps which are just as bright and varicolored as those that now dazzle us on every Main Street. But the process of generating the light is more like that which occurs in the sun. Atoms are bombarded by electrons and other minute projectiles, electrically excited in this way and made to glow.

Power plants are not driven by atomic power as you might suppose. It was known as early as 1950 that an atomic power plant would have to be larger and much more expensive than a fuel-burning plant to be efficient. Atomic power proves its worth in Canada, South America and the Far East, but in tropical countries it cannot compete with solar power. It is as hopeless in 2000 as it was in 1950 to drive machinery directly by atomic energy. Engineers can do no more than utilize the heat generated by converting uranium into plutonium. The heat is used to drive engines, and the engines in turn drive electric generators. A good deal of thorium is used because uranium 235 is scarce.

Because of the heavy investment that has to be made in a uranium or thorium power plant, the United States government began seriously to consider the possibilities of solar radiation in 1949. Theoretically, 5000 horsepower in terms of solar heat fall on an acre of the earth’s surface every day.

Because they sprawl over large surfaces, solar engines are profitable in 2000 only where land is cheap. They are found in deserts that can be made to bloom again, and in tropical lands where there is usually no coal or oil. Many farmhouses in the United States are heated by solar rays and some cooking is done by solar heat.

The first successful atomically driven liners began to run in 1970 after the U. S. Navy had carried on many expensive, large-scale secret experiments. Outwardly the liners are not much different from the Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth, but they have much more cargo and passenger space because it is no longer necessary to carry about 12,000 tons of fuel.

The metallurgical research that makes the gas turbines in the power plants and in the trans-Atlantic liners possible has influenced both civil engineering and architecture. Steel is used only for cutting tools and for massive machinery. The light metals have largely displaced it. Ways have been found to change the granular structure so that a metal is ultrastrong in a desired direction and weaker in other directions. As a result, the framework of an industrial or office building or apartment house is an almost lacelike lattice.

Thanks to these alloys, to plastics and to other artificial materials, houses differ from those of our own time. The Dobson house has light-metal walls only four inches thick. There is a sheet of insulating material an inch or two thick with a casing of sheet metal on both sides.

This Dobson air-conditioned house is not a prefabricated structure, though all its parts are mass-produced. Metal, sheets of plastic and aerated clay (clay filled with bubbles so that it resembles petrified sponge) are cut to size on the spot. In the center of this eight-room house is a unit that contains all the utilities—air-conditioning apparatus, plumbing, bathrooms, showers, electric range, electric outlets. Around this central unit the house has been pieced together. Some of it is poured plastic—the floors, for instance. By 2000, wood, brick and stone are ruled out because they are too expensive.

It is a cheap house. With all its furnishings, Joe Dobson paid only $5000 for it. Though it is galeproof and weatherproof, it is built to last only about 25 years. Nobody in 2000 sees any sense in building a house that will last a century.

Everything about the Dobson house is synthetic in the best chemical sense of the term. When Joe Dobson awakens in the morning he uses a depilatory. No soap or safety razor for him. It takes him no longer than a minute to apply the chemical, wipe it off with the bristles and wash his face in plain water.

This Dobson house is not as highly mechanized as you may suppose, chiefly because of the progress made by the synthetic chemists. There are no dish washing machines, for example, because dishes are thrown away after they have been used once, or rather put into a sink where they are dissolved by superheated water. Two dozen soluble plastic plates cost a dollar. They dissolve at about 250 degrees Fahrenheit, so that boiling-hot soup and stews can be served in them without inviting a catastrophe. The plastics are derived from such inexpensive raw materials as cottonseed hulls, oat hulls, Jerusalem artichokes, fruit pits, soy beans, bagasse, straw and wood pulp.

When Jane Dobson cleans house she simply turns the hose on everything. Why not? Furniture (upholstery included), rugs, draperies, unscratchable floors — all are made of synthetic fabric or waterproof plastic. After the water has run down a drain in the middle of the floor (later concealed by a rug of synthetic fiber) Jane turns on a blast of hot air and dries everything. A detergent in the water dissolves any resistant dirt. Tablecloths and napkins are made of woven paper yarn so fine that the untutored eye mistakes it for linen. Jane Dobson throws soiled “linen” into the incinerator. Bed sheets are of more substantial stuff, but Jane Dobson has only to hang them up and wash them down with a hose when she puts the bedroom in order.

Cooking as an art is only a memory in the minds of old people. A few die-hards still broil a chicken or roast a leg of lamb, but the experts have developed ways of deep-freezing partially baked cuts of meat. Even soup and milk are delivered in the form of frozen bricks.

This expansion of the frozen-food industry and the changing gastronomic habits of the nation have made it necessary to install in every home the electronic industrial stove which came out of World War II. Jane Dobson has one of these electronic stoves. In eight seconds a half-grilled frozen steak is thawed; in two minutes more it is ready to serve. It never takes Jane Dobson more than half an hour to prepare what Tottenville considers an elaborate meal of several courses.

Some of the food that Jane Dobson buys is what we miscall “synthetic.” In the middle of the 20th century statisticians were predicting that the world would starve to death because the population was increasing more rapidly than the food supply. By 2000, a vast amount of research has been conducted to exploit principles that were embryonic in the first quarter of the 20th century. Thus sawdust and wood pulp are converted into sugary foods. Discarded paper table “linen” and rayon underwear are bought by chemical factories to be converted into candy.

Of course the Dobsons have a television set. But it is connected with the telephones as well as with the radio receiver, so that when Joe Dobson and a friend in a distant city talk over the telephone they also see each other. Businessmen have television conferences. Each man is surrounded by half a dozen television screens on which he sees those taking part in the discussion. Documents are held up for examination; samples of goods are displayed. In fact, Jane Dobson does much of her shopping by television. Department stores obligingly hold up for her inspection bolts of fabric or show her new styles of clothing.
Automatic electronic inventions that seem to have something like intelligence integrate industrial production so that all the machines in a factory work as units in what is actually a single, colossal organism. In the Orwell Helicopter Corporation’s plant only a few trouble shooters are visible, and these respond to lights that flare up on a board whenever a vacuum tube burns out or there is a short circuit. By holes punched in a roll of paper, every operation necessary to produce a helicopter is indicated. The punched roll is fed into a machine that virtually gives orders to all the other machines in the plant. The holes in the paper indicate exactly how long a reamer is to smooth the inside of a cylinder, just when a stamping machine is to pass a sheet of aluminum along to its neighbor with orders to punch 22 holes in indicated places. There are mechanical wrenches that obediently turn nuts on bolts and stop all by themselves when the bolts are in place, shears that know exactly where to cut a sheet of metal for a perfect fit. Every operation in the plant is electronically and automatically controlled.

One of the more remarkable electronic machines of 2000 is a development of one on which hundreds of thousands of dollars had been spent in the middle years of the 20th century by Dr. Vladimir Zworykin and Dr. John von Neumann. The purpose of this improved Zworykin-Von Neumann automaton is to predict the weather with an accuracy unattainable before 1980. It is a combination of calculating machine and forecaster. The calculator solves thousands of separate equations in a minute; the automatic forecaster carries out the computer’s instructions and predicts the weather from hour to hour. In 1950, meteorologists had no time to deal with the 50-odd variables that should have been mathematically handled to predict the weather 24 hours in advance.

Following suggestions made by Zworykin and Von Neumann storms are more or less under control. It is easy enough to spot a budding hurricane in the doldrums off the coast of Africa. Before it has a chance to gather much strength and speed as it travels westward toward Florida, oil is spread over the sea and ignited. There is an updraft. Air from the surrounding region, which includes the developing hurricane, rushes in to fill the void. The rising air condenses so that some of the water in the whirling mass falls as rain.

With storms diverted where they do no harm, aerial travel is never interrupted. And the Dobsons, like everybody else in Tottenville, travel much more than we do in 1950—that is, to foreign countries.

By 2000, supersonic planes cover a thousand miles an hour, but the consumption of fuel is such that high fares have to be charged. In one of these supersonic planes the Atlantic is crossed in three hours. Nobody has yet circumnavigated the moon in a rocket space ship, but the idea is not laughed down.

Corporation presidents, bankers, ambassadors and rich people in a hurry use the 1000-mile-an-hour rocket planes and think nothing of paying a fare of $5000 between Chicago and Paris. The Dobsons take the cheaper jet planes.
This extension of aerial transportation has had the effect of distributing the population. People find it more satisfactory to live in a suburb like Tottenville, if suburb it can be called, than in a metropolis like New York, Chicago or Los Angeles. Cities have grown into regions, and it is sometimes hard to tell where one city ends and another begins. Instead of driving from Tottenville to California in their car—teardrop in shape and driven from the rear by a high-compression engine that burns cheap denatured alcohol—the Dobsons use the family helicopter, which is kept on the roof. The car is used chiefly for shopping and for journeys of not more than 20 miles. The railways are just as necessary in 2000 as they are in 1950. They haul chiefly freight too heavy or too bulky for air cargo carriers. Passenger travel by rail is a mere trickle. Even commuters go to the city, a hundred miles away, in huge aerial busses that hold 200 passengers. Hundreds of thousands make such journeys twice a day in their own helicopters.
Fast jet and rocket-propelled mail planes made it so hard for telegraph companies all over the world to compete with the postal service that dormant facsimile-transmission systems had to be revived. It takes no more than a minute to transmit and receive in facsimile a five-page letter on paper of the usual business size. Cost? Five cents. In Tottenville the clerks in telegraph offices no longer print out illegible words. Everything is transmitted by phototelegraphy exactly as it is written—illegible spelling, blots, smudges and all. Mistakes are the sender’s, never the telegraph company’s.

When the Dobsons are sick they go to the doctor, in a hospital, where he has only to push a button to command all the assistance he needs.

In the middle of the 20th century, doctors talked much of such antibiotics as penicillin, streptomycin, aureomycin and about 50 others that had been extracted from soil and other molds. It was the beginning of what was even then known as chemotherapy—cure by chemical means. By 2000, physicians have several hundred of these chemical agents or antibiotics at their command. Tuberculosis in all of its forms is cured as easily as pneumonia was cured at mid-century.
It no longer is necessary in 2000 to administer the purified extracts of molds to cope with bacterial infections. The antibiotics are all synthesized in chemical factories. It is possible to modify their molecular structure, so that they acquire new and useful properties.

Even in 1950 physicians did not know exactly how a piece of beefsteak is converted by the body into muscle and energy —the process technically known as metabolism. The physician of 2000 knows just what diet is best for a patient. This knowledge, coupled with his knowledge of hormones, enables him to treat old age as a degenerative disease. Men and women of 70 in A.D. 2000 look as if they were 40. Wrinkles, sagging cheeks, leathery skins are curiosities or signs of neglect. The span of life has been lengthened to 85.

In 1950 little was known about a virus beyond the fact that it could slip through a filter so fine that it would hold back any microorganism visible in the optical microscope. The electron microscope, which magnifies from 30,000 to 100,000 times and which substitutes a beam of electrons for a beam of light, has changed all this. In the viruses, little bodies have been detected with this instrument. They are virtually protein molecules. By tying together what chemists have discovered about the struc-ture of protein and what the pathologists see in the electron microscope, such virus diseases as influenza, the common cold, poliomyelitis and a dozen others are cured with ease.

Even in the 20th century hospitals were packed with instruments and machines. The hospitals of 2000 have even more. Instead of taking electrocardiographs, doctors place heart patients in front of a fluoroscopic screen, turn on the X-rays and then, with the aid of a photoelectric cell, examine every section of the heart.

Cancer is not yet curable in 2000. But physicians optimistically predict that the time is not far off when it will be cured.
The nervous diseases are linked up with electrochemical processes in 2000 in a way that is impossible in our time. Such afflictions as multiple sclerosis or palsy are no longer regarded as incurable. There are electrochemical methods of stimulating and reactivating nerves, so that victims of Parkinson’s disease are no longer objects of pity. But these sufferers from damaged or degenerate nerves are somewhat like our diabetics who must take insulin regularly to remain alive. A little battery-driven apparatus must be carried in the pocket to provide the stimulus the nerves need.

Any marked departure from what Joe -Dobson and his fellow citizens wear and eat and how they amuse themselves will arouse comment. If old Mrs. Underwood, who lives around the corner from the Dob-sons and who was born in 1920 insists on sleeping under an old-fashioned comforter instead of an aerogel blanket of glass puffed with air so that it is as light as thistledown, she must expect people to talk about her “queerness.” It is astonishing how easily the great majority of us fall into step with our neighbors. And after all, is the standardization of life to be deplored if we can have a house like Joe Dobson’s, a standardized helicopter, luxurious standardized household appointments, and food that was out of the reach of any Roman emperor?

:) :) 's

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-22-2006, 12:25 AM

:o :o

Q U O T E D

"YouTube is a wholly user-created entity, and while I am happy for those guys, to declare yourselves the 'kings' of Internet video is like Bob Saget claiming he is the 'king' of 'America's Funniest Home Videos.' ''

-- Luke Wahl, a Los Angeles television production coordinator

http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/15729649.htm

(y) (y) :D

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-22-2006, 12:25 AM

(y) (y)

http://eigelb.at/HP/Links/SpecialEffects/Grappa/BlueRandom/index.html

(h) (h)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-22-2006, 12:26 AM

:| :| :| :|

(h) (h)

http://triggur.org/costume/mech/

(y) (y)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-22-2006, 12:27 AM

:| :| :| :|

http://search-desc.ebay.com/a_W0QQcatrefZC5QQfbdZ1QQfclZ3QQflocZ1QQfposZ94040Q QfromZR14QQfrppZ50QQfsooZ2QQfsopZ3QQfssZ0QQftrtZ1Q QftrvZ1QQftsZ2QQnojsprZyQQpfidZ0QQsaaffZafdefaultQ QsabdloZ1QQsacatZQ2d1QQsacqyopZgeQQsacurZ0QQsadisZ 200QQsargnZQ2d1QQsaslcZ0QQs

:o :o Whew! This gives me some idas though......;)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-22-2006, 12:28 AM

:) :) :)

http://www.cowabduction.com/

:o :o Wasn't this called cattle rustling in the 1800 and 1900s?

;) 's,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-22-2006, 12:29 AM

:| :|

http://www.trevorvanmeter.com/flyguy/flyGuy.swf

:o :o :o Except it is more like "Waiting for Godot". How existential. :| :|

;) 's,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-22-2006, 12:31 AM

:) :)

Every family has its traditions; in the Kornberg family, it's winning Nobel prizes. Back in 1959, Stanford prof Arthur Kornberg shared the Nobel medicine prize with Severo Ochoa for studies of how genetic information is transferred from one DNA molecule to another. He took his young son, Roger, along to Stockholm to collect the award. This morning, Roger Kornberg, now a Stanford prof himself, is planning a return trip, having won the Nobel in chemistry for his work revealing how how information is taken from genes and converted to molecules called messenger RNA. "The last five years have been really breathtaking in terms of the details of the structures that he's been producing and what they're revealing about the mechanism, as well as laying the groundwork for future studies of how gene regulation works,'' said Jeremy M. Berg, director of the National Institute of General Medical Sciences.
If you're scoring at home, that's three Nobels for the Bay Area so far this year: Astrophysicist George Smoot of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory shared in the physics prize and Stanford's Andrew Z. Fire was a co-winner in medicine.

http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/15676996.htm

http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/15673522.htm

http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/business/industries/biotech/15665719.htm

(y) (y) (y) (h) (h) (h)

Here's to great (i) (i) 's!!

(k) 's,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer Pup (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-22-2006, 12:33 AM

:s :s :s

Q U O T E D

"We're trying to embed entertainment experiences inside clothes. It's like HBO on your shirt."

-- Elan Lee, one of the co-founders of edoc laundry, whose line of clothes contains hidden coded messages that are clues in an online mystery.

http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/15676543.htm

(n) (n) I think I'll pass on embedded entertainment inside my clothing.....and stop there before going down THAT path.....;)

:)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-22-2006, 12:34 AM

:s :s

http://www.dvguru.com/2006/10/03/the-dvd-rewinder/

(n) (n)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-22-2006, 12:35 AM

(h) (h) (h) (h)

http://shakespeare.clusty.com/

(y) (y) (h) (h)

(k) 's,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-22-2006, 12:36 AM

(h) (h) (h) (h) (h)

We're going to have to trust the experts on this, but apparently Danish scientists have made a breakthrough by teleporting information from light into a cloud of atoms. Heretofore, experiments in teleportation via quantum entanglement had managed to send to send light or single atoms across a fraction of a millimeter. This experiment, which worked at a distance of half a meter, "is one step further because for the first time it involves teleportation between light and matter, two different objects. One is the carrier of information and the other one is the storage medium," said Professor Eugene Polzik of the Niels Bohr Institute at Copenhagen University. The aim of such study is not a revolution in the travel industry, but achieving fast and secure quantum computing. "It is really about teleporting information from one site to another site. Quantum information is different from classical information in the sense that it cannot be measured. It has much higher information capacity and it cannot be eavesdropped on. The transmission of quantum information can be made unconditionally secure," said Polzik. I won't even attempt to explain the details of the experiment here, but suffice to say it involved a pair of entangled states named "Bob" and "Alice." Everything after that leaves my brain in a similar state.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/science/10/04/teleportation.reut/

http://physicsweb.org/articles/world/11/3/9

http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?chanID=sa003&articleID=000E9691-0261-1524-826183414B7F0000

http://physicsweb.org/articles/news/10/10/6/1

(y) (y) (y)

;) ;) 's,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-22-2006, 12:37 AM

:| :|

http://www.losanjealous.com/nfc/

:) :)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-22-2006, 12:37 AM

(y) (y) (y)

http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/research/4199165.html

(h) (h)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-22-2006, 12:43 AM

:| :| :|

Why does Big Business have such a slimy rep? Sure, there's the big stuff like stock option scandals and boardroom spying, but what really does it is the thousand little screw jobs that consumers endure day in and day out. The latest example, passed along by TheoDP, is U.S. Patent No. 7,120,591, granted today, for an online redemption system for product rebates. The patent describes "a system and method for computer-aided rebate processing ... which substantially eliminates or reduces disadvantages and problems associated with previous systems and methods. [Sounds great, right?] The present invention satisfies a need for a more consumer friendly method for processing rebates that maintains a breakage rate ..." Whoa ... hold it right there. "By requiring post-purchase activities," the patent description explains, "the rebate offerer attempts to reduce the number of successful rebate claimants. Breakage occurs when a product bearing a rebate is sold, but the rebate is not successfully claimed. ... Consumers, in contrast, desire the quickest and easiest process for receiving their rebates. This creates a tension between the manufacturer's desire to maintain consumer satisfaction and the need to sustain a sufficient level of breakage in rebate programs." Tension does not begin to cover it. The patent owner is Parago, which powers Circuit City rebates and others.

http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/mercurynews/business/personal_finance/investing/stock_options/

http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/15500749.htm

http://www.mouseprint.org/

http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsrchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=7,120,591.PN.&OS=PN/7,120,591&RS=PN/7,120,591

http://www.parago.com/

http://www.ccityrebates.com/promocenter/circuitcity/promo_search.html

:o :o

(o) (o) Time to take a break. At least all the assigned readings and assignments were posted earlier. Tomorrow? OLFB (other learner feedback) and hopefully get out and about with Wyatt before more rain comes in later in the afternoon. g*dammed rain.Better than snow, though, The chilly temps are lovely...... Brisk!

The aroma of smoke from neighbors' fireplaces was wonderful during an earlier walk with Wyatt. I loved it and wanted to stay outside a while longer.

(S) Restful sleep. (S)

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer Pup (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 04:52 PM

(f) (f) (f)

October 22, 2006

To Dance Beneath the Diamond Skies

By ALEX WITCHEL

Twyla Tharp has strong feelings about good coffee, just as she has strong feelings about dance, theater and the universe in general. So this particular moment, as she fished a dead fly from her coffee cup, was probably as good an introduction as any to Rule No. 1 in the World According to Tharp: Twyla Tharp is always right. Rule No. 2? See Rule No. 1. Rule No. 3? Yes, there is a 3. Though rare, it is possible for Tharp to be wrong. But only if she proves herself wrong. No one else need apply.

“Let me get you a fresh cup,” offered Artie Gaffin, the production stage manager of “The Times They Are A-Changin’,” the new Broadway musical conceived, directed and choreographed by Tharp, based on the music of Bob Dylan. Gaffin, among his other duties, had the unenviable job of coffee maker at Aaron Davis Hall, the theater in Harlem where the cast rehearsed during the summer. Located in a neighborhood improbably crammed with beauty salons, there was not a bodega to be found with a can of Maxwell House and a plug.

Tharp drank the coffee. “I don’t want you to remake it,” she told him. “I just want you to acknowledge that this coffee sucks.”

Once that was accomplished, Tharp turned her gaze on Kim Craven, the resident director who is her second in command. Craven was busy showing a dancer a change in steps that Tharp asked for the previous day.

“Thank you, Kimmy, for being so conscientious,” Tharp called. “That’s going to change again today.”

Craven kept her equanimity, which was impressive, considering that she had just given Tharp a note of her own, to which Tharp responded, “I understand what you’re saying, but I’m leaving it as it is.”

Bark, bark. You get the idea. But it is probably time to say this: There was not a person in that theater, including the 19 performers, musicians and production staff, who did not admire Tharp. Those new to her are scared of her, those used to her are over her, because they know that behind the barking lies a devotion to them, to the work — always, always the work — that is religious in its fervor. Yes, she is a control freak, a perfectionist, a zealot in forming a vision and stopping at nothing to see it

realized. But when it is realized, when her dances are good-better-best, flying off the stage like some biblical fire on a mountaintop, there is nothing in the world like them. Twenty-three years ago, Robert Joffrey said that Tharp’s work “didn’t look like anyone else’s.” It still doesn’t.

Tharp’s most recent success was the Broadway musical “Movin’ Out,” a danced narrative set to the music of Billy Joel, which won her a Tony Award for Best Choreography. The show ran for more than three years, and its touring company is still on the road. But Tharp is more than a Broadway baby; she’s an American artist of the first order. In her 41-year career, she has famously broken down the barriers between ballet and modern dance, fusing them into a genre specifically her own. She created 132 dances for her company, Twyla Tharp Dance, as well as for American Ballet Theater, New York City Ballet, Paris Opera Ballet, the Royal Ballet, Martha Graham Company and others. This month, American Ballet Theater will perform her “Sinatra Suite” (1984) and “In the Upper Room” (1986), with music by Philip Glass. In November, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater will perform “The Golden Section” (1983), and in February, the Bolshoi Ballet will also do “In the Upper Room,” its first work by an American female choreographer.

Like Jerome Robbins, her late friend and fellow perfectionist, Tharp has never mistaken provincialism for artistic purity, and she has pursued a wide range of commercial projects; her work was presented on Broadway as early as 1976. For the director Milos Forman, she choreographed the films “Hair,” “Amadeus” and “Ragtime,” and she won two Emmy Awards as choreographer and co-director of “Baryshnikov by Tharp.” She is the author of “Push Comes to Shove” (1992), an autobiography, and “The Creative Habit: Learn It and Use It for Life” (2003). She has received the National Medal of Arts, 17 honorary doctorates and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation award, more commonly known as the “genius” grant.

Maybe she’s always right, after all.

Standing in the audience near the lip of the stage, she watched the dancers warm up — some jumped on trampolines or twirled lassos while others performed a makeshift barre — and she looked even tinier than her 5 feet 1ð inches. Although it was Dylan who approached her, after the success of ’“Movin’ Out,” to make his music dance as she had Joel’s, the show is completely her invention. She listened to every song Dylan ever recorded and chose 25 around which to build a narrative. She conceived of a traveling circus run by an abusive father at odds with his artistic son; complicating things further is the woman who comes between them. Unlike in “Movin’ Out,” which literally split the stage in two, musicians playing on the top level, performers dancing beneath them, in “Times,” Tharp cast singers among her ensemble to fully integrate song and dance. The end result is a fable about growing up, love, death and acceptance, danced and sung to a Dylan hit parade, including “Blowin’ in the Wind,” “Mr. Tambourine Man” and “Rainy Day Women #12 & 35” (“Everybody must get stoned”). It opens at the Brooks Atkinson Theater on Oct. 26.

As Tharp watched the cast members juggle, tumble and walk on stilts, she fooled incessantly with the beige snakeskin headband that is for her the kind of prop that cigarettes are for smokers. She pulled it on and off her cap of lank gray hair, managing never to disturb the round tortoise-shell glasses that make her look like a very earnest bug. She has a distinctive, clean smell, almost like pine. “No,” she said curtly. “Fig. Jo Malone Fig.”

Her dancer’s body, still limber and trim at 65, was mostly obscured under a loose blouse and pressed jeans. Her white New Balance sneakers are a size 6, quadruple E — her cartoonish bunions so grotesque they’re practically lyrical — and each time she clomped up the five steps to the stage to deliver a note in person, she walked stiffly. But if you put her sneakered foot in a lineup, you would immediately identify it as a dancer’s. Even in the blocky rubber encasement, there is a flex, an arch, some kind of angle that presents itself as eloquently as if she were barefoot.

“Not from the shoulder,” she said onstage to a gifted 19-year-old dancer, who had been knocking himself out all morning. This was not necessarily a good thing. As Tharp noted, “The fifth clown got a herniated disk,” and his replacement was to arrive the next day. To be a Tharp dancer is to master complex, intricate movements and steps that can defy gravity — in 1975 Baryshnikov told The Times: “It is very difficult to learn her steps.. . .One variation alone took me three weeks to learn, working a few hours every day” — but more than that, the idea is to stay safe, to last. She touched the middle of the boy’s back. “From here,” she said.

“O.K.,” he said eagerly. “I’ll work on it.”

“O.K.,” she answered. “But smartly.”

She came back down the stairs and watched him do another number with two other young men. Although it was late August, each dancer was swathed in layers of clothing; sweat pants, jackets, woolen leggings. The joy they took in the dancing was palpable, like children playing. Tharp herself danced professionally until she was 52, quite an achievement. But from the look on her face now, that didn’t seem to count. She eyed them, tasting it, missing it. Each jump was effortless, each ornate combination perfectly executed.

She took notes as she watched, her eyes fixed on the stage, the whisper of her pencil insistent on her pad. When the dancers finished, they looked eagerly for her praise.

She put down the pencil. “Better,” she said.

It should come as no surprise that Tharp’s penthouse apartment on Central Park West has no air-conditioning. If it did, it might be an appealing place to visit, especially in August. Instead, she had propped open a door to the terrace through which a wind blew hard enough to lift my pile of notes from the kitchen table and scatter them. Tharp’s face was pure innocence. “Is it too windy for you?” she asked solicitously as she closed it. Because even though the pretense was that we were going to spend three hours chatting intimately about her life and work, we both knew that that was not the goal. I had come here for Tharp to see me sweat.

The apartment is actually two joined together. She has lived in one half since 1972 and bought the other in 1992. On one side is an inviting kitchen — stone floors, hanging pots, cozy breakfast nook, though a quick peek inside the fridge showed it to be empty — and living room. On the other side is an office and her bedroom. But smack in the middle, where you would expect to find a dining room or den, is a dance studio. White walls, pristine floors, then two steps down to an adjoining area with a video camera where she records herself working.

“It’s maple,” Tharp said of the floor. “It’s the best floor, the floor Martha had. It used to be a bedroom and bathroom.” She gestured toward a floor-to-ceiling beam, the only interruption in the space. “It can be a tree, a tent pole, anything that distinguishes the space from a mere studio,” she said grandly. Small sigh. “And to take it down costs $40,000.”

Her living room is spare and elegant. Farm tools line the hallway floor that leads to it, many of them saved from her grandfather’s farm in Indiana, and inside, stacks of photographs and paintings lean against the walls. She gestured toward a photograph of Rudolf Nureyev’s bare foot on point, taken by Richard Avedon, Tharp’s close friend, who died in 2004. “He was supposed to have his full weight on the foot, but I don’t believe it,” she said dismissively.

Why isn’t anything hanging up? She half-smiled. “I had a very, very paranoiac mom,” she said. “We lived near the San Andreas Fault. So either earthquakes or fires were coming. We always had everything packed, ready to move at a moment’s notice.”

We settled in the breakfast nook in the former path of the wind tunnel, and she drank hot coffee from an enormous cup. I declined her kind offer to join her, sticking to a refrigerated bottle of water I had brought with me.

She was eager to talk about “The Times They Are A-Changin.” Her agreement with Dylan, as it was with Joel, was that she would go ahead and do what she does, then show him when it was finished.

“The narrative concept came from some very simple points,” she said. “Character-wise, because Dylan has had such a long career, you have the music of a young man, a maturing man and an older man. It seemed to me that I could most make sense of it by giving some of it to the younger and some of it to the older. Father-son.

“Early on, I realized two things about the piece,” she continued. “A setting for these characters, namely the circus and a mode of logic for the piece, being dreams. Because both Dylan and dance are nonliteral. Because of the father-son theme, I, being neither, thought about how to familiarize myself with this condition. I read a lot of Sam Shepard, ‘Buried Child’ in particular; Arthur Miller’s ‘All My Sons,’ ‘Death of a Salesman’; and Synge’s ‘Playboy of the Western World.’ The questions they raised of how the son is driven by the father and how the father is pursued by his own sense of responsibility, the thousands of issues between men who are fathers and sons, was very interesting for me. I’m not sure how much, ultimately, of it got in. But I think that it became clear, especially from Shepard’s work, that this content could be taken on without becoming terribly literal and fact-ridden. Because once you do that in dance, it is extremely difficult. I’m not sure it will ever work to have detail of that ilk because it becomes linguistic; it no longer is about the kind of gut and visceral brain where dance works best.

“Obviously a third character was needed, a female presence, to have some buffering. In all the father-son stories there’s always a female figure, usually a mother. This one is not a mother because the mother somehow can extend sympathy. And both of the men are behaving like idiots, is really how it works.”

Well, speaking of mothers.. . .

“I want to talk about the show,” she said sullenly.

Of course she does. Because like many great artists, Tharp didn’t happen by accident. As she so astutely writes in “The Creative Habit”: “Destiny, quite often, is a determined parent.” Her mother, Lecile, also known by her children as Lethal, was an Indiana-farm-girl-cum-thwarted-concert-pianist who named the eldest of her four children after Twila Thornburg, the 89th annual Muncie Fair Pig Princess. She changed the spelling to Twyla because she thought it would look better on a marquee. By the time her daughter was 2, she was studying piano. At 4, she was studying dance. When Tharp was 8, the family moved to Southern California, where her parents operated a drive-in theater. Tharp grew up working the concession stand and watching the movies without sound, learning to tell stories through action.

In addition to attending school, Tharp was driven regularly by her mother, within a hundred-mile radius of her home, for all sorts of lessons, including ballet, tap, flamenco, drums, elocution, baton, painting, viola, violin, French, German and shorthand. In school, if she failed to get an A, her mother, convinced the teacher was at fault, pulled her out. By the time Tharp graduated from high school, she had attended seven schools.

After a year and a half at Pomona College, Tharp went to Barnard, from which she graduated in 1963 as an art-history major, though she studied simultaneously at American Ballet Theater and with Merce Cunningham and Martha Graham. She became a dancer in Paul Taylor’s company, then started her own in 1965. Her first piece, “Tank Dive,” performed at Hunter College, was four minutes long. In 1966, her dance “Re-Moves” had its premiere at Judson Memorial Church in Greenwich Village. Clive Barnes wrote in The Times, “She is certainly not yet a good choreographer, yet she is bad in a rather interesting way.” By the time she created “Deuce Coupe,” to the Beach Boys’ “Little Deuce Coupe,” for the Joffrey Ballet in 1973 and smashed the wall between ballet and modern, her name had found its marquee.

So, no, we cannot keep talking about the show with a mother like that.

Tharp sighed. “Bless her heart and her soul forever,” she said. “She was intensely focused on giving me an opportunity she never had. It was not her intention I become a dancer. I was equally well prepared, if not better, to become a musician. I actually think of my mother as being very brave. What she gave me to live with is certainly not the cliché of what mothering is. But it’s — it’s a kind of residue, a kind of fortitude that I’m very grateful for.”

Tharp has one son, Jesse Huot, who was born in 1971, when she was married to the painter Robert Huot; Jesse has been her business manager for the past 10 years. Tharp and his father split when he was less than a year old. After growing up with a mother who worked constantly and toured extensively, he told her, at 11: “Mom, I love you, but you’re weird. I want to go to boarding school.”

Tharp shrugged. “Practically every mother is disappointed in her mothering skills,” she said. “I don’t think I did wrong. I think I did singular. I am beyond grateful for my son, who is my best friend, my best counsel. I think he’s realized he was not a victim, that my intentions were always the best, that I may have floundered on occasion but I always wanted to be able to offer him choices. This is what I’m saying about my past too, and I probably worked part of it through him: if we don’t have the fairy-tale childhood with the fairy-tale family, it doesn’t necessarily mean that we are totally screwed for life. So let’s get on with what we got here.”

Is it awkward for them to work together?

“Well, when Jesse started,” she said, “I thought maybe I should get real and he should go elsewhere. Then I thought: Wait a minute. If you were the father and you’re selling shoes and you got a good shoe store and it says ‘Tharp and Sons, Shoes,’ he should get the chance to have the shoes, shouldn’t he? Let him decide. And so far, bless his heart, he has been very, very creative with it.”

Whenever Tharp talks about Jesse, she automatically relaxes. She even smiles. It was the loosest she’d been all day. It was now or never: “When did you stop drinking?” I asked. She had written about this in her 1992 autobiography, though the issue of her quitting seemed vague.

Her smile grew wider. “My darling, where did you get any of that kind of information?” she said. “Do you mind if I call you ‘my darling’ while I’m stalling?”

“You wrote about it in your book.”

“Oh, did I say that?”

“Yeah.”

“See, I don’t read books.” She paused. “I just quit,” she said. “I’m grateful that I was able to get hold of it while I was still strong enough to do it.”

Her strength might have come from her longtime regimen of daily two-hour workouts and a diet of three egg whites for breakfast, half a pound of roast beef for lunch and some sort of protein and vegetables for dinner. Which would account for her ravishing figure. Speaking of which, we should discuss the captivating variety of men she’s been involved with through the years: Baryshnikov; the rock promoter Bill Graham; Leon Wieseltier, the literary editor of the New Republic.. . .

“Forget it. Forget it. Forget it. I’m not going to talk about the past. I truly am not.”

“Did you — ?”

“No questions.”

“We’re in the middle of an interview. What do you mean no questions?”

“Women gossip more than men. I’m not going to do it.” When Tharp becomes agitated, as she did periodically during the days I spent with her, her face pulls into a tight red fist of Puritanical rebuke. Put a white collar on her, and she could be an extra in “The Crucible.”

O.K., then. Would she say she’s happy? One of us should be.

“I work. Happy is like a value judgment. Good, bad, happy. I wouldn’t know how to evaluate.”

“And when you’re not working?”

“I’m working. That’s what I do.”

What’s the first word she can think of that best describes her?

“Short,” she said immediately. “It’s actually a word I take a great deal of pride in. Because short is compact. I like to think that it’s quite efficient. Not a lot of lankiness, not a lot of wasted motion, close to the core. Coiled; can be dangerous. Low center of gravity. Short.”

Which, between the heat and her refusal to talk about so many things, was where my temper was. And she knew it.

“I’m a good interview, really,” she said cajolingly, before getting up and leaving the table. She called from down the hall: “I’ll show you something. I found it in the sale bin at Barnes & Noble. You know how it is when you find something on sale, you feel especially blessed. Don’t you? And here it was.” She came back and opened a book of photographs of early-20th-century circuses, which she used for what she called “deep background” for “Times.”

“The photographer wants to just show the act,” she said, turning the pages. “But his plates were full, and they show you the surround of the circus, that these people lived in the middle of shoeing the horses and cooking the meal. No privacy. Here we go: Home sweet home.” She was looking at a shot of women hanging laundry, which prompted a slight, telling shudder.

Clearly, none of the domestic arts are of interest to Tharp. Though she did mention that her sister, Twanette, is a great hostess, and that Jerome Robbins was a great host, too.

“I’m lousy at it,” Tharp said, “because I allow myself to put my discomfort before the comfort of the guest. That is a lousy hostess. You’ve got to man your own post, squelch that indulgent discomfort and make sure everybody else has a great evening. Right? It is a discipline. So I’m going to practice.”

“Oh, you are not,” I said wearily. “What’s the upside in getting better at it?”

“The upside is friends,” she said, unexpectedly earnest. “The upside is people you can trust to talk to. The upside is people who are entertaining. The upside is people who have their own point of view on something. The upside is it’s an avenue to other places. But friends take real development. This does not happen because you wish it to be so; it happens as an investment. And old friends, everybody knows and says all the time, you don’t replace. But it doesn’t mean that perhaps it’s not possible to develop a few new friends.”

She took a deep breath. “Ulysses S. Grant, at the beginning of his very great autobiography, says he realized the thing about fighting is: They’re as scared as you are.” She peered at me sideways, and her smile was shy. “Right?”

Jesse Huot is a sweet-natured man with hair and eyes an identical shade of cinnamon brown. But the location of the walk-up apartment on 10th Avenue that houses Tharp’s offices and part of her archives is pure Tharp, perched at the top of a steep staircase.

Although it had been only a week since we met in her apartment, the weather had changed, and the day was cool. Tharp stood at the top of the stairs, coffee in hand, calling out encouragement. It was our last meeting, and she could smell freedom.

Earlier in the week, after an eight-hour rehearsal, she and I had dinner at Dock’s, a seafood restaurant on the Upper West Side (she ate steak), where we were eventually joined by her friend David Rosenthal, the publisher of Simon & Schuster, which published “The Creative Habit.” He was late, and between that, the sheer exhaustion of the day and my insistence on asking personal questions, her “Crucible” face kept reappearing.

“What are you going to wear to the opening?” I asked, trying for a lighthearted moment.

“I thought I’d wear work clothes to the opening,” she said, “because it’s the work that brought me there.”

Rosenthal arrived, and it became quickly apparent that he was well versed in Tharp’s perfectionism. “Twyla ripped up ‘The Creative Habit’ four times,” he said. “But any time you make a better book, you make a better book.”

So, their friendship is mostly centered on publishing? No deep personal conversations?

Tharp scowled. “I don’t have deep personal,” she said. “I have work.”

Rosenthal knows which side his books are buttered on. “What is ‘deep personal’?” he mused. “I think it’s like hemorrhoids.”

In the Tharp offices, Huot was joined by Ginger Montel, a veteran theater manager who worked on “Movin’ Out.” In the last three years, they refined the licensing operation for Tharp’s work, keeping an inventory of teaching and performance tapes of 132 dances. They provide the tapes, along with former Tharp dancers, to dance companies to teach the correct way to perform the pieces. They have also arranged a system for all-inclusive fees so that companies don’t need to negotiate with each ballet’s designer and composer separately. So far, they’ve licensed 19 pieces to 39 companies.

“It’s all about preserving the work in its entirety,” Huot said, “as it was seen originally. The more we get it embedded in the community, the more sure we can be that it will be danced in the future.” Amid the computers and the boxes of videotapes that fill the apartment, Montel showed me a map of America on one wall, color-coded with pushpins that indicate who is licensed to perform Tharp’s dances and where.

Does Tharp go to see the work herself? She shook her head. “I can’t park myself in the past yet,” she said. She stood, coffee cup in hand.

“Do you want more, or are you done?” Huot asked. She grunted. It sounded as if she was done. He returned with more. “Thanks,” she said.

Huot sat at one of the computers and played footage of Baryshnikov in rehearsal.

“What’s that?” Tharp asked shortly.

“This is the one where he can’t do what you do,” Huot said, his tone gently teasing. “It’s your favorite thing in the world, which is why I kept it for you.” On the tape, Baryshnikov held a cigarette, shirtless, as Tharp demonstrated the steps. Hers were vivid, crisp. His were blurry, indistinct. Impatiently, she showed him again. He turned away.

“That’s right, go pout,” Tharp said mockingly to the screen. The next shots were of him in performance, his steps breathtaking. “Yeah, he got it,” Tharp said.

Huot showed some more footage. “Forward, forward, forward,” she commanded him. He looked at her half-questioningly, half-warningly, like a parent at a misbehaving child. When I told her at Dock’s that it sounded as if Jesse nurtured her like a parent, she became furious. “He’s not my parent, he’s my friend,” she snapped.

We took a break, and Huot and I sat down to talk. “I would say the bottom line of why I am here is that I went to boarding school in sixth grade and didn’t see my mom,” he said. “My fundamental motivation in working with her was a chance to get to know her better.”

He’s certainly become an expert on the subject. As I vented my frustration at her unwillingness to address anything personal, he nodded calmly. “I can see where you’re coming from,” he said, “but she thinks of those things as more trivial than her work. She feels her work is her commitment in life, and it is. She’s removed from what people do day to day.” He thought a moment. “You know how in an old couple, one dies and the next dies shortly thereafter?” he said. “When Twyla can’t work, she’ll probably die. That’s how serious her relationship to work is.

“I think that’s just a component of artists,” he went on. “She’s in her own world. People whom Mom has been friends with, who have succeeded in the arts, have this, I’ll say it, selfish relationship with their work. As my relationship with her has been challenged by her commitment to her work, I can only imagine how it affected someone involved with her in an intimate relationship.” (Huot recently moved in with his girlfriend and seemed quite happy about it. Tharp did, too.)

“Part of what I do,” Huot continued, “is always think: What is going to facilitate growth for her? Another show, a dance, writing a book? It’s a matter of being in touch with her and keeping her productive. And you know, we’re cool with each other. Very open. If I died today, I’d feel like I dealt with everything. I’ve laid everything on the table. I mean, I certainly can watch ‘In the Upper Room’ and get emotional about how bad it was in my life at that time. But the end result is I am proud of her and proud of the work.”

Has he been in therapy? He flashed a wide smile. “Sure,” he said.

The four of us sat back down at the computer, and Huot played a tape of “Eight Jelly Rolls” (1971), which shows Tharp in clown mode, all floppy spine and flailing arms. It’s her inventiveness, the freshness of her ideas, that astonishes every time. At Dock’s she talked about making a dance. “I get a strange distant sense of something, and it’s misty out there,” she said. “There’s a hanging shard of a concept, and I flesh it out and learn from it and have another one. That’s an adventure.”

Then Huot played “Sue’s Leg” (1975), and you could see the polish and nuance that come with experience. Still, there was nothing contained about it. Tharp soared, as if her pure exhilaration in movement exempted her from landing. Her cap of hair, then thick and dark, rose and fell in a dance of its own. It was a performance primal in its joy, stunning in intensity.

I felt the stillness behind me, where Tharp was watching. Her arms were crossed in front, and she held herself, the ache and the anger in equal parts on her face. But when she caught me watching her, she straightened, and her tone was brusque.

“You can see we miss dancing, you can see we like dancing, you can see we were a brave dancer,” she said. Then she jumped off her stool and walked away.

Alex Witchel is a staff writer for the magazine.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/22/magazine/22twyla.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

(y) (y) (y) (l) (l) (l) (h) (h) (h)

(k) 's,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer Pup (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 04:53 PM

(y) (y) (y)

http://www.tokyofiesta.com/

http://www.tourism.metro.tokyo.jp/

(y) (y) (y)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 04:59 PM

(h) (h) (h) (h) (h)

Gorgeous slide show:

http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2006/10/22/travel/20061022_WHY_slideshow_1.html

(l) (l) (l) I need to live here with Wyatt.The first slide shows a womyn with her pet dog and they travel together all over Europe. She's right about people walking their pets and even having tea or coffee at an outside cafe - with their pets lying down nicely beside them.
:| :| Actually prayed for an opportunity to present itself for both of us to move to Europe last night.

Seriously.

:)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 05:00 PM

(y) (y) (y) (y) (y)

October 22, 2006

Cultured Traveler

D.H. Lawrence’s New Mexico: The Ghosts That Grip the Soul of Bohemian Taos

By HENRY SHUKMAN

ONE winter as an undergraduate at Cambridge I rented a room in the home of a bibliophile, where towers of books that wouldn’t fit on the shelves would tremble when I shut the door. In idle moments I’d browse the spines, and one evening I happened to pluck out a slim old hardcover, something by D. H. Lawrence I didn’t know. I opened at random.

“In a cold like this, the stars snap like distant coyotes, beyond the moon,” I read. “And you’ll see the shadows of actual coyotes, going across the alfalfa field. And the pine-trees make little noises, sudden and stealthy, as if they were walking about. And the place heaves with ghosts. But when one has got used to one’s own home-ghosts, be they never so many, they are like one’s own family, but nearer than the blood. It is the ghosts one misses most, the ghosts there, of the Rocky Mountains. ...because it is cold, I should have moonshine ...”

Lawrence’s prose at full throttle: Lawrence the poet as much as the novelist. But what was this place he was talking about? I read on, and discovered that it was his ranch in Taos, N.M. The book was “Mornings in Mexico.”

Something happened. The print seemed to rise a quarter of an inch off the page. The ink glistened. Outside my window it was raining. Bare branches dripped under a thick overcast sky. What was I doing here in dismal, rainy England, perennially late with my essays? There were other places, with mountains stretching their backs under a cloudless sky, and coyotes and pines and eagles no doubt, and moonshine to be drunk. One day, I told myself.

That day came eight years later, when a trusting editor sent me to New Mexico to write about Lawrence. I’ve been returning ever since, and now I live there.

THERE’S something about the first glimpse of the Taos Mesa as you travel north from Santa Fe, up the narrow canyon of the Rio Grande past Embudo. A series of long, sweeping bends brings you over a brow, and suddenly the view ahead opens out onto empty, bare land, with a smoky gorge cut into it like the Great Rift Valley of Africa. Ten miles off stands a bulk of dark, brooding mountains. One of the biggest, bald Taos Mountain, sits bolted to the plain like a remonstrance. At its foot the town of Taos spreads like litter glinting in the sun.

It would be impossible to live at the foot of that mountain for a thousand years, as the Indians of the Taos Pueblo have done, and not come to think of it as sentient — the Kong of northern New Mexico. This was, in a sense, why the painters who “colonized” the area in the early 1900’s came. As one of them, Maynard Dixon, put it: “You can’t argue with those desert mountains — and if you live among them enough — like the Indian does — you don’t want to. They have something for us much more real than some imported art style.”

This was the creed of the American modernists who clustered in Taos in the early decades of the last century: Taos would be a fount of a new Americanism in art, an ever-flowing alternative to Europe. But Taos also had its appeal for Europeans. Lawrence, Aldous Huxley, Carl Jung and Leopold Stokowski were only a few of the European artists and thinkers who found their way there. The reason they went was because of one pioneering American woman.

It was from the foot of Taos mountain that Mabel Dodge Luhan — heiress, patroness, columnist, early proponent (and victim) of psychoanalysis, memoirist and hostess — planned the rebirth of Western civilization. She moved to Taos from the East Coast in 1917 and fell in love not only with the place but also with Tony Lujan (later anglicized to Luhan), a chief in the nearby pueblo. She promptly left her second husband, married Tony and expanded a house on the edge of town, turning it into an adobe fantasy castle (what Dennis Hopper, who owned it in the 1970’s, would later call the Mud Palace), and began to invite scores of cultural luminaries. The idea was to expose them to the Indian culture she believed held the cure for anomic, dissociated modern humanity. After dinner, drummers and dancers from the pueblo would entertain the household.

Today her house is a museum, guesthouse and literary shrine all in one. For anyone on the trail of Lawrence, it’s the first of three essential ports of call. As I make my way up the groaning narrow stairs, the sense not just of history but of peace hits me: no TVs, no telephones. Instead, the deep quiet of an old, applianceless home. There are a bathroom with windows that Lawrence painted in colorful geometric and animal designs in 1922 to protect Mabel Luhan’s modesty, and floorboards across which Ansel Adams, Alfred Stieglitz, Georgia O’Keeffe and Thomas Wolfe creaked. (In fact Wolfe stayed only one night. He arrived late and drunk, decided he didn’t like it and fled the next morning.)

With its kiva fireplaces and gleaming cabinets of books, the Mabel Dodge Luhan House is a strange mix of adobe curvaceousness and a country house fit for an Agatha Christie mystery. Behind it, sage scrub sweeps up to the hills. Before, a rough-hewed colonnade gives onto a courtyard of uneven flagstones. At each corner of the main building giant adobe buttresses keep the walls up, as if they might otherwise slump like wet sand.

I’ve been a few times, and it’s a fascinating place to stay, with all the rooms eccentrically different. My favorite is Luhan’s solarium at the top of the house, a glassed-in room where in spring you can watch blizzards of fluffy seeds float among cottonwoods and birches gauzy with new leaf. Through the trees to the north, the blue massif of Taos Mountain looms.

Luhan particularly set her sights on Lawrence, seeing in him her ideal spokesman. She pleaded with famous friends to intercede and even sent Lawrence’s wife, Frieda, a necklace steeped in irresistible Indian magic. Her schemes worked, and Lawrence arrived in 1922. But relations between Luhan and the Lawrences soon soured, and she packed them off to a ranch she owned in the mountains 17 miles north of Taos.

The last time I was at the Lawrence ranch, just after Christmas, snow lay on the ground, the roofs were crisp with a frozen bed of it and long gray icicles hung from the gutters like beards on old-time Russian mystics. The bottoms of the clouds drifted through the big ponderosas. My mother was with me, visiting from England, and was overawed to be standing in the home of her early-adulthood hero. Why did he ever leave, she kept musing aloud, as we peered through the windows into the locked cabin. Behind us an ancient ponderosa stirred and let down a shiver of crystalline snow that glittered in the high air.

Lawrence was here three times from 1922 to 1925 and spent only 11 months in total in New Mexico. But the ranch was the only home he ever owned. With her undaunted generosity, Luhan gave it to him. The Lawrences, however, didn’t like feeling indebted, and in return they gave her the manuscript of his novel “Sons and Lovers.” It was a move they would regret when they discovered that as much as they loved the ranch, it was worth $1,000, whereas the manuscript might have fetched $50,000.

The ranch seems to have less to do with the Southwest of the Indian that Lawrence was looking for than with that of the cowboy. Three old log cabins with dark planks, low roofs and rough board doors have the look of the haven of one of those cantankerous old white mountain-men in a Western. And, in fact, there is a rather cantankerous, though extremely helpful, old man who looks after the place — so independent-minded he preferred to go unnamed.

Under a spitting rain on this afternoon, he is not in evidence at first but soon emerges in a reluctantly friendly mood.

“Just ’tween us,” he begins, “I don’t think much of Lawrence.” Not a great opening. But he turns out to be not only salt of the earth, but also a mine of information, ambling up from his office to show me around the cabins.

“Back in the old days, people used every part of an animal they killed. This used to be a blood floor,” he explains, speaking of the three-room cabin the Lawrences lived in. Apparently cow’s blood was mixed with adobe to make a smooth, slick floor. “Wood was too expensive.”

The blood has gone, replaced by boards. But outside there’s a painting of a buffalo that’s fading on the cracked adobe wall. It was painted by Trinidad Archuleta, an Indian from the Taos Pueblo, who signed his name “TRNRDOD.”

“I sure as hell wouldn’t have got along with him,” the old man says of Lawrence. “Woman-beater. Frieda knew him for what he was. She was a mother to him.”

And it seems this man knew not only Frieda Lawrence, but Luhan and Dorothy Brett, too, an English aristocrat and painter who doggedly followed Lawrence around the world. “Yes,” he says, “I was friendly with all the three women.”

Next door to the Lawrences’ house is a cabin maybe eight foot square, with nothing but a bed, a table and a small stove. Here Lady Brett spent her days and even stayed on after Lawrence had gone — until her death in 1977. Hard of hearing and permanently armed with a long ear-trumpet, she had probably fallen in love with Lawrence and followed him to New Mexico after a disastrous affair with the writer and editor John Middleton Murry, whose wife, the writer Katherine Mansfield, had died only three months before. (The gossip of one time becomes the literary history of the next.)

Lawrence had his own reasons for coming to New Mexico. For years he had dreamed of founding a utopian community, to be called Rananim, and hoped to do it there. He was also a consumptive, and what he called his “savage pilgrimage,” his worldwide search for a civilization answering to humanity’s spiritual needs, was in part a search for a good climate. New Mexico, unlike Texas and California, welcomed tuberculosis sufferers. High, dry, clean air — just what the doctor ordered. With Lady Brett next door, and Lawrence and Frieda in the main cabin, this was as close as Rananim ever came to reality: three Europeans flung up a mountain north of Taos.

Here Lawrence not only wrote under a lofty pine later immortalized by O’Keeffe in “The Lawrence Tree,” he also began to dabble in painting himself, signing his canvases “Lorenzo.” Today, there are nine Lawrence oils that hang in La Fonda Hotel on Taos plaza. They were exhibited in London in 1929, but the show was closed at once on grounds of obscenity (a move prompted mostly by Lawrence’s notoriety as the author of “Lady Chatterley’s Lover”; the paintings are tame), and the pictures were condemned to be destroyed. Lawrence promised to whisk them away from British soil, and they were spared. After Lawrence died, Frieda Lawrence continued to live in New Mexico, and the paintings wound up in the hands of Saki Karavas, the longtime owner of La Fonda, who died in 1998.

I met Mr. Karavas on my first visit to New Mexico. Clad typically in a silk robe and with a cheroot in hand, he struck a cultivated figure and rarely rose before noon. He kept the pictures in his office, a small cluttered room behind the reception desk.

The leering faces, the swaths of muddily painted human flesh and the rather awkward postures of the figures — something like Gauguin on a very bad day — didn’t make for the best décor, but Mr. Karavas had high hopes for them. One day, either a museum would offer some staggering sum or the British government would acquiesce to his long-cherished dream of returning the Lawrence oils to England in exchange for Britain’s return of the Elgin Marbles, taken from the Parthenon in 1806, to Mr. Karavas’s native Greece. He had letters of response to his offer from various British prime ministers framed on the walls: “The P.M. Mrs. Thatcher regrets that the quid pro quo you suggest is not acceptable. ...”

Lawrence died in Provence in 1930, and five years later Frieda Lawrence arranged for his ashes to be shipped to Taos, where she was building a mausoleum at the ranch. It seems she and Mabel Dodge Luhan had divergent plans for his ashes. Luhan thought Lawrence would have wanted them scattered, while his wife, who died in Taos in 1956, intended them for the shrine. To end the debate, she is said to have tipped the urn into a batch of fresh cement, ensuring that the remains wound up in her memorial.

According to some locals, Frieda Lawrence then declared of Lady Brett and Luhan: “Now let’s see them steal him.”

In many ways Luhan’s message to the world worked. She put Taos, where she died in 1962, on the map as one of the pre-eminent centers of American modernism. It is astounding that such a small, formerly obscure place should have drawn such major figures of 20th-century art, and even European royalty, including Prince Peter of Greece in the 1950’s. Meanwhile psychoanalysis spread, as she wished. And under Mr. Hopper’s stewardship in the 1970’s, the old house continued to be host to a glowing countercultural guest list, including Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen.

There is something slightly off about declaring love for a land not your own, the kind of thing Edwardian aesthetes went in for. But there are some places — Provence and Venice, for example — that exert a power over the imagination that is a kind of love and seems available to people from anywhere, even rainy Britain. Northern New Mexico is one such place.

When British friends ask me why I’m living in New Mexico, I can’t answer without reference to Lawrence. He may have gone out of fashion, but he opened the way not just in literature, but in geography, too. Many Europeans have followed him. Sometimes it feels as if he made Taos’s corner of the world a little corner of Europe. He may have been incurably restless, but I can understand my mother’s bewilderment at why he ever left. As Lawrence put it: “It is the ghosts one misses most, the ghosts there, of the Rocky Mountains, that never go beyond the timber. I know them, they know me: we go well together.”

VISITOR INFORMATION

WHERE TO STAY

The Mabel Dodge Luhan House (240 Morada Lane, Taos; 800-846-2235; www.mabeldodgeluhan.com) operates as a bed-and-breakfast year-round. There are no TV’s or telephones, some rooms have shared bathrooms, and there are some steep narrow stairs in the main house. Accommodations in the annex are more modern. Wherever you stay, you can feast at the incredible breakfast buffet in the old dining room. Rates are $95 to $220.

La Fonda Hotel (on the plaza in Taos, 800-833-2211; www.lafondataos.com) has some furniture originally painted by D. H.Lawrence, and his oil paintings are here. Rates are $159 to $229.

WHERE TO EAT AND DRINK

Joseph’s Table (505-751-4512, www.josephstable.com) moved from its hole-in-the-wall premises a few miles down the highway to downstairs in La Fonda a few years ago. Its reputation as one of the best Southwestern restaurants has only been amplified since the move. Dinner for two could easily set you back $100, not including wine or tip. Unmissable.

A favorite is Taos Pizza Out Back (712 North Pueblo Road, 505-758-3112; http://marketplace.taosnews.com), a scruffy, intimate, charming place just north of downtown, with imaginative pizzas and superb soups at very reasonable prices.

WHAT TO READ

The indispensable reading on Lawrence and Mabel Dodge Luhan in New Mexico is Lois P. Rudnick’s scholarly but readable “Utopian Vistas: The Mabel Dodge Luhan House and the American Counterculture.” Otherwise, there’s Luhan’s “Edge of Taos Desert: An Escape to Reality” and Lawrence’s “Mornings in Mexico,” which covers both old Mexico and the Southwest in general.

http://travel2.nytimes.com/2006/10/22/travel/22culture.html?ref=travel

(y) (y) (y) Oh yes, this one's definitely a keeper!

Adieu,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer Pup (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 05:02 PM

:o :o

October 22, 2006

Journeys

An Epicurean Pilgrimage: Meals Worth the Price of a Plane Ticket

By R. W. APPLE Jr.

Editor’s Note: R. W. Apple filed this article shortly before his death on Oct. 4. Originally assigned to be part of a special issue on travel and food, it reflects a lifetime of experiences of a man who once referred to himself, when interviewed by Calvin Trillin for The New Yorker, as “more gourmand than gourmet,” one who took equal pleasure in Michelin-starred restaurants and the street food of Singapore.

AFTER half a century of assiduous eating in restaurants around the world, first avocationally and more recently professionally, I have become accustomed to certain questions: “What’s your favorite restaurant?” “What will you order for your last meal on earth?” “Which is best — French cuisine? Italian? Chinese?” All unanswerable, of course. Now comes a more modest proposition: Name 10 restaurants abroad that would be worth boarding a plane to visit, even in these fraught days.

O.K. Here’s my list. Please note, this is neither an enumeration of my favorites (though some of those are included) nor a ranking of the world’s best (like those fatuous lists put out each year by Restaurant magazine in London). Rather than reciting a long list of two- and three-star gastronomic temples, I have chosen purlieus both grand and small, better to reflect my own eating habits. And rather than loading up my list with French and Italian addresses, I have arbitrarily restricted my choices to one per country, for much the same reason. I would expect no one else to choose the same 10, but on the other hand, I would be astonished if many of my nominations disappointed.

FLEURIE, FRANCE Auberge du Cep, Place de l’Église; (33-4) 7404-1077; perso.orange.fr/mercurebeaujolais/cep.htm.

French country cooking — or bistro cooking, as its urban variant is called — deserves, but is not often accorded, a place among the world’s culinary glories beside French haute cuisine. Based on regional products, honestly handled, “unfoamed and unfused” in the words of my friend Colman Andrews, late of Saveur magazine, it is the specialty of this small restaurant on the main square of a prettily named village in Beaujolais. It is a specialty unflinchingly embraced by its proprietor, Chantal Chagny, who five years ago banished lobster and truffles from her menu and turned her back on two Michelin stars in favor of the simpler dishes she adores, like herb-crusted, perfectly fried, never-frozen frogs’ legs, crisp-edged sweetbreads, soup made of garden herbs, roast wild duck from a local river and rosy tenderloin of regional Charolais beef, France’s best.

Love and skill are lavished on the simplest dishes — tiny, tender lamb chops, neglected freshwater fish like perch and pike-perch (sander), eggs poached in red wine (oeufs en meurette), toothsome squab, black currant sorbet, even snails — great fat ones, bubbling happily in their shells, bathed in garlic, parsley, butter and Pernod. Here is the food most of us travel to France to taste, and who can resist it once tasted? Here, too, are the little regional wines we search for — especially Beaujolais, 60 of them, including 30 from Fleurie itself, one of the 10 designated crus known for excellence.

SANT’AGATA SUI DUE GOLFI, ITALY Don Alfonso 1890, corso Sant’Agata 11; (39-081) 878-0026; www.donalfonso.com.

Americans of my vintage (b. 1934), weaned on the red-tablecloth food of the Italian south, were later taught that it was uncool, compared with the blander specialties of Milan and Venice. But we were also taught that in Italian cooking, the quality of ingredients is everything, and it is the south — the Mezzogiorno — that produces the juiciest fruits, the briniest clams and tuna, the best buffalo-milk mozzarella cheese, and the world’s most sumptuous tomatoes, known as San Marzanos and raised near Mount Vesuvius, just south of Naples.

Alfonso and Livia Iaccarino (she of the zippy white patent-leather boots) grow herbs, lemons and peaches, artichokes and eggplants and, of course, prize tomatoes, plus the olives for their own tangy, fruity oil, in a sun-kissed garden facing the Isle of Capri near their restaurant on the Sorrento peninsula. In their lovely pastel dining room, they serve fresh, understated, unmistakably Italian food in great profusion — ravioli with caciotta (a sheep’s milk cheese), wild marjoram, barely heated chopped tomatoes and basil; rolls of baby sirloin filled with raisins, pine nuts, parsley and garlic, atop a ragout of wild endive; rabbit simply but exquisitely grilled with herbs; squid and baby octopus of a very high caliber. The tufa cellar, first excavated by the Etruscans, is stocked with wines from all around the world.

SAN SEBASTIÁN, SPAIN Arzak, Avenida Alcalde Jose Elosegui, 273; (34-943) 27-8465; www.arzak.es.

I’ll take a pass here on El Bulli; for one thing, you don’t need me to tell you about it, and for another, Arzak is more to my taste. It is nicely poised between an older, French-inspired style of innovation, as represented by Juan Mari Arzak, who trained in the nouvelle cuisine kitchen of the Troisgros brothers in Roanne (where I myself spent a few happy days long ago), and the new wave of ground-breaking Spanish cooking, as exemplified by Ferran Adrià and his disciples, including Mr. Arzak’s daughter, Elena.

The result is an enriched, reinvigorated Basque cuisine that retains a sense of tradition and place. One fine Easter day, my wife, Betsey, and I ate our Paschal lamb — a custom throughout Christendom, and especially among the sheep-herding Basques — at the Arzaks’ 110-year-old roadside tavern, rated three stars in the Michelin guide. Rather than run-of-the-mill gigot, however, a faintly gamy deboned chop came to the table wearing a tissuelike coffee-flavored “veil” — a taste-enhancing shroud made by baking a layer of café con leche between sheets of Silpat pan liner. With the pan juices poured over the meat, partly melting the “veil,” you get a sauce remarkably reminiscent of American red-eye gravy.

Arzak’s food is modern and entertaining like that, often witty, never overwrought, limited largely to local ingredients — white tuna, fresh figs, fino sherry. Or a hyperfresh egg, seasoned with house-made truffle oil, wrapped in plastic film, poached and served with a slim txistorra sausage made not just with the traditional paprika but with dates as well. The egg emerged looking a little like a flower, and cutting into the ravishingly milky white revealed a richly orange yolk. Magic.

BRUSSELS Comme Chez Soi, Place Rouppe 23; (32-2) 512-2921; www.commechezsoi.be.

I’m an unapologetic classicist, no particular fan of foams and chemical legerdemain in the kitchen (although I have maintained a fondness for the then-revolutionary cuisine of Haeberlin, Bocuse and Guérard since encountering it for the first time in the 1960’s). I can still find refined food that tastes like what it is, to quote Curnonsky’s maxim, at Paris three-stars like Taillevent, but no place there or elsewhere excels Comme Chez Soi in this genre — and at Comme Chez Soi you dine in a superb décor of warm, tawny wood in the style of the great Belgian practitioner of Art Nouveau, Victor Horta. Nor is price a minor matter: a set-price meal is served at lunch and dinner, for 67 euros (about $85, at $1.30 to the euro), no snip but a real bargain in these days of watery dollars.

There is originality, even alchemy, in Pierre Wynants’s sole stuffed with crab, which comes to the table with shrimp in a tarragon sauce, but there is no trickery. Betsey and I feasted years ago on a saddle of lamb that was merely perfect, a triumph of technique.

Even on the small menu, generous to a fault, there is no dearth of imagination or regional and international inspiration; on one recent visit, it included a shimmering green pea soup with oxtail and Chimay beer, filets of eel with Espelette peppers from the Basque country, chicken with turmeric and apple chutney and the silkiest, most delicate floating island of my life, better even than my sainted grandmother’s.

LONDON Wilton’s, 55 Jermyn Street, SW1; (44-207) 629-9955; www.wiltons.co.uk.

Clubbish in location, in looks and for the most part clubbish in clientele, wonderful Wilton’s in fact affords a cheerful, courteous welcome to all who show up in properly sober clothes, ready to pay the sobering prices. The best English food (as opposed to the best food in England, which is so grandly cosmopolitan these days) is still that which has been least messed about with. That is just what Wilton’s delivers. “Noted since 1742 for the finest oysters, fish and game,” it says of itself, with every justification.

You might start with a half-dozen oysters. They will set you back a pretty penny, but then they are imposing creatures, five inches across, pale beige rather than silver-gray, in shells as flat as saucers. They come from West Mersea, on an island off the Essex coast, from beds that are harvested exclusively from rowboats, lest oil or gasoline pollute the waters. They are opened by London’s best oysterman, Patrick Flaherty, a 40-year veteran when I last checked. None of the briny juices escape. No nasty bits of shell creep in. Then maybe a wild salmon from the Spey in Scotland (increasingly rare), or a snowy hunk of halibut — “a nice piece of fish,” as I once heard Rex Harrison call it.

But whole Dover sole is the overwhelming choice of English connoisseurs: brushed with melted butter, sprinkled with salt and pepper, turned quickly on the grill so that the grill bars burn a dark lattice pattern into the fish, then cooked under the intense heat of the broiler for roughly 12 to 15 minutes. Perfectly simple, simply perfect and entirely sufficient. This is the porterhouse steak of fish. No sauce is needed, partly because cooking the fish whole (“on the bone”) helps to keep it moist. You may well come across an occasional apostate who insists upon tartar sauce (much too robust, in my view) or hollandaise (too rich). In game season, both partridge and grouse are exemplary.

GOTHENBURG, SWEDEN Sjomagasinet, Klippans Kulturreservat 5; (46-31) 775-5920; www.sjomagasinet.se.

I envy the Swedes their social conscience, their gift for design and urban planning and their fish. Especially their fish. And among their fish — sole, cod, plaice, scallops, langoustines — especially their unmatched herring. Leif Mannerstrom, who owns and cooks at this charming former warehouse of the Swedish East India Company, built on the waterfront in 1775, is so widely admired for his knowledge of things piscatorial that he is pictured on a national postage stamp, and more than 10,000 people come from all over Scandinavia each year for his Christmas-season feast of 16 herrings.

Matjes, pickled, fried or bathed in mustard-and-dill-sauce — the richly flavored herring — is, of course, available all year long at Sjomagasinet, to be devoured with well-aged, Cheddar-ish Vasterbotten cheese, with or without cumin, and icy draughts of O. P. Anderson, Gothenburg’s favorite aquavit. And all year long, Mr. Mannerstrom turns out a definitive version of Janssons Frestelse, or Jansson’s Temptation, a confection of scalloped potatoes, onions and herrings cured in the style of anchovies, which I find an inspired combination of salty and creamy flavors.

BUENOS AIRES Avenida Cabaña las Lilas, Alicia Moreau de Justo 516; (54-11) 4313-1336; www.laslilas.com.

I can hear you sputtering from here. What? Fly all night to Argentina to eat in a parilla when every big city in the United States boasts steakhouses promising (some even delivering) prime U.S.D.A. beef? Well, this is grass-fed beef, raised on the vast ocean of chlorophyll called the Pampas. It’s different. Some, including me, would say better, with a rounder flavor, leaner texture and sweeter fat. You eat in a handsome wood-and-leather room in the redeveloped Puerto Madero docklands area, and drink from a wine-wall stocked with fine Mendoza reds like those of Nicolas Catena.

Octavio Caraballo, the owner, supplies all the beef from his own ranch, or estancia. We flew there with him — big guy, bigger cigar, even at 8 in the morning — on his private plane, admired the spread and ate beef (what else?) for lunch. The selection was bigger at dinner back in town, with medallón de lomo (tenderloin) and cuadril (rump) and ojo de bife (rib-eye) covering every inch of the big grills. Little “bombon” sausages and sweetbreads, too.

Warning: They will ply you with so many delicious breads, so many salads and such superb cheese and olives and peppers, that you might not be able to do justice to the beef. Which would be tragic.

SHANGHAI Jean-Georges, 3 Zhongshan Dong Yi Lu 1; (86-21) 6321-7733; www.jean-georges.com.

I have lived in Asia and eaten more than my share of Chinese food, Lord knows, but I remain a man of the West, not the East, and I still find the Chinese passion for “gristly, slithery and squelchy textures,” as the English writer Fuchsia Dunlop calls them, hard to cope with. Delicacies like sea cucumber and bird’s nest have little taste, Asian friends tell me, but great “kou gan,” or mouth feel, which escapes me.

Hence I tread lightly here. I would happily fly to Shanghai to eat the seraphic — yes, seraphic — soup dumplings at Nan Xiang, or the snails with chopped, spiced pork at tiny Chun. But I would be more likely to go to Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s glamorous place on the Bund, the best of all his places, in my view, where the food is a little Eastern, a little Western.

A year ago, as I reported in the Travel section, Betsey and I ate a nearly flawless meal there. A single Kumamoto oyster wreathed in Champagne jelly was followed by raw tuna brightened by Thai chili paste. Then cubed raw kingfish with Taiwanese mangoes and chili-lemon granita was utterly irresistible — peppery, sweet and acidic, yellow and orange and red, all at once. A second trio, equally satisfying, comprised crab dumplings with black pepper oil and tiny local peas; seared sweet scallops from Dalian, nestling with clams in a tomato jus; and superbly fresh snapper with crunchy cucumber strips. Vaut le voyage, as Michelin would have it.

MUMBAI, INDIA Trishna, Birla Mansion, Sai Baba Marg, Fort; (91-22) 2270-3213.

This, I think, is the only truly remarkable restaurant I have ever discovered solely on the recommendation of a friend of a friend. Dubious, Betsey and I made our way there one night years ago and liked it so much that we went back 72 hours later. It was not the décor, which is shabby, or the service, which can be surly, and certainly not the menu, which is very nearly useless. It’s the food, stupid, the seafood.

Enormous king crabs fresh from the Indian Ocean, awash in butter, and seasoned with garlic and pepper until they make the lips tingle but not sting, draw an eager crowd of Mumbai businessmen and Bollywood stars to this little establishment on a crowded, noisy alley in the old Fort district. If you like, your crab will be brought to the table before cooking, still alive and dangling from a string held by a waiter.

These are among the world’s choicest crustaceans, and I say that as someone who lives 25 miles from the Chesapeake. But Ravi Anchan has plenty of other savory delights up his sleeve, including tender little pomfret (a kind of butterfish) barbecued in the style of Hyderabad, with black pepper; deep-fried squid; and gorgeous, never-frozen tiger prawns grilled with mint. Don’t mind the waiters; insist and they will bring what you want.

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA Billy Kwong, 3/355 Crown Street, Surry Hills; (61-2) 9322-3300.

Among Sydney chefs, Tetsuya Wakuda, with his confit of Tasmanian ocean trout, and Neil Perry of Rockpool, with his mud crabs, get most of the international ink, and rightly so; they are as gifted as any of their counterparts in Europe or America. But I would head from my Qantas jet for Billy Kwong, my favorite neighborhood restaurant (whose neighborhood, unfortunately, is exactly 9,758 miles from mine). This is the trim, dark, bustling domain of Kylie Kwong, a 36-year-old wunderkind whose mile-wide smile and black-framed glasses are as well known Down Under as is Jacques Pépin’s cherubic face Up Here.

Her food is delicious, and her place gives off none of those Chinese-speakers-only vibes that plague us Anglophones; Ms. Kwong, Australian-born, speaks no Chinese herself. So order to your heart’s content, in English, and flail away as the plates arrive, rat-a-tat: prawn wontons, little flavor bombs bursting with the tastes of shellfish, black vinegar and chili oil; star-anise-flavored tofu and black cloud-ear fungus, with Thai and Vietnamese herbs; chive crepes with smoky caramelized eggplant salad; steamed line-caught blue-eyed cod with ginger and shallots; spectacularly crisp-skinned duck with a sauce made from ruby grapefruit; and sung choi bao — wok-fried mouthfuls of moist, gingery pork and vegetables, wrapped in crisp lettuce leaves. The inspiration is Cantonese, absorbed by Kylie at her mother’s table, but the execution is all her own.

I have shortchanged Turkey, Thailand and Japan. I know, and I apologize. Put it down to limited space and inadequate depth of knowledge. There should be enough here to hold you — hopefully to set you soaring — for a few weeks or months, or even years.

http://travel2.nytimes.com/2006/10/22/travel/22apple.html?ref=travel

(y) (y) (y)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 05:03 PM

:| :| :| :|

I got an eight out of ten.

http://www.malevole.com/mv/misc/killerquiz/

:o :o

:)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 05:04 PM

:) :)

Scotland on Sunday Sun 22 Oct 2006

Who's the most stylish of them all?

Tracey Emin, artist

How do you define style?

Good style is someone that is very at ease, but more often it's a case of very bad style. I don't mean that in a postmodern way - a perfect example being very pointy high-heels with flared jeans. The only exception to this rule can be a radical rock chick. I find anything tight higher than my waistline is a physical crime. My biggest mistakes ever have been heels higher than four inches, minus platforms or anything restrictive.

Name your style icon

Eric Van Buren Wright, the menswear designer presently working on the collections for Cavalli. He's the chicest, coolest thing on two legs; Doctor Doolittle to the fashion world. A few years ago I was in Rome, in a restaurant called Bolognaise, very drunk and extremely happy, but at the same time in floods of tears. I was with my friend Johnny Shand Kydd, who said, "What on earth is wrong with you?" And as the tears rolled down my face, I cried out, "I want to look like Eric." To which Johnny replied, "Oh my God, there's going to be a lot of dyeing and stretching going on tonight then!"

What's more important, style or fashion?

Style, style, style. I am positively useless with fashion. It started when I was about six years old. I always secretly preferred my school uniform.

What's your favourite fashion era or item?

There are a number of things - Helmut Lang jeans, Westwood ballgowns, YSL classic jackets, Speedo swimming gloves (to be worn for swimming!), Adidas tracksuit bottoms, Samsonite fold-up bags, espadrilles, cowboy boots and trainers.

How would you describe your own style?

Mediterranean, lots of gold (well before the bling thing), mind-blowing cleavage, mix-and-match sharply tailored jackets with T-shirts and tracksuit bottoms, and - on special occasions - copious amounts of Westwood taffeta and a face that never stops moving, with very little make-up.
Rankin
photographer

How do you define style?

It's when someone is comfortable with themselves and what they are wearing. I never feel comfortable with what I'm wearing, so don't think that I'm very stylish. It is also when the design of something, like a hotel or a bar, feels natural and not forced.

Name your style icon

David Bailey. He's not someone who really cares about what he looks like, but he creates images that are so stylish. He also embodies an era, which is a pretty amazing thing to have done. The fact that he's still out there doing it and creating the same quality of work is incredible. That's iconic.

What's more important, style or fashion?

World hunger is much more important than either.

What's your favourite fashion era or item?

My favourite item has to be a pair of Costume National shoes, and my favourite era was the 1930s and 1940s. Hollywood stars then had an easiness to them, and even though their look was actually quite contrived, they managed to look as if they were doing it all without trying.

How would you describe your own style?

Very badly put together. I wear whatever the stylist gives me for a shoot, or whatever I get for free.
Jonathan Saunders
fashion designer

How do you define style?

Combining an eye for quality and craftsmanship in clothing with putting them together in a personal way - so that the individual wears the clothes, and not the other way round.

Name your style icon

Peggy Guggenheim.

What's more important, style or fashion?

They are very different. Style is a character trait; fashion is an industry. I would say being stylish is more important. Seasonal fashion has to be interpreted by the individual. It is not great to wear a complete look from a show.

What's your favourite fashion era or item?

It has to be the 1920s. There was a massive shift across all design fields, challenging what was considered beautiful. The era also embraced changes in technology, and was when the concept of ready-to-wear was developed.

How would you describe your own style?

Simple, neutral and inoffensive - I hope!
Andrew Fairlie
chef

How do you define style?

The words that immediately spring to mind are distinctive, luxurious, elegant and chic, whether it is the beautiful lines of a Philippe Starck vase or the very distinctive look of Vivienne Westwood clothes. They may not be to everyone's taste, but there is no denying that they are both stylish.

I wouldn't necessarily deem someone to be stylish just because they were wearing expensive designer clothes. They know themselves well enough to take the odd risk, but the foundation of their personal look is there. They take influences from the experiences that shape them, and look good and comfortable in what they choose to wear because they are confident in their choice and in themselves.

Name your style icon

Paul Weller. There is no denying that he oozes style. From the slim-cut suits in his early days with The Jam to his urbane, cool and casual look today, that is 100% Weller.

What's more important, style or fashion?

I think of them as two completely

different concepts. A fashionable person will alter their style and be dictated to by a magazine, whereas a stylish person will use trends and adapt and integrate them into their own style. Fashion goes out of style, but style is timeless.

What's your favourite fashion item or era?

The era would have to be the mod look of the 1960s. I loved the comfortable, smart-casual look and the sharp Italian suits and shoes - and the music was pretty cool too. At the moment I love my Ebel watch. I love the design, and it looks good worn with both casual or smart dress.

How would you describe your own style?

I would have to say that it's classic. As I wear chef's whites most of the time, I don't possess a huge wardrobe. I was introduced to Louis Mendelssohn, a fantastic tailor, a couple of years ago, who now makes all my suits. I knew after he cut my first one that I couldn't go back to off-the-shelf ever again. I also buy casualwear from a pal in London. I'm fortunate that I can buy clothes from people who know my style.
Stuart Cosgrove
director, nations and regions, Channel 4 Television

How do you define style?

Style is the language of appearances. It can be anything from the length of the turn-ups to the internal tartan in a classic Harrington. It is detail, and no one should take it too seriously.

Name your style icon

The Soviet astronaut Yuri Gagarin. I have a photo of him in his space helmet, with CCCP emblazoned on his uniform. He is the forgotten style king of the 1960s.

What's more important, style or fashion?

Style - fashion is its industrial pal.

What's your favourite fashion era or item?

Probably the classic Crombie coat. I don't own one, but I always admire it on a passing gent.

How would you describe your own style?

Executive scruff - I wear urban outfits.
Claudia Croft fashion
features director, Sunday Times Style magazine

How do you define style?

Style is a way of doing things. It's about how you live your life. Everyone has their own style, but some people's way of doing things is more interesting than others.

Name your style icon

My fictional icon is Thackeray's uber-minx Becky Sharpe, from Vanity Fair. My real-life icon is Lindsay Lohan and her million-dollar shopping budget - what's not to admire?

What's more important, style or fashion?

Fashion always gets a bad press, but I don't think you can have style without a certain amount of fashion.

What's your favourite fashion era or item?

The 1920s and the 1960s because they looked so different from the eras that went before.

How would you describe your own style?

Messy.
Dylan Jones
editor, GQ

How do you define style?

Style is about doing your own thing and feeling happy in your skin; it's about looking good and feeling comfortable.

Name your style icon

When I was younger I was obsessed with David Bowie. I've also always appreciated the style of the great Tom Wolfe, the pre-eminent American journalist of the last 40 years and probably still the best-dressed man in New York.

What's more important, style or fashion?

Style is always more important than fashion, because fashions come and go. It's easier for women to look fashionable, but men can land on a look that can take them from puberty to old age.

What's your favourite fashion era or item?

Punk, London, 1977.

How would you describe your own style?

A show-off in a Savile Row suit. And M&S boxer shorts.

http://living.scotsman.com/people.cfm?id=1551132006

:) :)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 05:07 PM

:) :)

Scotland on Sunday Sun 22 Oct 2006

Walk of the week

NICK DRAINEY

Killicrankie, Perthshire

AUTUMN is the time to search out the brightest oranges and deepest reds on display in Scotland's woodlands. Some people lament the passing of summer and the prospect of winter, but this season offers an array of the most spectacular shows that nature has to offer.

Killiecrankie is a notable place to head for because of its dense woodland, above a dramatic gorge. It is also steeped in history: this is the place where in 1689 a Jacobite army defeated government forces. Legend says that a Redcoat made good his escape by jumping across the gorge now known as Soldier's Leap. While noting the historical significance, it is worth remembering that nearly 3,000 combatants lost their lives in the battle.

This walk takes you along the wooded gorge, over the River Garry and up along country lanes for fine views of the Pass of Killiecrankie and the surrounding countryside. It is a great area to look out for red squirrels.

DISTANCE: 3 miles.

HEIGHT CLIMBED: 350 ft.

TIME: 2 to 2 hours.

MAP: OS Landranger 43.

PARK: Drive north out of Pit- lochry and take the B8079 for about three miles. Park at the National Trust for Scotland visitor centre on the left.

WALK: Go up to the visitor centre and follow the walkway around it, then take a path heading downhill next to a National Trust sign for Pass of Killiecrankie. Go down some steps and across a small wooden footbridge before rising up to a bench with a view of the pass and the River Garry.

Descend more steps and walk left, following a sign for Soldier's Leap. At the foot of more steps, go right and walk round to a sign indicating the rock from where Donald MacBean is said to have leapt 18 feet across the river to escape the Jacobites.

Retrace your steps for about 20 yards and go right, to follow the river downstream, below a 19th- century viaduct carrying the railway between Edinburgh and Inverness. A little less than a mile further on, you reach a green bridge which passes high above the river, giving wonderful views along the gorge with its steeply- wooded sides.
Go left at the other end of the bridge, and at a fork in the path go right, up to steps leading to a car park next to Garry Bridge. Head across the car park and follow a path by the road before going right, up a minor road, into woodland, following a sign to Tenandry.

About half-a-mile along the lane, past Tenandry and its kirk, woods give way to fields with fine views over the Pass of Killiecrankie towards Ben Vrackie on your right and the woodland clinging to the rocks of Craig Fonvuick on your left.

The lane then drops to a junction with a slightly wider road, where you go right to reach another bridge over the River Garry. Cross this and another bridge, over the railway, to reach the village of Killiecrankie.

Turn right on to the main road, and on reaching the entrance to Killiecrankie House hotel, go right, down a track which leads to the path near Soldier's Leap. Take the first left to go back up the steps to the visitor centre and car park.

REFRESH: The visitor centre at the start of the walk offers a tea-shop. Otherwise, Killiecrankie House hotel has a restaurant and bar. Pitlochry is another option, close by.

WHILE YOU ARE IN THE AREA: The visitor centre itself features lots of information about the history of the area and the countryside.

Queen's View, overlooking Loch Tummel, is one of the most photographed spots in Scotland. Various explanations for its name are put forward, including a vista favoured by Mary Queen of Scots, Queen Victoria or Queen Isabella, wife of Robert the Bruce. It also has a visitor centre and cafe. Head south from the visitor centre at Killiecrankie, turn right over Garry Bridge and carry on along the B8019 for about four miles.

The burgh of Pitlochry offers a number of attractions, including a salmon ladder where you can watch the fish through windows, as they make their way along the river.

http://living.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=485&id=1562712006

(y) (y) (y) (h) (h) (h)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 05:10 PM

:) :)

The Scotsman Sat 21 Oct 2006

Time for reflection

WEBSITE OF THE WEEK

LEE RANDALL

www.humanclock.com

STRANGELY heart-warming, humanclock.com, celebrating its fifth birthday, displays a photograph of the current time that changes every minute of every day. It's not done with mirrors, but with 12,062 different pictures (and counting) representing time going by in some way, shape or form.

Thus the precise time is spelled out in human bodies, scribbled on cardboard signs or composed from olives. There are underwater pictures, high-altitude shots and fan tributes composed by the graves of such late greats as Jimi Hendrix.

Many of the pictures were taken by the site's founder (hence the preponderance of shots of Portland, Oregon), but we, the rabble, are encouraged to participate, too. The clock is accurate to within ten seconds or so if your computer's time zone is set correctly. If you don't like the default image, or are just curious, there's a menu of other minutes to choose from. You can also call up a cute window that lets you watch minutes ticking over while you do other stuff. It's fun. And beautiful. In a Family of Man kind of way.

http://living.scotsman.com/digital.cfm?id=1539782006

(y) (y) (y) (h) (h) (h)

:) :)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 05:11 PM

(h) (h) (h) (h)

Scotsman.com Sat 21 Oct 2006

The fall guy

ROGER COX

http://living.scotsman.com/outdoors.cfm?id=1545302006

THE Edinburgh Mountain Film festival always throws up tales of incredible sportspeople doing incredible things, but this year there’s one film in the programme that stands head and shoulders above the rest.

E11 tells the story of Scottish climber Dave MacLeod and his quest to conquer the hardest traditional climbing route in the world /no spamming of other sites/ Rhapsody on Dumbarton Rock. The film shows MacLeod taking fall after fall, sometimes plunging up to 70 feet before his safety rope snaps tight and slams him against the crags. Time and again, director Paul Diffey shows his subject swinging above the abyss, clutching another damaged part of his anatomy and screaming his head off with the pain and frustration of it all. It makes for uncomfortable viewing, and by the time he eventually makes it to the top you feel as if you’ve climbed the whole thing with him.

MacLeod first started working on his Rhapsody project in 2002, using a rope secured to the top of the rock to help him puzzle out all the different moves he would need to complete the climb. It took him until 2005 to master every section of the route, and it wasn’t until September of that year that he started trying to string everything together into one continuous ascent. E11 picks up the action here, and follows MacLeod through crushed calves, cut feet and sprained ankles to his final successful climb one sunny Sunday evening in April 2006.

With typical modesty, MacLeod assessed the route as “a tentative E11” once he had completed it. Up to that point, the highest grade of difficulty in traditional rock climbing was E10, but MacLeod had scaled enough E10s to know that this ascent was significantly harder. In accordance with climbing protocol, if anyone wants to downgrade Rhapsody they will have to climb it first, and so far no other climbers have been brave enough to take up the challenge.

MacLeod’s achievement has drawn praise from such climbing luminaries as Sir Chris Bonington and Joe Simpson (of Touching the Void fame), but the softly-spoken 28 year-old isn’t letting it go to his head:

“It’s really got nothing to do with how other people see what I’ve done so far”, he says. “I was just trying to find my own limits and extend them. I’m always trying to see what more I can learn about climbing and trying to do even harder routes. I don’t feel like I’ve got anywhere near what I can do yet.”

MacLeod is currently working on a new route up Ben Nevis. He doesn’t want to say where it is exactly, but he describes it as of “similar difficulty” to Rhapsody, but with one significant difference: “If you fall off this one, you’ll die”.

This year’s EMFF programme also features films about BASE jumping, skiing, kayaking, snowboarding and “extreme trampolining”. There’s even a film about the hunt for Scotland’s yeti, the legendary “Fearlas Mhor” or Big Grey Man of Ben MacDhui. If you only have time to see one thing, though, make E11 at the George Square Theatre tonight. Alternatively you can buy the film on DVD through MacLeod’s website: www.davemacleod.com.
INTERVIEW WITH DAVE MACLEOD

ROGER COX: I’ve watched E11 a couple of times now. It’s a great film, but I’ve got to say: you seemed to be in pain almost all the time. Sorry if this sounds like a silly question, but do you enjoy climbing? Not the sense of achievement at the top of a climb, but the actual act of climbing itself?

STUART MACLEOD: Oh without a doubt. Once the route’s done and completed it’s over /no spamming of other sites/ it’s finished isn’t it? I’m immediately always thinking about the next thing and getting involved in that. I would say that the most fun time out of trying that route was when I was working on the moves /no spamming of other sites/ just the individual moves /no spamming of other sites/ really early on. That was the most enjoyable bit, because you’re just trying to solve the problems it’s giving you. Putting it all together at the end is quite creative too, because you’ve got to refine everything and get the sequence to flow really well /no spamming of other sites/ you’re just trying to make it more and more efficient. You can see in the falls that I was running out of strength just in the final few moves, or sometimes at the very last move. By that stage I knew that to actually get up it I only needed to make a very small improvement /no spamming of other sites/ I was just trying to refine every move so I could do it either a little more quickly or a little more efficiently. Basically the route gets harder and harder towards the top so where you need your strength most is right at the top /no spamming of other sites/ and that’s where you don’t have any left.

RC: It says on the DVD cover that Rhapsody is “the hardest route in the world”. I don’t doubt it for a second /no spamming of other sites/ it certainly looks it /no spamming of other sites/ but is that official? Is there some sort of official climbing body that regulates these things?

DM: Basically the way grading works in climbing is that it’s subjective grades. The person that does the first ascent gives the grade, and then it’s open to confirmation or downgrading by people who repeat the route. You get a knowledge of the grades through doing other routes. It’s definitely not an exact science and grades go up and down all the time in climbing, but having said that they do work pretty well most of the time. I’ve given the route E11, which is the first route of that grade, and I’m sure in my own head that that’s the case because I’ve gone and done lots of E10s. But that’s the way it works /no spamming of other sites/ it is a speculative grade until it’s confirmed by a few people that go and repeat the route. That might be soon or it might be years.

RC: So nobody has the right to downgrade Rhapsody unless they’ve done it themselves?

DM: Yeah.

RC: And has anybody else had a shot yet?

DM: No, as far as I know nobody else has been on it, although quite a lot of people have expressed an interest.

RC: Is there anybody out there who might have what it takes?

DM: Yeah, there are a couple of people in the UK who I think have the potential to do it. There’s a guy called Steve McClure /no spamming of other sites/ he’s a really fit sport climber /no spamming of other sites/ that’s safe climbing [using bolts already attached to the rock] but it’s physically very demanding. He’s definitely good enough to be able to do the climbing, and he could probably do it a lot faster than I would, but whether he would manage to deal with the danger aspect or not I’m not sure.

RC: So it’s a guts question for him really?

DM: Yeah, exactly.

RC: Would you be a bit annoyed if somebody else climbed Rhapsody soon, or would you be chuffed?

DM: Oh I’d be pleased, definitely. I’m always really happy when someone else shows an interest in something that you’ve gone and done and created and comes up and tries it /no spamming of other sites/ that means you’ve inspired someone else to come and try something really hard.

RC: So where do you go now that you’ve climbed the hardest route in the world? Try something even harder?

DM: Yeah. I’d like to try something of a different character. Rhapsody’s obviously on a lowland cliff in quite an accessible situation, so the logical progression now is to do something of similar difficulty but on a mountain cliff.

RC: So it’s further to the hospital?

DM: So it’s further to the hospital /no spamming of other sites/ exactly. That’s the long and short of it basically.

RC: Anywhere specific in mind?

DM: Yeah, I do actually /no spamming of other sites/ I’ve been trying a line on Ben Nevis this summer.

RC: Are you able to say which bit?

DM: Probably best keep that under wraps I think.

RC: OK /no spamming of other sites/ so roughly as difficult as Rhapsody but miles away from anywhere?

DM: Yeah. And basically, if you fall off this one you’ll die.

RC: Wow /no spamming of other sites/ so it’s really a no-falling scenario?

DM: Exactly. It’s similar physical difficulty but the consequences of falling off are much, much greater.

RC: So all the falls we saw you taking on the DVD /no spamming of other sites/ those just couldn’t happen on this route?

DM: Yeah /no spamming of other sites/ you would just hit the ground. At the moment I’m just working it from a top rope. Obviously to do the route properly /no spamming of other sites/ that’s the rules of climbing /no spamming of other sites/ you lead from the ground up, with no gear pre-placed at the top. But to practice it before your lead you can practice on a top rope to work the moves.

RC: But when you go for the attempt proper, you can’t fall?

DM: No. When I first looked at that route I couldn’t actually even link it on the top rope in one go. You’d have to climb it fairly in control /no spamming of other sites/ you’d have to have a margin. Or everything would have to feel right, I think. It’s a pretty risky route.

RC: Does your wife mind?

DM: She’s seen me go through lots of stages, and she’s actually held my rope when I’ve taken some of the worst falls I’ve ever taken, but they were quite early on in my climbing when I wasn’t really sure of the dangers that were out there. I see my climbing /no spamming of other sites/ and I think Claire does as well /no spamming of other sites/ as being safer as time goes on rather than more dangerous, even though I’m doing harder routes. What you’re doing in hard climbing is trying to do dangerous things safely. So I might be trying to get closer and closer to my limit, but I’m learning more and more all the time about where that limit is, so I’m able not to cross it. I think that’s why people have climbing accidents /no spamming of other sites/ they just don’t know where their limit lies.

RC: Some pretty famous climbers have been bigging up your achievement /no spamming of other sites/ Joe Simpson, Sir Chris Bonington... did all the acclaim affect you at all?

DM: It didn’t have any effect cos that’s not what I was trying to achieve with the route really. I was just trying to find my own limits and extend them and that’s kind of an ongoing process until you feel like you’ve either got there or not. But that’s something that comes from within, you know? I’m always trying to see what more I can learn about climbing and how to do even harder routes. I don’t feel like I’ve got anywhere near what I can do yet. It’s really got nothing to do with how other people see what I’ve done so far.

RC: When you say “anywhere near”, how difficult are we talking?

DM: Climbing can go really a lot further. In sport climbing you can see the top standard is rising really fast. I’ve done my little bit and raised the bar in trad climbing to E11 but in sport climbing it’s rising really fast as well, and I think that’s because it’s still just a young sport /no spamming of other sites/ people are still learning how to train for it. When I started out there were no coaches at all /no spamming of other sites/ people were experimenting with training. I felt that, to do well, I would need to learn the basic theory of training and experiment myself, so I did a Sports Science degree and then tried to apply it the best I could. I think that’s what’s helped me do what I’ve done so far.

RC: So you’re your own science project in a way?

DM: Yeah /no spamming of other sites/ exactly. It’s quite a fun experiment really

.

• The Edinburgh Mountain Film Festival runs until tomorrow. For details, visit

www.edinburghmountainff.com

(h) (h) (h) (h) (h)

;) ;) 's,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 05:12 PM

:| :| :|

:)

Scotland on Sunday Sun 22 Oct 2006

Head for a brave new world

JINI REDDY

http://living.scotsman.com/travel.cfm?id=1551182006

HAVE you ever ridden pillion on a Harley Davidson? No? Well, you ought to try it. It is great - and not in a 'cool in retrospect, terrifying in reality' way, either. There's a nice cushioned back rest, and I'm wearing a helmet with a visor to protect me from the wind, yet I can still smell the ocean-scented air as we head along Nova Scotia's south shore, from Mahone Bay (where Madonna's yacht has been spotted) to Halifax, two hours away via the Lighthouse Trail. To my left are pretty villages; to my right, the Atlantic Ocean, secluded bays, islands and fishing boats.

We stop for coffee at Peggy's Cove, Canada's most photographed beauty spot, and my driver, Andrew Smiley, a partner in the motorcycle touring company Vineland, tells me that Michael Ondaatje, who wrote The English Patient, and actor Ethan Hawke both own islands in the area. I can see why. No one is going to hassle them in Nova Scotia. Beyond Canada and the US, the province is little known. But relative anonymity is part of its charm - expect nothing, and you get everything.

Nova Scotia lies on the east coast of Canada - it has a whopping 7,000km of coastline - and although it's all lobster and Atlantic breezes these days, it wasn't always so. The indigenous Mi'kmaq people trod gently on Nova Scotia's soil, then the British and French fought bloody battles here in the 17th century. But it is the Scots that gave the province its name - under a 1629 charter, it was even briefly made part of Scotland. And Nova Scotia's mountains, glens and lochs are every bit as picturesque as Scotland's own.

The undiluted kindliness of the locals took me by surprise. "Are you enjoying the city?" one gruff-looking fellow asked me on the street in Halifax. Yes, I said, remarking on the openness of the people I'd met. He nodded. "Nova Scotians have a saying: 'If they're not friendly, they're not from here.'"

The other wonderful thing about Nova Scotia is the food. The seafood is sublime: warming fish chowders, scallops the size of a fist and the freshest lobster, oysters, mussels and calamari. Then there are blueberries served every way possible (including the gloriously named blueberry grunt, a sort of steamed pudding); pancakes served with maple syrup and crispy, lean bacon; and gooey grilled-cheese sandwiches. I could go on, but you get the drift.

When you have eaten your fill, it's time for some exercise. Nova Scotia isn't short of towering cliffs, forests, beaches and wilderness parks, and of course it is for the great outdoors that most people come to Canada. In Cape Chignecto provincial park, which looks over the Bay of Fundy, I spent 90 minutes striding through maple forests and along the beach and didn't see a soul. Birds, butterflies and the odd mosquito - the province's bears, moose and deer tend to keep out of sight - but no humans.

A whale-watching trip in the Bay of Fundy, where the waters teem with aquatic life, will let you encounter Atlantic right whales, giant yet gentle beauties - and sadly endangered. We also saw porpoises and a colony of smelly but adorable seal pups that were basking on a rocky islet.

A more ethereal presence defines the coastal town of Lunenburg, about 60 miles south of Halifax. Established in 1753, the town, described by Unesco as having the best surviving example of a planned British colonial settlement in North America, was made a world heritage site in 1995. It is popular with filmmakers as a stand-in for New England, and the walking tour led by kilted guide Eric is a must. First stop is the striking Lunenburg Academy building, where pupils pair up when they want to spend a penny in the basement loo. Why? Because, once upon a time, people were executed down there, and it's said that the ghosts of some of those taken to the gallows are still in residence.

But there are no ghosts in Tatamagouche, on the north shore of the province, where I spent a night in a caboose (private railway car). James LeFresne, the 'stationmaster', bought the station in 1974, when he was just 18, to save it from demolition. Over the years he has transformed disused railway cars into this magical inn, complete with a memorabilia-stuffed waiting-room. My bright-orange private car even featured a king-sized bed - honeymooners apparently love it here.

If trains aren't your thing, head over to the Lighthouse on Cape d'Or, close to Cape Chignecto. The sunsets over the bay are spectacular, and the renovated keeper's lodge is the perfect place to escape from the world. If you have restless kids in tow, take them to nearby Parrsboro, where you can hunt for dinosaur fossils and glittering semi-precious stones on the beach.

In the south-west, Annapolis Royal, the oldest town in Canada, may be quiet, but it has a pleasant waterfront location. Many of the elegant Victorian mansions here offer bed-and-breakfast accommodation. I stayed at the grand but laid-back Queen Anne Inn, and was offered a hefty three-course breakfast that left me needing no refuelling until dinner.

Most of the interest in Annapolis is in George Street, where you can sashay from café to café, visit the market or pop into the historic gardens, which are a riot of colour.

And no visit to Nova Scotia is complete without a meander around its capital, Halifax, an easy-going university town. When you arrive, head to the waterfront for a leisurely stroll to watch the ships in the harbour, stopping off for some chowder.

During my visit to Halifax, I stayed at Delta Barrington, right next door to the Bluenose Café, where I read the papers, eavesdropped on the locals, dined on scrumptious pancakes and drank endless coffees. Simple pleasures, yet ones to savour - just like Nova Scotia itself, really.
Fact file

Nova Scotia

Specialist tour operator Canadian Affair (0207 616 9184, www.canadianaffair.com) offers a Nova Scotia Express seven-day self-drive tour, which includes car hire and accommodation (but not flights). Prices start from £349 per person.

The Nova Scotia tourist board website (www.novascotia.com) contains a range of useful information about the region.

Fly from Glasgow to Halifax with Zoom (0870 240 0055, www.flyzoom.com) from £79 one-way, plus taxes, or from London Heathrow to Halifax with Air Canada from £338 per person return, including taxes, which can be booked through Thomas Cook (0870 750 5711, www.thomascook.com).

Double rooms at the Train Station Inn (www.trainstation.ca) start from £47 a night; at the Lighthouse on Cape d'Or (www.capedor.ca) from £33 a night; at the Queen Anne Inn (www.queenanneinn.ns.ca) from £42 a night; and the Delta Barrington (www.deltahotels.com) from £68 a night.

Motorcycle touring company Vineland (www.vintour.ca) offers tours lasting from one to three days and bike rental packages. Go whale-watching for £22 with Briar Island Cruises (www.brierislandwhalewatch.com). Take a historic tour of Lunenburg with Eric Croft (www.lunenburgwalkingtours.com) - the tour lasts an hour and costs about £7.

(y) (h) (y) (h) (y) (h) (y) (h)

:)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 05:13 PM

:o :o :o

he Witchery by the Castle: A decadent late night dining experience located in the heart of Edinburgh's Old Town.

Scotsman.com Fri 8 Sep 2006

Late night eats

SCOTT MCCULLOCH

THERE are few situations more soul destroying than searching in vain for a decent place to eat after 10pm. An attack of the munchies can force even the most rational of culinary stalwarts to undertake desperate - and often futile trips - in the search for sustenance.

Although many of us have experienced the delights of eating into the wee small hours on our travels abroad, the concept is not one that Scotland's restaurateurs have readily embraced. The chippie and takeaway still reign supreme on these shores, but - for the sake of our health - maybe not for much longer.

As lifestyles change, and working days become ever longer, the demand for late-night eating has encouraged at least a few of Scotland's restaurant owners to stay open later. Although there are no surprises for guessing where most of these establishments are based, there are still a few decent eateries to be found across Scotland where you can find a table after the traditional dinner menus have been served.

Here we have selected a few Scottish restaurants open past 10 o'clock in the evening:

Lots of delightful places with links to them:

http://living.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=1480&id=1311692006

(y) (y) (y)

:) :)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 05:15 PM

:) :) :)

The Witchery by the Castle: Castlehill, The Royal Mile, Old Town, Edinburgh

Open until 11.30pm, seven days

Although the well-heeled of Edinburgh and beyond know this to be one of the city's most illustrious restaurants, The Witchery also offers a post-theatre menu from 10.30 to 11.30pm every night for under £15 /no spamming of other sites/ so you get all the style and ambiance at a fraction of the peak-time prices. There is probably no better excuse than this to eat late in Scotland.

http://www.thewitchery.com/

Where are we? The Witchery is located at the very top of the Royal Mile close to the gates of Edinburgh Castle in the heart of Edinburgh's historic Old Town. A gilded heraldic metal sign marks the entrance to this historic sixteenth century building.

Only a short walk from Princes and George Streets we are close to major attractions such as the Scottish Parliament, the Museum of Scotland, St Giles and the National Galleries. Most major hotels are situated nearby and are featured on our map.

Edinburgh airport is only 8 miles away and Waverly Rail Station just a few hundred yards. Parking is available in the nearby NCP car park on Castle Terrace or there is metered parking nearby.

The Witchery by the Castle
Castlehill,
The Royal Mile
Edinburgh

http://www.thewitchery.com/where.html

The Witchery has developed a world-wide reputation for sensation food in the most indulgent setting. We source the very best of Scotland's produce such as Angus beef, lamb, game and seafood, which then features on a classic menu in a relaxed and unfussy style. Scottish lobster and rock oysters regularly feature alongside Witchery classic dishes such as hot smoked salmon with leeks and hollandaise or Angus beef fillet with smoked garlic broth.

http://www.thewitchery.com/starters.html

http://www.thewitchery.com/mainc.html

http://www.thewitchery.com/dessert.html

Oh my! " Dark chocolate torte with lavender ice cream" Lovely.

Celebrity Guest Book: http://www.thewitchery.com/celeb.html

And you can stay here too! http://www.thewitchery.com/accom.html

Hidden in a collection of historic buildings at the gates of Edinburgh castle, James Thomson’s seven theatrical and decadent suites are perfect for those looking to stay in the most indulgent and magical of settings /no spamming of other sites/ the perfect antidote to bland hotels. Lavishly decorated and antique-filled, these suites scream romance with a capital R!

Frequently booked months in advance, they regularly feature on hot lists of the world’s most unique places to stay among many other accolades. Named as one of the seven wonders of the hotel world by Cosmopolitan Magazine, Condé Nast Traveller recently described the gloriously camp guest suites as...an operatic fantasy...dream-like hideaways that have been inhabited by Hollywood stars Jack Nicholson, Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones.

Choose the Library, Vestry, Inner Sanctum, Old Rectory, Sempill, Guardroom or Armoury and the result is the same /no spamming of other sites/ wall to wall decadence, massed antiques, gothic decor and roll-top baths big enough for two! Rates including continental breakfast, vat, newspapers and a complimentary bottle of Champagne from £295 per suite per night. An unforgettably magical experience!

Links to each room are on the Accomodations' URL.

(y) (y) (y) Heavenly trip back to the Middle Ages......<sigh>.

Adieu,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 05:16 PM

:) :)

Scotsman.com Fri 13 Oct 2006

Consuming history

SCOTT MCCULLOCH

IT'S ALL rather sad really. Scotland's wonderfully rich history - in terms of tourism at least /no spamming of other sites/ appears determined to remain eternally stuck in a tartan-clad nightmare. There are so many historic venues around Scotland that cater to this fad crisis of tradition and culture, and encouraging these contemporary makeovers - complete with looped bagpipe music and resplendent souvenir shops - only serves to fuel a general distain for how our history is represented to the rest of the world.

Thankfully, there are a number of historic gems dotted around the country where you can expect to be greeted - not by a self-conscious student forced to wear full Highland garb to regale, in mocking tones, the story of the hunt for wild haggis - but by operators and staff who have an appreciation of the history the venue represents and have restored these buildings to something of their former glory.

Here we have selected a few such buildings that are woven into the country's cultural tapestry. The stories held within their walls or defined by events which transpired in the surrounding areas have helped shape the Scotland we know today.

What makes this list even more significant is that each historic building chosen also house restaurants. So soak in the atmosphere of the events and key developments they represent while you enjoy a special meal.
Corsewall Lighthouse Hotel: Corsewall Point (B738), Kirkcolm, Stranraer, Dumfries & Galloway

Tel: 01776 853 220

Built in 1815, the Corsewall Lighthouse Hotel was an original design of the esteemed engineer Robert Stevenson, grandfather of the author Robert Louis Stevenson. The writer's father, Thomas, was himself an engineer credited with the design of many of Scotland's lighthouses along with his brothers David and Alan. Robert Stevenson was the inventor of both the intermittent and flashing warning lights used in lighthouse beacons.

The still functioning Corsewall Lighthouse has now been transformed into an award-winning hotel, offering fine dining and breathtaking views of the Kintyre Peninsula.
Culloden House Hotel: Off Barn Church Road, Culloden, Inverness, Highland

Tel: 01463 790 461
The existing Culloden house is now more than 200 years old, but the site itself has been at the centre of the growth of Inverness since the Culloden estate first appeared in the official records of the Charter of the Bishops of Moray in 1232.

The fields were predominantly farmed until the 16th century, when the first castle on the land is recorded to have been built by the Strachan family, who took possession of the estate in 1506. During the 1745 rebellion, Inverness became a main base for the Jacobite rebels, and Charles Edward Stewart (Bonnie Prince Charlie) spent several nights at the original castle preparing for the battle of Culloden, fought in what were the open moors to the south-east of where the Georgian mansion now stands.

The Culloden House Hotel was designed by the eminent architect John Adam, and was held in private ownership until its conversion to hotel in 1975 and now boasts a multi-award winning restaurant within this exclusive, upmarket retreat.
Dornoch Castle Hotel: Castle Street, Dornoch, Sutherland

Tel: 01862 810 216
Dornoch Castle stands as a testament to the turbulent and violent times of feuding clan warfare in the Highlands. The only original features left of the original castle are the main tower and the Bishop's Chimney, which were part of the original Bishop's Palace of St Gilbert built in the 13th century. The records of the castle's early history were destroyed by fire following a feud between the Murray and MacKay clans which culminated in a siege of the castle in 1570.

The castle was rebuilt and then allowed to fall back into ruin on a number of occasions throughout its chequered history. By the 1800s it lay in ruin, and the residential parts of the building were torn down to make way for a new marketplace, courthouse and public buildings. The remaining parts, namely the indestructible main tower and the Bishop's Chimney were then used to temporarily house the courthouse and jail between 1810 and 1814. The castle was partially restored around 1860 to make a residence for the Sheriff of Sutherland, and the south-east wing was added in 1970, which now makes up the residential section of the hotel.

The Dornoch Castle Hotel has an opulent dining room which is housed in the vaulted basement, where diners can enjoy award-winning food within the castle's battle-scarred walls.
Glenfinnan House Hotel: Glenfinnan (A830), Highland

Tel: 01397 722 235

The area of Glenfinnan is steeped in the history of the Highlands, being the historical starting point for the Jacobite rising of 1745, led by Bonnie Prince Charlie, who landed ashore on the north banks of Loch Shiel. The subsequent failure of the rising in turn led to the Highland clearances.

The original owner of what is now Glenfinnan House Hotel, Alexander MacDonald VII of Glenaladale, was a member of the Jacobite army, and fought at the battle of Culloden. Alexander MacDonald, a wealthy descendant, paid for the Glenfinnan Monument to be built in 1815. The imposing tower, depicting a Highland warrior standing guard at the head of Loch Shiel, is open to visitors and offers stunning views over the loch and surrounding hills. The internal stairway at the top however is quite narrow.

More recently, the successful film adaptations of JK Rowling's Harry Potter books has seen the Hogwart Express travel over the Glenfinnan railway viaduct. The Glenfinnan Dining Car, located outside the railway station museum, gives diners a fantastic view of the steam trains arriving at Glenfinnan station during the summer months.

The Glenfinnan House Hotel has won numerous awards for both the hotel and restaurant, and offers the best in locally sourced food coupled with stunning views of some of the best scenery and walks in the Highlands.
Greywalls Hotel: Muirfield (A198), Gullane, East Lothian

As the last remaining example of celebrated Edwardian architect Sir Edwin Lutyens' work in Scotland, Greywalls stands as a fine testament to his talent.

The original house was burnt to the ground by students from Edinburgh University who, during the "exclusion crisis" and the attempts to guarantee that a Catholic heir would not succeed the English throne, set the house ablaze in protest at being denied the right to burn an effigy of the Pope on Christmas day 1680 - an historical event almost repeated by Lord Watson in 2004.

The Duke of York and Albany, James VII of Scotland, ordered that the house be re-built, and the design was undertaken by Scotland's first classical architect, Sir William Bruce - the same architect who designed the royal palace by Holyrood Abbey. Prestonfield shares many of the features in design and décor as its grander counterpart.

Having been extensively restored by Edinburgh restaurateur James Thomson, the hotel and Rhubarb restaurant offers a taste of the style and opulence enjoyed by celebrities of old and new. The restaurant takes its name from the historical introduction of rhubarb to Scotland, first grown in the grounds of the house after former owner Sir Alexander Dick brought seeds back from his travels in China.
Review by Gillian Glover, The Scotsman
The Tigh-an-Truish Hotel: Clachan Seil (B844), Oban, Argyll & Bute

Tel: 01852 300 242
The Tigh-an-Truish has been in existence since the early 17th century. The name means "house of trousers" /no spamming of other sites/ a literal reference to the building's use after the 1745 Jacobite rebellion, when the kilt was banned and islanders heading into the mainland were forced - under the draconian Act of Proscription - to swap their cultural garments for trousers. The act became law in an effort to destroy Highland culture following the defeat of the Jacobite uprising at Culloden.

The inn itself maintains the rustic charm that has made it a favorite of locals, tourists and the boating community, and serves home-made bar food featuring the best of local produce.
The Tolbooth Seafood Restaurant: Old Pier (A957), Stonehaven, Aberdeenshire

Tel: 01569 762287
The 15th century Tolbooth has been an integral part of the history of Stonehaven since its construction as a storage shed at the mouth of the harbour. When the Earl Marischal decreed that the county town of Kincardineshire was to be moved to its new residence in Stonehaven in 1600, the storage shed became the courthouse and jail until 1767. Its most infamous period was following the failure of the 1715 Jacobite rebellion. Amid strong local support for the uprising, the town's three local ministers were imprisoned in the Tolbooth. Despite this, the ministers continued to preach to their parishioners from the confines of the prison. Women regularly waded through the sea carrying their new-born child to be baptised at the prison window.

Today the Tolbooth serves as a museum to its more turbulent times and houses the award-winning seafood restaurant upstairs.
The Willow Tearooms: 217 Sauchiehall Street, City Centre, Glasgow

Tel: 0141 332 0521
The Sauchiehall Street icon is the only original tearoom remaining of four formally owned by entrepreneur Catherine Cranson, with whom Charles Rennie Mackintosh regularly collaborated on interior design projects. The Willow Tearooms was a complete work by Mackintosh, having been given artistic license to create both the exterior and interior of the building, as well as the fittings and furniture.
The Willow Tearooms.

The Willow Tearooms.

The tearooms were sold following the death of Cranson's husband, and the Willow became part of Daly's department store until it was restored to something like its former glory when it reopened in 1983. The furniture and fittings were reproduced using the original Mackintosh designs.

The restaurant offers a variety of tea blends, baked potatoes, sandwiches, cakes and scones.

Related topic

* Scotland Food & Drink Guides

http://living.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=1480

This article: http://living.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=1480&id=1476452006

(y) (y) (y) (y) (y)

({) (}) 's,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 05:18 PM

:) :)

Scotsman.com Fri 20 Oct 2006

Grazing habits

SCOTT MCCULLOCH

WE WORK, we eat, we play then sleep /no spamming of other sites/ well, that's the general idea anyway. But the lines have become somewhat blurred between our working and social lives, and that has led to something of a revolution in the way we eat.

It's all very well going to a nice restaurant and paying £20 for a steak, only to find it marooned in the centre of a gigantic plate with only a sprig of herb to mask its loneliness.

Sadly, it has become all too common for restaurants to price every conceivable item, and it can't be too long before the butter becomes an option for the bread, not merely an accompaniment. Little wonder then, that less pocket-draining dining options are in demand.

The fierce competition between Central Belt restaurants means they have to adapt to survive and prosper. The savvy among them recognise the need to provide the right choice for the consumer, who may not have the time to sit down for a few hours to enjoy the indulgence of three-course dining.

Of course there are still some restaurants out there where pitching the idea of sharing a selection from the menu will provoke uncontrollable eye-rolling from your waiter. Formal dining is one thing, but sitting down to a meal between the next pub, club or show is entirely another, and therein lies the simplicity of the light meal option, namely the cost, speed of delivery and abundance of flavours the light meal represents: a definite step up from the chippie and a giant leap from the burger bar.

So take the opportunity to become a little more adventurous in your culinary habits and indulge yourself in flavours that you may have been reluctant to experience in a more expensive formal dining setting.

And with this in mind we have researched a list of restaurants across Scotland where you can sample a whole host of culinary delights from around the globe at a pace that suits your lifestyle.

Grazing terms

* Antipasto - Italy
* Dim sum - China
* Hors d'oeuvre - France
* Kemia - Morocco
* Kujulpan - Korea
* Meze - Greece/Turkey
* Minutas - Argentina
* Sushi - Japan
* Tapas - Spain
* Zakuski - Russia

LOTS of restaurants including links to reviews:

http://living.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=1480&id=1518762006

(y) (y) (y) (h) (h) (h)

Carpe Diem,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer Pup (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 05:20 PM

:) :)

EDDIE BARNES

Scotland on Sunday Sun 22 Oct 2006

TO THE man on the street, the man on the street has never been much of a problem.

But the language police of Scotland's largest council have decreed otherwise. The man on the street and the girls in the office are now officially wrong.

Glasgow city councillors of a less politically correct ilk are scratching their heads. Dr Chris Mason, a Lib Dem member, declared: "Politeness, courtesy and respect - all these things are important. But a book of rules about what you can and cannot say? B*******."

But Glasgow City Council, whose senior figures include Lady Provost Liz Cameron and leisure director and First Minister's wife Bridget McConnell, is clear about the problem of oppressed women in its ranks.

The issue is laid out in "Language Matters: A Guide for Good Practice", which has been circulated to the council's staff and elected officials.

"Sexism continues to disadvantage women both as service users and employees. The use of sexist language, whether spoken or written, reinforces this discrimination," it declares. All staff, it orders, should now stop their sexist ways.

The guide offers a full list of the most shameful examples of sexist-speak. Top of the list are endearments.

"Don't assume it is acceptable to address women by endearments such as 'dear', 'pet' and 'love' when you would not address men in such a way," the guide instructs. "Don't refer to women as 'girls', for example, 'the girls in the office'."

It adds: "The term 'ladies' should only be used in situations where the parallel term 'gentlemen' is used."

All references to a person's gender should be avoided, the guide goes on. "A person's gender is rarely relevant to the job they do, so don't use 'lady' or 'woman' to highlight gender inappropriately, for example 'woman driver', 'lady curator', 'lady councillor', 'woman director'. Similarly don't add 'ess' to the end of job titles as in 'manageress' or 'stewardess'."

"Some words and phrases such as 'manpower' and 'man the office' exclude or ignore women. Use inclusive terms like 'staff' and 'workers' and 'staff the office'."

With communication dealt with, the guide moves on to terms of address. The old custom of referring to a married couple as Mr and Mrs John Smith is completely barred, the guide declares. "Women have names too!" it exclaims.

Equally, the requirement for women to reveal their marital status through the term 'Mrs' or 'Miss' is condemned. "If the woman does not offer her preferred title, assume Ms", the guide instructs.

The suffix 'man' is completely out. Job titles like storeman and clerkess should be replaced with 'storeperson' and 'clerical officer'.

And then there is the man on the street. "The word 'man' is often used as a general term when it is actually intended to mean 'people'. 'Human beings' or the 'human race' is preferable to 'mankind' and the 'ordinary person' replaces the 'man in the street'."

Despite the aim of lifting women out of the pit of prejudice, some were not impressed.

Entrepreneur Michelle Mone said: "Councils and government are making it impossible to run businesses and then they come out with nonsense like this.

These people with their sandals and their flowery dresses - they need to get a life and stop wasting people's time. If someone doesn't like being called 'love' in a workforce then the door is open. Go and work somewhere else."

Richard Cook, director of the Campaign Against Political Correctness, added: "Now that this document is in print as a guide to staff it could be used by more zealous managers looking for an excuse to discipline employees."

However, Elaine Smith, who sits on Holyrood's equal opportunities committee, said: "People should think more about the kind of language that they use. If Glasgow is raising awareness and it stops women being demeaned at their work, then that is a good thing."

A council spokesman said any male in the council who was caught saying words like 'mankind' or 'stewardess' - or worse, 'Mrs' - would not be punished. "This is a relatively mild reminder that council staff should think about what they say so as not to inadvertently cause offence. It is not a prohibition on types of speech."

http://news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1563412006

(i) (i) There's clearly a mandate, I mean, persondate to eliminate these sexist references!

:) :)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 11:09 PM

:) :)

http://www.timberpeg.com/about-home-1.html

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Building Green: http://www.timberpeg.com/architects-green.html

(y) (y) (y) (y)

(k) 's,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 11:10 PM

(i) (i) (i)

http://www.evazeisel.org/

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4510966

http://www.evazeisel.org/who_is_eva_zeisel.html

(*) (*) Her pieces are absolutely timeless. Eva's life is inspiring to say the least. Bravo!!!

(k) 's,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 11:12 PM

:o :o

http://www.groheamerica.com/t/25_3855.html

(y) (y) (y) (y) (y) I'm getting one installed - in my ranch home. :)

;) 's,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 11:12 PM

(p) (p) (p)

http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2006/10/18/style/tmagazine/20061022_STRUNG_SLIDESHOW_1.html

(y) (y)

(k) 's,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 11:13 PM

:o :o :o

http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2006/10/18/style/tmagazine/20061022_SHADOW_SLIDESHOW_1.html

:) :)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 11:14 PM

(h) (h) (h) (h) (h)

The queen of shag-a-licious style and $600 haircuts moves through life with a rock 'n' roll soul and expert layering.

(p) (p) 's:

http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2006/10/18/style/tmagazine/20061022_LIFE_SLIDESHOW_1.html

(y) (h) (y) (h) (y) (h)

:)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 11:15 PM

(h) (h) (h) (h) (h)

http://www.swarovski.com/index/

http://shop.swarovski.com/is-bin/INTERSHOP.enfinity/eCS/Store/en_US/-/USD/SW_BrowseCatalog-Start?CategoryName=029048

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:) :) :) :)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 11:17 PM

:| :| :|

October 22, 2006

Phony Baloney Syndrome

By PATRICIA MARX

Don’t ask me why, but lately I have been reading a lot of psychology studies that link what we look like with how we behave or how others behave toward us. Did you know, for instance, that if you are ugly, you are more likely to be a criminal (2006 National Bureau of Economic Research, Working Paper No. 12019)? On the other hand, if you are an attractive woman, not only are you less likely to be locked up (ibid.), to practice self-abuse (Psychological Reports, 1982) or to be regarded as a feminist (Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol. 32, 1975), but others are also more likely to perceive you as being more adroit at flying an airplane (American Journal of Sociology, Vol. 89). If you are a woman with a small bust (less than 34 inches), the first impression someone is likely to have of you is that you are relatively intelligent, competent, ambitious, modest and moral, but if you have a big bust (37 inches or more), you will be perceived — at least at first glance — as being unintelligent, incompetent, lazy, immodest and immoral (Journal of Social Psychology, 1980).

Many of these findings, of course, seem obvious, and others seem obviously wrong. But who am I to talk? Many years ago, when I thought I was smart, I had a theory about how to invest in mutual funds. Pick a fund, my advice went, that is managed by an unattractive woman. In this way, I reasoned, you could be pretty sure that she would be staying home nights, looking after your money and not gallivanting about at the clubs. O.K., I know that this strategy was unkind, not to mention stupid, and that the only explanation of why I made money was that I happened to be in the stock market at a time when even chimpanzees were becoming millionaires. Later, perhaps as divine punishment, I lost all the money I’d made in a fund that was run by someone who couldn’t have been more unpretty. (I noticed that a lot of the chimps were taking out second mortgages, too.)

And yet I have not given up my quest to become a phony scientist. Toward that end, I have devised a method for formulating bold, thought-provoking correlations without doing a stitch of research. All you have to do is to select an item from each of the columns below, string them together in a sentence, write a few pages about that sentence, put in some equations (bonus points if you include letters from the Greek alphabet) and submit your paper to a prestigious journal of your choice.

If you perchance win the John Templeton Foundation’s positive psychology award (top prize: $14,000), please make sure that in your acceptance speech you pay special homage to your mentor (i.e., me), who guided and inspired you as well as gave you the courage to pursue your dream. Also, it wouldn’t hurt to share with your mentor a little bit of the prize money.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/22/style/tmagazine/22tbaloney.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

(y) (y) (y) ;) ;) ;)

:) :)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 11:18 PM

:| :| :|

:) :)

October 22, 2006

Samurai Shopper

Beauty and the East

By S.S. FAIR

The Samurai Shopper is known for her unswerving dedication to cultural enrichment and voluptuous indulgence, self-regulated, of course, by morality and temperance. But every so often, she goes completely bonkers — blame hormones, chlorinated tap water, Pluto the dwarf planet. Once, wandering the byways of Tsim Sha Tsui in Hong Kong, I saw Haircut 100, a two-bit “salon” catering to aspiring Asian rock stars. I entered, negotiated and emerged soon after, shorn like a sheep in the Scottish Highlands.

What was I thinking? Never mind, it was only hair, it grew back and provided anecdotal evidence that travel isn’t only about duty-free and digital pix; it’s about bad haircuts and pedicures, too, like the one I had at the Y.M.C.A. on Salisbury Road in Kowloon. A man sat cross-legged on the floor, laid out a sheaf of knives and said, “Oh, Missy, you got very bad feet.” I sat, sheeplike again, awaiting mputation, but he artfully carved my calluses into thin air and shaped my nails to perfection. No polish, no fuss, no woman, no cry.

Pretty feet, buzzed head — my Hong Kong souvenirs. When I suffer those stranger-in-a-strange-land pangs, Chinatown does nicely: I shop, slurp noodles and soak up the adenoidal banter of the locals. No passport, no jet lag, and as culturally enriching as it is intimidating. But a challenge to a Samurai is like white to rice.

These days, Chinatown seems full of people who no longer make their living selling dried cuttlefish and bean thread; there are as many beauty salons per square inch as there are live eels flipping about in plastic containers on the hosed-down streets. Is this the new NoLIta? No. It’s still Ka Ching, Asian hub of commerce, come-ons and status symbols reconfigured into authentic knockoffs. They still sell live turtles on Mott Street, still eat snail and pig’s liver porridge at Congee on the Bowery. But now there are Prada and Gucci sunglasses (maybe) and Decléor and Sothys skin-care salons. Facialists and masseurs hide in basements; Shiseido retailers trump Duane Reades in the ubiquity stakes.

The Samurai Shopper warily cruises the narrow streets, peering into windows, looking for credit-card signs, minimal standards of cleanliness and a few words of English. My Cantonese consists of “hello,” “goodbye,” “thanks,” “tea” and “What the hell does that matter?” (That last line is occasionally the ticket into the inner sancta.) I really need a haircut most of all but lose my nerve on Doyers and Pell Streets, lined as they are with barbers and cookie-cutter hair parlors. I walk into one place and am mistaken for chum; the crowd goes into a feeding frenzy, ready to attack with combs and curlers. In other places, the benign neglect and blank, tolerant stares feel depressing. I content myself with checking out the pharmacy, as I am already wild for Clinique’s Derma White line, formulated for Asian complexions. Let’s see: there is a Bathmagic Facial Cleanser with natural sea salt, ginseng and licorice, $4.50; Royal jelly and vitamin E oil in pearly pink capsules, 90 for $1.50. And I can’t leave without Sewame Green Tea Whiten Wash Gel, because who could resist what’s written on the side of the box: “effectively lighten the decrepitude of the skin and producing of the wrinkle, remove the aging horniness. ... Make you shining and youth.” All for $5.69, which is probably what they paid the translator.

Fortified by bubble tea and banh mi, I find the Cutting Edge Salon on Hester Street, but as I look into the window, a man comes out to inquire about my inquiries. I take a brochure of his services and walk down the block, still not ready to submit to torture with sharp instruments. There, at Rich Nails on Hester Street ($20 for a mani/pedi), a young girl on a cellphone strikes me as perfectly coiffed. She’s got a bowl-and-buzz cut, tipped dull orange at the ends, very Yohji Yamamoto circa 1990.

She loves my camouflage flats, I love her hair. She tells me there’s a hip, cute guy, Gary Liao, at the V Salon, 75 Elizabeth Street. I boldly enter the tiny storefront and feel good, not like chum or a woolly beast. Gary is working on a K-Fed style for an Asian guy while I am washed by a young beauty channeling Rihanna, the sultry Barbadian singer. With his asymmetrical gelled hair, Gary is Anglomania gone wild; he’s congenial and gets exactly what I want. Wielding his kung fu scissors, he keeps up a steady stream of haircut hip-hop: chop chop, snip snip, and I know he knows his business. Twenty-five dollars later, it’s all over but the tremendous applause I hear in my own head. And an hour later, I’m ashamed to admit, I’m hungry again, for more Chinatown.

http://travel2.nytimes.com/2006/10/22/style/tmagazine/22tfair.html

(y) (y) (y) (y) (y) (h) (h) (h) (h) (h) I loved this!

Have a lovely evening and terrific day tomorrow.

Carpe Diem,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer Pup (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 11:22 PM

:| :| :|

LipoSonix, Inc. is a Seattle-based medical device company developing innovative products for non-invasive body sculpting. The technology works by focusing high-intensity ultrasound through the skin into precise locations within subcutaneous adipose tissue. The ultrasound energy permanently disrupts the adipocytes without damaging the epidermis, dermis, or underlying tissues and organs. Treated tissue is resorbed via normal inflammatory mechanisms. The LipoSonix product has the potential to be a powerful non-invasive body sculpting tool for aesthetic applications.

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Our goal is to develop a non-invasive body sculpting product with the following benefits:

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http://www.liposonix.com/

(y) (y) I am definitely keeping an eye on this Seattle-based firm. Not for myself, mind you.

;) Hmmmm, who's kidding who here? Of course it's for me - but when I absolutely need it and when there are countless success stories to substantiate that it is safe.

Meanwhile a little jiggle in my wiggle makes me giggle. And yes, I am very sober...;) Just a wee bit tired and feeling quite content. I hope you are as well.

Safe travels, both virtual as well as f2f.

Adieu,

SWeetlady & Wyatt the sleeping Boxer Pup (S) (l) (&) (l) (S)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 11:27 PM

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October 22, 2006

Talking a Red Streak

By MARY CLARKE

Poppy King was 20 years old when she launched her eponymous line in Australia in 1992. Now a resident of NoLIta in Manhattan, this beauty-editor darling, known for her bright red lips, is back with a finely tuned line called Lipstick Queen, coming out next month.

Does geography equal lipstick destiny? Do lipstick wearers roam NoLIta?

It’s like we’re another species. You know when you drive a Volkswagen and see another person driving a Volkswagen, and you kind of nod?

It’s the same with red-lipstick wearers. You see another red-lipstick wearer and acknowledge that, “Hey, yes, you’re one of my kind.”

Women seem to be wearing more lip gloss than lipstick these days.

My poor little lipstick category. Lip gloss has been center stage for a long time. I feel like somebody needs to step in and say: “Hey, remember that fascinating icon from when you were a little girl? That smell? That look? That windup tube?”

Your old lipstick line bore your first name; the new one plays off your last.

Lipstick Queen is a name that has chosen me rather than the other way around. For as long as I have worn red lipstick, people have called me Lipstick Queen. When it came to naming my new brand, it was a no-brainer.

So what will we see in this collection?

Ten colors in two different textures: from the palest beige to a very black, deep wine. I like to do the ultimate in every shade category.

If I do a pink, it’s the ultimate pink. I will go where others fear to tread when it comes to the depth of color. When I do a nude, it’s still a statement, not a benign, nothing color.

Ten shades, but you’re known to wear only one: red.

I controlled myself: there is only one red in the line.

What is your earliest lipstick memory?

My mother’s dark brown Biba lipstick from London. She took me there in the 70’s when I was a little girl. She’s my first conscious recognition of liking how someone did their lips. One of the colors in my line can be traced back to that shade.

How old were you when you wore lipstick for the first time?

The first lipstick I ever bought was a Cutex one called Pink Chiffon Frosted. I was 14. It was candy pink and glittery and looked hideous on me, but just owning a lipstick made me feel so glamorous.

So, first came pink. When did you start with the red lips?

A couple of years later I found a Helena Rubinstein lipstick called Autumn Red. It had a brownness to it at a time when everything was pink. That’s when I realized that lipstick could do more than just make you feel glamorous. It could also make you look glamorous.

Who are your lipstick heroes?

Louise Brooks, Eva Peron, Marilyn Monroe, Kiki de Montparnasse. And I really love the way Carolyn Bessette Kennedy wore her lipstick.

What about today?

That’s harder. Gwen Stefani looks great, but a little too punky for me. Most of my real lipstick heroes are women I’ve known in my life or seen around the neighborhood. Darinka Novitovic, the artist and hostess at Florent, always looks amazing.

You’re not even wearing mascara — just lipstick.

What I love about wearing no makeup except red lipstick is that it cross-references so many cultures: Japanese, the French court, “Blade Runner.” It’s futuristic, prehistoric, belle époque. It’s everything.

So, is that the secret to pulling off vibrant color? Lipstick and nothing else?

I’m not suggesting everyone do it the way I do, but 9 women out of 10 can wear red lipstick. Part of my crusade is to get women to understand that the best thing they can do when they wear red lipstick is to minimize the rest of their makeup.

Where does the natural look fit into all this?

I think I’ve got the natural look. The natural look is what comes naturally to you. When you feel good in something, it looks natural.

The women who head up their own lines — like Bobbi Brown, Jeanine Lobell, Laura Mercier — are all makeup artists. What about you?

Oh, God, you wouldn’t want me to put makeup on you. The one time I had to do that was on “60 Minutes” years ago in Australia, and the poor girl ended up looking like she had some kind of disease. No, I’m not a makeup artist. To tell you the truth, I’m not that fascinated by makeup — just lipstick.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/22/style/tmagazine/22tstreak.html

(*) (*) The last time I remember wearing RED (k) lipstick was when I was in dance recitals for eleven years as a kid - or for Halloween. This article made me re-consider though. And then decided to stick with browny wines or winey browns or sheer nude and other great colors (Bare Escentuals) are really nice for quick errands by day. :D

Smooooch!

:) :)

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer Pup (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 11:30 PM

(h) (h) (h)

October 22, 2006

911

By CHARLOTTE RUDGE

Miraculously Affordable Superstars Alan Tosler at Tosler Davis, 89 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10003; (212)229-0100; haircut, $125. Tosler is an affable Briton whose soothing 10th-floor salon is where edgier artist-socialites like Jessica Craig-Martin, Rachel Feinstein and Cecily Brown go for sophisticated, downtown-looking cuts.

Jimmy Paul at Bumble and Bumble Downtown, 415 West 13th Street, New York, N.Y. 10014; (212)521-6500; haircut, $250. O.K., $250 for a haircut is still a lot of money, but it’s a bargain considering that Paul, perhaps the most in-demand editorial stylist in America, has worked on Paris Vogue’s editor, Carine Roitfeld, and Uma Thurman, among others. Despite his high-fashion pedigree, his haircut vibe is low-key, sultry and effortless.

“I love the sexy ease of late-60’s cuts,” he says. “Healthy hair with volume.”

Ricky Pannell at Snip ’n’ Sip, 204 Waverly Place, New York, N.Y. 10014; (212)242-3880; haircut, $100. Loyal clients like the photographer Annie Leibovitz, the artist Ahn Duong and the socialite Amanda Cutter Brooks (along with regular folks) appreciate Pannell’s go-with-the-flow, rocker-style attitude; his newly expanded, sweetly pleasing 1940’s-soda-fountain-themed salon makes you feel like playing spin the bottle.

Art Luna at Art Luna Salon, 2116 Main Street, Santa Monica, Calif. 90405; (310)450-7168; highlights, $200 and up. Luna’s shimmery, otherworldly hair color has been the gold standard for clients like Reese Witherspoon and Kirsten Dunst. He splits his time between editorial work (reportedly getting $5,000 a day) and snipping civilians in the airy outdoor area of his salon — the better to see if the shade is right.

Best Rocker Cut Sally Hershberger at Sally Hershberger Downtown, 425 West 14th Street, New York, N.Y. 10014; (212)206-8700; haircut, $800. The woman who brought the $600 (now $800) haircut to Manhattan is an intimidating arbiter of cool, with a fanatical fan base and a waiting list of a year. Though famous for Meg Ryan’s career-making shag, Hershberger is equally skilled at giving long-haired clients like Michelle Pfeiffer and Michelle Williams a signature dose of sexy cool. (For a look at the woman herself, turn to Page 48.)

Best Sexy Movie-Star Cut Serge Normant at Serge Normant at John Frieda, 797 Madison Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10021; (212)879-1000; haircut, $500. Trust Julia Roberts: she’s Normant’s biggest, most outspoken fan. This sexy Frenchman opened his own salon in 2004, where he gives luxuriously sensual cuts.

Best Un-Cut Eiji at Eiji Hair Salon, 601 Madison Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10022; (212)838-3454; haircut, $300. Eiji, who cuts dry, is intense. A haircut with him takes at least an hour and is done in utterly focused silence, but the result is impeccable: his clean, swooping layers and precise, feather-light details result in hair that somehow looks like it’s gone straight into that perfectly grown-out phase.

Best Short Cuts Garren at Garren New York, 680 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10019; (212)841-9400; www.garrennewyork.com; haircut, $600. Garren made his name after he helped transform Linda Evangelista in the 80’s, and he’s been perfecting his skills (on the likes of Madonna and Isabella Rossellini) ever since. Clients say that their hair keeps its shape for ages.

Maria de los AngÉles at Valery Joseph Salon, 820 Madison Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10021; (212)517-7377; haircut, $175. De Los Angéles sports a perfect Jean Seberg do, so she knows cropped hair and possesses a sixth sense for whether a short cut will flatter someone. “The most important thing with short hair is that your brows have to be shaped and taken care of since your face is now more exposed,” she says. De Los Angéles will pluck them herself for an additional $45.

Best Transformative Cut Oscar Blandi at Oscar Blandi Salon, 746 Madison Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10021; (212)988-9404; www.oscarblandi.com; haircut, $500. Blandi may go down in history as the guy who transformed the dowdy, punky Nicole Richie into the elegant, blond-bobbed Nicole Richie. His talent lies in thinking big picture: if you’re in a rut, he’s the guy.

Best Curly Cut Tommy Buckett at Sally Hershberger Downtown, 425 West 14th Street, New York, N.Y. 10014; (212)206-8700; haircut, $175. In beauty-editor circles, he’s known as a wizard with curls, whipping hard-to-manage waves into a soft, expertly layered mass of ripples that are sexy but still exude downtown edge.

Best Transformative Hair Color Rita Hazan at Rita Hazan Salon, 720 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10019; (212)734-4757; www.ritahazansalon.com; highlights, $500. File it under: Expensive, Worth It. Single process color starts at $200, but if you want to do a dramatic color change, the fast-working, no-nonsense Hazan is the one. She has masterminded young Hollywood’s eternally shifting spectrum of career-defining hair color, with clients including Eva Longoria, Jennifer Lopez and those favorite guilty pleasures, the Simpson sisters (who despite their personae boast some serious hair).

Hair Doctor (Cut) Jamal Hammadi, Los Angeles, Calif.; (323)254-7788; www.hamadibeauty.com; haircut, $400. Hammadi is a genius at fixing fried, badly cut hair into red-carpet-worthy shape in no time with intensive, customized conditioning treatments and perfect face-framing cuts. (He’s the reason Drew Barrymore’s hair looks touched-by-the-hand-of-God healthy.) And Hammadi prefers to go straight to your home.

Hair Doctors (Color) Laurie Foley at L’Atelier de Laurie, 124 East Fourth Street, New York, N.Y. 10003; (212)358-8900; hand-painted hair, $350 to $400; corrective work, $400 and up; single process, $140 to $160. Modeling agencies routinely send Foley on-the-verge girls for that career-changing color that will raise their profile (she’s the one behind Karolina Kurkova’s buttery blonde).

Janette Bower at Space Hair Salon, 155 Avenue of the Americas, New York, N.Y. 10013; (212)647-8588; corrective color, $125 to $300. Bower is the secret weapon of Manhattan’s girls in the know who, after experimenting elsewhere, go running to SoHo to rectify the mess.

Best Blonde Louise Galvin at John Barrett Salon at Bergdorf Goodman, 754 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10019; (212)872-2700; highlights, $525. The devastatingly glamorous Galvin flies in monthly from London to painstakingly paint that perfect I-spent-a-week-at-the-beach tangle of honey, copper and pale-gold blonde.

Marie Robinson at Sally Hershberger Downtown, 425 West 14th Street, New York, N.Y. 10014; (212)206-8700; highlights, $275 and up. Robinson has a clientele that reads like a Top 5 list for iconic towheads: Nicole Kidman (ethereal blonde), Carolyn Murphy (supermodel blonde), Heather Graham (sexy blonde), Claire Danes (serious blonde) and Patti Hansen (70’s bombshell blonde).

Patricia Dias at Ury & Associates, 3109 M Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20007; (202)342-0944; highlights, $150 and up. In a town like D.C., it’s not O.K. to be any sort of blonde that smacks of the bottle. Dias’s utterly imperceptible, clean, Hitchcock-blonde streaks are Senate-worthy low-key.

Best Brunette RenÉe Patronik at Serge Normant at John Frieda; 797 Madison Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10021; (212)879-1000; single process, $160 and up. Happy clients have claimed thay can recognize a fellow Patronik brunette because of the shimmery, sexy, translucent quality normally associated with blondes. “Going brunette is not about making hair darker — I love highlights — it’s about choosing the color that’s most flattering for you,” Patronik says.

Antonio Vitale at Studio For Hair, 464 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, Mass., 02215; (617)262-2029; single process, $70 and up. Vitale’s deep, chocolaty glazes and warm, cinnamon-swirled highlights have built him a rabid following, including some who take the Delta Shuttle up from La Guardia.

Best Redhead Lisa Estridge at Salon Eliut Rivera, 762 Madison Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10021; (212)472-3440; single process, $100 and up. A former protégée of the color king Louis Licari, Estridge has a natural passion and talent for redheads, creating vibrant Technicolor shades that aren’t too orangy, not too blue.

Best Highlights for Relaxed Hair Ali Blette at Ted Gibson, 184 Fifth Avenue, New York., N.Y. 10010; (212)633-6333; www.tedgibsonsalon.com; highlights, $110 and up. Putting highlights over a relaxer is tricky; if done wrong, it can cause hair to fall out, and the color can turn brassy and harsh. Blette uses a special bleach-free color to keep damage to a minimum and is an expert at swirling, caramel-y shades on dark hair.

Pregnant Pause John Masters Organics, 77 Sullivan Street, New York, N.Y. 10012; (212)343-9590; www.johnmasters.com; highlights, with Masters, $250 and up; single process, $120 and up. Masters’s low-key SoHo salon now offers herbal-based, ammonia-free single-process color, and ammonia-free highlights that he believes are safer for pregnant women than conventional dye. Get Masters to do it himself; it’s a little pricier, but worth it for his artistic touch.

Mode ORGANIC SALON, 1424 Fourth Avenue, Seattle, Wash. 98101; (206)623-0195; www.modeorganic.com; highlights, $85 and up. At this all-natural salon, highlights and processed color are organic, sans ammonia and as chemical-free as dye can get (which is to say: almost). Instead of harsh ammonia, the salon uses a combination of essential oils and heat to open up the hair shaft and let color in.

Best Deep Conditioning Juan Juan salon, 9667 Wilshire Boulevard, Beverly Hills, Calif. 90212; (310)278-5826; www.juanjuansalon.com; shine revitalizing treatment, $50. A two-step glossing process combines a mask and serum massaged section by section into strands. Ten to 20 minutes under the dryer is enough to result in gleaming Breck Girl shine that lasts up to a month.

Salon Ishi, 70 East 55th Street, New York, N.Y. 10022; (212)888-4744; water treatment, $125 for one; $400 for four. The concept is weird, technical and hard to understand, but the results are addictive: Japanese mineral water is applied to the scalp, then the hair is wrapped and infused with purified air for eight minutes. After, you get silky, immediately healthier-looking strands.

Nusta Spa, 1129 20th Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20036; (202)530-5700; deep conditioning treatment, $50. In a nearly 5,000-square-foot eco-friendly space, Nusta is home to the most intoxicatingly relaxing deep conditioning treatment: your hair and scalp are warmed, massaged in camellia oil, then wrapped in steamy towels, while you receive an intensive hand-neck-and-shoulder massage.

Most Relaxing Vibes Robert Kree Salon, 375 Bleecker Street, New York, N.Y. 10014; (212)989-9547; haircuts, $80 and up; highlights, $175 and up; single process, $90 and up. No blasting techno music, no acidic receptionist and no hard-sell here. This West Village salon is a favorite of those who want their hair done in attitude-free peace.

Thomas Heinz Salon, 308 West 13th Street, New York, N.Y. 10014; (212)414-1500; haircuts, $200; highlights, $250 and up. Heinz opened this tiny, superprivate, 400-square-foot salon two years ago without the usual P.R. bells and whistles. That’s how he likes it: everything from cut and color to blowouts is handled by Heinz himself.

Best Blowouts for $40 and Under Arias’ Unisex Hairstyling, 135 Fifth Avenue, Brooklyn, N.Y. 11217; (718)783-8354; set and blow, $28 and up. This Park Slope salon is no-nonsense; stylists set wet hair on huge rollers and sit you under a low-heat hooded dryer, then expertly blow it out so it’s straight but with a bit of bounce.

Amour de Hair, for locations, go to www.amourdehair.net; blowout, $30 and up. This New York chain with five locations has developed a cult following among blowout fanatics who want the procedure fast and cheap — and really good.

Blow Styling Salon, 342 West 14th Street, New York, N.Y. 10014; (212)989-6282; blowout, $40 and up. A no-appointment blowout mecca that is so successful, there is usually a wait. But the stylists have elevated the blowout to a high art: say, “Cindy Crawford at the Todd Oldham 1998 spring show,” and they’ll know exactly what you mean.

Ruzanna KHACHATRYAN, Beverly Hills, Calif. 90210; (323)497-1632; blowout, $40 and up. Ruzanna Khachatryan became something of a star at a famously affordable chain. She’s freelance now, with plans to open a Beverly Hills blowout salon soon for her client list full of “It” girls and the women who want to look like them, thanks to her ability to infuse hair with la-la land sex appeal.

Best Body Wave Damien Santiago at Bumble and Bumble Downtown; 415 West 13th Street, New York, N.Y. 10014; (212)521-6500; www.bumbleandbumble.com; body wave, $175; permanent and cut, $315. Santiago is a personal favorite of picky magazine editors who loathe the word “perm.” His body wave uses ultragentle chemicals and extra-wide curlers, resulting in, to quote one beauty-director client, “a soft, Drew Barrymore-esque wave.”

Permanent Extensions Ellin Lavar, 134 West 72nd Street, New York, N.Y. 10023; (212)724-4492; www.lavarhair designs.com; invisible braids, $650. LaVar has been doing extensions since the 70’s, when she developed her now-signature invisible braid technique, which eschews keratin-glue bonding in favor of less damaging tiny braids and thread. She’s beefed up Julia Roberts’s hair, did Mary J. Blige’s waist-length locks and counts Oprah, Iman, Bono and Donatella as clients.

Straightening Haime MuÑoz Salon, 146 East 74th Street, New York, N.Y. 10021; (212)861-9933; www.haimemunoz.com; relaxing treatment, $350 and up; one-week treatment, $150. Muñoz has clients fly in from Saudi Arabia to get his silicone-thio-and-oil-based straightening treatment, which uses no flat iron or rough combing. It lasts between three and eight months, but for those who want to sample before they commit, or just don’t want to bring a blow-dryer on vacation, there’s also a temporary treatment that straightens hair for one week.

Miwa at Salon Estetica, 9635 Brighton Way, Beverly Hills, Calif. 90210; (310)274-1553; hair straightening, $300 to $500. Miwa uses the Japanese Yuko technique, which involves proteins and hot irons that heat up to 300 degrees to restructure the shaft. It’s a three-hour-plus process, but it leaves you with a perfect sheet of glassy, smooth hair.

Best Bangs River Lloyd at Serge Normant at John Frieda, 797 Madison Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10021; (212)879-1000; haircut, $250. Lloyd is so good at creating expertly thick, sexy, grown-out-looking fringe that several publicists of rival hairstylists secretly recommend him. “Please don’t tell anyone that I told you about him,” says one woman. “But he really is the best.”

Pancho SoeKoro at Pashah Salon, 601 Madison Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10022; (212)371-7337; www.pashahsalon.com; haircut, $300 and up. After the big-bangs explosion of 2005, it seemed as if every other girl were walking around with an unflattering, hacked-off thatch on her forehead. But occasionally you’d see sultry, side-swept and flattering bangs, and the man responsible was almost always Soekoro, who used to tend to Anna Wintour’s crisp fringe.

Most Luxurious Salons Cornelia Day Resort, 663 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10022; (212)871-3050; www.cornelia.com; haircut, $125 and up; blowout, $60 and up. Known mostly as a day spa, Cornelia also houses a luxurious hair salon with amenities like butlers serving organic tea, a 3,000-square-foot terrace overlooking Fifth Avenue, green-onyx floors, massage chairs and zillions of other luxe touches.

SPA and Salon Bellagio The Bellagio, 3600 South Las Vegas Boulevard, Las Vegas, Nev. 89109; (702)693-8080; www.bellagio.com; haircut, $95 and up; blowout, $65 and up. In Vegas, everything is bigger and brighter, including hair salons. The Bellagio’s new 65,000-square-foot, $375-million spa-and-salon tower is a sleek Zen emporium made of onyx, bleached walnut and granite, with water walls and watsu pools. There’s also a private barber room that offers men old-school straight-shaves.

Top-Notch Highlights That Won’t Bankrupt You Tzipi Sheinwald at Bumble and Bumble Downtown, 415 West 13th Street, New York, N.Y. 10014; (212)521-6500; www.bumbleandbumble.com; highlights, $155 and up. In New York, it’s often a choice between the rent or a head of flawless, just-between-us streaks, unless you know Sheinwald. Her natural-looking sunburst streaks rival colorists who charge triple.

Michael Angelo at Michael Angelo’s Wonderland Beauty Parlor, 418 West 13th Street, New York, N.Y. 10014; (212)524-2800; www.wonderlandbeautyparlor.com; highlights, $250 and up. The colorist of choice for the hip-model crowd: hot pink and cheetah prints abound. But his magical highlights are serious.

JANE Jelacic at Elevations Salon & Café, 451 Bush Street, San Francisco, Calif. 94108; (415)392-2969; www.elevationsalon.com; highlights, $160 and up. This cool, airy Pop Art-y place is home to Jelacic, whose signature is subtle, sun-kissed streaks that work on all shades.

Big-Event Hair Kevin Lee or Aki MaEda at Kenneth Salon, Waldorf-Astoria, 301 Park Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10022; (212)752-1800; haircut, $105 and up. Kenneth was where Jackie O. went for her party dos and where members of the junior social set like Aerin Lauder and Shoshanna Gruss go now. When you want an all-out updo with volume and lasting power, these guys are it.

Miki Loiacono at Privé Salon, 310 West Broadway, New York, N.Y. 10013; (212)274-8888; www.priveproducts.com; haircut and blow, $250. Julianne Moore, Salma Hayek and Gwyneth Paltrow count on Loiacono to blow their hair into the realm of the impossibly-glossy-but-voluminous, perfect-yet-imperfect, all-night do for the red carpet. And he makes house calls.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/22/style/tmagazine/22t911.html

(p) (p) 's, ah the photos of hair all done up on some of the individual web sites. I have a few picked out, especially the ones with peace and quiet. And the blonde and highlighting experts of course. Well done! ;)

(S) (S) Pleasant dreams,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 11:31 PM

:| :| :|

http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2006/10/19/style/tmagazine/20061022_LUIGI_SLIDESHOW_3.html

:D :D Poofy! I'll stick with long hair - and not teased please. No knots.

(S) (S)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 11:33 PM

:o :o

October 22, 2006

Against Lip Gloss, or New Notes on Camp

By DAPHNE MERKIN

Let us now deplore the present moment and lament all that has been lost on the way to becoming overstimulated and spiritually starved inhabitants of an imperiled social order. First we must ask: Where did we go wrong? Where did we go so terribly wrong? I know many of you would blame it on the usual suspects, on the insatiable maw of the media or on large, amorphous forces run amok — our having started up in Iraq, say, or our having ravaged the planet in the name of progress and capitalist gain — but I blame it all on lip gloss. I believe there is something irrevocably ruinous about a culture in which women are expected to go around with their lips in a permanent state of shiny readiness, a perennial Marilyn Monroe moue of glistening sexual receptivity, hinting at the possibility that they, like Monroe, sleep fetchingly in the nude. Just after this thought occurred to me on a recent Saturday night while I was waiting for the subway, I found myself sitting next to two college-age women who were discussing — I kid you not, this is either synchronicity or Sartre’s idea of hell — the merits of various glosses, Kiehl’s as compared with Lancôme’s as compared with Trish McEvoy’s, which one lasted longer and why.

I eavesdropped raptly, being myself the dissatisfied owner of many tubes and pots of said product — from the lowly Blistex and ChapStick versions to the designer jobs that can go for as much as $50 — as well as of a mouth that always insists on returning to type, which is a recalcitrant state of matte dryness. The potential staying power of cosmetics is an inherently unsettling concept, suggestive as it is of a kind of Viagra principle of female enhancement — indeed, of a core confusion between the messy imperatives of reality and the contrivances of theater, which is at the heart of everything that is problematic, if not unbearable, about the way we live now. It is, all the same, a concept that has been picked up with alacrity by gay male commentators on the E! channel who espouse the need for cosmetic “fixatives.” The E! channel, for those of you who have succeeded in hovering above the fray rather than flailing in it, exists to beam out programs about red-carpet sightings of celebrities as well as the inside scoop on their clothes, jewelry and accessories for viewers who wish to look like celebrities or, at the very least, long to be mistaken for Jessica Alba. (There is, in fact, a brand-new E! program called “Style Her Famous.”) If you want to resemble a person who is worthy of red-carpet treatment, it is crucial, apparently, that your makeup not wear out and begin to show glimpses of the face underneath. As one of the Western world’s leading aficionados of beauty products, I am naturally familiar with the existing range of complexion beautifiers — indeed, I own a batch of barely touched tubes and bottles of primers, luminizers, correctors and concealers — but fixatives were a new one on me, conjuring up faces trapped beneath thick white coatings of Elmer’s glue.

Still, if one is looking to condemn the zeitgeist wholesale — which, to be perfectly clear about it, I am, since there is no place to live but in the present moment, and I trust that I am not alone in finding so much of it a trial — one has to begin somewhere and trace the all-important dramatic arc from better to worse. Points of origin are always hard to agree on, of course, and have become even slipperier since the term “paradigm shift” started being thrown around, but let me try. Once upon a time — not all that long ago, really, yet inconceivably long ago if you are under 25 and can’t believe that typewriters once roamed the earth, that anyone ever managed to get by without iTunes, that colors like gray and navy were only, forlornly, themselves and not yet harbingers of the new black — an essay appeared in a now defunct highbrow journal called Partisan Review. The year was 1964, and the essay was by Susan Sontag, who was, I feel quite safe in saying, both the first and the last intellectual celebrity America has produced. (In France, where they believe in the glamour of the mind and where Sontag chose to be buried, but not before accepting an offer from U.C.L.A. to buy her papers and library for $1.1 million, intellectual celebrities are not all that uncommon, especially if you boast a good head of hair, as Sontag did, and as Bernard-Henri Lévy still does.)

The essay was called “Notes on ‘Camp”’ and it attempted to define an emerging, homosexually derived cultural attitude — one that was, as Sontag characterized it, “something of a private code, a badge of identity even, among small urban cliques.” Camp, according to Sontag, “converts the serious into the frivolous”; it sets itself resolutely against the hierarchical universe of value judgments — those tiresome “high culture” legacies of “truth, beauty and seriousness” — and posits instead “the equivalence of all objects.” Camp, in other words, does away with the nuanced discrimination between High (complexly mediated) and Low (simplistically projected) levels of cultural expression — between the depressive ruminations of a writer like Robert Musil or W.G. Sebald and the air-spun sagas of Jacqueline Susann or Danielle Steel — that are the bread and butter of critical discourse and that helped establish Sontag’s reputation as a discerning observer. None of which deterred her from championing it in her crisp and haughty “are you with me, you morons” manner. The camp sensibility, once deemed “esoteric” by Sontag, has since become so much a part of the air we breathe (like Brangelina or Bush-bashing) that it is hard to imagine people used to walk around living their lives without an acute consciousness that they were “living” their “lives.” Hard to imagine, that is, that a sense of radical disjunction between one’s interior experience of self and one’s stylized (or, as the academic jargon would have it, “performative”) self hadn’t yet become standard, permeating every other overheard conversation at Starbucks across the land. It is a disjunction best evoked by those ubiquitous, irritating “air quotes,” which is lingo for the act of bracketing every declarative remark in invisible quotation marks, as though we were all characters in a “Will & Grace” episode, referencing opinions and convictions, searching for the reassuringly tinny sound of a laugh track. Camp, Sontag noted, “is the consistently aesthetic experience of the world. It incarnates a victory of ‘style’ over ‘content,’ ‘aesthetics’ over ‘morality.”’ Goodbye, Matthew Arnold. Hello, Andy Warhol. Goodbye, heavy-handed German metaphysicists like Immanuel Kant, with their anxieties about the ding-an-sich, the unknowable essence beyond appearances. Hello, nihilistic French theorists like Jean Baudrillard, with their blithe sanctification of inauthenticity. Welcome to our world of borrowed auras and copycat identities, one in which we have successfully overcome the response that Sontag describes as “the nausea of the replica.”

The victory of the simulacrum — the pleasure we seem to take in an infinite regress of reproductive images, in visual seriality for its own sake — is, of course, nothing less than the triumph of Camp. Although as a state of mind it feels as if it’s been here forever — as if we’ve been cozy with its wink-wink approach to traditional values for so long that the new homophobia might be said to be heterophobia (a suspicion of unhip straight people) — in truth the ascendance of the camp sensibility has been a while in coming.

It began in the early 19th century, with the technical advances that the historian Daniel J. Boorstin, in his proleptically anti-Camp manifesto, “The Image: A Guide to Pseudo-Events in America” (published in 1961), termed the Graphic Revolution; sped up in the late 1800’s with the invention of dry-plate photography and then the camera; and acquired a plangent but heartless mood of its own with Christopher Isherwood’s Sally Bowles as well as a bit of philosophical heft after Walter Benjamin wrote his 1935 essay “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction.” From there it was a hop, skip and jump to the club scene on the Rive Gauche, where the competing egos of the young Yves Saint Laurent and Karl Lagerfeld used to hang out, as evoked by Alicia Drake in her fascinating account of the two designers’ rivalry, “The Beautiful Fall”: “There were pockets of homosexual life and men cruising all over Paris, but Saint Germain in the 1950’s was known for its folles, the name used to describe camp gays of the moment who were recognized by their bottom-swivelling walk and deliberately effeminate ways, including a habit of high-drama shrieking.” By the late 80’s and early 90’s, Spy magazine, ever alert to the taxonomy of the risible — and newly available for scrutiny in what is itself a swishy form of homage, a book titled “Spy: The Funny Years” — was busy attending to the climate change, teasing out the fine line between “Camp Lite” (attending the Warhol auction) and “True Camp” (attending the Warhol funeral) in one issue, and again, almost three years later, charting a graph of camp icons with the aid of categories that included the “Healthily Campy” (Robert Goulet), the “Forgiveably Campy” (Henry Kissinger), the “Rather Sad” (Priscilla Presley) and the “Just Pathetic” (Sukhreet Gabel). True to Sontag’s dictum that the ethos does not allow for the possibility of tragedy, Spy allowed for none, either.

Seems hard to believe now that there was ever an age before ironic appropriation, before John Currin and Vic Muniz. Did Rembrandt think of himself in quotes, as “Rembrandt”? And is there any chance that we will ever know, buried as we are beneath the rubble of postmodern rhetoric, attuned to the chipmunk chirps of vituperative bloggers and smug talk show hosts (I say this without ever having had the patience to watch more than five minutes of Jon Stewart)? How has the world become so fluidly post-gender and so unregeneratively boys-clubbish at one and the same time? And is the JonBenet story a tragedy, a piece of (witting) camp or an example of (unwitting) kitsch?

Then again, there are so many questions I would like definite answers to. I am starved, truth be told, for a hint of the old directionality, the old imperialist verities that have ceded pride of place to provisional suppositions and apologetic stances. These days, those of us who don’t wish to cast our lot with the intolerant or the ignorant have been collectively tyrannized by the doctrine of equal validity that underlies the social construction of knowledge — by the belief, as Paul Boghossian, a professor of philosophy at New York University, describes it in “Fear of Knowledge: Against Relativism and Constructivism,” “that there is no such thing as superior knowledge, only different knowledges, each appropriate to its own setting.” This might help explain why everyone I know feels marginalized in his or her “lifestyle,” at risk of being exposed for not being sufficiently novel or aspirational enough in their aspirations. It might even help explain why I am frightened by the specter of mass customization so ingeniously exploited by Warhol — by the profusion of design choices in everything from typeface fonts (30,000 of them) to drawer pulls (1,500 of them). Virginia Postrel, in “The Substance of Style,” her defense of our design-obsessed society, assures me that all this focus on “impractical decoration and meaningless fashion” is actually a good thing, an indication of our desire and ability to create “an enticing, stimulating, diverse and beautiful world.” We want, she crows, “our vacuum cleaners and mobile phones to sparkle, our bathroom faucets and desk accessories to express our personalities. ... We demand trees in our parking lots, peaked roofs and decorative facades on our supermarkets, auto dealerships as swoopy and stylish as the cars we sell.” We do?

The anxiety of artifice — an underlying uncertainty about the solidity of the perceptible — is as old as the hills or Plato’s cave. The problem with Camp is that it valorizes ambiguity by insisting on framing the narrative of real life as a series of celluloid outtakes. In doing so it leaves us no place to look for confirmation but in the mirror, allowing for no rush but in the pseudo-image, the hyper-seen and the re-seen.

The threat of the artificial has been converted to an enticement: life as a Warhol silk-screen. With a retrospective now on at the Gagosian Gallery and several new books, Andy himself is back in a big way this fall, although one might reasonably argue that he has never gone away — unlike so many of his hangers-on who died badly or lived on into pallid obscurity. In Ric Burns’s recently aired hagiographic documentary about Warhol and his influence, we were treated to four hours of interviews with a cast of observers, who vie with each other in ascribing ever more far-reaching transformational importance to this “most colossal creep,” as one lone dissenter calls him, this cultivatedly affectless voyeur whose two gods were fame and beauty. If you pay close attention, you can spot a young, black-haired Sontag, early on in Burns’s film, smiling at Warhol’s camera, her teeth photogenically white. As Warhol closes in on her, there is something unsettling about her smile, something snarling, almost feral. Maybe what she needs is lip gloss.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/22/style/tmagazine/22tgloss.html

Oh Marilyn!

http://graphics10.nytimes.com/images/2006/10/18/style/tmagazine/22gloss.1902.jpg

(k) (k) Speaking of (k) (k)'s. ;)

(S) (S) ,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 11:39 PM

Evan Rachel Wood in an Alexander McQueen tulle dress.

http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2006/10/19/style/tmagazine/20061022_EVAN_SLIDESHOW_1.html

(y) (y) She's beautiful, yes? Enjoy the eye candy (p) and have a delightful rest of your night.

(*) (*) Wyatt and I are off for a (brief) walk in the chilly Fall air. Then this lady book worm is opening a book for pleasure rather than hitting the research methods book for my online course.

Tomorrow? Getting my nails and toes done and considering which color nail polish to take with me. If *this* is my biggest worry tonight? I am having one heck of a wonderful evening.

;) ;) 's

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer Pup (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-23-2006, 11:46 PM

:| :|

http://www3.uark.edu/bkst/pumpkin/steps1.htm

(h) (h)

And with that, I'm off to grab a fleecy robe to take a short Wyatt walk. Then? Really cold nonfat milk and those spicy this-time-if-year cookies. :)

(S) (S) (S)

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-27-2006, 11:35 AM

(y) (h) (y) (h) (y) (h) (y) (h)

Keep punching - there are more things that happen.......;-) I LOVED THIS and LMAO!!!!

http://www.toddalbert.com/files/images/bushsmack.swf

(y) (y) (y) (y) Don't forget to vote in your local elections coming up! At least the Dems will control Congress and hopefully reign in the village idiot until 2008.(i)

(i) At least web sites like this one give folks a safe outlet. :D :D :D

Carpe Diem,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer Pup (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-27-2006, 11:42 AM

:) :)

McGreevey says he'd wed partner if lawmakers allow gay marriage

October 26, 2006, 9:58 AM EDT

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) _ Former New Jersey Gov. James McGreevey, who resigned after admitting to a gay affair, says he would marry his partner if state lawmakers decide to allow gay marriage.

"Marriage would offer the ability to bless our relationship in a committed way," McGreevey, 49, told The New York Times for Thursday's newspapers.

McGreevey's comments came in response to a New Jersey Supreme Court that said same-sex couples must be extended the same rights as married people. The court left it up to the Legislature to decide whether those rights would be described as marriage or something else.

Some gay rights advocates criticized the decision for not going far enough. McGreevey hailed it.

"The decision is courageous," he told The Star-Ledger of Newark.

McGreevey told The Associated Press last month that he had publicly opposed gay marriage while in office a way to keep his homosexuality hidden.

"I did not want to be identified as being gay, and it was the safe place to be," McGreevey told the AP. "I wanted to embrace the antagonist. I wanted to be against it. That's the absurdity."

The former governor stepped down in 2004 after announcing he was gay. Before McGreevey and his partner, an Australian businessman with whom he lives, could marry, the former governor would have to finalize his divorce from his second wife.

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newjersey/ny-bc-nj--gaymarriage-mcgre1026oct26,0,3196433.story?coll=ny-region-apnewjersey

:o :o It is really too bad how this former politico came out. But then he should not have given a former lover who had NO qualitifications - such an important state position (homeland security). Unethical actions *regardless* of McGreevey being gay or str8. IMHO. (I still think those four letters look like "I'm a ho" rather than short-hand for "in my humble opinion"....:| ;)

Have a delightful Friday and weekend!

Sweetlady & Wyatt the "getting into everything right now" Boxer Pup (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-27-2006, 11:49 AM

(i) (i) (i)

THE BATTLE OVER SAME-SEX MARRIAGE

Mixed decision for gay couples in New Jersey State's top court says they deserve same rights as heterosexuals -- but splits on including marriage

Wyatt Buchanan, San Francisco Chronicle Staff Writer

Thursday, October 26, 2006

Same-sex couples are entitled to the same rights as heterosexual married couples, but they do not have a fundamental right to wed under New Jersey's Constitution, the state's Supreme Court ruled Wednesday.

The ruling comes after defeats for same-sex marriage activists in New York, Washington and California state courts and less than two weeks before voters in eight other states will consider constitutional amendments banning same-sex marriage.

"Denying committed same-sex couples the financial and social benefits and privileges given to their married heterosexual counterparts bears no substantial relationship to a legitimate government purpose," the New Jersey court found. That violates the state constitution's guarantee of equal legal protection for all residents.

The court ruled that it is up to the "democratic process" to determine how marriage rights are given to same-sex couples, whether through allowing them to marry or by applying "some other term" to their unions. It gave the Legislature 180 days to act.

The court split 4-3, but the dissenting justices concurred that same-sex couples are entitled to the benefits and privileges of marriage. But they dissented because they said same-sex couples also have a right to marry.

The leader of New Jersey's principal lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights organization denounced the decision with fiery language.

"Those who would view today's Supreme Court ruling as a victory for same-sex couples are dead wrong," said Steven Goldstein, chair of Garden State Equality. "So help us God, New Jersey's LGBT community and our millions of straight allies will settle for nothing less than 100 percent marriage equality."

Legal analysts said the ruling is similar to 1999's Vermont Supreme Court ruling that invalidated the state's marriage law but allowed legislators to grant same-sex couples equal status through civil unions rather than marriage. The Legislature created civil unions, effective in 2000.

"It shows how far notions of gay rights equality have moved in less than a decade," said Vikram Amar, a professor at UC Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco. "But it still shows that getting over the final hurdle of label equality is a big step."

Joseph Grodin, a former California Supreme Court justice who now teaches at Hastings, said the New Jersey court majority appears to have accepted a separate-but-equal status for same-sex couples, much as the U.S. Supreme Court did for racial minorities in 1896.

After declaring that gay and lesbian couples have a constitutional right to equal marriage benefits, Grodin said, the court majority seemed to be saying, "All that's left is this feeling that you people have of being oppressed by being treated differently. That's just in your mind."

Grodin and Amar said there's little chance California's Supreme Court, which is to decide within months whether to review a constitutional challenge to the state's ban on same-sex marriage, will rule similarly.

California's domestic partner law provides state benefits equal to marriage, unlike New Jersey's, which grants only some of the same rights. It is, therefore, less likely that California's court would return the issue to the Legislature, as other recent rulings have, the professors said.

Garden State Equality said several of the state's legislators would sponsor a bill granting marriage to same-sex couples. It aired television commercials Wednesday featuring a retired police officer with terminal cancer who talks about her female partner being denied death benefits.

Gay rights activists at national organizations and in California characterized the New Jersey decision as a success for their movement.

It was an "important victory" that the full court said committed same-sex couples deserve the same rights as married couples, said Jon Davidson, legal director for Lambda Legal, a gay rights legal organization that argued the case.

"We now turn to the Legislature to say there's really no reason to try to set up some other scheme to exclude same-sex couples from marriage," Davidson said of New Jersey.

"In a climate where courts are very concerned about legitimacy, the New Jersey Supreme Court said, 'We stand for full equality, but we want you, Legislature, to stand with us,' " said Kate Kendell, executive director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, a legal organization based in San Francisco that is arguing the marriage case in California.

Legal opponents of same-sex marriage took varying views of the decision.

"The court was right to conclude there is no fundamental right to same-sex marriage, but to characterize marriage as just another option along with other unions makes marriage meaningless," said Glen Lavy, chief counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund, which filed a brief in the case arguing against same-sex marriage.

Monte Stewart, president of the Marriage Law Foundation, which also filed a similar brief, said it is of "profound significance" that the justices found no fundamental right for same-sex couples to wed.

"The fact that eight appellate courts ... have declined to follow Massachusetts is a good indication that the courts are understanding the vital nature of marriage as a man-woman institution," Stewart said Wednesday.

Republican members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, along with some conservative Christian groups, reacted to the decision by urging Congress to pass an amendment to the federal Constitution proposed unsuccessfully this year to bar same-sex couples from marriage.

Proponents of state constitutional bans on the November ballot said the ruling will galvanize support for the amendments. They immediately began referring to it in campaigns.

"New Jersey is going to wake up a sleeping giant," said Cathi Herrod, spokeswoman for Protect Marriage Arizona. Polls in the state have shown a tight race, as they have in Colorado and Wisconsin.

Tom McClusky, chief lobbyist for the conservative Family Research Council in Washington, D.C., predicted the ruling would not affect the upcoming election.

"But I think we'll certainly see more people going to the polls in the eight states that have the amendments" on the ballot, McClusky said.

Chronicle staff writer Bob Egelko contributed to this report.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2006/10/26/MNGO5M02DV1.DTL

(g) (g) Hopefully this is indeed, progress. When Dems sweep the elections in two weeks, I believe there will be more "first downs" or another ten yards as they say in football. (from what I hear since I am not really a fan, merely an observer.)

:o Okay, I do cheer for certain teams that I really like, such as my college alma mater. However everytime I take the time to watch a game - they lose. So I simply read the weekly scores.:)

Adieu,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-27-2006, 11:55 AM

:| :| :| :| Definitely this guy is a WAY, WAY off in the weeds wack-job:

Australian Muslim leader compares uncovered women to exposed meat

Mark Tran

Thursday October 26, 2006

Guardian Unlimited

A senior Muslim cleric in Australia has sparked a furore by comparing women who do not wear a headscarf to "uncovered meat", implying that they invited sexual assault.

Sheik Taj Aldin al-Hilali delivered his comments in a religious address on adultery to around 500 worshippers in Sydney last month, but they only came to the attention of the wider public when they were published in the Australian paper today.

Sheik Hilali was quoted as saying: "If you take out uncovered meat and place it outside ... without cover, and the cats come to eat it ... whose fault is it, the cats' or the uncovered meat's? The uncovered meat is the problem. If she was in her room, in her home, in her hijab [the headdress worn by some Muslim women], no problem would have occurred."

The Egyptian-born cleric, the mufti of Sydney's biggest mosque, today sought to defuse the outrage his comments had sparked, including among fellow Muslims.

Sheik Hilali said in a statement he was shocked by reaction to his sermon.

"I would like to unequivocally confirm that the presentation related to religious teachings on modesty and not to go to extremes in enticements. This does not condone rape. I condemn rape," he said. "Women in our Australian society have the freedom and right to dress as they choose; the duty of man is to avert his glance or walk away."

But Muslim community leaders rounded on Sheik Hilali for his comments, insisting that he no longer deserved his title as Australia's mufti.

The country's most prominent female Muslim leader, Aziza Abdel-Halim, said the hijab did not "detract or add to a person's moral standards", while an Islamic Council of Victoria spokesman, Waleed Ali, said it was "ignorant and naive" for anyone to believe that a hijab could stop sexual assault. "Anyone who is foolish enough to believe that there is a relationship between rape or unwelcome sexual interference and the failure to wear a hijab, clearly has no understanding of the nature of sexual crime," he told the Australian.

The paper also reported that Sheik Hilali alluded in his sermon to the gang rapes in Sydney of six years ago, suggesting the attackers were not entirely to blame.

While not specifically referring to the attacks on four women, for which a group of young Lebanese men received long jail sentences, Sheik Hilali said there were women who "sway suggestively" and wore make up and immodest dress ... "and then you get a judge without mercy [rahma] and he gives you 65 years... but the problem all began with who?"

Sheik Hilali, the top cleric at Sydney's largest mosque, is considered the most senior Islamic leader by many Muslims in Australia and New Zealand.

He has served as an adviser to the Australian government on Muslim issues, but has attracted controversy before. In 2004 he was criticised for saying, in a sermon in Lebanon, that the September 11 attacks were "God's work against the oppressors".

The uproar after Sheik Hilali's comments threatens to further inflame relations between Australia's 300,000 Muslims and the rest of the population, after riots in Sydney last December that pitted white gangs against youths of Middle Eastern descent, many of whom were Muslim.

Many Muslims have said they were increasingly treated with suspicion after the September 11 and other terrorist attacks. Mr Ali said Sheik Hilali's comments would result in more antagonism toward Muslims.

"I am expecting a deluge of hate mail," he said. "I am expecting people to get abused in the street and get abused at work."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/australia/story/0,,1932071,00.html

(n) (n) GRRR. Such high velocity, violent rhetoric just p*sses me off. Of course his B.S. will only inflame increased intolerance against Muslims. I sincerely wish these loud mouth supposed "leaders" would preach peace and celebrate differences.

;) ;) Of course, he would need alot of weed in his Wheeties to get that mellow. :)

;) ;) 's,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer Pup (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-27-2006, 12:15 PM

(h) (h) (h) (h) (h)

http://www.jibjab.com/great_sketch_experiment/intro

:D :D :D :D :D

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-27-2006, 12:18 PM

:D :D :D

http://www.jibjab.com/jokebox/jokebox/jibjab/id/6569/jokeid/5834

;) 's,

SL & WTBP (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-27-2006, 12:32 PM

(h) (h) (h)

1. http://www.jibjab.com/jokebox/jokebox/jibjab/id/115471/jokeid/41363

2. Talking Animals!!! (h)

http://www.jibjab.com/jokebox/jokebox/jibjab/id/115471/jokeid/41363

One of the BEST I've ever seen.

3. DeNiro's Terrorist List:

http://www.jibjab.com/jokebox/jokebox/jibjab/id/92767/jokeid/38708

4. Best Bush Impersonator:

http://www.jibjab.com/jokebox/jokebox/jibjab/id/36590/jokeid/30631

5. George Carlin: http://www.jibjab.com/jokebox/jokebox/jibjab/id/123783/jokeid/42417

(h) (y) (y) Many, many more here - I could spend a couple of hours! Jib Jab has always been a particular favorite of mine. Have fun!

Adieu,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer Pup (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

10-30-2006, 10:22 AM

:) :) :)

http://www.destinationgrandcanyon.com/skympeg.htm

http://www.destinationgrandcanyon.com/indexe.html

Grand Canyon Skywalk official site:

http://www.destinationgrandcanyon.com/skywalk.html

The Glass Bridge Construction of the Skywalk began March of 2004 and is estimated to be completed by 4th quarter of 2006.

Upon completion, the Glass Bridge will be suspended 4,000 feet above the Colorado River on the very edge of the Grand Canyon. On May 2005, the final test was conducted and the stucture passed engineering requirements by 400 percent, enabling it to withstand the weight of 71 fully loaded Boeing 747 airplanes (more that 71 million pounds). The bridge will be able to sustain winds in excess of 100 miles per hour from 8 different directions, as well as an 8.0 magnitude earthquake within 50 miles. More than one million pounds of steel will go into the construction of the Grand Canyon Skywalk.

Design-tested by a world-renowned team involved in such projects as:

Taipei 101
Mandalay Bay Resort
The Palms Hotel Casino
Wynn Resort Las Vegas
Hoover Dam

(i) (i) This project sounds pretty cool - I have visited the South Rim nine times since 1981 and observed the ever-increasing number of Inernational visitors just by listening to the melodic and very numerous languages being spoken at the overlook stops.

:| :| I hope there are plans for bringing in more buses (hopefully running on electricity and not fossil fuels) to get folks to this new "attraction".

(h) (h) I now MUST make plans to visit the North Rim for Spring, 2007 - since it now closed from October to May due to its higher elevation (8,500 ft.) and the snowfall amounts make it impossible to drive the back roads to rim itself. I've never visited the North Rim. Not many folks go because it is closed for half the year and is much more remote than the South Rim.

:) Next trips I make up route 89A north of Flagstaff, Arizona will definitely NOT make the left into the "east" South Rim entrance (the other South Rim entrance is taking route 64 north out of Williams - just off I40) and I'll continue on into Page, AZ and then west over to the N.R. entrance and drive south to the North Rim. (h) (h)

Ah, the winds of change - they were blowing hard the last two days. :| :|

(o) Back to the books and then out for a nice Wyatt walk. Lovely Autumn day!

Carpe Diem,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer Pup (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-02-2006, 07:35 PM

:) :) :) :) :)

(h) (h) (h) (h)

Take this quiz:

http://www.theadvocates.org/quiz.html

(i) (i) You have to answer completely honestly. I had to stop and seriously consider for a few moments on each question about what my answers were. Hmm, Liberal Libertarian was my designated category. Who knew? And I thought I was a Liberal Progressive....or Progressive Liberal. ;) ;) Learn something new every day!

I also really liked the people on the right side of my results page. Go figure that one (Libertarian) was the "Make My Day" hard-ass cop, cowboy and Academy Award winning actor and director, Clint. (h) (h)

:o :o Chilly weather coming back tonight and through the weekend! I LOVE it! Lace and fleece, yea, yea, that's the ticket.

Carpe Diem,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-02-2006, 07:38 PM

(l) (&) (l)

http://us.eukanuba.com/eukanuba/en_US/jsp/Euk_Page.jsp?pageID=DBSLA&breedName=36&_requestid=10255

(h) (h) (h) (h) (h) (h) Wyatt will be ONE YEAR OLD NOVEMBER 5TH. (^) (^) (^) (^) (^)

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-02-2006, 07:40 PM

(y) (y) (y)

A great west-facing view of the Edinburgh city along Princes Street. This is Edinburgh's busiest shopping street, right next to Princes Street Gardens, Edinburgh Castle and the Scott Monument. Christmas festivities take place in the gardens seen on the left of the image including ice skating, a fun fair and Edinburgh's famous big wheel.

http://webcams.scotsman.com/?id=2

(y) (h) (y) (h)

(k) 's,

SL Y WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-02-2006, 07:44 PM

:s :s :s

Looks like someone was really unhappy with their negative eBay feedback. A bomb exploded outside one of eBay's buildings Tuesday evening, prompting the company to shut down its North San Jose campus as local police and federal agents investigated. " Last night at approximately 7:30 pm Pacific time, there was an explosion at eBay's campus on the north side of San Jose, California," eBay President of North America Bill Cobb explained in a message posted to the company's online announcement board Wednesday. "I'm relieved to report that nobody was injured and that eBay's service was not affected. Fortunately, minimal damage was sustained to the one building impacted, and our eBay and PayPal teams are fully operational today. We're concerned, of course, about the cause of this incident, and needless to say, eBay is working closely with local and federal law enforcement agents in their investigation."

http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/15910831.htm

http://www2.ebay.com/aw/core/200611010859022.html

Investigators believe the explosion was not accidental, though they are at a loss to say who might be responsible. "It could have been a Halloween thing, it could have been kids, it could have been something larger," said San Jose Police Sgt. Nick Muyo. "If it's a Halloween prank, it's a sophisticated one."

:| :| :| Geez - Mischief night/Halloween has become much more than the old toilet tissue thrown up into trees and Ivory soap on car windows, eh?:| :|

Sheesh.

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-02-2006, 07:46 PM

;) ;)

http://www.mcphee.com/items/11641.html

:o :o

:)

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-02-2006, 07:49 PM

:D :D :D

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1787735185833886533&q=Kissing+Prank

;) ;)

SL & WETB (l) (&) (l) (Wyatt Earp the Boxer)

sweetlady

11-02-2006, 07:55 PM

:| :|

;)

In its quest to "organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful," Google seems to be doing the same for its start-ups. In its relatively brief history, Google has acquired 23 companies, disproving allegations that it suffers from Not Invented Here (NIH) syndrome. And now its gone and acquired another. On Tuesday afternoon, the company said it purchased application Wiki outfit Jotspot. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Acquisitions_by_Google

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Not_Invented_Here

http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/15901461.htm

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/11/01/BUG25M3J531.DTL

Founded by Joe Kraus and Graham Spencer, co-founders of portal Excite.com, JotSpot has carved out quite a reputation for itself, pioneering a suite of Web collaboration applications that allows people to edit, update and append pages to documents without knowing HTML. Those apps will no doubt be a strong fit with Google's existing collaboration products - a point noted by Kraus in a Google blog post announcing the deal. "As we built the business over the past three years Google consistently attracted our attention," he explained. "We watched them acquire Writely, and launch Google Groups, Google Spreadsheets and Google Apps for Your Domain. It was pretty apparent that Google shared our vision for how groups of people can create, manage and share information online. Then when we had conversations with people at Google we found ourselves completing each other's sentences. Joining Google allows us to plug into the resources that only a company of Google's scale can offer, like a huge audience, access to world-class data centers and a team of incredibly smart people."

(h) (h): http://www.jot.com/learn/

http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2006/10/spot-on.html

Google hasn't yet provided any explicit details as to what JotSpot wiki based service it may offer in the future. But then it doesn't really need to. It's intentions are obvious. JotSpot offers an elegant way of integrating Google's Web-based productivity offerings into the small business collaboration suite that it likes to claim it's not building (see "New from Google Labs: Microsoft Office Live"). "People have been expecting Google to make a frontal assault on Microsoft Office," Peter O'Kelly, an analyst at the Burton Group, told News.com. "But why pick a fight with where Office is today when you can look at where the Web is going tomorrow?"

http://www.jotspot.com/google/faq.html

http://blogs.siliconvalley.com/gmsv/2006/03/googles_leaders.html

http://news.com.com/Google+goes+wild+for+wikis/2100-1030_3-6131283.html

(y) (y) (y) (y) (y) Game on, Microsoft.

(*) (*) Go get 'em Google! Kick their butt and don't take names.

;) ;) 's,

Sweetlady & WETB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-02-2006, 07:58 PM

:o :o

Q U O T E D

"Getting venture money is like getting a date to the high school prom. If you look desperate, they'll think you're a loser."

-- Alex Castro, founder of Seattle startup called Pluggd, has clearly never attended a TechCrunch event

http://www.forbes.com/technology/2006/10/27/internet-startup-youtube-tech-cz_vmb_1030groundup.html

(h) Very cool article. Right on the capital so to speak.(y) (y)

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-02-2006, 08:00 PM

(h) (h) (h) (h) (h) (h) (h)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/87547772@N00/sets/72157594323393196/

(y) (y) (y)

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-02-2006, 08:01 PM

(h) (h) (h)

http://www.atomfilms.com/af/content/deviation

:) :)

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-02-2006, 08:02 PM

:| :| :| :| :|

http://www.nsect.co.uk/

:o :o :o For those who aren't scared, enjoy! ;)

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 09:35 AM

:D :D :D :D

http://howtoprankatelemarketer.ytmnd.com/

(y) (y) (y) Since I absolutely hate telemarketer calls especially lately about voting for one cadidate or another (doesn't everyone?), I think this guy's way of dealing with them is not only effective but I LMAO! (y) (y)

Somehow, my little telezapper gizmo seems insignificant in comparison - but it definitely works. ;)

DON'T FORGET TO VOTE TUESDAY

:) :) 's

SL & WTB and First Birthday Boy!! (l) (&) (l) (^) (^) (^) (^) (^)

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 09:46 AM

:| :| :| :| :|

With November elections nearly upon us, Diebold Election Systems has finally decided to develop a paper trail -- of press releases. Earlier this week, the much maligned voting machine manufacturer (see "AccuVote -- that's an oxymoron, right?") released a letter to HBO Chief Executive Chris Albrecht that claimed "Hacking Democracy," a documentary about electronic voting that the cable channel aired last night, is riddled with inaccuracies. "Truth and accurate reporting are the biggest casualties of the film," Diebold Election System President David Byrd wrote. The errors and misrepresentations are "so egregious that HBO should pull the documentary."

http://blogs.siliconvalley.com/gmsv/2006/09/at_what_point_d.html

"We Vote, But Who's Counting?":

http://www.baltimoresun.com/features/bal-to.tv02nov02,0,3381337.story?coll=bal-features-headlines

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/11/01/AR2006110103220.html

Diebold's President's Letter to HBO:

http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/10-31-2006/0004463570&EDATE=

Well, it seems that truth and accuracy were also the biggest casualties of Diebold's press release, because according to HBO, not only had Diebold officials not seen "Hacking Democracy" before they penned it, they mistook it for another film about electronic voting called "VoterGate." "You assert in your letter that the documentary contains 'significant factual errors'; however, based on several of the purported examples you have cited, you do not appear to have viewed the film which will premiere on HBO on Nov. 2," HBO attorney Peter Rienecker wrote in a letter to Deibold. "HBO stands by the accuracy and fairness of the documentary. Of course, if after viewing the film on the HBO service (Thursday night) you continue to have concerns, we would be happy to discuss them with you at that time." Nice going, Diebold.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3iu1kJn0r6mbsE3T+LOOImOQ==

http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/15904527.htm

(n) (n) (n) And people are going to the polls all over the country on Tuesday. Many polling locations having this firm's electronic voting machines with no paper receipt provided? Democrats? Independents? Get your vounteers' butts out there to observe! :o :o

I'm voting, are you? My voting place had the thirty year old mechanical claptrap and will have it again this year as well. At least I don't have an electronic vote being changed to worry about.

Carpe Diem,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the One Year Old Today Boxer (^) (^) (l) (l) (&) (l) (l) (^) (^)

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 09:51 AM

:| :| :|

January 17, 2006 | Issue 42•03

LOS ANGELES—In an impassioned 1,900-word open letter published in Monday's Washington Post, actor-director Sean Penn urged the unknown person who registered the e-mail address SeanPenn@gmail.com to "come forward immediately, rather than wallowing in the shame and ignominy of fraud."

The paid full-page advertisement, addressed to "a certain inconsiderate asshole," continued: "Every American—indeed, every human being, regardless of nationality—deserves to be rightfully and accurately represented on the World Wide Web—the communication gateway into the next century and beyond—without having to resort to nonsensical aliases with random strings of numbers tacked onto the end. In an era of global wireless technology, our very identities are at stake. It's highly unethical at best, criminal at worst, for others to wantonly abscond with them."

Penn recounted in the letter how he had waited for an invitation to Google's e-mail service for a year and a half before receiving one earlier this month. According to Penn, when he tried to establish an account, he received a message indicating that his desired user name, SeanPenn, had already been registered.

"Sir or madam, if only you could have seen the anger and revulsion that washed over my face as I found that SeanPenn@gmail.com, Penn@gmail.com, SPenn@gmail.com, Penn.Sean@gmail.com, and SeanPennRules@gmail.com had all been taken," Penn's letter read. "If only you could have felt my heart leap to my throat upon realizing that Seanpenn@gmail.com would not work either, as Gmail addresses are not case-senstitive. If only you could have heard my cry of anguish when, in a last, desperate move, I typed in Spicoli@gmail.com, only to be rejected once more and finally forced to accept the abomination that is Sean.Penn20061@gmail.com."

Continued Penn, "It's a sad, sad day for the individual's right to self-determination and self-expression, let alone for the movie directors, journalists, and diplomats who will not be able to easily remember—or even recognize—my e-mail address."

Penn said he also tried SeanPenn81760@gmail.com, ShawnPenn@gmail.com, and SeanPennActor@gmail.com.

This was not the first time Penn has expressed anger over the difficulty of obtaining a Sean Penn-specific e-mail address. He made headlines last year when he refused to appear on the set of Columbia Pictures' All The King's Men for two days after he learned that SPenn@sonypictures.com had been taken by video assist operator Steve Penn.

Penn admitted that the painful experience of not being able to communicate freely through e-mail had its upside.

"Oh, certainly, I identify more strongly with the poor, war-battered youth of the Middle East."

Penn ended his statement by reiterating his demand that the SeanPenn user-name holder reveal his identity, assuring him that he will not retaliate with punitive measures or even ask that the e-mail address be relinquished. Instead, Penn invited the perpetrator to accompany him to Iraq, to "learn a hard, real-life lesson about the devastation wreaked by false pretense, gross injustice, and misapplication of power."

http://www.theonion.com/content/node/44460

(y) (y) The Onion is one of my favorite web sites. For those who aren't familiar with it - all of their stories are made up - which is why many folks find the site hilarious! Satire lives! ;)

:D :D

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 09:56 AM

:s :s

Reaction to the Microsoft-Novell alliance and the unholy birth of "Winux" was, predictably, varied. And loud. "This (Microsoft-Novell deal) is all because they both want to screw Oracle and Red Hat," one Linux consultant told Mary Jo Foley. "It smacks of the Hitler and Stalin alliance. Two bitter enemies getting together to bonk the other bad guys on the head." Meanwhile, Novell Distinguished Engineer Michael Meeks looked askance at suggestions that his employer had begun a very dangerous dance with the devil. "Why do business with these scum?" he asked. "It's true there is a widespread perception of unfair business practice from Microsoft out there, but my experience of working in the ECMA process with the developers has been of meeting a (to my mind) mis-directed, but equally passionate world-view based around the love of their technology. Broadly, I think it's fair to say there is a certain kind of person that loves to solve complex, technical problems, and I like that kind of person. It's also interesting to note that the average Microsoft (from my small sample) political viewpoint is -way- to the left of the average Novell Free software developer (perhaps a statistical aberration but ...). So, in a nutshell, they're good guys, if mis-directed. The great news is that we can help change that direction and get these guys addicted to the Free Software model."

http://blogs.siliconvalley.com/gmsv/2006/11/in_other_news_t.html

http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=81

http://www.gnome.org/~michael/activity.html#2006-11-02

Longtime Microsoft observer Foley said the deal is a bunch of hooha over nothing. Microsoft isn't going to be offering Linus Torvalds a corner office anytime soon and Steve Ballmer wasn't caught smooching with Richard Stallman. "There is no hell freezing over, no snowballs melting and definitely no white flags fluttering over the Microsoft headquarters building," quipped Foley. "Microsoft is not conceding that desktop Linux is gaining ground. It's not admitting that its closed-source strategy has failed. Sure, Microsoft is licensing to customers' requests for better interoperability. But if you think the Redmondians are throwing in the towel, vis-a-vis open source, you are underestimating severely Microsoft's well-proven ability to come out ahead on any partnership to which it commits." And that, I think, may be the real take-away from this, aptly described in this post from ZDNet's Mitch Ratcliffe. "The announcement that Novell and Microsoft will work together to improve interoperability between Windows and Novell's SuSE Linux, as well as cross-promote and support one another's products strikes me as eerily like one of those movies with Christopher Lee as Dracula," wrote Ratcliffe. "Every time you see an old Dracula film, the same fool is making a deal with Drac to achieve eternal life, a life you know, as the viewer, is going to be awful and short. 'Don't do it!' you want to shout at the screen, and so it is with this deal between the maker of Windows and the acquirer, as Novell once staked its future on UNIX, of SuSE Linux. I'm not saying Microsoft is evil, only that it makes these interoperability deals to defeat its partner, not to help them. ... Linux may win someday, but Novell will be found dead one morning with mysterious bite marks on its neck."

http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=81

http://blogs.zdnet.com/Ratcliffe/index.php?p=216

:| :| :| :| :|

SL & WTB (^) (l) (&) (l) (^)

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 10:02 AM

:| :|

In this new age of Web video, a slick feature set, a scalable distribution network and a bit of buzz may seem to be the winning formula for video sharing Web sites, but in the end content is still king. Google acknowledged that today, announcing a program that will see it cutting in videographers on their advertising revenue generated by their videos. The company's "Sponsored Video" program isn't for everyone, though. According to its terms, you need to 1,000 or more hours of video to participate, a requirement that will no doubt limit it to more professional videographers. Indeed, it already has. The program's debut video is the work of EepyBird, the outfit responsible for The Extreme Diet Coke & Mentos Experiments. Titled "The Domino Effect," it showcases more Diet Coke and Mentos hiijinks - this time with sponsorships from Coca Cola and Mentos. "This is the first case where we matched up video content with advertising," Peter Chane, a senior product manager for Google Video, told News.com. "We've taken user-submitted material that is not considered professional content and monetized it." Fritz Grobe and Stephen Voltz, the duo responsible for the video, are no doubt quite pleased to have their work featured as Google's first Sponsored Video. They famously claimed to have lost $30,000 when their first video found its way off Revver, a video service that shares ad revenue, to YouTube, a service that does not (see "YouRubes")

http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2006/10/domino-effect.html

https://services.google.com/inquiry/video

http://blogs.siliconvalley.com/gmsv/2006/06/off_topic_2.html

http://blogs.siliconvalley.com/gmsv/2006/06/off_topic_2.html

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-274981837129821058&q=eepybird

http://blogs.siliconvalley.com/gmsv/2006/08/heres_a_metric_.html

(*) (*) There goes those opportunities that the little grrls and bois have had on YouTube now that Darth Google is in charge. :o

;) 's,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 10:10 AM

:) :)

When Google acquired YouTube, conventional wisdom had it that the company had purchased a "litigation-laden landmine" that even the the safe harbor provisions of The Digital Millenium Copyright Act might not defuse. Of course, as often as not, conventional wisdom is wrong- particularly when it comes to Google and its business dealings. Certainly, that seems to be the lesson in a widely circulated, and totally uncorroborated, e-mail from a purported media industry insider that claims to offer the inside dope on the YouTube / Google acquisition negotiations.

http://www.blogmaverick.com/2006/10/30/some-intimate-details-on-the-google-youtube-deal/

"In the months preceding the sale of YouTube the complaints from copyright owners began to mount at a ferocious pace," the message begins. "Small content owners and big were lodging official takedown notices only to see their works almost immediately reappear. These issues had to be disclosed to the suitors who were sniffing around.... Youtube knew they had an issue and had offered a straight revenue share deal if the complainants would call off the dogs and give them time. The media companies quickly rejected this path for two reasons. First off Youtube wasn't making any money and was fuzzy about how they would generate revenue in the future. But more important the media companies view is that there was a mountain of past infringement that Youtube had engaged in and built their business on and they felt they deserved some of this accumulated value. And who could blame them. In spite of the media "user generated" puff pieces it was clear to all involved that they generated that content by hooking up their TV tuner cards to their PCs."

The message goes on to describe what was done to hammer out a deal that appeased both the content cartel and Google. And this is where things get really interesting. Among the specific (and uncorroborated) terms of the deal:

About $500 million of the 1.65 billion purchase price was held in escrow to fight and settle copyright suits.

YouTube negotiated deals with a number of potential copyright claimants, giving them an equity stake in the company (whose value was about to skyrocket because of its acquisition by Google) and making it unlikely that they'd file copyright infringement suits against it. (see "Now, about these copyright ... uh, sir? You're drooling on the Google stock certificate.")

http://blogs.siliconvalley.com/gmsv/2006/10/when_google_sai.html

Google negotiated a six month "stand still" agreement with the content companies, convincing them to 'look the other way' for a few months, while it builds tools to police content and track royalties.

Finally, Google asked the content cartel to drop the hammer on YouTube's rivals.
Fascinating stuff, eh? Too bad it's uncorroborated. Because if it's accurate, it demonstrates just how cunning Google is in its business deals and how meticulously it protects its interests.

:o :o This is the first time I have read that the folks at google are "cunning". :o :o They'd have to be rather than be the target of Hollywood and other content creators seeking intellectual propoerty licensing fees by dipping into google's deep financial pockets.(i)

If it isn't one thing, it's another.

;) ;) 's,

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 10:12 AM

:) :) :) :) :)

http://www.tetrisweightlifting.com/howitworks.php

;) ;) 's,

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 10:14 AM

:) :)

http://www.firebox.com/index.html?dir=firebox&action=product&pid=1573&currency_conversion=1

:) :)

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 10:23 AM

:) :)

http://www.akcstore.org/akcstore/ProductDetails.aspx?ItemClassId=4&parent=yes&productID=67839

Hmm, the Boxer one doesn't have a separate URL so if you have an interest - you'll have to use the drop down box on the above URL and see what the Boxers look like...:)

(n) (n) But I'd never want to put my feet on them...;) ;) Okay, the Boxer ones, anyway.;)

Have a delightful rest of your Sunday! I'm wqorking on a Lit Review Paper that is due tonight. The reason I have felt much more relaxed about my last two PhD courses is:

1) I'm taking one per quarter and 2) the course professor has only ONE hard deadline and that is the LAST day of the Fall Quarter - December 8th. I think this is just the cat's pajamas. No Sunday at midnight, feet-to-the-fire deadlines. <Big sigh>

It doesn't hurt though to keep up with the weekly assignments though, so there isn't a HUGE (and stressful) effort a little over a month from now. Nice and easy.

(o) for a fresh (c) to blow whatever few mental cobwebs are left yet this morning, away.;)

({) (}) 's, however virtual.

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Birthday Boxer (^) (^) (l) (&) (l) (^) (^)

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 10:35 AM

:| :| Fool me three times and perhaps I should find a new voting system vendor. :o

Maryland is looking forward to a smooth, problem-free election thanks to a Diebold black bag job that quietly made modifications to thousands of the state's voting machines without properly briefing Maryland's Board of Elections. In 2004, Diebold replaced bad motherboards in a number of its electronic voting machines while telling election officials they were merely installing "technical refreshers." According to Gilles Burger, chairman of the State Board of Elections, Diebold discovered the problem -- which caused the machines' screens to freeze -- three years earlier but never bothered to mention it to anyone. "This demonstrates the level of contractor oversight that Diebold requires," Burger told The Baltimore Sun. "On Monday, I'm going to ask our attorneys to report back to me if there was any violation of the contract and what financial remedies are available to me."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/25/AR2006102501907_pf.html

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal-te.md.voting26oct26,0,7989773.story?coll=bal-home-headlines

A troubling disclosure, no? After all, this isn't the first time Diebold has modified its machines without notifying election officials. With November elections nearly upon us, pencil and paper is looking better.

http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,60563,00.html

(y) (y) I will be SO relieved this Wednesday morning after all of the hoopla, mud-slinging and other B.S. is finally over for the mid-terms and the Dems have taken over Congress. (that is until about 13 or 14 months from now when the 2008 election ads start running..:| :|

As Roseanne Rosannadanna always used to say on SNL, "It's always something." I miss Gilda's characters - THOSE were the best days of SNL for sure.

Carpe Diem,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Birthday Boxer (^) (^)(l) (&) (l)(^) (^)

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 10:39 AM

:o :o

http://blog.gizoo.co.uk/?p=94

;) ;)'s,

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 10:46 AM

(h) (h) (h) (h) (h) (h) (h) (h)

No Time for Nuts

http://www.pistolwimp.com/media/52587/

:D :D :D :D :D

SL & WTB (^) (l) (&) (l) (^)

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 10:50 AM

:| :| :| :|

http://enron.trampolinesystems.com/

:s :s :s I guess the folks interested in this web site are those who lost their life savings and those who lost their jobs there - or perhaps both.:(

(g) (g) for Wyatt today!

Adieu,

SL & WTB (^) (l) (&) (l) (^)

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 10:52 AM

:) :) :)

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6254514444631119780&q=south+park+monty+python

(y) (y) :D :D

SL & WTB (^) (^) (l) (l) (&) (l) (l) (^) (^)

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 10:54 AM

(y) (y) (y) (y)

http://www.saidthegramophone.com/archives/be_normal.php

(h) (h) (h)

SL & WTB (^) (^) (l) (l) (&) (l) (l) (^) (^)

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 10:56 AM

:) :)

http://www.mysuperproposal.com/

:o :o :) :)

Adieu,

SL & WTB (^) (^) (l) (l) (&) (l) (l) (^) (^)

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 10:59 AM

:| :| :| :|

:) :)

http://www.earthcam.com/

(y) (h) (y) (h) (y) (h)

SL & WTB (^) (l) (&) (l) (^)

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 11:01 AM

(h) (h) (h) (h)

http://computer.howstuffworks.com/webcam.htm

:) :)

SL

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 11:03 AM

(y) (y) (y)

http://www.opentopia.com/hiddencam.php

(y) (y) (y)

SL

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 11:06 AM

(y) (y) (y)

http://www.webcamsearch.com/

(i) (i) I haven't spent any time with this search engine to evaluate it but it might be a fun activity for a break at work or for those who can't sleep at night.(S) (S)

Enjoy!

:) :)

SL & WTB (^) (l) (&) (l) (^)

sweetlady

11-05-2006, 11:08 AM

(h) (h) (h) (h) (h) (h) (h)

http://www2.nature.nps.gov/air/webcams/parks/grcacam/grcacam.cfm

It is only 9:10 a.m.there since it's three hours behind the East Coast. What a breathtakingly beautiful, spiritual place.

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer (^) (l) (&) (l) (^)

sweetlady

11-09-2006, 04:22 PM

:D :D :D :D

http://www.ladyskylar.com/swffiles/Brocolli.swf

:D :D :D :D

;) ;) 's,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the napping Boxer (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-09-2006, 04:23 PM

:) :)

http://www.stateline.org/live/details/story?contentId=145022

(y) (y) (y) (y) (y) (y) (y)

:) :)

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-09-2006, 04:25 PM

(y) (y) (y) (y) (y)

What's Cooking? (2000)

This multicultural comedy-drama set in Los Angeles's middle-class environs paints an intriguing portrait of family tensions as four ethnic clans -- Latino, black, Jewish and Asian -- get ready for Thanksgiving dinner. The intertwining tales follow the families as minor frustrations escalate into heated battles and skeletons come out of the closet. Mercedes Ruehl, Kyra Sedgwick, Alfre Woodard, Dennis Haysbert and Joan Chen lead the superb cast.

(~) (~) Reviews:

(~) The premise: A Vietnamese family, a Jewish family, a Hispanic family, and an African American family have their separate Thanksgivings. And while it may sound like the beginning of a bad joke, it works for a pretty good movie wherein we can really get a feel for the dilemmas presented. Consider the Vietnamese family - the daughter finds something alarmingly dangerous (trying not to give anything away here) under her brother's bed. As she decides what to do next, it's hard to resist wondering "what would I do in that situation?" And while these stories are independent of one another, they also kind of tie in. The lady in this story teaches the kid in the other story. This guy leaves his family and joins another story. Clever tie-ins like this happen throughout the story, all the way to the end... In a way, Thanksgiving becomes a golden opportunity for the characters to move on to the next step, whatever that may be for the respective characters. Family members are finally forced to talk, issues that have been put on the backburner are finally brought forward, and somewhere between the laughs and tears it may dawn on the viewer, as it did for me -- "hey, i'm having a good time". Hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Oh, one last thing: DO NOT and I repeat, Do Not watch this movie while you're hungry. Trust me. It's called 'What's Cooking?'. It's during Thanksgiving. Think about it! (Sure wish I did -- [stomach groans in agreement...]!)

(~) A bittersweet, funny film about 4 different families in LA -- one Vietnamese, one African-American, one Cuban and one Jewish -- as they gather together over the Thanksgiving weekend. Predictably, various family squabbles take place, turkeys get burned and/or dropped on the floor, someone comes out of the closet, and valuable life lessons are learned by all. Yes, that may sound clichéd and dull, but even during the most clichéd moments, Chadha's wit is so sharp that none of the scenes are ever boring. One of my favorite moments in the movie takes place after a turkey gets burned to a crisp and we cut to a little boy chanting "KFC! KFC!" as the familiar red & white buckets of chicken are brought to the table. Like Gurinder Chadha's more recent film "Bend it Like Beckham," this movie has a lot of really wonderful, hilarious moments and a refreshingly multi-ethnic vision of the world, yet it also suffers at times from awkward blocking and heavy-handing directing. Still, given that there are relatively few films out there dealing with themes like ethnic identity, family discord and community-building with as much intelligence, insight and humour as Chadha displays, I feel pretty inclined to overlook her film's flaws and embrace its many strengths. I say, check this film out if the themes interest you.

(*) (*) (*) (*)

Adieu,

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-09-2006, 04:27 PM

(y) (y) (y) (y) (y)

1. Tipping the Velvet (2002)

An unusual love story told in three episodes, Tipping the Velvet charts the course of Nan, an ingénue who discovers a sexually charged world of male impersonators, actors and affluent women looking for female companionship in the usually controlled and corseted 1890s. Ultimately, however, Nan learns that she can only truly depend on herself. Stars Keeley Hawes, Rachel Stirling, John Bowe, Jodhi May, Anna Chancellor and Hugh Bonneville.

(~) Review: TIPPING THE VELVET is a 3 part story of Nancy Astley, an oyster girl from the English town of Whitstable. Nancy falls in love with a stage performer named Kitty Butler. TIPPING THE VELVET derives from the Victorian era euphemism for cunnilingus. Nancy is played by Rachael Stirling, the daughter of Dame Diana Rigg. 1st Act. Nan moves to London and becomes a dresser for Kitty Butler, Kitty's act is that of dressing up in men's clothes and performing in the dancehalls of London. Nan quickly becomes part of the act, and they become lovers hot and heavy. Kitty dumps Nan and breaks Nan's heart into a thousand tiny little pieces. 2nd Act. Heartbroken, and Heartsick Nan moves out and after a period of mourning the loss of Kitty, she begins to dress like a boy and walk the streets where she goes "ON THE GAME" she is rescued from the streets by Diana, who keeps her as her private whore/tart. Things go badly and Nan again must move on. Act 3 Nan goes back on the stage, she falls in love with a wonderful girl named Florence. Kitty Butler finds out that Nan is back and she tries to start up with Nan once again. Will she stay with Florence or go back to Kitty Butler, the woman who broke her heart. It doesn't get any better than this, my heart was pounding as she made her choice. This is a tearjerker and sweet love story. Kitty Butler is played by Keeley Hawes (Scoop). Diana is played by Anna Chancellor. And Florence is played by Jodhi May (The Last of The Mohicans, and Sister My Sister) I loved the movie so much. Definitely a big 5*****Stars. Rent this one pronto, and there is an official BBC website for this movie with all sorts of goodies.

:) :) :)

2. French Twist (1995)

Laurent (Alain Chabat) thought he knew his wife, Loli (Victoria Abril), quite well. Chronically unfaithful, Laurent believes Loli is happy and will be hurt by news of his infidelities. But when a truck breaks down in front of their home and its owner, a female plumber (Josiane Balasko, who also directed this French film), asks to use the phone, Laurent discovers he and his wife have something in common: a sexual attraction to women.

(~) Reviews:

I thoroughly enjoyed this film. The story moves along swiftly. And the developing relationship between Loli and Marijo is both sweet and comical. This movie is packed with quick wit and touched with a smidgen of steaminess. Completely entertaining to watch.

A spanish wife, a french unfaithful man and a lesbian who comes into their lives to wake both of them up form their lethargic predictable life.I enjoy all european films because of their perspective of life, infidelity means heartache not law suit. Their way of dealing with even the most unusual personal and social situations translate into "human relationships" not legal or political issues.

This was simply an amazing movie in my opinion. While it may not be entirely realistic, it more than makes up for that with amusing plot twists, humor, and a story line that keeps you entertained. Certainly don't want to watch this one with the kids, this movie is definitely good for some laughs with a bottle of wine.

:) :)

3. Lianna (1983)

This John Sayles drama follows the title character's changing world when she becomes fed up with her marriage to her oppressive, cheating husband and begins a homosexual affair with Ruth, her night school professor. But Lianna's joy at finding a new life and love soon disintegrates as the people around her start to treat her differently. Forced to find a new apartment, job and friends, Lianna finds that with freedom also comes loneliness.

(~) Reviews:

This fine film is at once heartbreaking, inspiring and affirming. I have always like Sayles' work, and this reminds me why. A serious film, Lianna quickly draws you into her excitement, fears and pain. You can map her progress from suppressed and lonely housewife, to woman who tentatively (at first)embraces her lesbianism, to distraught lover, to excited woman seeking her brave, new way. The best scenes -- all deceptively modest -- are so moving you are soon brought to cheering or to weeping. This is a Top 3 among lesbian films. Buy this DVD and treasure it.

This is a really lovely film -- and the first John Sayles film that I ever saw. It's delicate and honest and artful, and watching it is always a treat. The DVD adds commentary from writer/director Sayles, the original trailer, and interviews with Sayles and his producer Maggie Renzi. The commentary is probably worth listening to, particularly if you're a fan of Sayles' work, but it's nothing revelatory. He speaks about his focus on Lianna as a mother, of the effects of her leaving her husband on the children, and yet that relationship with her kids is barely sketched. I see the development of Lianna's sense of self, the implications of that seemingly-sudden development on the structure of her life, all pushing forward with a natural, almost biological imperative. On that point, Sayles has crafted a masterpiece. If you liked Lianna, you might try Personal Best (consequences of a similar revelation), or When a Man Loves a Woman (breakup of a marriage and effects on children). If you're in the mood for something else in the gay-but-mainstream genre, try Big Eden -- a little slice of utopia.

I loved this movie on several levels. First the writing by Sayles was immaculate with very few false notes. Second as a lesbian coming out story it was very much the cautionary realistic tale which I found very refreshing. The message seemed to be: "there are definate costs to being true to yourself, but do you really have a choice?" Last, I really loved the intellectual "talky" dimension of the film which reminded me a little of my favorite lesbian film "Clair of the Moon." This is definately not a fast moving picture with car chases and fist fights. Lots of talking heads. Even the emotional break up scenes are very controlled and somewat "quiet." Lovely, high quality, filmmaking.

(g) (g) Enjoy!!

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-09-2006, 04:33 PM

:| :| :| :|

Some U.S. companies, insurers consider sending employees abroad for surgery

International Herald Tribune

NEW DELHI, India — Dodie Gilmore is a spry 60-year-old, a onetime rodeo champion from Oklahoma who loves the outdoors. But when she could no longer straddle her faithful horse, River, she knew it was time for a new hip.

But how could she afford it? As an independent contractor, she knew her privately purchased health plan would never pay up to US$40,000 (€31,000) for the operation since it was a pre-existing condition. So she asked her boss about traveling to India where hip resurfacing alone would cost just US$7,000 (€5,500). He not only gave her his blessing but offered to foot the bill, minus travel and hotels — making Gilmore one of the first Americans sent overseas for surgery by an employer.

"The doctors were wonderful," Gilmore said days after being discharged, sipping coffee at a New Delhi roadside cafe with her sister, Carol, who went along for trip. "The overall care was pretty darn good."

Gilmore is among the hundreds of thousands of so-called medical tourists — 500,000 from America alone last year — who are flocking to hospitals in developing nations.

They're coming from the U.S. to avoid soaring costs. They're coming from Europe and Canada to avoid long waits choking national health systems. They're coming from the Middle East for better care and service — especially after 9/11 when many Arabs are nervous about whether they'll be welcomed in the United States, where they often went for care.

Asian hospitals in Thailand, India and Singapore have long catered to people wanting tummy tucks and face lifts, but many of these facilities are now gaining reputations for big-ticket procedures including heart surgery and back operations.

Many doctors working in facilities catering to medical tourists are trained abroad, often in the U.S. or Europe. About 100 foreign hospitals have been approved by the international arm of the Chicago-based Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, which also accredits American hospitals.

More and more patients like Gilmore — who had never held a passport or even tasted Indian food before her trip — are returning home and spreading the word about an alternative with some added risks.

In the U.S., health care costs are getting so high that some businesses and insurance companies are starting to eye the potential savings of outsourcing health care.

"It's just one of the many ways in which our world is flattening," said Arnold Milstein, chief physician at New York-based Mercer Health & Benefits who's researching the feasibility of outsourcing medical care for three Fortune 500 corporations. "Many companies see it as a natural extension of the competition they've faced in other aspects of their business."

Premiums for U.S. employer-sponsored health coverage have surged 87 percent over the past six years, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation, putting a huge burden on both companies and employees. Family health coverage now runs about $11,500 (€9,000) annually, with workers themselves forking out nearly $3,000 (€2,350).

An estimated 45 million Americans don't even have health insurance, forcing some to seek affordable medical help abroad.

But just as shipping U.S. manufacturing to China and call centers to India initially created loud opposition, some critics are already preparing to fight any possible mass exodus of Americans packing their bags to go under the knife overseas.

In September, North Carolina-based Blue Ridge Paper Products Inc., was set to send one of its employees to India for a gall bladder operation. Carl Garrett would have been the first U.S. employee sent abroad for medical care through an employer-sponsored pilot program that would have allowed him to share the company's savings.

Shortly before Garrett was set to leave, the United Steelworkers, America's largest union, pulled the plug.

"We don't want to expose our members to the risks associated with providing health care in the Third World," said Stan Johnson, a union spokesman.

While Garrett's company ultimately scrapped its plan for union members, several other U.S. businesses and insurance companies are starting to explore the option of exporting patients and others already have the option of treatment overseas.

Blue Shield of California and Health Net of California offer lower-cost policies allowing members to seek medical care in Mexico.

Florida-based United Group Programs, which sells self-insurance policies to small businesses, offers a plan that sends patients to Bumrungrad International hospital in Bangkok, Thailand. It says the plan will save employers more than 50 percent on major medical costs and slash employees' out-of-pocket expenses to zero.

The Thai hospital began heavily recruiting overseas patients after the 1997 Asian financial crisis. It drew 55,000 Americans last year — and nearly 350,000 other so-called medical tourists.

Among those others was Bernard Baldwin, 67, from Kent, England, who has had two operations at Bumrungrad in as many years to remove cancerous tumors. At home, he could have had the procedures for almost nothing in the national health service — but then he was told he would have to wait ages four weeks until government doctors got to him.

"Cancer is a serious business, and if you don't catch it in time, you will lose your life," he said by telephone. "In the UK, you're not told anything. You're like a mushroom — you're kept in the dark."

But even with the growing momentum for treatment overseas, big questions must be asked by anyone considering that option.

Despite the five-star facades of some hospitals — fountains, white marble floors — the comfort of having major surgery near home with family at the bedside is a far cry from the experience in the developing world, where culture shock alone can be stressful.

Pollution, poverty and insane traffic are all part of the experience when visiting hospitals like the Indian-owned Max Healthcare facilities in New Delhi, where it's not uncommon to see people urinating along roadsides. Jet lag, diarrhea and strange foods also can be coupled with the unpredictable, such as September's bloodless military coup in Thailand.

Language and cultural barriers also can make communication with doctors and nurses frustrating. In some countries, doctors are regarded as authority figures who are not used to being questioned and sometimes communicate through hints and subtleties. Follow-up care also can be an issue.

"There are a lot of risks," said Rick Wade, a senior vice president at the American Hospital Association. "What happens if something goes wrong?"

In countries like Thailand and India, medical malpractice claims are rare and multimillion dollar awards are nonexistent.

"If there's a mistake, we fix it," said Curtis Schroeder, group CEO of Bumrungrad hospital, which requires all doctors to carry malpractice insurance. "But the idea of suing for multimillions of dollars for damages is not going to be something you can do outside the U.S."

In February, Joshua Goldberg, a 23-year-old American who was traveling in Thailand, died at Bumrungrad after seeking care for a leg injury. His father, James Goldberg, has set up a Web site alleging the hospital administered a deadly drug cocktail to a patient with a history of substance abuse.

Bumrungrad insists the care given was appropriate. Thai authorities are investigating the case, as is standard with all unexpected hospital deaths. No conclusions have been reached.

"What I'm dedicated to doing is to try to alert people to at least do their homework and consider very carefully what they're getting into. Why is this such a good deal?" Goldberg said by telephone. "You might not walk away. That's what happened to my son."

It's ultimately up to patients themselves to investigate hospitals and physicians before considering surgery abroad. The Internet is loaded with resources that range from doctor bios to patient blogs, detailing the positives and negatives.

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/11/05/business/AS_FEA_MED_India_Outsourcing_Health.php

____

AP Business Writer Malcolm Foster reported from Bangkok, and AP Medical Writer Margie Mason reported from New Delhi.

___

On the Net:

http://medicaltourism.com/

http://www.jointcommissioninternational.com/

http://www.planethospital.com/

http://www.bumrungrad.com/

http://www.maxhealthcare.in/corporate/index.asp

(i) (i) (i) But then again, if the care at an overseas' medical facility was at the superb level of many American hospitals, and for so much less in terms of cost? Perhaps elective surgery. Then again, I would not have them touch my face....:| :| Maybe for a place nobody sees...;) ;) ;) I'm grateful that I do not have to make that kind of decision right now.

Carpe Diem,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-09-2006, 04:36 PM

:) :) :)

November 5, 2006

Check In, Check Out

London: The Athenaeum

By STUART EMMRICH

THE Athenaeum has long been the kind of London hotel that revels in tradition — a place that British film stars of a certain minor fame (Michael York, Charles Dance) could treat as a home away from home, and where American executives came when they wanted to be soothed by the presence of a traditional British hotel, down to the doorman in top hat and tails and bellhops who remember regular guests’ names even without furtively glancing at the ID tags on their suitcases.

Earlier this year, though, the hotel went through a renovation that scrapped some of the vestiges of the past (banished was the stuffy sitting room and those overly formal staff uniforms) and introduced a more modern look to the place. But while some of the touches clearly work — like the newly sleek bar area off the lobby and the comfortable reading room next to it — others seem to be striving a bit too hard, like the oh-so-mod wall coverings in the tarted-up dining room (some of which seem to have been stripped off a mirrored disco ball) and the stylish but distinctly uncomfortable chairs in the lobby.

THE LOCATION

Ideal. The hotel is on a prime stretch of Piccadilly, near the heart of Mayfair, set right between Hyde and Green Parks and a few blocks from the Royal Academy and the Green Park Underground station. The West End is a brisk 15-minute walk away, and taxis drive by the front door practically every 30 seconds.

THE ROOMS

Comfortably appointed (though some are still waiting for their own refurbishment), with both an ample seating area, a decent-size bed and a large bathroom — by London hotel standards, at least — with a deep soaking tub and heated towel racks. (One complaint: the oversize, swaddling-like terry-cloth robes have been replaced by feather-weight, poly-cotton blends.) The best rooms are those numbered from 01 to 05, from the third floor up, with their open views of Green Park across the street.

THE AMENITIES

The rooms come with digital TVs with 21 channels, including both CNN and Al Jazeera, and high-speed Internet access (starting at £5 for six hours, or $9.50 at $1.90 to the pound). On the ground floor are both a gym and a spa. The spa features an enzymatic sea mud wrap (£70 for 40 minutes) and a “multivitamin lifting and firming” facial (£75 for 60 minutes). The gym has all the basics for a decent workout — two treadmills, two stationary bikes, one weight machine, free weights and a Power Plate machine — but they are all packed into an extremely tight space. This is not a gym for people with intimacy issues.

THE CROWD

No sign of celebrities (minor or otherwise) during two recent stays, but plenty of American businessmen still come here, many with their families in tow.

ROOM SERVICE

Uniformly excellent. A lunch of a chicken sandwich and bottled water (£13.50, or $25.65) came within 10 minutes of being ordered, and a full English breakfast (£22) ordered the night before for between 8:30 and 8:45, came at 8:50 with apologies for the five-minute wait.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Though the Athenaeum was clearly in need of a freshening up, some of the new touches almost make the hotel come across like a middle-age dowager trying to stave off the ravages of age by dressing a little too young, a little too hip — as if the queen had suddenly shown up at one of her garden parties in Stella McCartney. (Please, bring back Hardy Aimes.) Standard double rooms begin at about £190 a night (and £270 for a room with a park view), but rates drop sharply on the weekend, sometimes as much as £70 a night, if you’re willing to search the Web.

The Athenaeum, 116 Piccadilly, London; (44-207) 499-3464; www.athenaeumhotel.com.

http://travel2.nytimes.com/2006/11/05/travel/05check.html?ref=travel

(y) (y) (y) I LOVED it! And would probably stay here again on another trip.

Have a lovely night.

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-09-2006, 04:37 PM

:( :( :(

November 5, 2006

Nevada’s Family Ranches Go the Way of Old West

By RANDAL C. ARCHIBOLD

GARDNERVILLE, Nev. — In Nevada, the fastest-growing state in the country, family ranches — veritable symbols of the Old West — are disappearing.

“We are losing our culture,” said Devere Dressler, 55, a fifth-generation rancher whose family has sold off all but 150 acres here in the Carson Valley in northern Nevada, home to some of the state’s oldest ranches and some of the newest mansions.

Once, the Dresslers owned 20,000 acres, but economic realities clashed with romantic ideals, and family members have sold most of the land, including large chunks for a housing development called, with a bit of paradox, Gardnerville Ranchos.

Steve White, hanging on to a nearly 100-year-old 150-acre dairy farm in sight of trophy homes sprouting in the surrounding fields, scoffs at the changing valley. They are nice people, Mr. White concludes of the newcomers, many of them retirees, commuters from Carson City and Reno, and casino workers and ski enthusiasts from Lake Tahoe, just over the other side of the Sierra Nevada that loom above the landscape.

These “ranchettes,” he said as if describing a new weed, “are all around us now.”

All over the West, city and suburb have seeped into farmland and desert, answering a demand for housing, jobs and business in settings befitting a Bierstadt painting while also raising qualms about taming the roughness that makes the region so attractive.

Those same dynamics are playing out here in the Carson Valley, only more so. Aside from losing a way of life, the loss of ranching has raised questions statewide, particularly in the northern reaches where the working ranches predominate, over the pace of development and whether there will be enough water and other resources to sustain it.

The United States Geological Survey is expected to complete a study this year on Carson Valley water, much of it in aquifers beneath ranchland, and how much can be tapped for growth.

Nevada’s agricultural land, with cattle ranching taking up the largest share, declined to 6.3 million acres in 2005 from just under 10 million 20 years ago. Farm and ranchland in Douglas County, which includes most of Carson Valley, has declined steadily, dropping 7 percent in the last 10 years to 76,666 from 82,122, according to the county assessor’s office. With the county’s beauty and its accessibility to Reno and Lake Tahoe, the population has soared by 70 percent in the last 15 years, to 47,017.

Real estate values have skyrocketed, and many ranchers — formerly land rich but cash poor — have sold outright or subdivided large parcels.

A county ballot initiative in 2002 limited the number of new houses to 280 per year, but county officials and developers challenged it in court. The Supreme Court of Nevada this year ruled in favor of the initiative, which was sponsored by a citizen’s group whose members included many former Californians with memories of runaway growth. Both sides are negotiating how to put it in place without further challenges.

The county in the past few years has also adopted a master plan that sets a goal of limiting growth to no more than 3.5 percent annually and encourages developers to build close to areas already built up.

“If you don’t grow, your community dies over time,” said Mimi Moss, the county planner. “If you have no residential, commercial or industrial development, it becomes stagnant and it is very difficult to come out of that.”

Private groups like the Nature Conservancy have made efforts to conserve the land by buying development rights and trying to persuade ranchers not to sell, but it can be a hard case to make. Laura Crane, a Nature Conservancy representative in Carson City, said a developer had offered one family in the nearby Dayton Valley nearly $30 million for 530 choice acres. “These families are not so well off that they can walk away from that money just because they want to see the ranch protected,” Ms. Crane said.

Ranchers flocked here in the late 1800s, drawn to the Carson River and the area’s easily accessible well water. They found fertile soil, a pleasant climate, striking vistas and a demand for food — first from gold prospectors heading over the mountains to California and later from boom towns that popped up after the discovery of the Comstock Lode, the largest silver find in history.

But ranching has never been easy, said David Hussman, neither for his German immigrant ancestors who helped establish the town here nor for him and his wife, Kathi, who run the 134-year-old family ranch with one employee.

Hay bales weighing 90 pounds apiece must be hauled daily to the 100 or so head of cattle, and their stables have to be cleaned out regularly. Delivering a breech calf is a hands-on experience not for the faint of heart. Mr. Hussman said environmental and government regulations drove him crazy. But, he concluded, “this is something special here and we ought to try to hang on to it. Once you sell it, it’s gone, and you never get it back.”

That led Mr. Hussman to seek a conservation easement, a mechanism that allows him to earn a percentage of the market value of the land while maintaining ownership. In exchange, development rights are forfeited in perpetuity.

Dirk Kempthorne, the interior secretary, came here in October to hail the creation of Mr. Hussman’s easement, which protects 300 acres. Mr. Kempthorne, at a ceremony at the ranch, called the easement “a milestone agreement and model of cooperative conservation in Nevada and the nation,” the first issued under the federal Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act, passed in 1998. Through the sale of federal land around Las Vegas, the law has raised $2.9 billion to acquire environmentally sensitive land, although only 5 percent of the money, $131 million, has been spent on such acquisitions in northern Nevada.

The Dressler family has sold off thousands of acres in the past decade to pay off taxes after the family patriarch died; much of the land that was sold went for development in Gardnerville Ranchos. Now, the family is debating its fate.

Devere Dressler wants a conservation easement. His father, however, who holds title to the land, is wary of such an arrangement and has not ruled out selling off the remainder.

“I don’t make any money, but it is a way of life,” Mr. Dressler said. “I worry for the future, specifically, I guess not only for the culture we are losing but the habitat too. Deer, these fields were covered with them and we don’t see them.”

Mr. Dressler said he would ultimately like to hand the ranch over to his son, Garrett, who is only 11 but already drives the feed truck and handles other farm equipment.

In kindergarten, Garrett drew a picture of himself and wrote in his best writing that he wanted to be a rancher when he grew up. Mr. Dressler said he planned to hold him to it.

“I made a plastic poster out of it,” he said.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/05/us/05ranches.html?em&ex=1162875600&en=fa13908f7a4347e3&ei=5070

(k) 's,

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-09-2006, 04:45 PM

:| :|

Looks like the PC outlasted the Mac in the end, after all. Justin Long, the actor who plays the part of the Mac in Apple's "Get a Mac" television campaign, won't be reprising his role in a forthcoming run of commercials. "Every ad you see Justin in is for that previous time period only," Long's representative told Radar. "There's no long-term deal with him."

Looks like the PC outlasted the Mac in the end, after all. Justin Long, the actor who plays the part of the Mac in Apple's "Get a Mac" television campaign, won't be reprising his role in a forthcoming run of commercials. "Every ad you see Justin in is for that previous time period only," Long's representative told Radar. "There's no long-term deal with him."

No long term deal? That's a bit odd, don't you think? After all, the campaign has been wildly successful. And John Hodgman, Long's PC foil in the Apple spots, is returning in the next series. Long's rep suggests that the actor had bigger and better things to do -- "Justin's a movie star, not a commercial guy," she explained. But you've got to wonder if there wasn't something more at work here. After all, Hodgman was far, far, more likable as a PC than Long was as a Mac. As Slate ad critic Seth Stevenson once noted, Hodgman gets all the laugh lines in the ads, while Long comes off as a smug little twit (see "Steve Ballmer would have been a far less sympathetic 'PC guy,' but he declined for obvious reasons ..."). "I'm a PC user, and I've often considered switching to an Apple," he wrote. "Thus, I feel equipped to say: These ads don't work on me. They are conceptually brilliant, beautifully executed, and highly entertaining. But they don't make me want to buy a Mac. Why not? The smug, unshaven, hoodie-wearing, hands-in-pockets Mac character is annoying." Perhaps the folks in Apple brand management finally realized this and made the obvious move. Five bucks and a black mock-turtleneck say Hodgman is playing a "switched" Mac in the next series of "Get a Mac" ads.

http://www.apple.com/getamac/ads/

http://www.gizmodo.com/gadgets/announcements/election-2006-vote-for-the-new-mac-guy-213393.php

No long term deal? That's a bit odd, don't you think? After all, the campaign has been wildly successful. And John Hodgman, Long's PC foil in the Apple spots, is returning in the next series. Long's rep suggests that the actor had bigger and better things to do -- "Justin's a movie star, not a commercial guy," she explained. But you've got to wonder if there wasn't something more at work here. After all, Hodgman was far, far, more likable as a PC than Long was as a Mac. As Slate ad critic Seth Stevenson once noted, Hodgman gets all the laugh lines in the ads, while Long comes off as a smug little twit (see "Steve Ballmer would have been a far less sympathetic 'PC guy,' but he declined for obvious reasons ..."). "I'm a PC user, and I've often considered switching to an Apple," he wrote. "Thus, I feel equipped to say: These ads don't work on me. They are conceptually brilliant, beautifully executed, and highly entertaining. But they don't make me want to buy a Mac. Why not? The smug, unshaven, hoodie-wearing, hands-in-pockets Mac character is annoying." Perhaps the folks in Apple brand management finally realized this and made the obvious move. Five bucks and a black mock-turtleneck say Hodgman is playing a "switched" Mac in the next series of "Get a Mac" ads.

http://www.areasofmyexpertise.com/

http://www.gizmodo.com/gadgets/press/john-hodgman-pc-guy-from-apple-ads-way-smarter-than-mac-guy-203694.php

http://blogs.siliconvalley.com/gmsv/2006/06/steve_ballmer_w.html

(n) (n) What a dip. Long needs to take his hige ego down a peg or two. And Apple needs to find a classier spokesperson. Maybe a lady for the new campaign?

:D

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-09-2006, 04:52 PM

;) ;)

This illuminated, self standing, polyethylene bathtub is sure to add drama to your bathroom.

http://www.gnr8.biz/product_info.php?products_id=130

:o :o

(i) I'll stick with candles.

:)

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-09-2006, 04:55 PM

(h) (h) (h) (h) (h)

JacksonPollock.org

Just you, your mouse, and your muse:

With just some movement of the mouse, you can create your own Jackson Pollock masterpiece—no paint, brushes, or tortured soul required. Hint: Click your mouse to change colors!

To the blank canvas!

http://jacksonpollock.org/

(h) (h) (h)

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-09-2006, 05:00 PM

:| :|

:)

Career Quiz

What do you really want to do?

Still don't know what you really want to do with your life? Finishing high school, getting ready for college, or just plain burned out on your job? Take this quick quiz and learn what kind of career best suits your personality. You might just be amazed with the results.

Number 2 pencils ready?

http://www.princetonreview.com/cte/quiz/career_quiz2.asp

(h) (h) I took it and wasn't too surprised. ;) ;) Lady know thyself.;)

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-09-2006, 05:01 PM

:) :)

Badminton Central

All badminton, all the time

Yes! The cutthroat, fast-paced game of badminton! Now you sports nuts can get all the details you need about badminton tournaments, techniques, rankings, players, equipment—and even talk badminton in the forums.

What's that racket?

http://www.badmintoncentral.com/badminton-central/

:) :)

SL

sweetlady

11-09-2006, 05:02 PM

:) :) :)

Flow

Dive, eat, evolve

Dreamy, intuitive, even beautiful, Flow is a FREE online "game" on par with Zen rock garden raking. Make your creature eat and evolve as you dive and float through space. Caution: play too long and your brain might turn into gelatinous goo.

Go with the Flow.

http://intihuatani.usc.edu/cloud/flowing/

(h) (h) (h) (h) (h)

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-09-2006, 05:05 PM

:o :o :o

(8) (8) (8)

Cassette Generator

Make your own virtual cassette

You've probably thought up a dozen fake band names. Now see how they look on an imaginary cassette! Just enter your band name, album, and producer credit, and press a button. You'll instantly get your own custom Jpeg images to keep or send to friends.

Rock and roll!

http://www.says-it.com/cassette/index.php

(*) Hmmm......isn't this getting close to going away with the advent of CDs? It felt like the 8-track going-out-of-style to me....;) And please don't ask me what one of THOSE are....

:D :D

Carpe Diem,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-09-2006, 05:11 PM

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Beautiful crumpled cars

If you're a fan of American heavy metal, Italian speed demons, English luxury and the like, these photos of smashed-up exotic automobiles might just bring you to tears. The silver lining? Unlike for the owners of these wheels, your insurance doesn't rival the national debt!

Pedal to the twisted metal:

http://www.wreckedexotics.com/

:o :o Not my cup of tea, but certainly teenagers might learn some serious lessons, in my opinion.

(S) (S) Ah, a quiet evening ahead. (once I locate which smoke detector needs a new battery, that is.) There's a loud beep that woke Wyatt up and he keeps looking up to see if I'm going to do something about it. I guess I will.

Safe travels, virtually and real-world.

(f) (f) (f) 's,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-12-2006, 03:05 PM

(f) (f) (f) (f) (f)

FAREWELLS

Don't be dismayed at good-byes.
A farewell is necessary
before you can meet again.
And meeting again,
after moments or lifetimes,
is certain for those
who are friends.

- Richard Bach

(f) (f) (f) (f) (f)

Sweetlady & Wyatt the sleeping Boxer (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-12-2006, 03:10 PM

(y) (y) (y) (y) (y) (y)

November 9, 2006

Op-Ed Columnist

A Come-to-Daddy Moment

By MAUREEN DOWD

Poppy Bush and James Baker gave Sonny the presidency to play with and he broke it. So now they’re taking it back.

They are dragging W. away from those reckless older guys who have been such a bad influence and getting him some new minders who are a lot more practical.

In a scene that might be called “Murder on the Oval Express,” Rummy turned up dead with so many knives in him that it’s impossible to say who actually finished off the man billed as Washington’s most skilled infighter. (Poppy? Scowcroft? Baker? Laura? Condi? The Silver Fox? Retired generals? Serving generals? Future generals? Troops returning to Iraq for the umpteenth time without a decent strategy? Democrats? Republicans? Joe Lieberman?)

The defense chief got hung out to dry before Saddam got hung. The president and Karl Rove, underestimating the public’s hunger for change or overestimating the loyalty of a fed-up base, did not ice Rummy in time to save the Senate from teetering Democratic. But once Sonny managed to heedlessly dynamite the Republican majority — as well as the Middle East, the Atlantic alliance and the U.S. Army — then Bush Inc., the family firm that snatched the presidency for W. in 2000, had to step in. Two trusted members of the Bush 41 war council, Mr. Baker and Robert Gates, have been dispatched to discipline the delinquent juvenile and extricate him from the mother of all messes.

Mr. Gates, already on Mr. Baker’s “How Do We Get Sonny Out of Deep Doo Doo in Iraq?” study group, left his job protecting 41’s papers at Texas A&M to return to Washington and pry the fingers of Poppy’s old nemesis, Rummy, off the Pentagon.

“They had to bring in someone from the old gang,” said someone from the old gang. “That has to make Junior uneasy. With Bob, the door is opened again to 41 and Baker and Brent.”

W. had no choice but to make an Oedipal U-turn. He couldn’t let Nancy Pelosi subpoena the cranky Rummy for hearings on Iraq. “He’s not exactly Mr. Charming or Mr. Truthful, and he’d be on TV saying something stupid,” said a Bush 41 official. “Bob can just go up to the Hill and say: ‘I don’t know. I wasn’t there when that happened.’ ”

Bob Gates, his friends say, had been worried about the belligerent, arrogant, ideological style of Rummy & Cheney from the start. He fretted at the way W.’s so-called foreign policy “dream team” — including his old staffer and fellow Soviet expert Condi — made it up as they went along, even though that had been their complaint about the Clinton foreign policy team. A realpolitik advocate like his mentor, General Scowcroft, he was critical of a linear, moralizing style that disdained nuance, demoted diplomacy and inflated villains. In 2004, he publicly questioned the administration’s approach to Iran.

While Vice went off to a corner to lick his wounds, W. was forced to do his best imitation of his dad yesterday, talking about “bipartisan outreach,” “people have spoken,” blah-blah-blah — after he’d been out on the trail saying that electing Democrats would mean that “the terrorists win and America loses.”

“I share a large part of the responsibility” for the “thumpin’ ” of Republicans, he told reporters. Actually, he gets full responsibility.

W. has stopped talking about democracy as a standard of success in Iraq; yesterday, he said that Iraq had to “govern itself, sustain itself and defend itself.”

He was asked if his surprise at the election results showed he was out of touch with Americans. “I thought when it was all said and done,” he replied, “the American people would understand the importance of taxes and the importance of security.”

So it was just that the American people were too dumb to understand? W. also managed to bash Vietnam vets, saying that this war isn’t similar because there’s a volunteer army, so “the troops understand the consequences of Iraq in the global war on terror.” Is that why W. stayed out of Vietnam? Because he understood it?

An ashen Rummy was also condescending during his uncomfortable tableau with W. and Bob Gates in the Oval Office, implying that he was dumped because Americans just didn’t “comprehend” what was going on in Iraq. Actually, Rummy, we get it. You don’t get it.

“Baker’s no fool,” a Bush 41 official said. “He wasn’t going to go out there with a plan for Iraq and have Rummy shoot it down. He wanted a receptive audience. Everyone had to be on the same page before the plan is unveiled.”

They don’t call him the Velvet Hammer for nothing. R.I.P., Rummy.

(y) (y) (y) (y)

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-12-2006, 03:11 PM

(h) (h)

November 10, 2006

Op-Ed Columnist

The Great Revulsion

By PAUL KRUGMAN

I’m not feeling giddy as much as greatly relieved. O.K., maybe a little giddy. Give ’em hell, Harry and Nancy!

Here’s what I wrote more than three years ago, in the introduction to my column collection “The Great Unraveling”: “I have a vision — maybe just a hope — of a great revulsion: a moment in which the American people look at what is happening, realize how their good will and patriotism have been abused, and put a stop to this drive to destroy much of what is best in our country.”

At the time, the right was still celebrating the illusion of victory in Iraq, and the bizarre Bush personality cult was still in full flower. But now the great revulsion has arrived.

Tuesday’s election was a truly stunning victory for the Democrats. Candidates planning to caucus with the Democrats took 24 of the 33 Senate seats at stake this year, winning seven million more votes than Republicans. In House races, Democrats received about 53 percent of the two-party vote, giving them a margin more than twice as large as the 2.5-percentage-point lead that Mr. Bush claimed as a “mandate” two years ago — and the margin would have been even bigger if many Democrats hadn’t been running unopposed.

The election wasn’t just the end of the road for Mr. Bush’s reign of error. It was also the end of the 12-year Republican dominance of Congress. The Democrats will now hold a majority in the House that is about as big as the Republicans ever achieved during that era of dominance.

Moreover, the new Democratic majority may well be much more effective than the majority the party lost in 1994. Thanks to a great regional realignment, in which a solid Northeast has replaced the solid South, Democratic control no longer depends on a bloc of Dixiecrats whose ideological sympathies were often with the other side of the aisle.

Now, I don’t expect or want a permanent Democratic lock on power. But I do hope and believe that this election marks the beginning of the end for the conservative movement that has taken over the Republican Party.

In saying that, I’m not calling for or predicting the end of conservatism. There always have been and always will be conservatives on the American political scene. And that’s as it should be: a diversity of views is part of what makes democracy vital.

But we may be seeing the downfall of movement conservatism — the potent alliance of wealthy individuals, corporate interests and the religious right that took shape in the 1960s and 1970s. This alliance may once have had something to do with ideas, but it has become mainly a corrupt political machine, and America will be a better place if that machine breaks down.

Why do I want to see movement conservatism crushed? Partly because the movement is fundamentally undemocratic; its leaders don’t accept the legitimacy of opposition. Democrats will only become acceptable, declared Grover Norquist, the president of Americans for Tax Reform, once they “are comfortable in their minority status.” He added, “Any farmer will tell you that certain animals run around and are unpleasant, but when they’ve been fixed, then they are happy and sedate.”

And the determination of the movement to hold on to power at any cost has poisoned our political culture. Just think about the campaign that just ended, with its coded racism, deceptive robo-calls, personal smears, homeless men bused in to hand out deceptive fliers, and more. Not to mention the constant implication that anyone who questions the Bush administration or its policies is very nearly a traitor.

When movement conservatism took it over, the Republican Party ceased to be the party of Dwight Eisenhower and became the party of Karl Rove. The good news is that Karl Rove and the political tendency he represents may both have just self-destructed.

Two years ago, people were talking about permanent right-wing dominance of American politics. But since then the American people have gotten a clearer sense of what rule by movement conservatives means. They’ve seen the movement take us into an unnecessary war, and botch every aspect of that war. They’ve seen a great American city left to drown; they’ve seen corruption reach deep into our political process; they’ve seen the hypocrisy of those who lecture us on morality.

And they just said no.

(y) (y) (y) (y) (y) (y) (y) (y)

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-12-2006, 03:12 PM

:) :)

A wee bit over the top, but oh what a lovely dream! (l) (l)

***************
November 8, 2006

In Tuscany, Luxury Farmhouses

By ANDRÉA R. VAUCHER

International Herald Tribune

When David Burden, president of the Colorado-based Timbers Company, sought to expand his portfolio of luxury fractional real estate projects to Europe, he looked no further than the most obvious — and evocative — location: Tuscany.

“Everyone who has ever thought about being in the country in Europe and living the good life thinks about Tuscany,” Mr. Burden said.

So when a developer from Milan approached him with a partnership offer in Castello di Casole, one of the largest private land holdings in Italy, 5,500 acres west of Siena, he jumped at the chance.

Mr. Burden was certain that Americans similar to those who bought vacation homes at his other residence clubs — The Timbers Club in Snowmass, Colo.; Esperanza in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico; and The Rocks in Scottsdale, Ariz. — would relish the opportunity to buy into one of Italy’s most historic estates.

Castello, which Mr. Burden now owns outright, offers the quintessential Tuscan landscape, with vineyards, olive groves and breathtaking vistas. According to account books dating to 1680, the property originally was owned by an aristocratic family from Siena and later farmed on a sharecropping system. The estate’s 18th century castle, which sits atop the property’s highest hill and which Mr. Burden is turning into an exclusive 40-room hotel and spa in late 2008 or early 2009, has been home over the years to various Italian celebrities and nobility, including Luchino Visconti, the film director. Local residents still gossip about his lavish lifestyle.

The various farmhouses scattered around the property, which have fallen into disrepair, were the inspiration, and in some cases the raw material, for 24 villas that are the first phase of development. They are expected to be completed in late 2008. So far, Mr. Burden’s Italian and American architects and artisans have turned seven of the crumbling structures into opulent private homes, while maintaining as many of the original architectural details as possible: sections of ancient stone walls, barrel-vaulted and exposed-beam ceilings, and traditional terra cotta roof tiles. These farmhouses, or casale, range from 4,500 to 7,500 square feet and sell for about $6 million. A one-tenth share, which entitles the owner to four weeks as well as additional time on an “as available” basis, sold for $550,000 in 2005. It now sells for $645,000 to $685,000.

David McCormick, a lawyer from Pascagoula, Miss., and his wife, Susan, bought a one-tenth share last year, even though they had never been to Europe and had only seen photographs of the project.

Mr. McCormick, a history buff, said he was looking for a place that would be a base for explorations of the Continent. “I wanted a place in the countryside where we could go for two weeks a year to recharge our batteries and at the same time learn something about European history, enjoy the good food and the wines and be very relaxed,” Mr. McCormick said.

Friends from Jackson, Miss., also purchased a one-tenth share in the same villa, and both couples spent two weeks there last May. “I was mesmerized,” McCormick recalled. “It was everything I expected and more.”

The couples spent weekends in Florence and Siena and even took a day trip to Rome, about two and a half hours away by car. “You could do the same thing, I guess, and stay in a hotel, but I’m a creature of habit. At the end of the day, I like coming home to my house,” he said.

Mr. McCormick’s house, Casa Escaiole, has its own floor plan and resembles the other villas only in the similarity of building materials. All the homes have infinity pools made from Bisazza mosaic glass tiles, stone patios warmed by original wood-burning ovens, and bathrooms of white marble from the same Carrara quarry where Michelangelo obtained the marble for his sculptures. Furnishings include rustic Tuscan antiques, comfortable modern sofas and fine Italian fabrics.

Even Mr. Burden’s interior designer, Joni Vanderslice, chief executive of J. Banks Design Group in Hilton Head, N.C., has bought a one-tenth share. “As all Americans, I loved the food, the hospitality, the colors, the wine, the way the Italians made you feel as though you were part of their family,” Ms. Vanderslice said. “Being in Tuscany made me slow down to their pace.”

Ms. Vanderslice vacationed in Tuscany several times before beginning work on Castello di Casole. During one of those vacations, something clicked as Ms. Vanderslice watched her young daughters play with a neighbor’s goat and as she saw her husband, Rick, who is a physician, unwind by cycling through the olive groves. “This is the place I want to continue coming back to,” she said. “When I’m finished working on this job, I don’t want to stop going there.”

Now she won’t have to. The Vanderslices anticipate spending two vacations a year at Casale la Casa, a 7,500-square-foot property that also has two 1,000-square-foot guesthouses.

(f) (f) (f)

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-12-2006, 03:13 PM

(h) (h) (h)

Inside FourSquare: Courting the Next Big Deal

November 10, 2006, 6:22 am

Terry Semel of Yahoo, Barry Diller of IAC/InterActiveCorp and Shari Redstone of National Amusements were just some of the heavy hitters from the media and technology industries who turned up this week for Quadrangle Group’s FourSquare conference in New York. They mingled with investment bankers and as well as a few celebrities, including Jerry Seinfeld and Katie Couric.

One of the event’s most talked-about attendees was not a mogul, a banker or a boldface name, however. It was the flip-flop-wearing 22-year-old founder of the Web site Facebook. (DealBook’s photo gallery shows some of the bigwigs who attended.)

Mr. Zuckerberg’s popularity at the conference reflects how the media establishment is fixated on the Internet’s new wave, even as it worries about whether the hype — and the valuations — may have outstripped the reality.

A few short months ago, DealBook was at a conference in Sun Valley, Idaho, watching veteran media executives compete for the attentions of a young Internet upstart named Chad Hurley. Not long after that conference, Mr. Hurley’s company, YouTube, was sold to Google for $1.65 billion.

The Dress Code Is Relaxed, but the Courting Is Intense

By ANDREW ROSS SORKIN

Dozens of the world’s biggest media moguls and investment bankers, dressed in perfectly pressed suits, mingled in the lobby of the Pierre Hotel in Manhattan yesterday at the annual FourSquare conference.

And then there was Mark Zuckerberg, the 22-year-old chief executive of the social networking site Facebook, wearing Adidas flip-flops — sans socks — with a blazer and jeans.

Welcome to Web 2.0, Wall Street style.

The FourSquare conference has become the East Coast incarnation of Allen & Company’s annual summer gathering in Sun Valley, Idaho, which has been the hatching place for all kinds of major and minor deals.

And if Chad Hurley, the chief executive of YouTube, was the belle of the ball at Sun Valley this summer, then Mr. Zuckerberg was the “it” boy of FourSquare.

Mr. Hurley was also in attendance yesterday, still basking in the glow of his company’s sale to Google for $1.65 billion — and also wearing a blazer and jeans, though he had shoes on.

YouTube’s sale may be only a month old, but Wall Street had already appeared to move on to the next big deal with all eyes on Mr. Zuckerberg, who has been in on-and-off negotiations with Yahoo. At the conference yesterday, Mr. Zuckerberg could be seen standing amid a throng of high-powered would-be suitors. Analysts have estimated that Facebook could have a value of as much as $1 billion.

Mr. Zuckerberg demurred when asked whether he would sell to Yahoo. (Terry S. Semel, Yahoo’s chief executive, was also in attendance, though he was not seen talking to Mr. Zuckerberg.)

Many speakers and attendees at the conference, including Barry Diller of IAC/InterActiveCorp, Shari E. Redstone of National Amusements, David J. Stern of the National Basketball Association, Martin Sorell of WPP and Harvey Weinstein of the Weinstein Company, among others, attended a dinner the night before, where much of the conversation was about the YouTube deal and its astronomical price tag. Several people questioned whether Internet valuations had once again gotten out of control.

“We’ve seen how this movie ends,” said one executive at a traditional media company who nonetheless was still looking at a bevy of new media acquisitions. “But we all believe we can change the ending.”

Among the companies being whispered about as takeover targets were sites with user-generated content like Digg and other video sites like Brightcove.

The two-day FourSquare conference, now in its fifth year, has become a hot spot for executives to see and be seen and also attracts much of Wall Street’s banker elite. The conference is run by the Quadrangle Group, a private equity firm that specializes in media and technology. The firm was founded in 2000 by Steven Rattner, Peter R. Ezersky and Joshua L Steiner.

Much of the conference also focused on how user-generated content was upsetting the traditional media model and whether it was a fad or here to stay.

During a luncheon panel, Howard Stringer, chief of Sony, joked that in 10 years, “I will be on my MySpace page entirely alone.”

Jerry Seinfeld, the comedian, lamented the quality of the comedy on user-generated YouTube clips. “It’s terrible,” he said. Mr. Stringer retorted, “It’s funny to them.”

The discussion turned to how the erosion of the economics of television had forced networks like NBC to decide to show only lower-budget reality and game show fare during part of evening prime time.

“I think of the entertainment industry and Detroit similarly,” Mr. Seinfeld said as he dressed down the television executives in the room for not being bolder in their programming. “They don’t have confidence in their instincts. Maybe they don’t have instincts to be confident in?”

For all the technological shifts going on in media, Mr. Stringer described an article from Time magazine in 1960 that lamented the dearth of new programming on television.

“Nothing changes,” he said.

(i) (i) Indeed.

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-12-2006, 03:34 PM

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November 10, 2006

Setting Out Into the Arizona Wilderness With Only a Knife

By JONATHAN GREEN

ON a brisk morning in October, Lee Posner, a stout New York orthopedic devices salesman, drove to a remote spot in the northern Arizona mountains, removed his glasses, unclipped his cellphone and placed them in the glove box. Then, with a deep sigh, he stepped into the cougar-infested wilderness with nothing more than a sharp knife.

His face was a mask of apprehension as he struck out through the thick Ponderosa pines. “My survival will come down to this,” he said, patting the knife (a Swedish Mora knife with a four-inch blade) at his waist as he negotiated some thick sagebrush. “The blade will decide.”

Mr. Posner was one of three people taking a two-day course led by Tony Nestor of Ancient Pathways, an Arizona outdoor survival school that teaches survival using only primitive technology. Participants are allowed to take only a knife, the clothes they arrive in and a tiny survival kit containing parachute cord, a fire sparker and a water bottle. Tent, sleeping bag, G.P.S., camping mattress and, more important, food, are all forbidden. The idea is to learn how to survive if a day hike goes wrong.

Shaded under the greasy brim of a worn bush hat, Mr. Nestor hiked a few steps behind the group. “We belong out here,” he said, scrambling up mossy rocks with the agility of a mountain goat. “It’s our birthright. We’ve had a spear in our hands a lot longer than we’ve had a laptop. If you have knowledge, all you need out here is a knife.”

Mr. Nestor, a soft-spoken man with a phlegmatic demeanor and a natural, calorie-saving economy of movement, has made it his life’s work to understand how to survive in the wild with nothing. From the age of 17 he has wandered the country spending years with mountain men, Indians and outdoor survivalists to learn his craft. Proudly mounted on the living room wall of his solar-powered house in Flagstaff are the sticks he used the first time he started a fire “in the old way.”

He has become such an authority on outdoor survival, particularly desert survival, that he has taught it to Hopi and Navajo students, as well as to the Army’s Special Forces before their deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan. He also trains prospective contestants on the television reality show “Survivor” who are eager to gain an edge.

Mostly, though, he teaches a growing band of people intrigued with primitive technology. “With Y2K and then 9/11, the numbers interested in this have exploded,” Mr. Nestor said. “A lot of people want to be less reliant, particularly after Hurricane Katrina. People want to know how to survive when the shelves at the grocery store are not filled with food and the government is not around to supply water.” A significant number of his students are women.

Becoming a real weekend Rambo appeals on a number of different levels. “Modern hiking inventions are great,” Mr. Posner said. “But Gore-Tex is not going to find me water if I am stranded. I was a huge fan of Tarzan growing up, and I have always been fascinated with the idea of living in the wild with only a knife.”

Elliot Spaulding, 23, an undergraduate at Northern Arizona University, agreed. “I’m more interested in how my ancestors used to live,” he said. “I want to sleep in a shelter that I have made myself, in front of a fire that I have lit myself with nothing more than sticks.”

The kind of course Mr. Spaulding and Mr. Posner were taking (this reporter was the third student) does have very real dangers. Last July, Dave Buschow, 29, a security operative from River Vale, N.J., died in Utah while taking part in a 28-day survival course run by the Boulder Outdoor Survival School.

After an hour of hiking up and down mountains and canyons at 7,000 feet, Mr. Nestor led the group to a clearing in the dense pine woods. “Shelter is one of the first thing you need to take care of, whether you are roasting in the desert or freezing in sub-zero degrees,” he said.

He instructed his students on how to make a primitive shelter called a wickiup. We lashed the ends of two 12-foot logs to the trunk of a tree with a half-hitch at roughly waist height, forming a steeple. We then hacked and laid branches along the sides and dropped pine needles over the top to seal it. We were left with a wigwam shape big enough for two people, along with a pie-shaped space at the front where we would build our fire pit. We then littered the floor inside with pine needles. “You have to have something between you and the ground,” Mr. Nestor said. “Otherwise the ground will suck the 98.6 degrees of temperature right out of your body.”

The next imperative was the hunt for water and food. We hiked deep into a tree-lined canyon, where the rocks at the bottom held rust-brown rainwater. The oasis was used as a waterhole by local animals. Mr. Nestor pointed out footprints. “Those three-lobe prints would indicate a cougar,” he said. Mr. Posner filled his water bottle with a wary eye on the canyon’s rocky outcrops.

Sinewy stalks of wild onions protruded from the boggy ground around the waterhole. Mr. Nestor instructed the group to dig out the marble-size onions using our blades. It took a good hour of hard labor to collect even a cupful.

MR. NESTOR regarded everything in the outdoors as having a utilitarian purpose. Don’t have a toothbrush for the night? Cut a fresh twig from an oak tree and scrape your teeth with it; the tannin acts as a natural toothpaste. Don’t have rope? Use the fibrous leaves of the yucca plant and braid them into a line which is strong enough to lash shelters or even to use as mountaineering rope.

We foraged a few wild cranberries and spent a further hour collecting acorns in our bandanas. But soon hunger, a chilling drop in temperature and darkness descended on the group. Mr. Nestor could tell how many hours of daylight were left by measuring how many fists there were between the sun and the horizon. “We have an hour to get back to camp to light a fire,” he said.

Back at camp, we whittled wood to make fire-making implements. A bow drill consisted of a flexible piece of wood bent into a bow shape with some cord, a spindle made from yucca stalk and a flat piece of wood known as a fireboard. Mr. Spaulding pulled the bow back and forth, with a jerky, forceful momentum, spinning the spindle in the fireboard and producing a fine, hot dust. The friction eventually produced a little billowing cloud of smoke and then a few licks of flame in the withering light, just as the sun sank below a tree-lined ridge. The dust was used to light pitch from a pine tree. A blanket of complete darkness descended just as the fire gathered a roaring life of its own. “Natural fire that I made myself,” Mr. Spaulding said, grinning with his accomplishment.

The group, ravenous with hunger, began the laborious process of shelling acorns, which were dropped into a rusty can we had found. Then we boiled up an acorn-and-wild-onion broth and devoured it ravenously. But we were all still hungry. Despite laboring for much of the day collecting onions and acorns we still couldn’t fill our bellies.

“I’m so hungry I could eat a squirrel,” Mr. Posner said morosely. Mr. Nestor explained that in an emergency situation hunting could burn up more calories, especially when there was a chance of not actually catching anything.

Mr. Nestor has regularly dined on pack rats, mice and squirrels on his long sojourns in the wild. “When it’s winter and there is no food on the ground, you have to eat that to survive,” he said, shadows cast by the campfire flickering over his face. “You can’t be squeamish about it. It’s a good thing our ancestors weren’t or we wouldn’t be here today. Mice are too small to skin, so you just throw them on the fire and eat them whole. Rats you throw on for 30 seconds to burn off bubonic plague, lice and parasites and then skin them. If you’re really hungry you just eat them straight down.”

The long night stretched out ahead of us. The temperature dropped to 36 degrees. The soaring darkness of the woods enclosed as the needling cold stabbed into our clothing. We lay on our beds of prickly pine needles, sticking some into our clothes for extra insulation. We fed the fire to stay warm. The smoke from the fire pit billowed into our eyes, turning them bloodshot and sooty. We either roasted in the shelter or froze when we fell asleep and the fire died.

A gray dawn woke us early. Despite lack of sleep and a gnawing hunger with little food for 24 hours, there was a sense of pride we had survived the night. “There are students and advanced students,” Mr. Nestor said, “but no masters when it comes to outdoor survival.”

Our trip was only a taste, but it demonstrated the brutality of life without easily accessible food, heat, light and all the other features of modern living that we take for granted. “It’s about a positive mental attitude and knowledge of the jungle,” Mr. Posner said. “Just like Tarzan had.”

Mr. Nestor demonstrated signaling with a mirror to use in an emergency. The flash can be seen as far as 105 miles away by rescue workers. And with that lesson we made our escape from the wilderness.

Mr. Posner tucked his knife securely into the waistband of his pants and hiked back to civilization. “Right,” he said, safely back at his car. “Where’s a McDonald’s? I want a quarter-pounder with cheese.”

Details

FOR those who like the idea of learning to be real weekend Tarzans and Rambos, there are a number of instructors around the country who teach knife-only survival courses:

ARIZONA Ancient Pathways (928-526-2552; www.apathways.com) offers a full range of courses from knife-only, starting at $275, up to a nine-week bushcraft course for $4,800.

MONTANA At the Wilderness Arts Institute (406-660-2204; www.wilderness-arts.com), David Cronenwett offers one- and five-day survival courses in the northern Rockies for around $100 a person a day.

NEW HAMPSHIRE Tim Smith of the Jack Mountain Bushcraft and Guide Service(603-569-6150; www.jackmtn.com) offers various bushcraft and survival outings for $125 a day or $250 for a two-day course.

http://travel2.nytimes.com/2006/11/10/travel/escapes/10survival.html

:| :| Definitely not for the feint of heart. My idea of camping (or roughing it) has most definitely changed over the years such as staying at a Westin which have those "Heavenly Beds" (or other 5-Star) - or better yet?

There are some lovely B&B's where both the owners and the rooms/beds/breakfasts are memorable in the experiences as well as for the traveler-friends I've met over the years.:) Even during those two decades of constant business trips or when I sought solitude to get away for some peace and quiet - B&Bs were the perfect balance at times.

As Josephine Marcus replied to Wyatt Earp when he asked her what her definition of happiness was: "Room Service."

;) ;)

Have a delightful rest of your Sunday.(f)

({) (}) 's,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-12-2006, 03:41 PM

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November 9, 2006

Cosmopolitan Moms

By STACY LU

COME 4 o’clock on most Fridays, a group of eight mothers in Chestnut Hill, an affluent neighborhood in Philadelphia, gathers for drinks.

They have been following the rules all week, dutifully potty-training, wiping noses and transporting their progeny to schools, classes and doctors. As their young children play nearby, the women said, they sit around in one of their yards or living rooms, drink glasses of Cavit pinot grigio or cups of Yuengling lager, and unload. They talk of problems at the pediatrician’s or at school. They dole out pizza or cook hot dogs. Sometimes, they dance with the children.

“You just automatically relax,” said Kelley Ann Mansfield, a mother of two who founded the Friday group five years ago. “It’s before you take the first sip, as soon as your hand touches the bottle. It’s like, ‘Man, I’ve gone through the day, I need to treat myself.’ ”

Happy-hour play dates are here. Between runs to soccer and ballet classes, fund-raisers and homework projects, some stay-at-home mothers are sipping cocktails at afternoon spa parties, drinking bloody marys at play groups and toting wine and wine coolers to parks and friends’ decks while their children frolic nearby.

These women are not out to get drunk, they say. And they insist they are not drinking out of need. Rather, they are looking for a small break from the conventions of mommy-hood — a way to hold on to a part of their lives that existed before they had children and to bond over a shared disdain for the almost sadistically stressful world of modern parenting.

They know they will be criticized. They live, after all, in an age when many parents are so protective, they hire consultants to childproof their homes. Most acknowledge there can be a fine line between social and problem drinking and that the mix of children and alcohol is a dangerous one. And women who are pregnant keep away from the bar.

But some women are almost defiant in their defense of the afternoon group “momtini,” as one blogger calls it, and they speak out on the Web, in books and in interviews. The mothers do not know how many like-minded women are out there — there is no real way to quantify it — but they sense a change.

Some say the mother get-togethers are a throwback to the 1950s, when adults had more time to themselves and children were not always the center of attention. Martinis were in vogue; today’s obsessive, hard-driving, Harvard-or-bust parenting scene was not.

Teresa Klauber of Greenwood, S.C., wrote that she much prefers the cocktail play groups she has attended to other play groups, “where it seems like everyone is trying to compare their child to everyone else’s.”

“Too competitive,” she added, in an e-mail message. “This is much more social and well, friendly.”

Christie Mellor, in her book “The Three-Martini Playdate: A Practical Guide to Happy Parenting” — one of a spate of books over the last few years that urge parents to ease up — advised mothers to mix a few martinis during an afternoon play date. If the parents of your child’s new preschool friend are shocked, she says, they probably are no fun, anyway.

“This is a surefire method of separating the wheat from the chaff, the cream from the nondairy soy alternative,” she writes.

But Ms. Mellor said her book, which spawned a bulletin board of the same name on iVillage, the women’s Web site, has a larger message, advocating practical, non-obsessive parenting. The drinking part, Ms. Mellor said, “was meant to be a metaphor for having more fun in your life, and having a grown-up life.”

That is what many defenders of wine-cooler get-togethers say they are seeking. They love their children, they’re happy to be mothers, but they would like their world to be larger than a Little Tikes mini-kitchen.

“Crayons, cartoons and toys are in no way a part of that drink,” said Lene Proenza, a mother of two in North Plainfield, N.J., in an e-mail message. “My kids can’t have any of it. It is entirely and completely mine! And it doesn’t take anything away from my kids for me to have that one rare indulgence.”

Sandra May of South Amboy, N.J., who has a business holding in-home spa parties, says her clients want a taste of the pampering and party time they had while single, even if that means letting a 2-year-old splash in a foot bath or serving virgin cosmopolitans to little girls while their mothers have the real thing.

“Hey, we do what we have to do to have a fun night with our friends,” she said.

Melissa Summers of Royal Oak, Mich., frequently mentions her bloody mary play groups on her blog, Suburbanbliss.net, to the dismay of some readers. The site’s logo is what Ms. Summers calls the momtini, a pacifier garnishing a half-full martini glass. Ms. Summers says the logo represents a need for balance.

“It is saying mothering will look however I want it to,” Ms. Summers said. “It might just be a way of weeding out the mothers who are righteously indignant about what other people do. I know I don’t need more mothering guilt or mothering judgment in my life.”

Ms. Summers said many readers of her site, which has 4,000 to 5,000 unique visitors a day, are also looking for a way to connect. “What are they going to do, chitchat about the kids for an hour?” Ms. Summers said. “As long as you’re being responsible, I mean, have a glass of wine. When would you need it more than when there’s 40 screaming kids running around?”

Suniya S. Luthar, a psychology professor at Columbia University and mother of two, said her research has shown that alcohol and drug use is up among relatively affluent mothers. And there seems to be a reason.

“We are in a position right now where women can feel incredibly disconnected and lonely,” Dr. Luthar said, explaining that the apparent self-medicating she has found in interviews with clinicians and private practitioners and in an online survey could be a dangerous trend.

Some of the issues troubling mothers are disturbingly retro, according to interviews and a perusal of Web postings.

“Giving up a career (and a piece of my identity) and boredom were the core reasons I drank,” said Jennifer Ramsey of Sacramento, Calif., in an e-mail message, explaining how being a stay-at-home mother contributed to her alcoholism. “I know that this isolation and need to appear like the perfect mom are stressful for many women.”

Ms. Ramsey, who is in recovery, said that since starting a blog, stayathomemotherdom.clubmom.com, “I have received many e-mails from others who question their drinking with children or think that they drink too much.”

Susan Shapiro Barash, author of “The New Wife: The Evolving Role of the American Wife,” who teaches a class in gender studies at Sarah Lawrence College, said it is the attitude of modern martini mothers that determines whether they are repeating history.

“Is the drinking purely social or is this an underlying message that there is something missing?” Ms. Barash said. “This might be a happy event, but it certainly wasn’t for their predecessors. The drinking was just a coping mechanism for loneliness and unhappiness.”

Dr. Luthar, the psychologist, conceded that drinking together does beat drinking alone, particularly if the women in their groups can “achieve that sense of connectedness, with feelings of being seen, being heard, and of being understood.” Others, though, see alcohol as a risky way to connect. While many of the mothers who defended cocktail play dates claimed that having children underfoot promoted greater restraint, most probably would not tolerate it from hired caregivers.

“Driving can be impaired, even with one drink,” said Dr. Terry Schneekloth, director of the addictive disorders program at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. “Reflex time is slowed, judgment can be impaired. Both of those can be applied to child care as well.”

One woman who spoke about her affinity for cocktail play dates admitted to one lamentable incident. The woman, who spoke on the condition that her name be withheld, told of an afternoon tippling with two other mothers in her New Jersey neighborhood. She said she passed out afterward in her home, as her 4-year-old slept inside and the baby sitter, outside with her 7-year-old, rang the doorbell repeatedly.

Dr. Schneekloth said studies show that repeated exposure to alcohol and daytime drinking can put women at greater risk of developing a dependence on alcohol. “We saw this in men exposed to the two-martini lunches in the 1960s,” he said.

But some said men are a good argument for the mommy cocktail.

“In this culture there is a still a double standard,” said Dwight B. Heath, an anthropology professor at Brown University who has written extensively on alcohol attitudes. “It is more acceptable for men to drink, more often, and in greater quantities, and in public.

“This is not really exotic behavior,” Dr. Heath said.

But even Ms. Mellor, the “Martini Playdate” author, worries that many parents seem to have heard her plea to party while ignoring her book’s greater message of not giving oneself up entirely to the children.

“It’s not just about drinking and cutting loose, it’s about giving your children the tools to be self-sufficient,” she said. “Because if you haven’t changed your general attitude, then you just end up being a really busy drunk.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/09/fashion/09drink.html

(n) (n) How completely silly! :D :D

;) ;) 's,

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-12-2006, 03:48 PM

:) :) :)

http://bbs.dragonslanding.com/viewtopic.php?t=1539

(h) (h) (h) (h)

:)

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-12-2006, 03:52 PM

:| :| :| :|

:) :)

I don't know whether this says something about Time magazine or popular culture or the general level of cognitive dissonance in the world today, but Time's Best Invention of 2006 is neither an invention nor a product of 2006. Topping the list is YouTube, a successful execution of an obvious and inevitable idea -- people will share video on the Net -- and a milestone for the moment in the evolution of interactive news and entertainment, but hardly an invention. And while it caught fire this year, it launched in early 2005. But why niggle over what is obviously a valuable contribution to the world, especially if you base value on sales price. Sure, even on Time's froth-oriented list, some might see more value in a vaccine that protects against cervical cancer and could save thousands of lives each year, or a battlefield robot that can rescue injured soldiers or even fire-resistant rope, but they would be plodding, literal souls, obviously out of touch with the demographic needs of publishing companies.

http://www.time.com/time/2006/techguide/bestinventions/

http://www.time.com/time/2006/techguide/bestinventions/inventions/medicine2.html

http://www.time.com/time/2006/techguide/bestinventions/inventions/military.html

http://www.time.com/time/2006/techguide/bestinventions/inventions/safety2.html

(h) (h) (h) (h) (h) (h) (h) (h)

(i) (i) (i)

SL

sweetlady

11-12-2006, 03:54 PM

:) :)

http://www.time.com/time/2006/techguide/bestinventions/inventions/clothing.html

(k) 's,

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-12-2006, 04:00 PM

:) :) :) :) :)

http://www.ifilm.com/collection/1065/channel/viralvideo

(h) (h) There's a bunch of them. Hilarious. Enjoy!

We're off for a quick walk in the rain and then some supper - "yummers" for Wyatt. It's about that time for some fresh (c) for me as well.

(k) (k) 's,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the napping Boxer (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-16-2006, 05:46 AM

:o :o :o

In a Chicago hospital, a gentleman had made
several attempts to get into the men's restroom,
but it had always been occupied.

A nurse noticed his predicament.

"Sir," she said "You may use the ladies
room if you promise not to touch any of the
buttons on the wall."

He did what he needed to, and as he sat
there he noticed the buttons he had promised
not to touch.

Each button was identified by letters:WW. WA. PP,
and a red one labeled ATR.

Who would know if he touched them? He couldn't
resist....He pushed WW, warm water was sprayed
gently upon his bottom.

What a nice feeling, he thought. Men restrooms
don't have nice things like this.

Anticipating greater pleasure, he pushed the
WA button. Warm air replaced the warm water,
gently drying his underside.

When this stopped, he pushed the PP button.

A large powder puff caressed his bottom adding
a fragile scent of spring flower to this unbelievable
pleasure. The ladies rest room was more than a
restroom, it is tender loving pleasure.

When the powder puff completed its pleasure, he
couldn't wait to push the ATR button which he
knew would be supreme ecstasy.

Next thing he knew he opened his eyes, he was
in a hospital bed, and a nurse was staring down at
him.

"What happened?" he exclaimed. The last thing
I remember was pushing the ATR button.

"The button ATR is an Automatic Tampon Remover.

Your penis is under your pillow."

MEN NEVER LISTEN

;) ;) ;) ;)

(um) It's a deluge here today! Wish poor Wyatt had a rain coat. The walks certainly are shorter though. He had a "spa day" yesterday - actually a spa three hours while his mama had her hair done.:)

8-) Thunderstorms again tonight. Better get more PhD course work done (co) today just in case we lose power again. :| :s

Have a lovely Thursday and safe virtual and (au) travels,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-16-2006, 05:51 AM

:| :|

Turns out Google CEO Eric Schmidt wasn't lying when he told attendees of the Web 2.0 Summit that Google had not reserved $500 million of YouTube's $1.65 billion purchase price to resolve the copyright infringement claims that might be made against it. The company didn't set aside $500 million, it set aside $224 million. In a statement announcing the completion of the acquisition, Google said that 12.5 percent of the equity issued and issuable to YouTube is being held in escrow for one year "to secure certain indemnification obligations." That works out to be about $224 million based on GOOG's Tuesday closing price of $489.30. That's certainly not the rumored $500 million Schmidt was asked about, but it's something, isn't it? Quite the Clintonian parsing of the truth, no?

http://www.crn.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=193600576

http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/16018157.htm

http://www.google.com/press/pressrel/youtube.html

(y) I liked that "parsing of the truth" in the last sentence. Isn't that the way of many corporate communications and ALL politicians? :-* :-* are the norm with them.

And Google was supposed to be squeeky-clean too. +o( +o(

Carpe Diem,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-16-2006, 06:01 AM

:) :)

So let's see -- in Cisco's ultimate vision of its new Silicon Valley ballpark for the Oakland A's, the properly equipped fan would be able to have food and drink delivered to his seat, watch multiple replays, check stats and text-message other fans. Sounds almost as good as watching home, except for the lack of a clean, empty bathroom within 20 feet and a pause button on the DVR. Still, it's hard to recreate the special experience of going out to the yard -- the way the anticipation builds during the pregame traffic jam, the heart-healthy hike across the parking lot, the reasonably priced beverages -- and Cisco sees no reason why the valley's multitasking masses need to slow down just to fit in a ball game. In fact, baseball is made for multitasking, with its leisurely pace and long pauses, leaving plenty of time for fans to be clicking their camera-phones, tapping their tablets and batting away at their BlackBerrys.

http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/16016455.htm

http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/16018193.htm

But Cisco isn't just playing around with its 30-year committment to the A's. Between the ballpark and the surrounding "baseball village" of homes and businesses, the giant of network plumbing will get to test out new technologies while raising its public profile as more of its products start aiming at the consumer market. "They are no longer that kind of geeky company that you're not even sure what it does, it's just somewhere in the network," said Zeus Kerravala, senior vice president of enterprise research at Yankee Group. "For them this is the way to get the Cisco name out in front of as many people as they can as quickly as they can."

Baseball purists will likely groan at all this, and with some cause, but there's no stopping the changes in sporting events that emphasize "event" over "sporting." And it will be fascinating to see what kind of uptake all the gadgetry gets among the fans. But, oh, the howls you'll hear the first time a game is called on account of stadium system crash.

http://mercextra.com/blogs/cassidy/2006/11/15/82/

:| Changes that "Take me out to the ball game" and gives it new meaning...|-) Like, why even go? Seems as if the whole experience would be more comfortable - and with less "white noise" by staying homw and watching on TV.

But then, I am not much of a baseball fan - at least to the point of enjoying going to a stadium. Crowds? (w) (w) Sap my energy.

Speaking of which (energy, that is).......I'm off to the Keurig machine to make a fresh (c). What an amazing invention - I love it.

({)(}) 's,

SL & WTB |-) (l) (&) (l) |-)

sweetlady

11-16-2006, 06:04 AM

;) ;) ;)

(Rhymes begin about 3 minutes into the interview.)

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6444183

;) ;) 's,

SL & WTB |-) (l) (&) (l) |-)

sweetlady

11-16-2006, 06:08 AM

for......:| :| :|

Pornographic material, from "the modestly titillating to the hardest-core," may be "widely available" on the Internet (Reno v. ACLU, 521 U.S. 844, 853-854, 1997), but your chances of running into it aren't as great as you might think. According to a University of California, Berkeley analysis of search queries from Google and Microsoft, only about 1 percent of all Web pages contain sexually explicit material and only 6 percent of all search queries return sexually explicit Web sites. Said Seth Finkelstein, a programmer and civil-liberties activist, "What we are learning about the Internet is that it reflects life and that it is not -- contrary to what some people might think -- more sexual than people are in general."

http://www.epic.org/free_speech/copa/usa_sup_ct_brief.pdf

http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/16009270.htm

The results of the analysis no doubt came as a shock and disappointment to the Department of Justice, which had hoped to use them to resuscitate the Child Online Protection Act, a federal law designed to keep children from sexually explicit content on the Internet (see "The gravest danger our nation faces lies at the crossroads of pornography and technology: weapons of mass distraction"). Perhaps now the DOJ will see that its concerns about the perceived ability of minors to find reams of smut on the Internet are overblown and that regardless of how much filth can be found online, that should not serve as an excuse for the government to play the role of surrogate parent on our behalf.

http://blogs.siliconvalley.com/gmsv/2006/03/our_right_to_pr.html

(y) (y) (y) Goog thing the Dems are back in charge (of Congress anyway). <:o) <:o)

Adieu,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-16-2006, 06:13 AM

:| :|

http://www.dallasfood.org/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=76

+o( +o( Not. Definitely green tea, ginger and other flavors at a Chinese restaurant, but this one doesn't translate to ice cream. ;)

Carpe Diem,

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-16-2006, 06:24 AM

:s :s

By Linda Stein

I click onto the trailer of the upcoming 20th Century Fox movie, “Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan,” at the urging of friends. They’re right: I’m in it. The clip shows me in my art studio in Tribeca, right near the World Trade Center site. On the wall are my female “Knights,” larger-than-life sculptures of warrior women that I created post-9/11 to evoke peace and protection, and to counter the vulnerability I felt running from the burning towers. The movie moment shows me giving Borat a heave-ho: “That’s it,” I say and walk off camera.

I made the acquaintance of Sacha Baron Cohen, the British entertainer who pretends to be a bumbling journalist from Kazakhstan, in June 2005. A blurb for the movie says “on his cross-country road-trip, Borat meets real people in real situations with hysterical consequences.” Cohen is a comedy star on HBO; predictions are he’ll make millions. I’m a visual artist, and as surprised as anyone to be headed for the big screen.

Borat is a funny guy in more than one way. He doesn’t call; he doesn’t write. He hasn’t invited me to a screening. I bet I’m not even on his party list for the Academy Awards. He doesn’t want to talk about how he induces people to engage with his fake characters. But here — from a somewhat painful first-hand experience — is how it happens.

My initial contact came from Chelsea Barnard, a name that, in retrospect, might have tipped me off to a set-up (I’m still not sure if it was real or not). In a chirpy e-mail, Chelsea said she heard about me because I am on the large board of Veteran Feminists of America, a New York group that highlights the successes and history of women leaders such as Bella Abzug, Betty Friedan and Coretta Scott King. My role with the group has been to mount shows of my works to engage people in the arts at public events.

Chelsea said she was working on “a documentary-style film about America” —although by this definition, “The Daily Show” is a documentary, too. “We are working in conjunction with Belarus Television and a foreign correspondent,” Chelsea wrote, covering up even the fictional nationality of Borat. She wanted to arrange “a round table discussion about the recent history of feminism.” Members of the producing team have worked on productions about women war correspondents and female boxers, she reported.

As a former teacher in the arts, I often extend myself to talk to younger generations and people from afar, and have even traveled to Japan to talk about women artists. When I said I would consider participating, Chelsea rushed to my studio. A dark-haired “LonelyGirl15” type, she was earnest in a pre-interview. One question was odd: What television shows do I watch? I later learned that Borat/Cohen doesn’t like encounters with people who know that he’s the guy from “Da Ali G Show.”

The filming was scheduled so rapidly that I had little time to investigate. A six-person crew and Chelsea arrived the next morning to interview me and two others, although Borat was not with them. I was on the Internet at the time, checking a friend’s assessment of the banal-sounding company listed on Chelsea’s card, One America Productions. “It looks like a front,” she said, suggesting a right-wing cover. “Ask who their funders are,” said another. There was no mention of 20th Century Fox, Borat, Cohen, or a comic movie-in-the-making.

As the crew — obviously professional — set up in my art studio, “Chelsea” handed me a contract. I asked more questions. Chelsea said the funding comes from Belarus Television and deftly clicked my computer to its website. She further persuaded me about the value of the project: she said that they were interviewing former Mayor Ed Koch. As an extra step of precaution, I decided to put in a call to his office, and Koch’s secretary, Mary, confirmed that this was true.

I finally agreed, although I admit that I failed to read the fine detail on the “Standard Consent Agreement.” Since I thought this was a documentary, I probably would have signed it anyway. When I did study it later, I realized that it’s anything but “standard.” Buried are statements asserting that I waive claims for “offensive behavior” and “misleading portrayal” and “fraud (such as any alleged deception or surprise about the film or this consent agreement).” While I’m no legal expert, I can’t believe that you can agree to be defrauded — or wouldn’t every used car dealer use the same clause?

Chelsea paid me the grand sum of $200 — cash — for my appearance. Since I’m fairly successful as an artist, the amount of money didn’t concern me, but the payment convinced me that the project had backing and wouldn’t be a waste of my time. She also paid me another $250 for the use of my premises. Chelsea left and finally, Borat showed his face, bounding into my studio, rumpled suit and all.

The fake journalist began legitimately, asking me to describe my sculptural torsos. These works of Women Warriors draw upon iconic female figures, including Wonder Woman, a character who emerged in the midst of World War II “to further the cause of peace, equality and security in a world that seems to be spiraling madly toward perpetual war,” according to original DC Comics introduction. As I pointed out the various materials in the work — wood, metal and stone — Borat listened closely.

But it wasn’t long before the fake journalist started switching and baiting, performing like a Howard Stern wannabe. Women in his country must walk behind men, he said. Condoleezza Rice is the “chocolate lady,” he claimed, implying that she beds foreign diplomats. He gestured his interest in large-breasted women. His goading produced predictable results. Right before I kicked him out, he declared — as the clip shows — that women have smaller brains than men.

In humor or art theory, you could argue that his statement is so ridiculous that the very utterance of it proves the reverse, and therefore is an unmasking of his character’s small mindedness. Some of Borat’s most famous segments do just that, such as when the comic, who is Jewish, cajoles patrons in a country-western bar to sing “Throw the Jew down the well” to expose covert anti-Semitism. But what exactly is he trying to unmask when he ridicules women?

Borat could cause a sensation by pressing his “small brain” commentary on people like Lawrence Summers, the former president of Harvard who resigned after saying that women can’t be scientists. Instead, for the sake of a cheap laugh, he chooses to reinforce the stereotype of women as the inferior sex, at the expense of women. How funny is that?

Inspired segments of Borat and me were cut. At one point, Borat declared that men are stronger than women and held up two chairs to prove it. I did, too — although I’m only half his size, I’m used to working with bronze and hefty sculpting materials, so his pecs didn’t hold up his thesis. But, clearly, he will only show segments that make the “figures” in his art — his interviewees — look foolish, so that he looks superior.

My art confronts fears and overcomes them with symbols of empowerment. I don’t know what motivates Borat/Cohen to use his considerable talents to deceive and manipulate: maybe it’s his way of gaining power over the childhood sting of religious animosity or the feelings of inferiority from a woman’s beating him at Scrabble. I only know that afterward, I am left feeling confused and sad.

After I threw Borat and his crew out to the hollow landscape of Ground Zero, I returned to my studio. Here my Wonder Woman figures welcomed me as I began, again, to work on my sculpture. Perhaps one of my future female Knights will carry an added layer of protection against celluloid tricks. Maybe then, Borat will send me the outtakes.

Linda Stein is an artist living in New York. Her exhibition on Women Warriors and the Power to Protect opens at Flomenhaft Gallery, 547 W. 27th Street in Chelsea, on November 2 and continues through December 20.

http://www.downtownexpress.com/de_179/howiwasduped.html

(y) (y) (y) Good article and I agree with this lady too. Borat makes me +o( +o( . I find him to be totally offensive and not in the least funny. What I'd like to know is - why does he always stay in character when he does the TV interview circuit? I never turn a good Jay Leno interview off but last week when this nimrod was on - I HAD to change the channel. I'd rather watch the Weather Channel. ;) And I can't believe the Leno folks would give Borat any air time.

8o| 8o|

(c) (c) (c) (c) is calling me. And I will heed the call since I'm feeling |-) |-) |-)

Have a delightful Thursday!

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-16-2006, 06:35 AM

:) :)

Apparently Silicon Valley just doesn't have the same appetite for the lives and loves of its celebrities as New York, Washington and Hollywood. This morning, Valleywag, which was launched early this year by Nick Denton's Gawker Media to fill what was assumed to be a gaping need for gossip among the tech community, reloaded, expelling the used cartridge of young Nick Douglas, its only host. Launched in the model of Gawker in New York, Wonkette in Washington and Defamer in L.A., Valleywag's explained in its FAQ the reason for the site's existence this way: "Well, where there's money, there's excess, and where there's excess, there's gossip. And there's now a lot of money again in Silicon Valley. Oh, and let's not forget Google. Did you know that Marissa Mayer, the anointed queen of Google, used to go out with Larry Page until quite recently? And no one ever ever writes that. So that's why." And Douglas certainly did his best to tweak and titillate, but if you've been in the valley for a while, you know a little of that stuff goes a long way here. Yeah, there are some rock stars and certainly a ton of interesting personalities, but they're more interesting for what they think than where they go and who they date.

http://www.valleywag.com/

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/02/07/DDGCSH2IDP1.DTL

http://www.valleywag.com/tech/housekeeping/valleywag-release-candidate-2-214343.php

:| :| http://gawker.com/

http://wonkette.com/

(ip) (ip) http://defamer.com/

Denton, who is sitting in as author of the site temporarily, acknowledged as much, indicating that the next host will have inky veins to go with a pixilated brain and that the focus will shift toward a subject the valley actually does gossip about: "To helm the site, we're now looking for someone with, ideally, some background in reporting. An old-media career, useful in the sparkling new world of blogs. Who would have thought? ... I suspect we're going to tone down the personal coverage of civilians, because they haven't done anything to seek out attention, and their personal lives aren't that interesting. Unless they are. Anyway, more money, a little less sex: that is Valleywag's new gossip mantra."

As for Douglas? Dave Winer's little bird sees him in a Web video deal.

http://www.scripting.com/2006/10/11.html#When:10:14:03AM

(y) (y) "they're more interesting for what they think than where they go and who they date" definitely fits the level of interest among those who currently live, used to live, would like to live or dream of living in, around, near Silicon Valley. When I lived in the area, "it" topics were about way cool enabling digital video technologies and what the "early adopters were doing with them; not what key people were up to in their personal lives. Except when key folks (inventor types) donated big money to a charity and what the VC firms at 3000 Sand Hill Road were considering for investing $$ - THAT perked up Valley ears.

8-|8-|8-|8-| Grrl propeller-heads RULE.

;) ;) 's,

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-17-2006, 12:39 AM

(y) (y) (y)

Dark chocolate could cut risk of heart attack

by JULIE WHELDON Last updated at 09:54am on 15th November 2006

A few squares of dark chocolate a day could cut your risk of heart attack, say scientists.

A new study has found those who regularly eat chocolate have a lower risk of blood clotting problems which can trigger a deadly heart problems.

The researchers are advising people that eating a little bit of chocolate, especially the dark kind, or drinking hot cocoa regularly could be good for your health.

It is a message that will be welcomed by many Britons given that we are the biggest chocolate eaters in Europe.

Typically we munch our way through an average 22lb of chocolate per year, costing each of us around £72 annually.

The latest study, which could further boost sales, actually arose by accident out of other research into aspirin.

The trial by John Hopkins University involved hundreds of people who were asked to embark on exercise, stop smoking and cut out foods such as wine, chocolate and caffeine prior to the start of the trial.

Unfortunately 139 people were unable to give up their regular chocolate treat and when they admitted their 'crime' had to be excluded from the trial.

However lead researcher Diane Becker decided to monitor their blood anyway to see if the chocolate had any effect on them.

She looked at the activity of platelets, which can clump together and so cause clots.

If one of these clots leads to a blockage it can trigger a heart attack.

The team found the blood of those who were having a regular nibble of chocolate typically took an average of 130 seconds to clot when placed in a special hair-thin tube.

By contrast those who stayed away from chocolate had blood that clotted within 123 seconds.

In a second test, they analysed the participants' urine for chemical by-products of platelet activity.

It emerged levels were 60 per cent higher in the group that abstained from chocolate, Dr Becker told the American Heart Association's annual conference in Chicago.

She said the group of 'chocolate offenders' had revealed how chemicals in cocoa beans have a similar effect to aspirin, by helping reduce the risk of blood clotting.

She said she would not advise people to eat lots of chocolate, since it can often contain high levels of sugar, butter and cream.

But the equivalent of two tablespoons a day of dark chocolate may be just what the doctor ordered.

'Eating a little bit of chocolate or having a drink of hot cocoa as part of a regular diet is probably good for personal health, so long as people don't eat too much of it and too much of the kind with lots of butter and sugar,' she advised.

The study is not the first to suggest that chocolate may have a positive effect on health.

Last year a team from Georgetown University in the USA said an ingredient found in chocolate could help beat cancer.

Scientists have found the chemical called pentamer which occurs naturally in cocoa may help stop the spread of tumour cells.

Other studies have also shown that the high levels of antioxidants in chocolate may protect the heart and arteries from damage.

These flavonoids, which are also found in tea, fruit and wine, can help protect cells from damage caused by unstable molecules in the body.

However researchers at the University of Glasgow warned that adding milk may cancel out these benefits, so advised people to opt for dark chocolate if they want to boost their anti-oxidant levels.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/health/healthmain.html?in_article_id=416482&in_page_id=1774

(y) (y) I LOVE dark, buttersweet chocolate. Despite my reluctance to buy French products, I must admit that my absolute favorite *is from a firm based in France. I was disappointed by Belgian milk chocolate that I bought several kilos on my last visit - but friends and family (they actually had sugarless kinds for diabetics - so my pop was definitely delighted.)

:) :) I really enjoyed Swiss chocolate and again bought kilos of it as well as cheese fondu on my visit there way back in December 1986. The Christmas "parade" one night in Frieborg included Saint Nicholas riding on a white donkey; lots of folks carrying candles and St. Nick's "helpers" were these tall fellows in black hooded robes carrying switches. Apparently, in Switzerland, if the kids are bad, these scary guys might take a switch to you ass....;) If you are good, your shoes get filled with goodies. The St. Nicholas Cathedral in this small town was built in the 1500s. I went to a few Masses to hear them said in various languages. Anyway, the Swiss parade that memorable December evening made me forget the "local fire company with the American Santa riding around neighborhoods" which I've seen since I was little.

:| :| My goodness! That was twenty years ago!

I am happy to say that last year for the holidays, a good friend gave me a couple of kolos of this French darkest chocolate and I put these oval pieces in baggies and then several in zip-lock bags in the freezer. I still have three or four bags left.

Geez - if there wasn't an article on the health benefits of dark chocolate above my "two cents", one might think that I am discussing the benefits of something else. <:o) <:o)

<inhaling deeply>

;) ;) Just kidding.

Pleasant dreams and restful sleep.

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-17-2006, 12:49 AM

(h) (h) (h)

November 14, 2006

With a Dish, Broadband Goes Rural

By KEN BELSON

The town of Rindge, N.H., is just 70 miles from Boston, but to telephone and cable companies it might as well be at the end of the earth. Many of the town’s 5,500 residents cannot get broadband Internet access from the providers in the area, Verizon and Pine Tree Cable, even though communities nearby have had the service for years.

Craig Clark, who works from home in Rindge, made do with a sluggish dial-up line until he signed up for broadband service from the satellite provider WildBlue Communications last autumn. With a 26-inch dish outside his home and a modem inside, Mr. Clark now connects to the Internet at speeds similar to those offered by the phone company.

“It’s not a perfect technology, but it is one of the best options for those of us in rural areas,” he said.

In bringing Mr. Clark and others in rural America into the fast lane, WildBlue and its chief rivals — Hughes Network Systems, which markets under the name HughesNet, and Spacenet, which sells the StarBand service — are filling one of the biggest gaps in the country’s digital infrastructure. Roughly 15 million households cannot get broadband from their phone or cable provider because the companies have been slow to expand their high-speed networks in areas where there are not enough customers to generate what they regard as an adequate profit.

There are some drawbacks to the satellite approach that make it unlikely to be a serious rival to more common broadband options, as Mr. Clark has found.

WildBlue’s cheapest service costs $50 a month, about twice Verizon’s introductory offer, and the dish costs several hundred dollars. Heavy rain sometimes interrupts the signal and knocks out Mr. Clark’s service, and small delays are common as signals beam to and from a satellite orbiting 24,000 miles above the earth.

But alternative technologies, like wide-area wireless services and access over power lines, are still in their infancy. And demand for broadband in rural areas is as strong if not stronger than in suburbs and cities. Broadband is essential to distance-learning programs, health clinics that communicate with bigger hospitals and farmers who rely on the latest market and weather data. Second-home owners and resorts are potential customers, too.

“If you don’t have a broadband connection, you’ll be left in a backwater and won’t be able to take part in the economy,” said David J. Leonard, WildBlue’s chief executive. “There’s a growing unmet demand in these markets.”

While the subscriber numbers for satellite services are a fraction of what companies like Comcast and AT&T have, they are growing quickly. The number of households and businesses that use them is expected to hit 463,000 this year, up 34.5 percent from 2005, according to NSR, a telecom research firm. The number of subscribers will nearly double, to 897,000, by 2010, the group estimates.

Hughes, which got into the business about two decades ago by providing data links to gas stations, convenience stores and far-flung company offices, has dishes at about 500,000 sites. About 80 percent of the 10,000 or so new customers that sign up for its HughesNet service each month are consumers.

WildBlue, which is adding nearly 15,000 customers a month, expects to have 120,000 subscribers by the end of this year. StarBand has about 30,000 customers.

Operating margins at satellite broadband providers are about twice those at cable companies, which must pay heavily for programming and employ teams of workmen to handle installations.

WildBlue and Hughes, on the other hand, outsource the work to third-party installers and dealers. Their biggest constant expenses are for marketing and subsidies for the dishes and other equipment.

Both Hughes and WildBlue, however, will launch satellites in the coming months equipped with new technology to provide access to far more customers. Since these cost about $250 million each, a lot more customers will be needed to pay for them.

For now, customers with few alternatives appear willing to absorb the relatively high prices. WildBlue, StarBand and HughesNet offer several speeds of service for $50 to $130 a month. Installation fees and the dish can cost another $500, though discounts abound.

“People are willing to spend to get broadband,” said Pradman P. Kaul, chief executive of both Hughes Network Systems and its parent company, Hughes Communications. “The economics are not a hurdle,” he said, adding that nearly 40 percent of his new subscribers choose the faster plans.

The companies do not always keep all of that revenue. WildBlue, for instance, has struck deals to be a wholesale provider of Internet service for AT&T and the satellite television companies DirecTV and EchoStar. These companies market the service but keep a share of the monthly revenue and receive equipment at subsidized rates.

AT&T, which is using satellite broadband to reach the 20 percent of its customers who are unable to get its fixed-line service, brands its product “AT&T high-speed Internet powered by WildBlue.” Since May, it has signed up about 4,000 subscribers, according to Mr. Leonard.

Hughes bypasses the middleman by selling directly to consumers. But it has to pay for all its own marketing, which can be expensive when trying to reach small pockets of customers spread across the country. Satellite providers spend about $600 to find and sign up each new customer.

For now, the companies have plenty of money to keep them going. Hughes Communications went public in February, and its shares have nearly doubled since, giving it a market capitalization of nearly $840 million. In the second quarter it lost $4.4 million, far smaller than the $55.5 million loss in the first quarter.

WildBlue has been around for almost a decade, but really got going in 2003 when Liberty Media, Intelsat, the investment firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and the National Rural Telecommunications Cooperative invested $156 million. In August, WildBlue issued $350 million in debt to help pay for the satellite that the company plans to launch before the end of the year.

Mr. Leonard said that while going public was an option, he first wanted WildBlue to turn a profit at least in terms of net cash flow.

Meeting that target will be a challenge. WildBlue had to set up waiting lists in Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri and Ohio, among other places, because the satellite beams that serve those areas are full. In contrast to satellite TV, the Internet service involves two-way signals that require more satellite capacity as more customers are added. Software upgrades and the new satellite will ease the bottleneck.

But at the same time, cable and phone companies are making a slow push into previously unserved areas, shrinking the pool of potential customers.

Atlantic Broadband, a small cable company with operations along the East Coast, has started selling broadband in rural southwestern Pennsylvania, where Kelly Rusinack, a HughesNet subscriber, lives. After she tried the cable service at her sister’s house next door, she decided to switch once her contract with HughesNet expires in January.

“My sister’s service is so much better than what I have, it’s disgusting,” she said, adding that cable broadband costs about $50 a month — half of what Hughes charges her — and the connection is more reliable.

There is little chance, however, that a cable company will make it to Dr. Brooke Swearingen’s second home in Rangeley, Me., about 20 miles from the Canadian border. His home is about 12 miles from town, too far from Verizon’s switching station to get its high-speed Internet service.

Dr. Swearingen and his wife, Marlene, are physicians from the Boston area, need a good connection to do research and check e-mail, and their dial-up line was too slow. Dr. Swearingen said he found WildBlue online and signed up for the $50 monthly service in August; the dish and installation were free.

The big hurdle was finding a direct shot to the sky, which required trimming a few tree branches.

The extra speed and always-on connection means the Swearingens are able to extend their getaways and avoid having to run home to get work done.

“If my wife didn’t have this and had to write a paper, she’d stay in Boston,” Dr. Swearingen said. “You’d love it to be faster, but compared to dial-up, it’s night and day. It lets us get away and still be connected.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/14/technology/14satellite.html?_r=1&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&adxnnlx=1163520150-FgIz5g0SH4pWsU1KE0CCJA

(y) (y) (y) Yea, baby! This brings me closer to realizing my dream for sure! (Broadband Internet access from a rural area is an absolute requirement.) That ranch or B&B (or combo of each) is getting closer.<:o) <:o) <:o) <:o)

(k) (k) 's,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the sleepy Boxer (S) (l) (&) (l) (S)

sweetlady

11-17-2006, 12:53 AM

:o :o

Q U O T E D

"Zune's focus is liveliness and youth. The buzz of the sound 'Z' makes it one of the most energetic in the language. Lexicon's studies of sound symbolism, conducted with hundreds of people in a variety of languages, have shown that word-initial 'Z' scores very high for communicating attributes like 'lively,' 'daring,' and 'fast.'

"The letter Z's current popularity in respellings like 'boyz' and 'antz' lends a youthful irreverence. Even though it isn't obviously derived from any real word, Zune could pass for a casual abbreviation, in the same way that 'zza stood in for pizza with some people 10 years or so ago. Zune is clearly a fun kind of name."

-- David Placek, founder and CEO of Lexicon Branding, explains the etymology of Zune, neglecting to mention that "Z" also denotes the sound of sleeping or snoring and was often used as an insult in Shakespearean English.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/sfgate/detail?blogid=19&entry_id=10950

http://www.bartleby.com/46/3/22.html

(n) Microsoft? +o( +o( +o( Contrary to the buzz, "Zune MP3 by Microsoft is iPod killer for Christmas 2006" - I think....not. Although Apple shouldn't stop its R&D efforts on their iPod either.:)

Peaceful thoughts,

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-17-2006, 12:59 AM

(y) (y) (y) (y)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5P6MLiKEJI

(y) Good riddance. Funny piece though at YouTube.(y) (y)

;) ;) 's,

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-17-2006, 01:00 AM

:o :o :o

http://www.personalblimp.com/images.html

;) ;) 's,

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-17-2006, 09:15 AM

:s :s :s

http://www.alpinezipline.com/

(y) Looks like great fun, but NFW for this lady......:o ;) :) As a spectator sport? Definitely. (y)

Carpe Diem,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the getting-into-everything Boxer (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-17-2006, 09:25 AM

(y) (y) (y)

1. "Rooms of Our Own" by Susan Gubar

2. "Feminists Who Changed America: 1963-1975" edited by Barbara J. Love.

I read about these in the October 26th The NATION. (okay, so I'm behind on my paper magazines. I had to call two of my liberal progressive (or is that progressive liberal?) magazines, the Progressive and Mother Jones - to have them put tracers on the issues. Seems like somebody in some red state's PO was throwing them away.... :| The issues now seem to be coming on time, I am happy to say.:D

:) :) As Roseanne Roseannadanna used to always say (on the original and best SNL): "It's always something!" Gilda Radnor played this hilarious anchor newslady. (f) (f)

What a clear, bright and sunny day!

Sun Thoughts wherever you might be today,

Sweetlady & Wyatt the Boxer (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-17-2006, 09:33 AM

(p) (p) (p) (p)

http://www.lizhickok.com/portfolio.html

(h)(h) Liz's Jell-O Series: http://www.lizhickok.com/portfolio_jello.html

San Francisco in Jell-O: http://www.lizhickok.com/01city.html

(y) (y) (y) Bay Bridge, 2005: http://www.lizhickok.com/05baybridge.html

Telegraph Hill, 2005: http://www.lizhickok.com/06telegraph.html

(p) (p)(h)(h) Lots more (p) 's. What an amazing thing to do with such a ubiquitous substance! :D I hope you enjoy these images as I did. I was amazed - but didn't get any cravings for the stuff. ;)

(k) 's,

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-17-2006, 09:38 AM

November 16, 2006

The Web

YouTube’s Greatest Hits

By CHARLES ISHERWOOD NYTimes

Until recently I had assumed that the “you” in YouTube referred to anybody but me, maybe everybody but me. Like who? College kids with a compulsive need to procrastinate. Media-obsessives anxious to keep track of the hot new joke or political gaffe. Exhibitionists and their friends. Lovers of humiliation comedy. People with an excessive fondness for the cute antics of their pets.

Certainly, this freakish and freakishly large video archive offers plenty of material to sate the appetites of those constituencies. But it also offers a dizzying array of material for addicts of what, for lack of more egalitarian term, I’ll call high culture. Or high-ish culture: I’m talking not just about opera and dance, but also that often derided but enduring enterprise called the Broadway musical.

Thanks to its ease of operation, YouTube allows pretty much anyone with a mild curiosity about opera or musical theater to expand his frame of reference without spending a dime, thanks to the compulsive generosity of members with a desire to exhibit their curatorial prowess. It also offers the rabidly enthusiastic a chance to display the colorful plumage of their passions. Spend an hour or two trolling through YouTube looking for high art, following a path forged with the help of the Web site’s own built-in (and eccentric) electronic trailblazer, and you come away amazed at the volume (and sometimes the quality) of material available for instant viewing.

On the opera front the easiest place to start is by typing in the name of a favorite singer. The most popular are represented in depth. Unsurprisingly, Maria Callas clips number more than 100, including lots of interviews and late-career concert performances but also a scene from the Lisbon “Traviata” of 1958, immortalized by the playwright Terrence McNally.

You can also see some choice highlights from the career of Leonie Rysanek, a dramatic soprano who garnered a passionate following for her vocally fearless and dramatically incisive interpretations, or the great tenor Jon Vickers, seen in his prime in selections from “Peter Grimes,” “Otello” and “Tristan und Isolde.” (An important caveat: things come and go on YouTube, sometimes hour by hour; clips I saw one day would be untraceable the next.)

Or if you want to compare and contrast, you might begin by typing into the search field the name of a popular aria — “Sempre libera,” for instance, Violetta’s coloratura showpiece from the first act of “La Traviata.” They’re all here, it seems, the stars of yore and of today, perhaps tomorrow: Anna Moffo in a film version from 1967, Joan Sutherland at her precise best, Angela Gheorghiu at Covent Garden in 1994 under Georg Solti, Sumi Jo and Teresa Stratas and Adriana Kohutkova too.

Wait a sec. Adriana who? “Nowadays one of the best Slovak opera singers,” the note attached to the clip explains. And let’s not forget Mihaela Stanciu. She’s there too. Click on her “Traviata” clip, and you are referred to a veritable trove of Mihaela’s greatest hits. Thus does YouTube create an odd, quantitative equivalence between a relatively obscure Romanian soprano and some of the greats of today and yesteryear. Zealotry of various stripes is the engine that keeps YouTube humming, and as Ms. Stanciu’s video repertory indicates, there’s no fanatic like an opera fanatic.

When it comes to dance, by contrast, the pickings are pretty slim. This isn’t as surprising as it might seem. Dancers tend not to have the cultish followings of opera singers. Dance lovers also often disdain videotaped performances as flimsy representations of an art form that loses its savor when it isn’t seen live.

Although the quality varies widely, sound tends to transmit better than sight on YouTube, at least in my experience, particularly if you’ve got a good pair of speakers. But there’s not much to be done about the grainy, jerky and sometimes murky look of many of the videos, particularly the “bootleg” stuff shot with hand-held video cameras.

Type in the name of George Balanchine, the most celebrated choreographer of the 20th century, and a mere 17 offerings pop up. All but two of them are slices from a Paris Opera Ballet performance of “Jewels” recently released on DVD and broadcast on PBS. Mikhail Baryshnikov and Alessandra Ferri in “La Sonnambula” and a dance bit from the 1977 soapy backstage ballet movie “The Turning Point” are also accessible.

Modern dance is even less well represented than ballet. There are many Paul Taylor clips, but none that I could find that had anything to do with the choreographer (the curse of a commonplace name). I found nothing of note on a search for Martha Graham. A gorgeous (and relatively clear) two minutes of a youthful Merce Cunningham performing in “Septet” in 1964 was among the few rewarding discoveries.

The Broadway collection is richer but also pretty spotty, and sometimes downright strange. You could probably spend an afternoon watching various possessed souls lip-synching to “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going,” Jennifer Holliday’s gut-wrenching aria from “Dreamgirls.” But I couldn’t find any bootleg clips from the original production itself (aside from the Tony telecast medley), or for that matter from the original Broadway production of “A Chorus Line.” If you want to check out highlights of this year’s Grand Rapids Civic Theater production of “A Chorus Line,” however, you’re in luck.

YouTube has gained its popularity as a sort of collective cultural sideshow, full of oddities and embarrassments both watchable and unwatchable. The culture archives are no exception and are full of priceless curiosities. It wasn’t linked to the show’s title, but I found a 1980 clip of Leontyne Price, of all people, singing “What I Did for Love” from “A Chorus Line.” Weirdly mesmerizing. (It looks like it came from one of those “Fledermaus” galas featuring dubious guest turns.)

A friend sent me a funny clip of a lederhosen-clad boy soprano singing (impressively) the Queen of the Night’s fiendish aria “Der Hölle Rache” from “The Magic Flute.” The poor thing looks like he’d rather be kicking a soccer ball around. Wonder what “You Gotta Get a Gimmick” from “Gypsy” sounds like in Portuguese? YouTube has the answer.

And then there’s “Carrie: The Musical,” the discovery of which I consider the most choice fruit of my immersion in YouTube’s murky depths. Based on the Stephen King novel about a telekinetic teenager who has a very bad night at the prom, this flop musical has come to symbolize Broadway folly. It ran for just five performances in 1988, but a suspiciously large number of people claim to have seen it.

Now, thanks to YouTube, you can join the knowing ranks. Sort of. The dedication of a single enthusiast has ensured that “Carrie” is not forgotten: a big chunk of “Carrie”-related material can be checked out, everything from television reviews by Pat Collins and Joel Siegel to B-roll tape (video supplied to stations for promotional purposes).

Most riveting, for me, were the scenes taped from high up in the balcony. The song “And Eve Was Weak” is captured pretty much in its entirety, and it’s kind of fabulous — and not in a so-bad-it’s-good way either.

Performed with hair-raising conviction by Betty Buckley, who as Carrie’s mother looks like a spider scurrying around the stage, and Linzi Hateley as Carrie, this duet finds the two locked in a fierce fight for the troubled girl’s soul. O.K., maybe it’s not “Jenufa” — Janacek’s opera about a rigid stepmother and her doomed daughter — but it’s a well-wrought, emotionally powerful scene that is a damn sight more ambitious, effective and interesting than pretty much any five minutes from any jukebox musical you can name.

I’ve watched it half a dozen times now, with my admiration for Ms. Buckley’s fearless performance waxing continuously as my suspicion grows that “Carrie: The Musical” has been unjustly maligned.

Maybe I’m getting carried away. Ferreting around cyberspace in YouTube can be a bit like going down the rabbit hole, entering a strange, oddly seductive media universe in which normal standards you’d bring to the consumption of culture don’t seem to apply. Why would anyone want to watch some nobodies from Grand Rapids performing “A Chorus Line”? You scoff, and then, possessed by curiosity, outrage or some other impulse, you click.

(y) (y) (y) (y) (y)

SL & Wyatt the Boxer (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-17-2006, 10:11 AM

:s :s :s

November 16, 2006

Corners

In Certain Circles, Two Is a Crowd

By STEPHANIE ROSENBLOOM NYTimes

CHANCES are that in the last week someone has irritated you by standing too close, talking too loud or making eye contact for too long. They have offended you with the high-pitched shrill emanating from the earphones of their iPod or by spreading their legs unnecessarily wide on a packed subway car.

But what makes you feel hostile toward “close talkers,” as the show “Seinfeld” dubbed people who get within necking distance of you when they speak? Or toward strangers who stand very near to you on line? Or toward people who take the bathroom stall next to yours when every other one is available?

Communications scholars began studying personal space and people’s perception of it decades ago, in a field known as proxemics. But with the population in the United States climbing above 300 million, urban corridors becoming denser and people with wealth searching for new ways to separate themselves from the masses, interest in the issue of personal space — that invisible force field around your body — is intensifying.

Scientists who say Americans share patterns of movement and behaviors to protect their personal space have recently found new evidence in a cyber game.

Researchers who observed the avatars (digital representations of the humans that control them) of participants in Second Life, a virtual reality universe, found that some of the avatars’ physical behavior was in keeping with studies about how humans protect their personal space.

In other words, the digital beings adhered to some unspoken behavioral rules of humans even though they were but pixels on a screen.

Humans tend to avert eye gaze if they feel someone is standing too close. They retreat to corners, put distance between themselves and strangers, and sit or stand equidistant from one another like birds on a wire.

The study, which was accepted for publication in the journal CyberPsychology & Behavior, found that virtual environments may be another platform to study physical social interaction. It specifically found that the unwritten rules of personal space are so powerful, people even impose them on their cyber selves.

“The fact that they show up in the virtual world shows how deeply ingrained they are,” said Nick Yee, a graduate student in the department of communication at Stanford University and a lead author of the study along with Jeremy N. Bailenson, his adviser. “We don’t think about them. They’re very unconscious.”

According to scientists, personal space involves not only the invisible bubble around the body, but all the senses. People may feel their space is being violated when they experience an unwelcome sound, scent or stare: the woman on the bus squawking into her cellphone, the co-worker in the adjacent cubicle dabbing on cologne, or the man in the sandwich shop leering at you over his panini.

But whether people have become more protective of their personal space is difficult to say. Studies show people tend to adapt, even in cities, which are likely to grow ever more crowded based on population projections.

Yet studies involving airlines show the desire to have some space to oneself is among the top passenger requests. In a survey in April from TripAdvisor, a travel Web site, travelers said that if they had to pay for certain amenities, they would rather have larger seats and more legroom than massages and premium food. And a current advertisement for Eos Airlines, which flies between New York and London, is promoting the fact that it offers passengers “21 square feet of personal space.”

While people may crave space, they rarely realize how entrenched proxemics are. Scholars can predict which areas of an elevator are likely to fill up first and which urinal a man will choose. They know people will stare at the lighted floor numbers in elevators, not one another.

“In order to overcome the intimacy, you have to make sure you don’t make eye contact,” said Dane Archer, a professor of sociology at the University of California, Santa Cruz, who studies proxemics.

They know commuters will hold newspapers in front of them to read, yes, but also to shield themselves from strangers. And they know college students will unconsciously choose to sit in the same row, if not the same seat, each class.

“If you videotape people at a library table, it’s very clear what seat somebody will take,” Dr. Archer said, adding that one of the corner seats will go first, followed by the chair diagonally opposite because that is farthest away. “If you break those rules, it’s fascinating,” he said. “People will pile up books as if to make a wall — glare.”

Edward T. Hall, an anthropologist and the father of proxemics, even put numbers to the unspoken rules. He defined the invisible zones around us and attributed a range of distance to each one: intimate distance (6 to 18 inches); personal distance (18 inches to 4 feet); social distance (4 to 12 feet); and public distance (about 12 feet or more).

But personal space is not merely a numbers game. Preferences differ from culture to culture. Scholars have found that Americans, conquerors of the wild frontier, generally prefer more personal space than people in Mediterranean and Latin American cultures, and more than men in Arab countries.

“In the U.S., it’s very closely linked to ideals of individuals,” said Kathryn Sorrells, an associate professor of communication studies at California State University, Northridge, who is writing a book, “Globalizing Intercultural Communications.” “There’s an idea that you have the right to this space,” she said, noting that it was born of a culture that prizes independence, privacy and capitalism.

Dr. Archer tells of a Brazilian man he interviewed who, when speaking to the American waiters with whom he worked, used to casually touch them for emphasis. The man’s overtures of friendship toward his co-workers were always rejected and he wanted to know why. So when business was slow he observed how the Americans interacted. And eventually he arrived at this conclusion: Americans hate to be touched.

“He’s absolutely right,” Dr. Archer said. “He figured it out by himself and no one ever told him. The sad thing about these nonverbal rules across cultures is you’re on your own.”

The Brazilian man’s experience also shows how people are quick to judge those who break the unwritten rules, unless we are attuned to the cultural differences.

John Bringardner, 26, a staff reporter at IP Law & Business, said that when he was studying philosophy at the Sorbonne in Paris, he lived next door to an Algerian man who had a habit of standing mere inches from his face. “His spittle would get in my face,” said Mr. Bringardner. But he did not back away. “If it were an American guy that close,” he said, “it would have been a different situation.”

Yet it is rare for people to have confrontations about personal space. “No one will ever turn to the nice person from Italy or Greece and say ‘I like you but you’re standing too close to me,’ ” said Dr. Archer, who has videotaped strangers’ responses to personal-space violations.

Rather, they will likely angle and inch their bodies away from anyone they feel breached their buffer zone. Blood pressure may rise, the heart rate may go up and the palms may sweat, said David B. Givens, the director of the Center for Nonverbal Studies in Spokane, Wash. “All animals tend to have an aversion to being touched by a strange critter,” he said.

Proxemics, however, is not merely about interactions between individuals. On a larger scale, it helps developers, urban planners and executives in various industries understand how people move through public spaces, how they shop, even what type of restaurants they find most comfortable.

Paco Underhill, the author of “Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping” and the chief executive of Envirosell, a research and consulting company whose client list includes Bloomingdale’s, Saks Fifth Avenue, Starbucks and McDonald’s, discovered that most consumers will walk away from whatever they are looking at in a store if a customer inadvertently brushes against their backside, disturbing his or her personal space.

And so, what may seem like a minor behavioral tic can help department stores determine how far apart to place racks of clothes, bistro owners figure out how to configure the bar area and college campuses to design residence halls.

Yet there are paradoxes to personal space, and one is that people do not always want it.

“If you’ve gone to see a funny movie in an empty theater, you can appreciate the facilitative effects of the presence of others,” said Robert M. Krauss, a professor of psychology at Columbia. “We went to see ‘Borat’ and every seat in the theater was full, and I have no doubt that it enhanced our enjoyment of it.”

Being crowded in a dance club or running the New York City Marathon is far different from being packed into a train car during rush hour or stuck on a freeway (yes, proxemics has been linked to road rage).

“In these spaces, when you’re not commuting, you feel fine,” Dr. Givens said. But in both positive moments of closeness and those that make the blood boil, one tenet of proxemics is the same: the near presence of people is arousing. “It will enhance the amount that you enjoy things that are enjoyable,” Dr. Krauss said. “It will make more aversive the things that are not enjoyable.”

And when people want to avoid someone who is less than enjoyable, they employ a variety of tactics. Some scholars say this goes a long way toward explaining the iPod craze, which turns city streets and commuter trains into islands of individuality.

The same principle makes it easier to get close to strangers in low-lit places. “Visually, you’re not getting as much information,” Dr. Givens said, adding that if the lights were suddenly flipped on in a dim bar, “everybody would spring back.”

In general most people understand the rules of personal space and heed the cues. Then again, the world is littered with clods. As Dr. Archer put it, people generally view personal-space rules in one of two ways: “the wrong way and my way.”

(y) (y) (y) Could I ever relate to this! I hate crowds. The energy is just too overpowering for my sensitive soul.

Seriously.

(k) 's,

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)

sweetlady

11-17-2006, 10:16 AM

(y) (y) (y) (y) (y)

November 17, 2006
Socialists Back Woman in Race to Lead France
By ELAINE SCIOLINO

PARIS, Friday, Nov. 17 — Ségolène Royal moved a step closer to becoming the first female president of France early Friday, crushing her two male rivals for the Socialist Party nomination in next April’s election.

With most of the vote in, Ms. Royal, 53, a regional president and former minister, won 60.6 percent of the vote of the party’s nearly 219,000 members in an unusual primary.

Her closest rival, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, 57, a former finance minister, received 20.8 percent of the vote, and Laurent Fabius, 60, a former prime minister, 18.5 percent.

The tally in France ended around 1:30 a.m. and will be complete after overseas territories finish voting.

“I am living intensely this moment of happiness,” Ms. Royal said after the preliminary results were announced. Thanking the party’s “grass roots” members, she added, “The fact of receiving this momentum, of being chosen in this way, this is something extraordinary. I think that the French people have written this story.”

The victory helped validate Ms. Royal’s standing as the only candidate capable of beating the right’s frontrunner, Nicolas Sarkozy, the Interior Minister who is seeking his UMP party’s nomination for the 2007 presidential election.

An Ipsos opinion poll released on Thursday put Ms. Royal and Mr. Sarkozy in a dead heat if they were to face off in a second round of voting.

Ms. Royal’s victory followed months of mudslinging and maneuvering in a campaign that pitted her against the party’s older, more established — and male — “elephants,” whom she had dared to challenge.

Campaigning on a platform of “rupture” with the status quo, she has also capitalized on her femininity while accusing her competitors of chauvinism.

“Gazelles,” she said last May, “run faster than elephants.”

Responding to voters’ disillusionment with traditional elitist politics, she is promising more power to the people, giving local governments more authority, subsidizing small businesses, creating affordable housing and encouraging citizens to submit their ideas online, for example.

Even her opponents agree that her looks help. Published photos of her in a bikini while on vacation underscored her youthfulness and glamour, while in poll after poll, her telegenic smile and elegant profile have appealed to a French public yearning for a new style of leadership.

Ms. Royal, president of the Poitou-Charentes region in the west, has also cultivated an image as a grass-roots nurturer, taking her campaign to the countryside to listen to concerns about social issues such as educational reform and youth crime.

With a portfolio that includes stops at three second-tier ministries — Environment, School Education and Family and Childhood — Ms. Royal has been criticized as lacking the experience and gravitas to lead a country that is a nuclear power.

Her inexperience in foreign policy issues surfaced last week when she said during the last campaign debate that Iran should never be allowed to have a civilian nuclear energy program. As her opponents quickly pointed out, Iran enjoys that right as a signatory to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.

But the party members’ enthusiasm for Ms. Royal seemed to trump any slips on policy issues.

“Her victory means that the Socialist Party is still under the shock of April 2002 and is looking above all for a candidate who can win,” said Dominique Reynié, a professor of political science at the Institut d’Études Politiques in Paris. “Much more important than a doctrine or a program is the look of a champion.”

In the April 2002 presidential election, the Socialist candidate, Prime Minister Lionel Jospin, was eliminated in the first round, trailing even the far-right National Front candidate, Jean-Marie Le Pen.

Going into the primary, Ms. Royal enjoyed a strong lead in the polls, although she had lost ground steadily in recent weeks to Mr. Strauss-Kahn, largely because of his performance in their six policy debates, three of which were televised.

Ms. Royal was helped by the withdrawal from the race in September of Mr. Jospin, a fixture in French politics for nearly three decades.

The fourth of eight children, Ms. Royal was born in Dakar, Senegal, where her father was an army colonel, and earned admission to the elite École Nationale d’Administration.

It was there that she met Francois Hollande, her partner of 25 years and the father of their four children. The head of the Socialist Party who is believed to have harbored presidential aspirations of his own, Mr. Hollande has remained neutral.

Ms. Royal was repeatedly attacked in the campaign as naïve and inexperienced. In addition to questioning her foreign policy background, her opponents and other critics mocked her proposal to create “citizens” juries to pass judgment on the work of elected officials, calling it dangerously populist, costly and irrelevant. At one rally in Paris last month when she discussed the issue, she was booed repeatedly.

During one debate, she defended her call for a less centralized, more representative form of government, saying: “Democracy is like love. The more there is of it, the more it grows.”

She has also been criticized by her rivals for playing the woman card. At a rally in Paris last Monday, she quoted Mr. Strauss-Kahn as having said after their final debate that “she would have done better to stay at home instead of reading from her recipe cards.”

Asked by Europe 1 radio Wednesday whether she was a liar, Mr. Strauss-Kahn replied, “That, or she is ill-informed.”

While opinion polls put her far ahead as the vote approached, it had been impossible to say whether those projections would be borne out in Thursday’s primary. Only party members who pay about $25 a year to register officially were allowed to vote in the primary. Their views had never been polled because the Socialist Party refused to give its membership list to polling institutes. In addition, a full third of the party’s members joined this year after a campaign to register new and younger members.

There have been two Socialist primaries before, but they were low-key affairs and they did not follow a campaign to enroll new members or televised debates similar to those in the United States.

In January, the UMP party will choose its candidate in a primary for the first time.

Despite Mr. Sarkozy’s overwhelming lead in the polls, there are signs that 12 years might not be enough for President Jacques Chirac. In an interview in the magazine Le Nouvel Observateur, his wife, Bernadette, suggested that he might seek an unprecedented third term.

As a former president, the 73-year-old head of state has the right to sit on the country’s Constitutional Council once he is no longer president.

“Yes, he’ll take it up,” Mrs. Chirac said of the council. “In five years’ time.”

Mr. Chirac himself has said he will not make his intentions known before next March.

(y) (y) (y) (y)

SL & WTB (l) (&) (l)