tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-81803913329046425322024-02-02T05:52:13.173-08:00Simply, Red.Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.comBlogger49125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-66309650106773749112011-05-31T08:23:00.000-07:002011-05-31T08:23:06.747-07:00Memorial Day 2011: Tributes to Our Fallen SoldiersThis holiday was celebrated by a great number of Americans in numerous ways. From Time.com, here are a few pictures of the different ways Americans celebrated Memorial Day this year.<br />
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<div class="thumbnail"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2074819_2279406,00.html"><img alt="Memorial Day 2011: Tributes to the Fallen" height="211" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2011/memorial_day/memorial_day_01.jpg" title="Memorial Day 2011: Tributes to the Fallen" width="320" /></a><strong> Parade</strong>- Participants in the Memorial Day parade march down Broadway in the Inwood neighborhood of New York May 30, 2011. </div><div class="thumbnail"><strong></strong> </div><div class="thumbnail"><div class="thumbnail"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2074819_2279407,00.html"><img alt="Memorial Day 2011: Tributes to the Fallen" height="211" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2011/memorial_day/memorial_day_02.jpg" title="Memorial Day 2011: Tributes to the Fallen" width="320" /></a> <strong>Remembrance</strong>- Sunny Yeung of the U.S. Navy visits the grave of friend, Lance Corporal Kevin Adam Lucas at Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day, May 30, 2011, in Arlington, Virgina. </div><div class="thumbnail"><strong></strong> </div><div class="thumbnail"><div class="thumbnail"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2074819_2279408,00.html"><img alt="Memorial Day 2011: Tributes to the Fallen" height="211" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2011/memorial_day/memorial_day_03.jpg" title="Memorial Day 2011: Tributes to the Fallen" width="320" /></a> <strong>Honor the Fallen</strong>- U.S. soldiers salute during Memorial Day ceremony in honor of fallen soldiers at the Camp Eggers, in Kabul on May 30, 2011. </div><div class="thumbnail"> </div><div class="thumbnail"><div class="thumbnail"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2074819_2279409,00.html"><img alt="Memorial Day 2011: Tributes to the Fallen" height="211" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2011/memorial_day/memorial_day_04.jpg" title="Memorial Day 2011: Tributes to the Fallen" width="320" /></a> <strong>Dearly Departed</strong>- An Iraq War veteran sits and drinks a beer beside the symbolic graves of fallen friends, Sgt. Eric Snell and Pfc Michael Pittman, both from his former unit, at the Arlington West Memorial on Memorial Day in Santa Monica, California on May 30, 2011. <div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><u><span style="color: #003399;"></span></u><br />
</div></div><div class="thumbnail"><div class="thumbnail"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2074819_2279410,00.html"><img alt="Memorial Day 2011: Tributes to the Fallen" height="211" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2011/memorial_day/memorial_day_05.jpg" title="Memorial Day 2011: Tributes to the Fallen" width="320" /></a> <strong>Observance- </strong>President Barack Obama stands with Brigadier General Karl Horst, right, during a moment of silence at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery on May 30, 2011 in Arlington, Virginia. </div><div class="thumbnail"> </div><div class="thumbnail"><div class="thumbnail"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2074819_2279410_last,00.html"><img alt="Memorial Day 2011: Tributes to the Fallen" height="211" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2011/memorial_day/memorial_day_06.jpg" title="Memorial Day 2011: Tributes to the Fallen" width="320" /></a> <strong>Candlelit Lanterns- </strong>A lantern dedicated to U.S. service personnel who have been killed in combat floats on the water during the Na Lei Aloha Lantern Floating event held by the Shinnyo-en Buddhist at Ala Moana beach park on Memorial Day in Honolulu, Hawaii on May 30, 2011.</div><div class="thumbnail"><strong></strong> </div><div class="thumbnail"><strong></strong> </div></div></div></div></div></div>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-9872202217654177032011-05-28T13:50:00.000-07:002011-05-30T18:01:40.609-07:00The Meaning of Memorial DayThis is just a follow-up to the previous Memorial Day blog that I posted a few days ago. It explains the meaning of Memorial Day, gives the history of it, and distinguishes it from Veterans Day.<br />
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From yahoonews.com:<br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://mit.zenfs.com/5/2011/05/memorialday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" class="alignright size-full wp-image-21354" height="240" src="http://mit.zenfs.com/5/2011/05/memorialday.jpg" title="memorialday" width="320" /></a><br />
Officially, Memorial Day, observed on the last Monday of May (this year it's May 30), honors the war dead. Unofficially, the day honors the start of summer. (More on that in a moment.)<br />
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The upcoming three-day weekend has prompted searches on Yahoo! for "when is memorial day," "what is memorial day," and "memorial day history." The day was originally known as "Decoration Day" because the day was dedicated to the Civil War dead, when mourners would decorate grave sites as a remembrance.<br />
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The holiday was first widely observed on May 30, 1868, when 5,000 people helped decorate the grave sites of 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers buried at Arlington National Cemetery. (Some parts of the South still remember members of the Confederate Army with Confederate Memorial Day.)<br />
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After World War I, the observances were widened to honor the fallen from all American wars--and in 1971, Congress declared Memorial Day a national holiday.<br />
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Towns across the country now honor military personnel with services, parades, and fireworks. A national moment of remembrance takes place at 3 p.m. At Arlington National Cemetery, headstones are graced with small American flags.<br />
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This day is not to be confused with Veterans Day, which is observed on November 11 to honor military veterans, both alive and dead.<br />
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However, confusion abounds anyway, with the weekend marking for many the kickoff of summer, and it is reserved for weekend getaways, picnics, and sales. Searches on "memorial day sales," "memorial day recipes," and "memorial day weekend" are just some of the lookups related to the festivities.</div>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-55217427171698943352011-05-27T21:54:00.000-07:002011-05-30T18:11:01.739-07:00Top 10 Manhunts<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">In light of recent events, such as the death of Osama bin Laden, I thought it would be interesting to share this list of "Top 10 Manhunts" from Time.com. It's exactly what it implies: a list of 10 of the most notorious man-hunts in history.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img.timeinc.net/time/daily/2010/1007/manhunt_tout_0708.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"><img alt="Raoul Moat" border="0" height="130" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/daily/2010/1007/manhunt_tout_0708.jpg" title="Raoul Moat" width="200" /></span></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">Raoul Moat-</span></strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"> The British former nightclub bouncer had been on the run in the north of England, having allegedly shot three people, killing one, just two days after his release from prison. Two accomplices who had allegedly helped Moat target police were arrested, but Moat himself remained at large in the countryside, where the difficult terrain hampered the search. But a significant update took place toward the end of the day Friday, when police confirmed that a man fitting Moat's description was negotiating with authorities. And after a tense six-hour stand-off, where it was reported Moat had been holding a shotgun, a police spokesman confirmed that the 37-year-old Moat took his own life in a field at Rothbury in Northumberland. </span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://img.timeinc.net/time/daily/2003/0312/saddam1214.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"><img alt="" border="0" height="132" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/daily/2003/0312/saddam1214.jpg" title="" width="200" /></span></a><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">Saddam Hussein-</span></strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"> It's been said that when Saddam Hussein was in power, he rarely spent more than 10 hours straight in any one place. So when Baghdad fell on April 9, 2003, he wasn't waiting around in his palace for a Tony Montana–style showdown — he was already on the run. Despite reported sightings all over the country, the Ace of Spades in the Iraqi most-wanted deck was nowhere to be found. The allied forces found themselves increasingly desperate — no WMD, no Saddam, bad p.r. — but nine months later, they finally tracked him down outside Tikrit in a foxhole for one, supplied with an AK-47, some chocolate and $750,000 in cash. He was hanged three years later, on Dec. 30, 2006. The manhunt for WMD has been quietly discontinued. </span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2010/top10_manhunt/booth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"><img alt="Top 10 Manhunts" border="0" height="130" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2010/top10_manhunt/booth.jpg" title="Top 10 Manhunts" width="200" /></span></a><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">John Wilkes Booth-</span></strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"> The first man to kill an American President was chased with all the wrath of a wounded nation. After the April 14, 1865, assassination of Abraham Lincoln, Booth left Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C., via the stage door — appropriate for an actor — and then fled south on horseback through Maryland, assisted by accomplices along the road. Troops flooded the state's swamps in search of Booth, who secretly crossed the Potomac into Virginia on April 21, the same day the funeral train bearing Lincoln's body left Washington for its westward procession. Thanks to intelligence tip-offs and the confessions of accomplices, Booth was tracked to the Virginia farm of Richard H. Garrett, and on April 26 he was shot and killed by Union soldiers who had set the barn he was in on fire. Booth died on the farmhouse porch, defending his actions to the last. </span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2009/top10_crime_duos/crime_duos_10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"><img alt="Lee Boyd Malvo and John Allen Muhammad" border="0" height="130" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2009/top10_crime_duos/crime_duos_10.jpg" title="Lee Boyd Malvo and John Allen Muhammad" width="200" /></span></a><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">The Beltway Snipers-</span></strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"> For three evil weeks in October 2002, nobody could walk the streets of Washington. A gunman was traveling down the Capital Beltway from Maryland to Virginia, and in 15 long-distance attacks, he had already left 10 dead and three others injured. He began leaving threats: "Your children are not safe, anywhere, at any time." Parents panicked; schools closed. </span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">Police and the public initially fixated on white vans in the area, but focus eventually turned to a blue Chevrolet Caprice that was carrying gunman John Allen Muhammad and his juvenile accomplice Lee Boyd Malvo. The pair were arrested on a tip while at a rest stop in Maryland; the car's trunk bore a small hole through which the rifle was fired. Muhammad was executed on Nov. 10, 2009. Malvo is in prison serving six consecutive life sentences. The episode made a minor celebrity of Montgomery County police chief Charles Moose, who was in charge of the hunt for the killers. His persistence was rewarded with their capture and a book deal. </span><br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2010/top10_manhunt/eichmann.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"><img alt="Top 10 Manhunts" border="0" height="130" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2010/top10_manhunt/eichmann.jpg" title="Top 10 Manhunts" width="200" /></span></a><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">Adolf Eichmann-</span></strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"> The "architect of the Holocaust" fled Germany at the end of World War II, slipping through U.S. fingers into Argentina, where he worked in obscurity as a foreman at a Mercedes-Benz factory in Buenos Aires. Nazi hunters made it their business to track down the man who had transported 6 million Jews to their deaths, but it was a blind, half-Jewish refugee from Dachau who finally found him. The daughter of Holocaust survivor Lothar Hermann got to know Eichmann's eldest son, and Hermann soon worked out who his father was and told the German authorities all he knew. The Germans passed on the news to Israeli intelligence service Mossad, and over the course of a year, its agents tracked down Eichmann and confirmed his identity. On May 11, 1960, Eichmann was coshed, drugged to the gills and snuck into Israel disguised as a particularly sluggish El Al airline steward. The Nazi logistics expert was found guilty in a widely televised trial and was hanged on May 31, 1962. His remains the only civil execution ever carried out in Israel. </span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://img.timeinc.net/time/daily/2008/0807/karadzic_0724.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"><img alt="former Bosnian Serb wartime leader Radovan Karadzic attending a conference sponsored by " border="0" dabic="" dragan="" false="" healthy="" height="130" identity="" kikinda,="" life?="" magazine="" of="" serbia.?="" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/daily/2008/0807/karadzic_0724.jpg" the="" title="former Bosnian Serb wartime leader Radovan Karadzic attending a conference sponsored by " under="" width="200" /></span></a><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">Radovan Karadzic- </span></strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">The former Bosnian Serb politician on trial in the Hague for war crimes evaded capture from 1996 to 2008. He was accused of causing the deaths of 8,000 refugees and the ethnic cleansing of 30,000 others in the 1995 Srebrenica massacre, the largest mass murder in Europe since World War II. When indicted for genocide, Karadzic went on the lam and became a hero amongst the Bosnian Serb people, who helped him escape capture multiple times during his decade on the run. A tip-off, most likely from U.K. and U.S. intelligence agencies, led to the discovery of Karadzic in a clinic in Belgrade, where he had grown an enormous white beard and ponytail and was posing as specialist in alternative medicine, with a particular interest in "bioenergy," under the name Dragan David Dabic. The disguised Karadzic</span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2008/unsolved_crimes/unsolved_zodiac.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"><img alt="Letter sent to the San Francisco Chronicle by the " border="0" height="130" killer??="" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2008/unsolved_crimes/unsolved_zodiac.jpg" title="Letter sent to the San Francisco Chronicle by the " width="200" zodiac="" /></span></a><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">The Zodiac Killer-</span></strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"> The self-named Zodiac who terrorized Northern California in the late 1960s and early '70s has never been caught, despite extensive investigation by police and the press. The unidentified killer claimed responsibility for 37 murders in taunting letters to newspapers, although only seven were confirmed as his work. Zodiac's letters included four cryptograms, of which just one has been deciphered. Only one suspect, Arthur Leigh Allen, was ever served with a search warrant, but police found no conclusive evidence. The Zodiac letters stopped coming in the late '70s; Allen died in 1992. The case has been declared inactive, although it is periodically reopened as new (and thus far implausible) evidence comes forward. The case was given screen immortality in the 2007 David Fincher movie </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">Zodiac</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"> — but Fincher didn't solve it either.</span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2010/top10_manhunt/ned_kelly.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"><img alt="Top 10 Manhunts" border="0" height="130" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2010/top10_manhunt/ned_kelly.jpg" title="Top 10 Manhunts" width="200" /></span></a><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">Ned Kelly</span></strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">- The Australian bush ranger became one of the country's first folk heroes, appealing to the downtrodden poor who were fed up with their colonial British rulers. Declared outlaws after killing three policemen, Kelly and his gang lost themselves in the southeastern Australian bush, robbing two banks and, in one episode, burning the townspeople's mortgage contracts. Finally cornered by police in the town of Glenrowan, the four members of the Kelly gang emerged in enormous homemade suits of armor, lurching toward petrified policemen as bullets bounced off their chests. The armor did not cover Kelly's lower half, though; he was shot in the legs and, unlike the rest of the gang, captured alive. Kelly was hanged on Nov. 11, 1880. The story goes that his last words were, "Such is life." </span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://img.timeinc.net/time/2007/crimes/cuts/unabomber.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"><img alt="crimes of the century unabomber" border="0" height="130" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/2007/crimes/cuts/unabomber.jpg" title="crimes of the century unabomber" width="200" /></span></a><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">Theodore "Ted" Kaczynski-</span></strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"> The 18-year search for the Unabomber was the U.S.'s longest and most expensive hunt for a serial killer. Ted Kaczynski, a brilliant mathematician accepted to Harvard at age 16, sent 16 bombs — handcrafted with wooden parts — across the country from 1978 to 1995, killing three and wounding 23. Despite an accurate psychological profile, a $1 million reward and extensive forensic investigation, the FBI couldn't get a handle on the case. It took the 1995 publication of his rambling manifesto in the New York </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">Times</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"> and the Washington </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">Post</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"> for the bomber to be located: Kaczynski's brother David recognized the prose and tipped off the police. Kaczynski was arrested on April 3, 1996, at his Montana log cabin. He is serving a life sentence in prison without the possibility of parole. His brother still writes him monthly, without reply. </span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://img.timeinc.net/time/daily/2009/0912/bin_laden_1207.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"><img alt="Osama bin Laden, in a video that aired on the eve of the second anniversary of the 9/11 attacks" border="0" height="130" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/daily/2009/0912/bin_laden_1207.jpg" title="Osama bin Laden, in a video that aired on the eve of the second anniversary of the 9/11 attacks" width="200" /></span></a><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">Osama bin Laden-</span></strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;"> The U.S. had been after bin Laden since the 1998 African embassy bombings. The 13-year manhunt had so little to show for it, some suspected he had died because he hadn't appeared on video since 2007, although audio tapes purportedly of his voice periodically surfaced. U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates once admitted that there had been no reliable information for years as to his whereabouts. Bin Laden was generally assumed to be hiding in Pakistan, and that's where 52-year-old Coloradan construction worker Gary Faulkner was detained while looking for him in June 2010. Sent, he says, on a mission from God, Faulkner was found toting a 40-in.-long sword, a pistol, night-vision goggles and a pair of plastic handcuffs. According to Faulkner's brother, the wannabe bounty hunter had, during his six trips to the country, found a cave and "a bearded man in a white robe speaking on a walkie-talkie." But it turns out, Faulkner wasn't that close. On May 1, 2011, Bin Laden was killed by U.S. special operations forces in Abottabad, Pakistan, 35 miles north of the capital, much farther from the Afghan-Pakistan border than most people, including </span>Faulkner, believed.</div></div>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-54910995883381240542011-05-27T05:53:00.000-07:002011-05-27T08:17:03.162-07:00Memorial DayFor teenagers in high school at this point in time, all they can think about is summer's fast approach. It's nearing the end of the school year, and everyone is anxious to hear the ring of that final bell on June 7th. For seniors, the end of their high school career is nearly here. With only three days left, most of them are concentrated on "just getting out." Before they can walk across the stage and receive their diplomas, though, they must get through this last, special three-day weekend designated to celebrate Memorial Day. <br />
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Memorial Day comes but once a year, and it always seems to pass without much recognition from teenagers. Do most of them even know what it means? Probably not. Do most of them care about it? Probably not. Do most of them only know that it means an extra day off of school? Probably. With everything that's going on in their lives right now, it's to be expected that a great number of them have no idea what Memorial Day celebrates. And that's why I'm writing this article. As a member of a military family, although, admittedly, a member of a military family that has never lost one at war, Memorial Day represents more than just another day off school. Memorial Day gives recognition to the soldiers that have died protecting America. Dictionary.com describes it as "<span id="hotword"><span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">a</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">day,</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">May</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">30,</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">set</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">aside</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">in</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">most</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">states</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">of</span> </span>the<span id="hotword"> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">U.S.</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">for</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">observances</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">in</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">memory</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">of</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">dead</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">members</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">of</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">the</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">armed</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">forces</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">of</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">all</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">wars:</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">now</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">officially</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">observed</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">on</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">the</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">last</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">Monday</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">in</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">May."</span></span><br />
<br />
<span name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">Just a few minutes ago I came across an article written by a soldier in remembrance of the fallen soldiers of the United States. It was deeply moving, extremely powerful, and well written. I'd like to share it now:</span><br />
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"It is the early days of January 2010 and the Company forms to the front of the memorial display at the chapel of the forward operating base in Afghanistan, the backdrop for the small shrine the crossed staffs of an American flag and the regimental colors. An M4 rifle stands upright, its bayonet lodged into a felt covered wooden desk in front of the flags; the pistol grip facing the audience. The fallen soldier's helmet rests on the weapon's butt stock, shielding it as it once did his silhouette. Two dog tags dangle from the rifle's pistol grip, their clamor in the desert wind. Below, centered on the rifle's barrel and arrayed at the position of attention, are the soldier's desert tan boots; tied, laces tucked.<br />
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Leaning against the laces is a framed portrait of the fallen: SSG (Last). A Purple Heart medallion shines prominently in front of the picture, presented in its original black silk-laden box.<br />
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"Ladies and Gentlemen, the ceremony will begin in two minutes," says the Chaplain in his hospitable southern twang. The imposing Battalion and Brigade leadership files out of the chapel, programs and bios of the fallen in hand.<br />
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"Company! Atten-SHUN!" calls out the Attack Company First Sergeant, bringing the gaggle to order. I cringe contemplating how many memorials our First Sergeant has stood for in his lifetime. He has had seven deployments and two decades in the Army. "Parade REST!"<br />
<br />
"Ladies and Gentlemen, please stand for the invocation," the Chaplain begins, "Father, we are gathered here today to celebrate the life of one of your finest servants: Staff Sergeant (First) (MI) (Last)..." My mind drifts off into the clear blue sky. I still hear the radio traffic in my head...it replays in my conscience like a broken record, "Contact! Contact! IED!...The lower half of his body! It's blown off!" That was Christmas Day 2009. My quaking cheek muscles wring a tear from my eyes.<br />
<br />
The Battalion Commander takes the podium first. He speaks of SSG (Last)'s career and dedication to the mission. His words are kind and sincere. The Company Commander follows with (Last)'s bio: where he was born, where he enlisted. "SSG (Last) is survived by his wife and his three sons." <br />
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I see those boys, first smiling and laughing; and then I see them in horror and frantic tears upon hearing the words... "We regret to inform you..." I wonder how these children will ever open another Christmas gift again. How many nights will they bargain with God, praying at the foot of their beds: "I'll give back every single Gift I'll ever get for the rest of my life... for just one more day with my Dad..."<br />
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As the commander stands down, SSG (Last)'s Platoon Sergeant and dear friend rises for his remarks. We know his heartfelt eulogy is sure to be filled with humor, a refreshing change of pace from the sadness that overwhelms the audience. "SSG (Last) and I had some great times. There was never anything but a smile on his face. I loved watching him slap food out of his soldiers' faces. And with a dead stare and straight face, snarling "You can't eat, you're in A Co!"<br />
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SSG (Last)'s Platoon Leader speaks next. He reads from Psalm 23: "As I walk through the valley of the shadow of death. I will fear no evil..." As the PL takes his seat, a bagpipe quintet begins its rendition of "Amazing Grace." The nasal reverberance of the pipes stuns my eardrums. It brings my conscience back to the ceremony; back to the realization... He's gone.<br />
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First Sergeant conducts an about face to address the Company. "Company! Atten-SHUN!" The 160 soldiers and officers of Attack Company snap their heels together. He begins the roll call:<br />
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"SGT Anderson!"<br />
<br />
"Here, First Sergeant!"<br />
<br />
"SGT Smith!"<br />
<br />
"Here, First Sergeant!"<br />
<br />
"SGT Wilson!"<br />
<br />
"Here First Sergeant!"<br />
<br />
"Staff Sergeant (Last)!"<br />
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Silence.<br />
<br />
The name of the fallen leaves the First Sergeant's tongue. The emptiness weighs on our chest. An acceptance of mortality fills the void. <br />
<br />
"...Staff Sergeant (First) (Last)!" First Sergeant's voice grows louder with each call. He yells with a release, not of fury, but of agony.<br />
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"Staff Sergeant (FIRST) (MIDDLE) (LAST)!!" The final syllable echoes through the formation. Running noses, pulsating chests. An infectious sadness permeates through even the most distant onlooker's body.<br />
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The colorguard breaks the silence with gentle, but firm commands. "Ready, Aim, FIRE!" The commander leads his element in three volley fires. In the distance, a bugler puts brass to lip. The rhythm-less tune of taps emanates from the horn, surging the ambiance with rushed closure. The music soothes our ears, purging shivers and quivering diaphragms. Our hands continue to switch between wiping sweat from our foreheads to wiping the snot from our noses and the tears from our eyes.<br />
<br />
The Chaplain retakes the podium for the Benediction. We bow our heads in prayer. <br />
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Four by four, soldiers march to the display and submit their tender salutes. Upon ordering arms, we got down on one knee in front of the photo. Some pray. Some talk to their friend.. Some just stare, trying to feel if this is real. (Last)'s closest friends and colleagues rip off the velcro name tapes from their soft caps and place them by his picture. I focus on his photo; he was smiling. My spirituality beckons me. I don't want to believe in God right then, but I need to. I pray for his soul. I pray he is at peace.<br />
<br />
The hardest part about writing this piece was not the recollection of the sights and emotions of a friend's passing, but deciding what to call him. Perhaps it will mean more to you if you re-read the roll-call inserting the (First) (Middle) and (Last) name of a loved one you know serving overseas. I ask you to offer your empathy to the soldiers, wives, children, and parents who pay the bill for our freedom each day. Memorial Day comes but once a year, but for the sake of those who will go anywhere and do anything to preserve the way we live, I hope that emotion stays with you forever.<br />
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<em>Rajiv Srinivasan served as a Stryker platoon leader in the Kandahar province of Afghanistan from 2009 to 2010. He hails from Roanoke, Virginia.</em><br />
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And <strong>that's</strong> what Memorial Day is all about. We should never forget.Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-71914947992026807732011-05-27T05:25:00.000-07:002011-05-30T18:06:35.421-07:00America's 20 Most Well-Read CitiesI was browsing through the articles on Time.com when I came across this article listing the top 20 most well-read cities in the United States. Turns out, if you live in Seattle, Atlanta, or Arlington, Virginia, you are among the most well-read people in the United States. Based on sales data of book, magazine and newspaper sales in both print and Kindle downloads, Amazon has compiled a list of America's 20 cities with the most well-read people. Like the cities above, which boast Harvard University, Gannett Corp. and the University of California, Berkeley, most are home to large universities or corporate installations, so the data is a bit skewed, but interesting none-the-less.<br />
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Time.com throws out a mini-disclaimer here, saying, "The cities also fell into categories of what they like to read, for example, the cuisine-conscious populace of Boulder, Colo. (No. 5), ordered the most cooking, food and wine books. At the same time, kid-friendly Alexandria, Va. (No. 2) ordered the most children's literature. There's even an irony. St. Louis, Mo. (No. 17), also ranked as the nation's third most dangerous city, according to an estimate by financial blog 24/7 Wall Street. The list should be taken with a grain of salt — after all, lots of well-read people buy books at places other than Amazon." Good to know.<br />
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Amazon's list is as follows:<br />
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1. Cambridge, Mass.<br />
2. Alexandria, Va.<br />
3. Berkeley, Calif.<br />
4. Ann Arbor, Mich.<br />
5. Boulder, Colo.<br />
6. Miami, Fla.<br />
7. Salt Lake City, Utah<br />
8. Gainesville, Fla.<br />
9. Seattle, Wash.<br />
10. Arlington, Va.<br />
11. Knoxville, Tenn.<br />
12. Orlando, Fla.<br />
13. Pittsburgh, Penn.<br />
14. Washington, D.C.<br />
15. Bellevue, Wash.<br />
16. Columbia, S.C.<br />
17. St. Louis, Mo.<br />
18. Cincinnati, O.H.<br />
19. Portland, Ore.<br />
20. Atlanta, G.A.Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-9137079822425945932011-05-22T19:22:00.000-07:002011-05-30T18:12:36.072-07:00Starting Salary Rises for Class of '11<em>This article comes from yahoonews.com, and I was SUPER excited when I read it because I'm going to college soon, and starting salaries are a bit of a worry for most collegebound students. So, because I have friends who are also college-bound, I decided to share this article. Read up!</em><br />
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In what can only be good news for the economy, the average starting salary offer for the class of 2011 is on the rise for the first time in three years.<br />
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According to a recent survey from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), the average job offer to a bachelor's degree graduate this year is $50,034, up 3.5 percent over last year. <br />
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Hot fields enjoying a boost in starting offers include accounting, finance, business, and computer science.<br />
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Hot Degree #1 - Accounting<br />
Average Starting Offer: $49,022<br />
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The recent recession was a financial wake-up call for everyone from Wall Street to Main Street. As a result, accountants are in demand like never before to help balance budgets. <br />
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Curriculum: By earning your degree in accounting, you'll learn about generally accepted accounting principles and study courses like statistics, tax planning, auditing, corporate valuation, and accounting for mergers & acquisitions.<br />
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Potential Career Paths: Some students choose accounting to prepare for the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) exam, but an accounting degree can lead to a surprisingly wide range of careers. <br />
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According to North Carolina State University's accounting department website, your business card could eventually read accountant, financial analyst, real estate assessor, or even forensic actuary.<br />
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Hot Degree #2 - Finance<br />
Average Starting Offer: $50,535<br />
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While the study of accounting deals more specifically with the preparation and analysis of financial statements, finance majors focus more intently on the markets and learn about financial portfolios and investments, as well as the money that's needed to start and keep a company afloat. These are skills that corporations need right now.<br />
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Curriculum: While working your way toward a degree in finance, you're likely to study courses like macroeconomics, international banking, fixed income securities, investment management, and financial derivatives.<br />
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Potential Career Paths: Financial analyst is certainly one occupation that links up well with a finance degree. There are plenty of careers that require financially savvy professionals, including buying, selling and managing commercial real estate, as well as software sales for the financial services industry.<br />
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Many finance graduates find positions within the finance departments of firms; with banks, mutual funds, and other kinds of financial institutions; in government; or in a charitable organization, according to the Princeton Review's website.<br />
Hot Degree #3 - Business<br />
Average Starting Offer: $48,089<br />
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Today's global economy is a key reason why a business degree is a popular choice for students worldwide. To use just a couple examples, you might study different theories on how to build and operate a business, and learn how to market a whole host of products - as well as how to market yourself.<br />
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Curriculum: While getting your business degree, you're likely to build a strong foundation of skills in areas like accounting, communications, economics, finance, leadership, management, and marketing.<br />
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Potential Career Paths: Students may choose to enter marketing, sales, operations, or finance. Other possibilities include human resources (HR) and public relations (PR).<br />
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According to Washington State University's online business degree program, possible careers include:<br />
Global logistics and transportation<br />
Import-export positions<br />
Multinational product management, advertising, and sales<br />
Travel and tourism<br />
International consulting<br />
Electronic commerce<br />
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Hot Degree #4 - Computer Science<br />
Average Starting Offer: $61,783<br />
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Computer science plays a huge role in every industry imaginable, from medicine and entertainment to finance and disaster recovery. Though its graduates sometimes work behind-the-scenes, they're often compensated well for their efforts, and companies like Google have changed the way people think about these experts. Computer geeks, as they are often affectionately called, are most definitely chic!<br />
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Curriculum: While earning your computer science degree, you'll likely study programming and the principles of computing, data structures and algorithms, information technology (IT), cloud computing, and network systems design.<br />
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Potential Career Paths: Common careers for computer science graduates include database and systems analysts, software engineers, and computer programmers, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. <br />
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A computer-related degree is often paired with high starting salary offers, according to a 2010 article in "Network World", an IT-related publication and website. "Here's a tip for incoming and current college students: If you want to have a high-paying job on graduation day, study computer science," said the article.Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-83411901221523309522011-05-22T15:50:00.000-07:002011-05-30T18:16:49.933-07:00Box Office Record for Rebooted 'Pirates'<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://www.filmofilia.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/Pirates_of_the_Caribbean_On_Stranger_Tides-535x401.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" id="il_fi" src="http://www.filmofilia.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/Pirates_of_the_Caribbean_On_Stranger_Tides-535x401.jpg" style="padding-bottom: 8px; padding-right: 8px; padding-top: 8px;" width="200" /></a>According to the Associated Press, "the re-engineered "Pirates of the Caribbean" sequel "On Stranger Tides" found its smoothest sailing overseas, where it took in a record $256.3 million at the international box office, according to studio estimates Sunday. That surpasses the previous record foreign opening of the sixth "Harry Potter" film, 2009's "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," which earned $236 million internationally. Walt Disney co. said "On Stranger Tides," the fourth "Pirates" installment, earned $90.1 million domestically. Its combined worldwide total is $346.4 million, the fourth largest global opening ever."</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">It surprises me that Pirates 4 has surpassed Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (although Harry 6 wasn't the most popular of the Harry Potter series, in my opinion). Maybe that's it. Who knows. I just thought this little scrap of news was interesting, considering the fact that I'm a Harry Potter fan. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Read the rest of the article: <a href="http://movies.yahoo.com/news/movies.ap.org/rebooted-pirates-sets-overseas-box-office-record-ap">http://movies.yahoo.com/news/movies.ap.org/rebooted-pirates-sets-overseas-box-office-record-ap</a>.</div>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-52698269825750586042011-05-22T15:42:00.000-07:002011-05-30T18:20:02.931-07:00Nooks and Niches for Kids<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">We've all been there: the bedroom is just too small for all of the activities that you would like to do in it. Example: You'd love to have a private reading spot or a little niche to sit in just to ponder things or to cozy up to your homework. Nowadays, especially with the recession and downsizing economy, families just aren't building gigantic houses anymore. Space-saving becomes a priority, and the kids' rooms usually take the first hit. Searching yahoo.com while reading up on the daily news, I found this little article about seven magical nooks and niches for secret kids' rooms. One even has a C.S. Lewis inspired entrance. Enjoy!</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong>Reading Nook</strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://l.yimg.com/jn/util/anysize/475*352l-86400,http%3A%2F%2Fa323.yahoofs.com%2Fphugc%2Fr5u.Vz9rTByM%2Fphotos%2Faed72909d107d5f4a0db9ac94ed4a6e3%2Fori_c9c4cc43b2a98a.jpg%3Fug_____DIK_8UKaL" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Reading Nook" border="0" height="148" id="photoMain" src="http://l.yimg.com/jn/util/anysize/475*352l-86400,http%3A%2F%2Fa323.yahoofs.com%2Fphugc%2Fr5u.Vz9rTByM%2Fphotos%2Faed72909d107d5f4a0db9ac94ed4a6e3%2Fori_c9c4cc43b2a98a.jpg%3Fug_____DIK_8UKaL" width="200" /></a><br />
Every child dreams of a secret space like this reading nook, hidden behind a pivoting bookshelf.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
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</div><div class="caption" id="photoCaption" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://l.yimg.com/jn/util/anysize/400*400l-86400,http%3A%2F%2Fa323.yahoofs.com%2Fphugc%2F_DiRB.IS81_C%2Fphotos%2Ffe97e33d2a92e972ec280ed252a75afc%2Fori_0321c1aac51e36.jpg%3Fug_____DJAvuuARo" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Bunk Bed Cubbies" border="0" height="200" id="photoMain" src="http://l.yimg.com/jn/util/anysize/400*400l-86400,http%3A%2F%2Fa323.yahoofs.com%2Fphugc%2F_DiRB.IS81_C%2Fphotos%2Ffe97e33d2a92e972ec280ed252a75afc%2Fori_0321c1aac51e36.jpg%3Fug_____DJAvuuARo" width="200" /></a>Each of these bunk bed cubbies in a shared kids’ room feature a curtain that can be drawn for privacy.</div><div class="caption" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
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</div><div class="caption" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong>Girl's Nook</strong></div><div class="caption" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://l.yimg.com/jn/util/anysize/334*500l-86400,http%3A%2F%2Fa323.yahoofs.com%2Fphugc%2FHQ8NHBH8M30f%2Fphotos%2Ffb572bf76193157d5d68732cda2ed8de%2Fori_c68689094f1673.jpg%3Fug_____DOvV2oh3H" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Girls' Nook" border="0" height="200" id="photoMain" src="http://l.yimg.com/jn/util/anysize/334*500l-86400,http%3A%2F%2Fa323.yahoofs.com%2Fphugc%2FHQ8NHBH8M30f%2Fphotos%2Ffb572bf76193157d5d68732cda2ed8de%2Fori_c68689094f1673.jpg%3Fug_____DOvV2oh3H" width="132" /></a></div><div class="caption" id="photoCaption" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">The colorful nook in this girl’s bedroom offers a cozy escape.</div><div class="caption" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
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</div><div class="caption" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong>Hidden Nook</strong></div><div class="caption" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://l.yimg.com/jn/util/anysize/378*500l-86400,http%3A%2F%2Fa323.yahoofs.com%2Fphugc%2FiuAmW_FRu0gh%2Fphotos%2F5c84adf7c12c08a281dba42b2b4ad19a%2Fori_c0026cff88395c.jpg%3Fug_____D1A.TeMe1" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Hidden Nook" border="0" height="200" id="photoMain" src="http://l.yimg.com/jn/util/anysize/378*500l-86400,http%3A%2F%2Fa323.yahoofs.com%2Fphugc%2FiuAmW_FRu0gh%2Fphotos%2F5c84adf7c12c08a281dba42b2b4ad19a%2Fori_c0026cff88395c.jpg%3Fug_____D1A.TeMe1" width="151" /></a></div>An armoire serves as the entrance to this C.S. Lewis-inspired hidden nook.<br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://l.yimg.com/jn/util/anysize/334*500l-86400,http%3A%2F%2Fa323.yahoofs.com%2Fphugc%2F4i_TDo7_byU1%2Fphotos%2Fc7e7f443f0f1c9da06bcc2ed5e0e0afc%2Fori_a1d3a41fc20b8b.jpg%3Fug_____DWy16GKNe" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Wide Reading Nook" border="0" height="200" id="photoMain" src="http://l.yimg.com/jn/util/anysize/334*500l-86400,http%3A%2F%2Fa323.yahoofs.com%2Fphugc%2F4i_TDo7_byU1%2Fphotos%2Fc7e7f443f0f1c9da06bcc2ed5e0e0afc%2Fori_a1d3a41fc20b8b.jpg%3Fug_____DWy16GKNe" width="133" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong>Wide Reading Nook</strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div class="cls" id="photo-info" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">A wide bottom shelf creates a perfect little reading nook in this space.</div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong>Trundle Nook</strong></div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://l.yimg.com/jn/util/anysize/298*400l-86400,http%3A%2F%2Fa323.yahoofs.com%2Fphugc%2FW.SDcovOV1c1%2Fphotos%2F328112d262c56becc9b492af89d0c105%2Fori_9e705dc48f9ea4.jpg%3Fug_____DskWQo1pE" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Trundle Nook" border="0" height="200" id="photoMain" src="http://l.yimg.com/jn/util/anysize/298*400l-86400,http%3A%2F%2Fa323.yahoofs.com%2Fphugc%2FW.SDcovOV1c1%2Fphotos%2F328112d262c56becc9b492af89d0c105%2Fori_9e705dc48f9ea4.jpg%3Fug_____DskWQo1pE" width="149" /></a> <br />
This built-in makes the most of available space with a trundle bed.</div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://l.yimg.com/jn/util/anysize/333*500l-86400,http%3A%2F%2Fa323.yahoofs.com%2Fphugc%2FDGmALd5WBUq_%2Fphotos%2F902827656323b048f8582d21cb661a32%2Fori_11326e1994d87c.jpg%3Fug_____DxBBi4BH7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Space-Saving Nook" border="0" height="200" id="photoMain" src="http://l.yimg.com/jn/util/anysize/333*500l-86400,http%3A%2F%2Fa323.yahoofs.com%2Fphugc%2FDGmALd5WBUq_%2Fphotos%2F902827656323b048f8582d21cb661a32%2Fori_11326e1994d87c.jpg%3Fug_____DxBBi4BH7" width="133" /></a><strong>Space-Saving Nook</strong></div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div class="cls" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div class="cls" id="photo-info" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">This child’s bedroom makes the most of difficult space.</div></div>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-51418030220015720632011-05-15T14:50:00.000-07:002011-05-30T18:22:45.502-07:00Scotty McCreery Gets a Surprise <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.starmometer.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Scotty-McCreery.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" id="il_fi" src="http://www.starmometer.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Scotty-McCreery.jpg" style="padding-bottom: 8px; padding-right: 8px; padding-top: 8px;" width="179" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Scotty McCreery</td></tr>
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">The last few weeks on American Idol, host Ryan Secrest has been advertising that the top three finalists will be treated to a trip home for the first time since the show began. Of course, since American Idol hasn't aired yet for this week, we haven't seen the nice little videos that they put together for us to view during the show. But I was browsing on Yahoo.com when I found this little video from a blogger that is hip to the American Idol stuff. She's always writing about American Idol, and I find myself agreeing with her opinions quite frequently, so I've made it a habit to check up on her posts every now and then.</div><br />
Anyway, she writes, "Top 3 "American Idol" finalist Scotty McCreery first made an impression auditioning with, and then repeatedly singing, "Your Man" by Josh Turner, aka the "baby lock them doors and turn them lights down low" song. As Scotty's "Idol" star has soared, his audition song choice has turned out to be the best publicity Josh could ask for. So when Scotty returned to his hometown of Garner, North Carolina, this weekend for his big homecoming event (an "Idol" top 3 tradition), Josh repaid the favor by bumrushing the stage during Scotty's welcome-home concert, giving Scotty the surprise of his life.<br />
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Scotty had started to sing "Your Man"--his first time performing it with a band--when Josh appeared unannounced onstage. When Scotty turned around he sort of experienced a delayed reaction, at first reaching out to grasp Josh's shoulder, before suddenly realizing just who he was sharing the stage with. Observe his hilarious reaction at this link: <a href="http://new.music.yahoo.com/blogs/realityrocks/422536/scotty-mccreery-surprised-by-josh-turner-at-homecoming-concert/">http://new.music.yahoo.com/blogs/realityrocks/422536/scotty-mccreery-surprised-by-josh-turner-at-homecoming-concert/</a>.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Josh Turner</td></tr>
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Josh's band then came out to complete the song as a Josh/Scotty duet. Seventeen-year-old Scotty could barely contain his boyish excitement over getting to sing with his idol, yet still performed like an old pro and held his own.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">"Thanks for singing my songs," said Josh, to which Scotty answered, "Thank you for singing them first!" The duo then performed another Josh song Scotty once sang on "American Idol" (during Hollywood Week), "Long Black Train," with both guys playing guitar.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">"It's good to see someone waving the country music flag out there in Hollywood," said a torch-passing Josh, as what appeared to be the entire population of Garner cheered. It seems pretty obvious who Josh will be voting for next Wednesday night."</div><br />
Aww, how happy. Just a little piece of American Idol for you. Plus, with my being a big country music fan, and thus, a big Scotty McCreery fan, I must say that I was pretty excited to see this. Ever since Scotty came to the show with his "baby lock them doors and turn the lights down low," I've been wanting to see them sing together. Awesome!Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-23294112916938210132011-05-14T07:57:00.000-07:002011-05-30T18:23:19.970-07:00Pictures of the WeekSo, I was surfing the web. Check that. I was surfing Time.com, when I found this Pictures of the Week segment, and I think you should see it. There are a few of the Libyan men and some other worldwide ones. Here's the link:<br />
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<a href="http://www.time.com/time/picturesoftheweek">http://www.time.com/time/picturesoftheweek</a>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-13667145205120414002011-05-11T08:20:00.000-07:002011-05-30T18:25:58.333-07:00Craziest, Wackiest Derby Hats!<span style="color: white;">The Kentucky Derby has come and gone, but the images of those out-of-this-world hats will forever be burned into my brain. If you didn't watch the Kentucky Derby, you haven't seen the ridiculousness of these hats, obviously. But thanks to Time.com, you can view them for the first time, and I can relive the horror of these fashion disasters. </span><br />
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<span style="color: white;">This floral topper is a nod to the Derby's nickname: "the Run for the Roses." We applaud this man's dedication to the rose theme — he's even got them painted on his cheeks. Cute.</span></div><u><span style="color: white;"></span></u></div><div class="thumbnail" style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="thumbnail" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2070343_2273156,00.html" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: white;"><img alt="The Weirdest Kentucky Derby Hats" height="132" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2011/derby_hats/kentucky_derby_hats_04.jpg" title="The Weirdest Kentucky Derby Hats" width="200" /></span></a></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white; font-weight: bold;">Hey, Horse</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">If we didn't know better, we'd think that was a ... Nope, not really. It's just a man wearing a scary horse on his head.</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="thumbnail" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2070343_2273163,00.html" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: white;"><img alt="The Weirdest Kentucky Derby Hats" height="132" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2011/derby_hats/kentucky_derby_hats_03.jpg" title="The Weirdest Kentucky Derby Hats" width="200" /></span></a></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white; font-weight: bold;">Pinned Up</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">Between the tacky hat and the colorful beads, we're not sure if this woman's celebrating the Derby or Mardi Gras. Probably both. Next time, she could leave the Budweiser and "talk Derby to me" pins off this gigantic hat. After all, haven't we learned that less is more?</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="thumbnail" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2070343_2273161,00.html" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: white;"><img alt="The Weirdest Kentucky Derby Hats" height="132" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2011/derby_hats/kentucky_derby_hats_09.jpg" title="The Weirdest Kentucky Derby Hats" width="200" /></span></a></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white; font-weight: bold;">Vegas Calling</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">Did this man steal a showgirl's headdress for Derby day? Feathers can be fun. But not in excess like this.</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div><div class="thumbnail" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2070343_2273157,00.html" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: white;"><img alt="The Weirdest Kentucky Derby Hats" height="132" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2011/derby_hats/kentucky_derby_hats_02.jpg" title="The Weirdest Kentucky Derby Hats" width="200" /></span></a></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white; font-weight: bold;">Churchill Downs Déjà Vu</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">You're already at Churchill Downs to watch the horse race. Is it necessary to wear the racetrack on your head as well?</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="thumbnail" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="color: white;"></span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2070343_2273167,00.html" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: white;"><img alt="The Weirdest Kentucky Derby Hats" height="132" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2011/derby_hats/kentucky_derby_hats_05.jpg" title="The Weirdest Kentucky Derby Hats" width="200" /></span></a></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white; font-weight: bold;">Pink Attack</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">We're not saying a bottle of Pepto-Bismol exploded on this woman's head — just that it looks that way. And are those animal-print horns coming out of her hat?</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div><div class="thumbnail" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2070343_2273164,00.html" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: white;"><img alt="The Weirdest Kentucky Derby Hats" height="132" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2011/derby_hats/kentucky_derby_hats_06.jpg" title="The Weirdest Kentucky Derby Hats" width="200" /></span></a></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white; font-weight: bold;">Balancing Act</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">Why people insist on wearing horses on their head when there's an entire horse race before their eyes remains a mystery to us.</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div><div class="thumbnail" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2070343_2273166,00.html" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: white;"><img alt="The Weirdest Kentucky Derby Hats" height="132" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2011/derby_hats/kentucky_derby_hats_11.jpg" title="The Weirdest Kentucky Derby Hats" width="200" /></span></a></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white; font-weight: bold;">Winner's Circle</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">Derby winners are awarded a throw of roses. But if you're feeling left out, take a cue from this man and make your own rose hat.</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div><div class="thumbnail" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="color: white;"></span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2070343_2273158,00.html" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: white;"><img alt="The Weirdest Kentucky Derby Hats" height="132" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2011/derby_hats/kentucky_derby_hats_07.jpg" title="The Weirdest Kentucky Derby Hats" width="200" /></span></a><span style="color: white; font-weight: bold;">Crazy Color</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">Who says the Brits have all the hat fun? This tall, multicolor topper would have fit in perfectly among the elaborate hats that made an appearance at Prince William and Kate Middleton's wedding.</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div><div class="thumbnail" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2070343_2273160,00.html" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: white;"><img alt="The Weirdest Kentucky Derby Hats" height="132" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2011/derby_hats/kentucky_derby_hats_08.jpg" title="The Weirdest Kentucky Derby Hats" width="200" /></span></a></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white; font-weight: bold;">Bow to the Bow</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">Wearing bows atop your head stops being cute past the age of, oh, 10. This hat's not just hideous; it looks like a safety hazard too. Hope she turned her head carefully.</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div><div class="thumbnail" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2070343_2273160_last,00.html" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: white;"><img alt="The Weirdest Kentucky Derby Hats" height="132" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2011/derby_hats/kentucky_derby_hats_10.jpg" title="The Weirdest Kentucky Derby Hats" width="200" /></span></a></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: white; font-weight: bold;">All-American Duo</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">These two have Derby pride — and, in case you weren't sure, American pride too.</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><br />
</div>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-70503520738654066802011-05-10T10:42:00.000-07:002011-05-30T18:27:11.955-07:00Time's Top 100 People of the Year<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2066367_2066369,00.html" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" height="126" src="http://img.timeinc.net/time/2011/time100/b_t100_large_package_grid.jpg" title="" width="320" /></a>Time magazine has recently released its Top 100 People of the Year. The list is long and insightful, so I'm passing it on to you, in hopes that you'll check it out. There are some interesting people on there! I learned a lot from this list, and I hope you will too. Here's the link:</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/0,28757,2066367,00.html">http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/0,28757,2066367,00.html</a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">P.S.- There are good pictures, too!</div><div class="thumb" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-73287863330237656932011-05-10T10:39:00.000-07:002011-05-30T18:28:13.910-07:00Films' Greatest Movie Car ChasesI found this article on Time.com, and I thought, since I've been posting a lot about movies lately, that you'd like to see it for yourselves. It's, as you can probably tell from the title, about the 15 greatest movie car chases of all time. Complete with videos and accompanying paragraphs, this article is pretty cool. Here's the link:<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2068772_2068771,00.html">http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2068772_2068771,00.html</a>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-65066570720115130562011-05-10T10:33:00.000-07:002011-05-10T10:36:49.390-07:00Thor Steals the Box Office<div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><a href="http://www.moviedeskback.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/Thor-Movie-2011-Wallpapers-5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://www.moviedeskback.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/Thor-Movie-2011-Wallpapers-5.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="color: white;">Thor earned $66 million at North American theaters to win the year's first full May weekend, according to early studio estimates. The latest in Marvel Studios' master plan to make a blockbuster film out of every character who has appeared in the company's comic books over the past 50 years, Thor easily trounced the weekend's two romantic comedies, Jumping the Broom and Something Borrowed, while dumping Mel Gibson's comeback film The Beaver into indie hell. The Marvel god-dude registered the second highest opening gross of 2011, behind the $86.3 million scored last weekend by Fast Five. </span></div>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-70924832374172995312011-05-10T10:25:00.000-07:002011-05-30T18:55:34.478-07:0071 DAYS!!Of course you know what I'm referring to, right? Riiiiiiiight? Ugh. I'm talking about HARRY POTTER, you goon! Yes. That's right. Only 71 days until the epic finale of the quite epic in and of itself Harry Potter series. The second part of the last film, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, debuts on July 15, 2011. The lines going into movie theaters all across America are going to be extremely long. So long, I bet, that it'll set records. Haha, just kidding. Probably not. But it's gonna feel like forever when I'm standing in one. Oh well, it's gonna be worth it. I'm willing to bet on that, too. It's getting down to the wire here people, and I. Can't. Wait! The anticipation is slowly killing me. What's going to happen in this movie, you ask? A whole bunch, let me tell you. Well, actually, let me tell you. Here goes. Most of the information comes from imdb.com. Although, I have tweaked it a bit.<br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://wakeywakeynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/kinopoisk-ru-harry-potter-and-the-deathly-hallows_3a-part-ii-10283262.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" id="il_fi" src="http://wakeywakeynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/kinopoisk-ru-harry-potter-and-the-deathly-hallows_3a-part-ii-10283262.jpeg" style="padding-bottom: 8px; padding-right: 8px; padding-top: 8px;" width="235" /></a></div>The film begins deep in the Dark Woods; Lord Volemort breaks open Dumbledore's tomb and steals the Elder Wand.<br />
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Harry is devastated by Dobby's death, and when he buries him, he does so by hand, without using magic. When they all come out to lay Dobby to rest, they thank him for saving their lives.<br />
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(The above is an overlap of the first part.)<br />
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After the funeral, Harry questions Griphook about the sword, with which he managed to escape. Harry needs Griphook to help him break into Gringotts bank, because he now thinks that another Horcrux is hidden in Bellatrix Lestrange's vault.<br />
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Harry also questions the wandmaker, Ollivander, asking him if its possible to fix his broken wand. Ollivander cannot fix it. Ollivander does tell him, however, that Voldemort really is seeking the Elder Wand in order to evade death.<br />
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Soon after questioning Ollivander, Harry begins to truly understand what he's meant to do; he's supposed to destroy the Horcruxes and not try to obtain the Deathly Hallows.<br />
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Griphook has finally agreed to help them break into Gringotts. The only hitch is that he wants Gryffindor's sword in return. Harry agrees but inwardly squirms at the thought of his white lie. He will give the sword to Griphook, but he doesn't tell him when.<br />
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One night, Lupin shows up suddenly and announces that he and Tonks have had a boy. They've named him Ted, and the group celebrates for one night. Lupin asks Harry if he'll be a godfather to the baby, and Harry agrees.<br />
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Their plan to break into Gringott's is simple: Go with Griphook, with Hermione disguised as Bellatrix Lestrange in order to access her vault. As Harry stole Bellatrix's wand during their tussle at Malfoy Mansion, they have her wand and even some of her hair for use in the Polyjuice Potion.<br />
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Their plan goes reasonably well; Hermione makes a very convincing Bellatrix, and with only a few snags, Griphook manages to get them down to her vault. It's guarded by a half-blind dragon, but they get past that obstacle fairly easily, thanks to Griphook.<br />
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Suddenly, things start to fall apart. They're discovered to be imposters, and the treasure in the vault starts multiplying every time it's touched. Harry manages to spot what they came for: Hufflepuff's cup, which he is sure is a Horcrux. He just manages to get it before they're all crushed to death. Griphook escapes with the sword, and Harry, Hermione, and Ron manage to get back out of the bank on the back of the half-blind dragon.<br />
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When the dragon finally gets them down low enough they jump into a lake, somewhere far away from London. Once they've treated their many injuries, they discuss the fact that they lost the sword they so desperately needed to destroy the Horcrux.<br />
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Suddenly Harry has a vision of Voldemort, who just found out that they took the golden cup from the vault. His rage is apoplectic. He kills almost everyone around him, and he can't believe Harry knows so much about his past and his Horcruxes. Voldemort now is no longer sure the rest of his Horcruxes are safe and realizes he must go check on all of them immediately to make sure.<br />
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As Harry comes to, he realizes that the last physical Horcrux, other than the snake Nagini, is at Hogwarts. That is where they must go next, and soon, because Voldemort will be checking to make sure it's safe.<br />
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As soon as they Apparate into Hogsmeade Village, a scream rends the air, alerting the Death Eaters to their presence. They're taken in by the barkeep of the Hog's Head, who hides them from the Death Eaters and makes up an excuse for the alarm going off. Harry suddenly recognizes the bartender as Dumbledore's brother. <br />
<br />
Aberforth tells them the truth about Dumbledore's past, and agrees to help them get into Hogwarts. He speaks to the portrait of his dead sister, Ariana. She leaves and brings back none other than Neville Longbottom.<br />
<br />
Neville is overjoyed to see them, but Harry is horrified at Neville, who looks as though he recently was beaten almost to death. Neville leads them through an opening behind the portrait, down a long, dark hallway. It's the last secret passageway into Hogwarts. As they walk, Neville fills them in on what's been happening at Hogwarts. It's been horrible, and the three can't believe how different things are at the school.<br />
<br />
When they get to the school, they are surprised to come out in the Room of Requirement. There is a cheering crowd waiting for them, and they're all happy to see their old friends again.<br />
<br />
There's an argument, however. Harry knows that they don't have much time, but everyone wants to help him. He insists they stay behind, and he gets even more panicked when more and more people start pouring in from the Hog's Head. Luna, Dean, Fred, George, Ginny, Lee Jordan, and Cho Chang all come climbing through. Harry, with some urging from Ron and Hermione, agrees to let them help. He figures out that they're looking for Ravenclaw's long lost diadem, a type of tiara she wore.<br />
<br />
Harry goes to the Ravenclaw common room to look at a statue of Rowena Ravenclaw wearing the diadem; he's met by one of the Death Eater professors, Amycus Carrow, who instantly touches the Dark Mark to alert Voldemort that they found Harry.<br />
<br />
Harry stuns Carrow and begins to tell Professor McGonagall what they're up to. They tell her that they must find the lost diadem before Voldemort gets into the castle. McGonagall tells Harry that she and the others will secure the castle against Voldemort as long as they can so that Harry can search for the diadem.<br />
<br />
As they're walking through the hall, they run into Snape. He and Professor McGonagall duel fiercely with magic so quick that Harry has never seen the like of it. When the other professors show up to help McGonagall, Snape jumps out one of the windows to join Voldemort, who is now just outside the grounds.<br />
<br />
The professors immediately begin putting charms and spells all around the castle to hold off Voldemort.<br />
<br />
When Harry gets back to the Room of Requirement, he's shocked to see that even more people have shown up, including Lupin, Kingsley, and Ron's whole family.<br />
<br />
All the Death Eaters, the Malfoy's, Bellatrix, Snape, and Voldemort group together in the forest by the castle. All the other Death Eaters (around 400) take out their wands and destroy Hogwarts' magical forcefield. They all Dissapparate, except Bellatrix, Snape, and Voldemort. Snape and Bellatrix conjoin their magic and make the largest dark mark ever seen over Hogwarts.<br />
<br />
Watching the dark mark from outside, McGonagall informs Flitwick to let all the of-age students stay to fight if they wish but escort the others to Hogsmeade where they can escape to safety.<br />
<br />
In the Great Hall, teachers and prefects are sneaking the younger students out of the school before the battle begins.<br />
<br />
The Order and the professors have agreed upon a battle plan and start splitting up. Many students who are of-age have stayed to fight, and they're all preparing for the battle that will come soon. The air is tense with expectation, and Harry, who is starting to panic, still does not know where to begin looking for the diadem.<br />
<br />
As he races through the hallways, he has an idea. Everyone keeps saying the diadem hasn't been seen by anyone in living memory. That does not, however, include ghosts. He hunts down Nick, the Gryffindor ghost, and asks him about it. Nick points him towards the Grey Lady, who is Ravenclaw's ghost, and Harry asks her about the diadem. She tells him that she was Rowena Ravenclaw's own daughter, and that she was the one who stole the diadem from her mother. She also confesses that she revealed the location of the diadem to one other student, Tom Riddle.<br />
<br />
Harry runs into Hagrid after talking with the Grey Lady, and suddenly he knows exactly where the diadem is. He realizes he saw it last year in the Room of Requirement when he went in to hide his Potions book. It's a tiara, on a stone bust, in that junky old room. He can't believe it.<br />
<br />
Hermione and Ron sneak into the Chamber of Secrets, where they are attacked by a giant tsunami of Voldemort. They retrieve a fang from the almost decayed body of the basilisk and kill the cup. After the "life flashing before their eyes" moment is over, Ron and Hermione lean in and kiss.<br />
<br />
As he's racing to the Room of Requirement, he finally finds Ron and Hermione, who had the brilliant idea to go down into the Chamber of Secrets and get some basilisk fangs, which is one of the only other things that can destroy the Horcrux. He's amazed at their brilliance. Hermione has already destroyed the cup.<br />
<br />
The battle has begun, and they race even harder to get there. When they finally get the Room of Requirement open, they begin searching for the stone bust. They're disgusted to find out that Draco Malfoy, Gregory Goyle and Blaise Zabini are in the room as well.<br />
<br />
They begin to duel ,and Harry just manages to grab the tiara before the piles of junk bury it forever. Blaise was disarmed by Harry and then stunned by Hermione. The room catches on fire from a spell and they manage to get out, saving Malfoy and the stunned Blaise Zabini in the process. Goyle is burned to death by the Fiendfyre.<br />
<br />
After they get out, they happily realize the tiara was destroyed in the magical fire, but suddenly Percy and Fred come into view, dueling with two Death Eaters in the hallway. Suddenly, the wall is blasted open from the outside, and Fred is killed in the explosion.<br />
<br />
Many students (many Quidditch players) fight off Death Eaters in the Quidditch pitch. The Quidditch pitch is burned down afterwards by Death Eaters.<br />
<br />
A montage of things show: Gryffindor Common Room being broken into, Herbology Greenhouses being destroyed, Centaurs and elves fight Death Eaters, many ogres and giants destroy what's left of Hogwarts,and Death Eaters start a gigantic fire.<br />
<br />
Harry, Ron, and Hermione have to drag Fred's body out of the way, and Harry can't permit himself to grieve. Out of the noisy hall, Voldemort's magnified voice says if Harry doesn't turn himself in within the hour, then he will kill every person who sides with Harry, and then he will kill Harry.<br />
<br />
Harry decides to act when he sees Lupin's and Tonk's bodies being carried in. Hermione tries to stop him, but Harry leaves the Great Hall. As Harry is racing out, along with many other students running down the grand staircase, he's stopped by Ginny. Without another word, she allows him to leave.<br />
<br />
Snape and Voldemort stand at the boathouse. Voldemort sends several striking spells to the window at the Great Hall from there. After many "reductos", everyone gets out of the Great Hall (with the exception of several bodies, including Fred's) before the Great Hall bursts into a flames and caves in.<br />
<br />
While they are in there, they hear Snape talking with Voldemort. Voldemort wants to know why the Elder Wand won't work for him like it's supposed to. He can't do the extraordinary magic that he thought he'd be able to, and he blames Snape for this. Because Snape is the one who killed Dumbledore, Snape is the wand's true owner. He therefore must kill Snape in order for the wand to work properly, and he does this immediately, with no remorse, setting Nagini on Snape, and his body floats into the water.<br />
<br />
Voldemort leaves the boathouse, and a hand (Harry's) grabs Snape and pulls him to the dock. Snape quickly pulls out his wand, extracts a memory and gives it to Harry. Then Snape slowly bleeds to death.<br />
<br />
A large battle erupts on the Viaduct and Bridge (including a Neville and Bellatrix faceoff). It ends with the bridge collapsing, causing many unknown deaths.<br />
<br />
In Snape's (formerly Dumbledore's) office, Harry stuns some Death Eaters wandering around the pensive.<br />
<br />
He decides to look at Snape's memory to see what he had been trying to tell him.<br />
<br />
What he sees is so shocking that he doesn't even know how to comprehend it. Snape, it turns out, had been in love with his mother, Lily, since he was a boy. He worshiped her, and even though he lost her to James, Harry's father, he never stopped caring about her. While Harry was at Hogwarts, Snape did whatever he could to protect him, and it was all done out of love for his mother.<br />
<br />
Harry also sees that last year, after Dumbledore took the ring Horcrux that shriveled his arm, he had a limited amount of time to live in spite of Snape's best efforts to remove the curse. Dumbledore knew that Malfoy had been put to the task of killing him and asked Snape if he would do it when the time came, since he was dying anyway. Events and memories unfold, and Harry sees that Snape was loyal, that he always was, and that perhaps he even cared for Harry in spite of his best efforts to hide it.<br />
<br />
Harry also finds out that a piece of Voldemort's soul is inside him and has been since Voldemort tried to kill him as an infant. He must die in order for Voldemort to be truly defeated, and Voldemort has to be the one to do it.<br />
<br />
Harry's heart seems to beat harder and with more vigor now that he knows he must die. Now that he knows, he feels more alive than ever, and wonders if it will hurt. As he sits in the office coming to grips with the fact that he must die soon, he knows that he won't duck out. Too many people have died for him already.<br />
<br />
He can't bear to say goodbye to anyone, so he doesn't. Harry sees Neville on his way out and tells him that if something happens to him, he must kill Voldemort's snake at all costs.<br />
<br />
As he walks across the grounds towards the Forbidden Forest, he's flooded with memories of his time there. Everything is suddenly so precious, and he wishes more than anything that he just had more time to live his life. He realizes suddenly that the Snitch might open now that he is about to die, and when he tries it, sure enough, it opens. The Resurrection Stone falls out. When he turns it, his parents, James and Lily, and Sirius, and Lupin all appear, ghostly white in the night. They stay with him as he walks to the middle of the forest to meet his doom.<br />
<br />
When he finally finds Voldemort, it takes only a moment. There is a flash of green light, and there is a slow motion of Harry falling, while the "memories" of his beloved deceased surround him.<br />
<br />
When Harry opens his eyes, he is alone in a bright mist. The more he looks around, the more it looks like he's in some domed room. He thinks that he is in King's Cross. He sees a small, ugly crying child, and before he can do anything about it, Dumbledore appears.<br />
<br />
Dumbledore tells Harry that he (Harry) is not really dead and explains to him that because Harry let Voldemort kill him, that piece of Voldemort that was inside Harry is now gone. Harry still doesn't understand why he's not dead, however, and Dumbledore tells him that because Voldemort used Harry's blood to regenerate himself, Lily's protection is now inside both of them. His body keeps her sacrifice alive, and it's because of this that Harry is still alive.<br />
<br />
Dumbledore also tells Harry about the Hallows, and how all this time Harry has had the magical Cloak from the legend. He explains all about his true past, his duel with Grindelwald, and their quest to obtain all three Hallows for themselves. He is sad and bitter about his past, but is determined not to have any more secrets from Harry.<br />
<br />
He also tells Harry that he has a choice to stay or go back, and Harry decides to go back. Before going back, he looks at the child for the last time when Dumbledore tells him to pity the living, not the dead.<br />
<br />
When Harry opens his eyes again, he's back in the forest, face-down on the ground. He hears Voldemort, who is on the ground as well, telling someone to make sure he's dead. Soft hands touch his face, and a whisper asks if Draco is alive. Harry whispers that he is, and Narcissa yells back to the crowd that Harry is, indeed, dead. Voldemort makes Hagrid carry him back up to the castle to show everyone Harry's body.<br />
<br />
When they reach the grounds, all the fighters of Hogwarts come out. Harry is still pretending to be dead, and his heart hurts to hear their grief for him. As Voldemort tortures Neville for trying to defy him, several things happen at once. Centaurs flood the grounds, shooting arrows at the Death Eaters; Grawp comes bursting out of the forest; and Neville manages to slice off Nagini's head with Gryffindors sword, which he pulls out of the Sorting Hat.<br />
<br />
A new battle rages on, and Voldemort runs into Hogwarts. Under his cloak, Harry follows him, intent on ending it for good. The battle is fierce, and Harry winds in and out, determined to get to Voldemort.<br />
<br />
Many battle in what's left of the Great Hall. Bellatrix (who also almost kills Ginny) battles Molly Weasley on a table. As Bellatrix taunts, Molly kills Bellatrix.<br />
<br />
In the great battle in the Entrance Courtyard, Harry reveals himself before Voldemort kills another person.<br />
<br />
Voldemort confronts him, locks him up, and asks why he isn't dead. Harry explains what Dumbledore told him.<br />
<br />
Voldemort releases Harry and demands a duel to prove he's the owner of the wand. Harry explains why he is the owner of the wand. Voldemort replies, "Only I can live... forever."<br />
<br />
They break out into a slow motion duel. Many voice-overs from all the movies strike while the one-minute slow-motion duel continues. The voice-overs end with, "Only I can live... forever," and small lightning strikes come from the Elder Wand to Harry's wand and then to Voldemort's hand, disarming him.<br />
<br />
Voldemort is dead, and Harry is left alive, the true master of the Elder Wand.<br />
<br />
After it's over, Harry wants nothing but to be alone. He sneaks out with Ron and Hermione in order to tell them everything that happened. They go up to Dumbledore's office for one last talk with the Headmaster's portrait, and Harry decides to release the Elder Wand because it causes more trouble than it's worth. Dumbledore, it turns out, agrees with him. Before returning the Elder Wand, however, Harry uses it one last time to repair his old broken wand.<br />
<br />
19 YEARS LATER <br />
Harry and Ginny have arrived at King's Cross to see their kids off to school. Lily, their daughter, is not quite old enough, but James and Albus are leaving. It's Albus's first year, and he's very nervous that he won't be in Gryffindor like his father. They run into Ron and Hermione, who are also there dropping their kids off. Everything ends happily ever after.<br />
<br />
And there you have it! That's the second part of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, in a nutshell. You had better be in line on July 15th!Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-59322276139271922242011-04-27T08:29:00.000-07:002011-05-30T19:05:26.733-07:00Royal Wedding: Brits rather unenthusedI was doing my daily search on Time magazine's website, time.com, and I found this article about the royal wedding. Since I've posted a few articles about the wedding, this might be of interest to you. I have to think there are probably few of us Americans who actually care about some royal wedding that's not even happening in our country. I am not a royal diehard, but I find their lifestyle interesting. It's the historical aspect, I suppose. Anyway, since the royal wedding affects Britain, don't you think the Brits would care a little bit about it? Well, according to this article, apparently not. There is a small percentage of Brits that are going all-out for the wedding, including tea parties to watch the television coverage of the wedding-- cakes will be served, a prize for best "fancy hat" awarded and "gossiping will be mandatory," but generally, like Americans, the Brits are just sick of hearing about it. In fact, Alex Smith, 56, "a gruff, lifelong fisherman and acquaintance of Stewart's, has no such activities in mind. "There's na a thing in the world I'd like to do less than watch that rubbish," he says in a booming Scottish brogue. "This country needs to get a grip.""<br />
<br />
Another interesting piece of information is that even though the Brits have different views on "the entertainment value" of the royal wedding, most of them agree on one thing: the monarchy is nothing to get excited about. Most Brits are indifferent about the monarchy itself; the royal wedding is merely considered an entertaining event or a nuisance, but very rarely considered a serious political event. Time.com offers a few statistics: "In a recent poll of 2,000 British adults, 35% said they planned to watch the wedding on television; the same proportion intends to ignore proceedings, and the rest had no specific plans. A separate poll found that 79% of Brits — including those who will watch the event — were either "largely indifferent" or "couldn't care less" about the royal wedding. And although women were twice as likely as men to have made arrangements to watch the wedding, Stewart says many see it as nothing more than an excuse to throw a party."<br />
<br />
Jean Stewart is a 62-year-old retired restaurateur comments in Time.com:<br />
"It's just a bit of frivolity and fun," Stewart explains. "I don't think anyone takes it seriously."<br />
<br />
The article continues,<br />
<br />
"Well, some do. Republic, a 12,000-strong lobby group that advocates replacing the Queen with an elected head of state, has been pushing its agenda hard in the run-up to the wedding. The group wishes to see the Queen stripped of her remaining "prerogative powers," such as the need for parliamentary bills to have her formal assent before they become law, and her ability to disband the British Parliament and the legislatures of several Commonwealth countries, which her acting Governor General in Australia did in 1975. <br />
<br />
"It's the best time for us because the wedding draws attention to the monarchy, and the truth is that people in Britain aren't in love with the monarchy. A majority don't hold strong feelings either way, and they can be convinced," says Graham Smith, the campaign manager for Republic. <br />
<br />
Maybe, but Brits have a habit of hiding their passion behind a facade of indifference; in the buildup to the Queen's Golden Jubilee celebration in 2002, which marked 50 years of her reign, commentators speculated that the monarchy had lost touch with Brits following the death of Princess Diana in 1997, but then 1 million people showed up for the celebration. And whatever the polls say, London officials anticipate that hundreds of thousands will line the royal-wedding route in the capital; thousands of street parties have also been planned around the country."<br />
<br />
Read the rest at <a href="http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2067262-2,00.html">http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2067262-2,00.html</a>.Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-13330859512312806642011-04-23T09:44:00.000-07:002011-05-30T19:07:18.196-07:00Next on the Movie-To-See List? Rio.<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">I LOVE movies. Seriously. I do. I practically collect them, and I buy pretty much every single one that I even remotely liked. I just recently posted about Hop, the Easter movie. Now I want to tell you about Rio, a movie from the creators of <em>Ice Age</em>. It's next on my list of movies-to-see. Because I don't know much about it yet, obviously, because I haven't seen it, I'm going to give you the story as written on the official Rio site, along with a link to my favorite Rio trailer. Get out to the theater to see it! I will, too!</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://seinsider.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/Rio-film-Poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="245" id="il_fi" src="http://seinsider.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/Rio-film-Poster.jpg" style="padding-bottom: 8px; padding-right: 8px; padding-top: 8px;" width="320" /></a>"From the makers of the hit <em>Ice Age </em>series comes RIO, a comedy adventure about taking a walk on the wild side. Blu is a domesticated Macaw who never learned to fly, living a comfortable life with his owner and best friend Linda in the small town of Moose Lake, Minnesota. Blu and Linda think he's the last of his kind, but when they learn about another Macaw who lives in Rio de Janeiro, they head to the faraway and exotic land to find Jewel, Blu's female counterpart. Not long after they arrive, Blu and Jewel are kidnapped by a group of bungling animal smugglers. With the help of street smart Jewel, and a group of wise-cracking, smooth-talking city birds, Blu escapes. Now, with his new friends by his side, Blu will have to find the courage to learn to fly, thwart the kidnappers who are hot on their trail, and return to Linda, the best friend a bird ever had."</div><br />
Sounds good, right? I think so. too. Here's the link to my favorite Rio commercial: <br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KsGO7nvz0Tw">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KsGO7nvz0Tw</a>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-81217417491367380472011-04-23T09:18:00.000-07:002011-05-30T19:09:28.361-07:00HOP on Over to the Theater<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://www.ictoystore.com/images/hop-movie1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" id="il_fi" src="http://www.ictoystore.com/images/hop-movie1.jpg" style="padding-bottom: 8px; padding-right: 8px; padding-top: 8px;" width="214" /></a>It's almost Easter, and one of the world's most popular movies commemorates that fact. I'm talking about Hop, the movie starring James Marsden and the voice of Russell Brand. Hop combines live action with state-of-the-art animation. The movie is about a teenage bunny, E.B., who is destined to be the Easter Bunny (his father is the current Easter Bunny, and is about to "retire"). On the eve of taking over the business, E.B. runs away to Hollywood, where he plans to become a famous drummer. He encounters Fred (James Marsden), an out-of-work slacker with his own lofty goals, who accidentally hits E.B. with his car. Feigning injury, E.B. manipulates Fred into providing him shelter, and Fred finds himself with the world's worst house guest.</div><br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c4/Hop2011Poster.jpg" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="File:Hop2011Poster.jpg" height="320" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c4/Hop2011Poster.jpg" width="216" /></a>After E.B. causes trouble for Fred, Fred attempts to abandon E.B. in the wilderness, all to no avail. E.B. claims to be the Easter Bunny, whom Fred saw in action when he was a child. To summarize, Fred and E.B. strike a deal: If Fred helps E.B. get to the 'Hoff Knows Talent' show, E.B. will leave Fred alone for good. Needless to say, that doesn't work out so well, especially after E.B. finds out that his father has sent the ninja royal guard, known as the Pink Berets, after him. Essentially, Fred and E.B. are stuck together until they eventually end up back on Easter Island, which is E.B.'s home.</div><br />
While Fred and E.B. are gallivanting around Los Angeles, Easter Chick Carlos and his music-obsessed assistant, Phil, plot an overthrow of the "government" against the Easter Bunny to take over the Easter organization. At the end of the story, E.B., Fred, and the Easter Bunny all come together to rescue each other and stop Carlos from taking over Easter Island.<br />
<br />
This movie was the cutest one I've ever seen. Complete with amazing drum solos (all by E.B., of course), catchy music, and Russell Brand's awesome voice (and accent), Hop was a great investment of my time and money. I will definitely be buying it when it comes out on DVD. Just like Christmas movies get you in the feel-good mood for Christmas, this movie gets you all pumped up for Easter!<br />
<br />
Watch the trailer here: <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vn5aSK5ZLM8">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vn5aSK5ZLM8</a>.Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-48575105114157810252011-04-23T08:09:00.000-07:002011-05-30T19:12:11.635-07:00Monuments Every American Should SeeI'm a history buff; there's no doubt about it. I long to see the world's every nook and cranny before I die. I found this article while browsing on yahoo.com. It talks about awe-inspiring American monuments, where they are, and why you should see them. The article ranks the "country’s most epic buildings, monuments, and engineering feats, with advice for navigating them smarter, better, and with fewer crowds." So grab a pen and pencil, mister, 'cause you'll want to write these down! I did!<br />
<br />
<strong>Golden Gate Bridge- </strong>San Francisco, CA<br />
<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/tr/monuments/goldengate.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="121" src="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/tr/monuments/goldengate.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div><alt="" ?the="" baker="" beach="" bridge="" class="img_credit" francisco?="" from="" gate="" golden="" in="" san=""><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Once the world's longest suspension bridge,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">the 1.7-mile Golden Gate has since been</span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">surpassed in size-but not in beauty. </span><br />
</alt=""><br />
<div><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo: </span><a erhf="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:GoldenGateBridge_BakerBeach_MC.jpg" href="http://www.blogger.com/"><span style="color: #21629c; font-size: xx-small;">Christian Mehlführer</span></a><span style="font-size: xx-small;">/Wikipedia Commons</span></div></div></td></tr>
</tbody></table> <br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Once the world's longest suspension bridge, the 1.7-mile Golden Gate has since been surpassed in size-but not in beauty. Hundreds of people walk the span from San Francisco to Sausalito each day, so you'll want to plan wisely. Bypass the two-hour meters at the overcrowded main lot off S.F.'s Merchant Road in favor of ample free parking at Crissy Field Center (crissyfield.org). There, fair-trade coffee awaits at the Warming Hut Café & Bookstore, a whitewashed shed near the shore that's the perfect place to fuel up for the gentle, half-mile Bay Trail to the bridge. The Golden Gate's best-kept secret: Although it's closed to pedestrians after sunset, gates are opened for star-gazing cyclists.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong>Hoover Dam- </strong>Boulder City, NV</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div> <br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/tr/monuments/hoover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The Hoover Dam Bypass Bridge" border="0" height="121" src="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/tr/monuments/hoover.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">The now completed Hoover Dam Bypass Bridge</span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> (aka the Mike O'Callaghan–Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge)</span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> stands 890 feet above the Colorado River. </span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">The shot was taken from the </span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Hoover Dam the day after the </span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">"Bridging America" event. </span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo: </span><a href="http://travel.yahoo.com/sankefisch/Wikimedia%20Commons"><span style="color: #21629c; font-size: xx-small;">sankefisch</span></a><span style="font-size: xx-small;">/Wikimedia Commons</span></div></td></tr>
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">It's never been easier to visit this 75-year-old colossus, which provides 20 million residents of California, <span class="pic" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0px;"></span>Nevada, and Arizona with water and 1.3 million with hydroelectricity. Some new engineering is now helping the flow of the near-million annual visitors: a four-lane, 1,900-foot-long Hoover Dam bypass bridge. This bridge is the second-highest in the nation, perched at almost 900 feet above the rushing Colorado River. Avoid the intense summer heat (as high as 110 degrees) by planning your visit during January or February, when temperatures hover in the low 60s. But be sure to arrive by 3 p.m. to tour the dam itself; visitors aren't allowed to the top of the facility after dark, which comes as early as 4:30 p.m. during that time of year.</div><br />
<strong>Hollywood Walk of Fame- </strong>Los Angeles, CA<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/tr/monuments/hollywood.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Kodak Theater on Hollywood Boulevard, Los Angeles" border="0" height="121" src="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/tr/monuments/hollywood.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">It may look tame here, but come Oscar night, </span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">the Kodak Theater on Hollywood Boulevard </span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">plays host to the biggest event in Tinseltown. </span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo: </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Hollywood_boulevard_from_kodak_theatre.jpg"><span style="color: #21629c; font-size: xx-small;">David Iliff</span></a><span style="font-size: xx-small;">/Wikipedia Commons</span></div></td></tr>
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Each year, another 20 to 30 luminaries are added to the more than 2,400 celebrities already immortalized <span class="pic" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0px;"></span>in pink terrazzo along Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street. The Official Hollywood Walk of Fame iPhone app tells you exactly where to find Bette Davis, the Beatles, and both Harrison Fords (the other one was a silent film star). Parking in Hollywood is notoriously challenging, so this is a rare moment when L.A.'s subway comes in handy: The Red Line, which runs between North Hollywood and Down-town, stops at Hollywood and Vine; riders can leave their cars at one of the 1,500-plus free parking spots available at the North Hollywood and Universal City stops at the line's western end.</div><br />
<strong>Mount Rushmore-</strong> Keystone, SD<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/tr/monuments/rushmore.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Mount Rushmore, in western South Dakota" border="0" height="121" src="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/tr/monuments/rushmore.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln and Roosevelt</span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> are here, immortalized, both in stone and </span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">American history. </span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo: </span><a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mount_Rushmore.jpg"><span style="color: #21629c; font-size: xx-small;">NPS</span></a><span style="font-size: xx-small;">/Wikimedia Commons</span></div></td></tr>
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">You can't actually clamber over the presidents' heads like Cary Grant in North by Northwest. But the 500-foot-tall Mount Rushmore and the surrounding national forest still pack plenty of cinematic punch, thanks to <span class="pic" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0px;"></span>the spiraling bridges, rock tunnels, and pinnacles of granite that line scenic Highway 89 north of Custer. There's no fee to see the busts (sculpted by 400 men), other than an $11 parking permit that, once paid, is good for the calendar year. Don't miss the equally epic Crazy Horse Memorial, slated to be the world's largest cliff carving, just 15 miles away.</div><br />
<strong>French Quarter-</strong> New Orleans, LA<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/tr/monuments/neworleans.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="New Orleans' Jackson Square" border="0" height="121" src="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/tr/monuments/neworleans.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Jackson Square—once named Place d'Armes, but </span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">renamed for Battle of New Orleans's Andrew Jackson—</span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">is a French Quarter destination for culture,</span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> lined with museums, shops, restaurants, and galleries. </span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo: </span><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/vxla/5097889466/"><span style="color: #21629c; font-size: xx-small;">vxla</span></a><span style="font-size: xx-small;">/Flickr/Wikipedia Commons</span></div></td></tr>
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Everyone knows about the delights of New Orleans in the spring, when Mardi Gras and Jazz Fest turn the 70-block antebellum French Quarter into a rollicking 24-hour party, but an off-season visit delivers far more value. Hotels are a particular bargain during the summer months, when venerable institutions such as t<span class="pic" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0px;"></span>he 125-year-old Hotel Monteleone, a favorite haunt of Tennessee Williams, slashes its rates from the Mardi Gras high of $179 down to just $129. The deals don't stop there: The city was named the country's most affordable dining destination last November by Zagat Survey. And as part of an initiative by Coolinary New Orleans, more than 30 ritzy Quarter restaurants such as Antoine's offer three-course lunches for $20 during August and September.</div><br />
<strong>Las Vegas Strip- </strong>Las Vegas, NV<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/tr/monuments/vegas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The Strip in Las Vegas" border="0" height="121" src="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/tr/monuments/vegas.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">A view of the strip at sunset. This may be the only city</span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> in the world where can you find a permanent circus,</span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> an indoor sky, and a slice of the Roman Empire. </span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo: </span><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/pedrosz/5455610052/"><span style="color: #21629c; font-size: xx-small;">Pedro Szekely</span></a><span style="font-size: xx-small;">/Flickr</span></div></td></tr>
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Where else in the world can you find a permanent circus, an indoor sky, and a slice of the Roman Empire? <span class="pic" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0px;"></span>Strip's north end debuted its SkyJump attraction, the highest "controlled free fall" in the world. (Think skydiving with a cable instead of a parachute.) Brave souls, who pay $100 for the privilege, can make the 108-story leap as late as 2 a.m. on weekends, when all the glittering lights amp up the drama.</div><br />
<strong>Gateway Arch-</strong> St. Louis, MO<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/tr/monuments/arch.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Gateway Arch in St. Louis" border="0" height="121" src="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/tr/monuments/arch.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Towering over the St. Louis skyline, the </span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Gateway Arch's impressive stature </span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">packs an even bigger punch as it lights </span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">up the night sky. </span></div><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo: </span><a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St_Louis_night.jpg"><span style="color: #21629c; font-size: xx-small;">Daniel Schwen</span></a><span style="font-size: xx-small;">/Wikimedia Commons</span></div></td></tr>
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Some Americans might be surprised to discover that the country's tallest man-made monument isn't the <span class="pic" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0px;"></span>Statue of Liberty (305 feet) or the Washington Monument (555 feet)-it's St. Louis's Gateway Arch, a 630-foot wonder with vertigo-inducing views of paddle-wheel boats steaming down the Mississippi. Two tram services carry the 4 million annual visitors on four-minute rides to the top. Architecture buffs opt for the north leg, which features an exhibit on the arch's construction, while armchair historians make for the south leg, which focuses on 19th-century life along the St. Louis waterfront. Either way, you'll want to avoid gusty days, as the arch's apex can sway up to 18 inches.</div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/tr/monuments/skywalk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Grand Canyon Skywalk" border="0" height="121" src="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/tr/monuments/skywalk.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Grand Canyon Skywalk </span><br />
<div><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo: John Burcham/Corbis</span></div></div></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong>Grand Canyon Skywalk-</strong> Tusayan, AZ</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">This gravity-defying glass bridge, perched 4,000 feet above the floor of the Grand Canyon, on its western <span class="pic" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0px;"></span>rim, has hosted more than 250,000 visitors a year since it opened four years ago-and the knee-buckling privilege doesn't come cheap. The only way to access the Skywalk is via Grand Canyon West, a tourist area run by the Hualapai tribe on land located outside the Grand Canyon National Park. The most affordable ticket option is the Legacy Gold package, an all-day pass that includes a meal, a tour, and tribal demonstrations along with the Skywalk ticket.</div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/tr/monuments/chicago.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" cloud="" gate?="" height="121" in="" millennium="" park.?="" src="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/tr/monuments/chicago.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="img_credit"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">"Cloud Gate" in Millennium Park. </span><br />
<div><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo: Bob Krist/Corbis</span></div></div></td></tr>
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong>Millennium Park-</strong> Chicago, IL</div> <br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">This 24.5-acre park in the heart of downtown Chicago opened in 2004, and is a wonderland of cutting-edge <span class="pic" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0px;"></span>architecture and design. Playful, family-friendly, and free attractions include the Cloud Gate sculpture, which reflects the downtown skyline and visitors' faces like a series of fun-house mirrors, and Crown Fountain, a multimedia installation that pairs splash-worthy sprays of water with 50-foot-tall video portraits.</div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/tr/monuments/liberty.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The Statue of Liberty watches over New York Harbor" border="0" height="121" src="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/tr/monuments/liberty.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="img_credit" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Ellis Island served as the entry point for</span></div><div class="img_credit" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> millions of immigrating families—</span></div><div class="img_credit" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">and modern American families still pass</span></div><div class="img_credit" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> through here today to learn about them. </span></div><div class="img_credit" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo: </span><a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Liberty-statue-from-front2.jpg"><span style="color: #21629c; font-size: xx-small;">Derek Jensen</span></a><span style="font-size: xx-small;">/Wikimedia Commons</span></div></td></tr>
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong>Statue of Liberty-</strong> New York, NY</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Lady Liberty's crown, which reopened after an eight-year hiatus in 2009, is scheduled to close again in<span class="pic" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0px;"></span> November (along with the rest of the statue) for at least a year's worth of safety upgrades, so act fast to see the famous 125-year-old French gift from the inside. As you exit the ferry at Liberty Island, you'll need to purchase a Crown Visit wristband at the information center. The only thing you're allowed to take inside is a camera. Even cell phones and wallets are no-gos, so travel light and bring two singles to feed the three-hour lockers where you'll stash your goods. (There's no change machine, and to complicate the matter further, only singles and dollar coins are accepted). One wardrobe must: shoes with good grip. Descending the crown's 354 steps can be a slippery affair.</div><br />
And there you have it! Start packing those bags!<br />
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-16714270891961135272011-04-17T13:54:00.000-07:002011-05-30T19:15:02.733-07:00Straightening Hair Bad for Your HealthOut with the curly, and in with the straight. Straight hair seems to be all the rage in the hairstyle department nowadays, and women are going to great lengths to get it. Even risking their health. The recently popular form of straightening hair, known as the Brazilian Blowout, is apparently bad for your health. According to Time.com, "the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a hazard alert on April 11 warning hair salon owners and workers about potential exposure to formaldehyde from using some hair smoothing and straightening products, including the Brazilian Blowout brand. (Formaldehyde helps bind keratin to hair, straightening it.)"<br />
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<div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">OSHA, responding to complaints from workers, "found evidence of dangerously high levels of formaldehyde in the air of salons using these hair-straightening products — even though the products are often listed as 'formaldehyde free.' The agency also found evidence of allergic reactions by workers and clients to the products, including nosebleeds and eye irritation." </div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><div sizcache="5973" sizset="0">"OSHA recommends that salon owners use products that do not contain formaldehyde, methylene glycol, formalin, methylene oxide, paraform, formic aldehyde, methanal, oxomethane, oxymethylene or Chemical Abstract Service Number 50-00-0. But that won't always be easy for workers — personal care products sold to salons and other professional hair-care services aren't always required to list their ingredients. 'Workers may not even know what's in the products they're using,' says Alexandra Gorman Scranton, director of science and research at <a href="http://www.womensvoices.org/" target="_blank" title="Women's Voices for the Earth"><span style="color: black;">Women's Voices for the Earth</span></a> and a co-founder of the <a href="http://www.safecosmetics.org/" target="_blank" title="Campaign for Safe Cosmetics"><span style="color: black;">Campaign for Safe Cosmetics</span></a>."</div><div sizcache="5973" sizset="0"><br />
</div><div sizcache="5973" sizset="0">Apparently looking good isn't always as great as it seems. As someone with curly hair and a greater desire to sleep in in the mornings instead of waking up to look good, I say it's not worth it. Your health is much too valuable to put at risk just because you want your hair straightened for a couple of hours.</div><div sizcache="5973" sizset="0"><br />
</div><div sizcache="5973" sizset="0">Read the rest of the article at <a href="http://healthland.time.com/2011/04/13/warning-getting-your-hair-straightened-could-be-hazardous-to-your-health/?xid=rss-topstories">http://healthland.time.com/2011/04/13/warning-getting-your-hair-straightened-could-be-hazardous-to-your-health/?xid=rss-topstories</a>.</div></div></div>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-10601771729473065542011-04-17T13:45:00.000-07:002011-05-30T19:19:22.382-07:00Critic Claims Gone with the Wind is Not a RomanceCritic John Cloud recently wrote an essay in Time magazine, stating that, generally, Gone with the Wind is "still mistaken for a romance. It's actually a gritty eulogy."<br />
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Gone with the Wind was published in the summer of 1936 and hit the markets at $3, the equivalent of $50 today, and sold a million copies by Christmas. It now ranks among the best-selling books ever published in English. Gone with the Wind continues to "transcend criticism, like <em>Star Wars</em> or Lady Gaga, while never losing its relevance." Apparently, Cloud had a great-great-grandfather that fought in the Civil War and got so hungry after the journey home from Appomattox that he "ate hulls from an old pea patch and promptly vomited." He goes on to say that hunger is a constant theme in the novel, and that Southerners' humiliation at having lost the war was compounded by the knowledge that they never had a chance and the reckoning that came after. <br />
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Cloud cites Eric Foner's <em>A Short History of Reconstruction, </em>in which he so obviously states that "more than a quarter-million men were dead, and many cities and villages lay in near total ruin. The region had even lost nearly a third of its horses." In order to rebuild, the government needed to rely on taxes, but there was nothing left to tax except the ground itself. Cloud states that most people see Gone with the Wind as a romance novel, but the "force" that drives Scarlett O'Hara the most is having to pay the property taxes on Tara. She steals her sister's businessman fiance, robs a man she shoots in the face, and runs a mill that sells wood at "punishing" prices to former friends, all to accomplish the huge feat of paying property taxes. Cloud then goes on to say that the South's aversion to taxes has never quite abated, despite the infinitely dismal public schools and almost "nonexistent safety net."<br />
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Cloud claims that Gone with the Wind also helps explain why the South sends so many of its sons and daughters to fight wars. Essentially, he writes that in the South, the hotheads (the ones all geared up for war) usually prevail. He states that the novel is not really a tale of North vs. South, but more of an old South vs. new. Ashley represents the old; he "was born of a line of men who used their leisure for thinking, not doing, for spinning brightly colored dreams." Scarlett, however, is "diamond hard." <br />
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He ends the essay saying, "with its loving descriptions of organdy and horsemanship, Gone with the Wind seems genteel, but it is actually an unrelenting tale of how honor gives in to greed. Mitchell knew that loss was as tragic and inevitable as the South's self-imposed despoiling."<br />
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All that being said, I agree with him. I have read Gone with the Wind and seen the movie, and I believe that the novel is much more than just a love story. Mitchell, however inexperienced, wrote a compelling story that drew millions of people in. There is much more beneath the surface, though, and I find Cloud's take on it greatly interesting.Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-36503597506686621542011-04-17T10:09:00.000-07:002011-05-30T19:23:20.609-07:00Student Robbed of Valedictorian HonorHere we are, it's April, and seniors across America are gearing up to graduate high school. For some seniors out there, being valedictorian is a great honor, and achieving it is no small feat. For ABC News' Person of the Week, Fannetta Nelson Gordon, it was going to highlight her family's success. Gordon, a black senior at a Westinghouse High School in Pittsburgh in 1936, was supposed to be the valedictorian of her class. She was following in her sister's footsteps, who had graduated as the school's first black valedictorian two years earlier. However, school leaders, specifically the principal, did not want two black valedictorians so close together. The principal ordered Fanetta's teachers to cut her grades, and she fell from first in the class to fourth. One of her music teachers changed her grade from an A to a B. Fannetta was an extremely talented musician, according to friends and family.<br />
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Despite losing the honor of being valedictorian, Fannetta went on to earn two master's degrees and taught high school German. According to her older sister, Sophia, Fannetta never forgot about that changed grade. "She was heartbroken. She never got over it," says Sophia.<br />
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Fannetta died three years ago, and her family became even more determined to set the record straight. Now, 75 years later, the school has given Fannetta the honor she deserved. Sophia accepted the honor in place of Fannetta. There will be two valedictorians at Westinghouse High this year. One of them is named Fannetta.<br />
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However sad this story may be, it's great to see that she's getting the honor she deserved. It's a shame that it took them three years after her death to finally give her the recognition she earned. It's a shame that it took them 75 years. It's a shame that she didn't get the honor when she earned it, when it would have made the most difference to her.<br />
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This is a bittersweet story, but it has a happy ending, so all is well.Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-1902700838861297972011-04-17T09:49:00.000-07:002011-05-30T19:25:58.184-07:00Mortgage? Get It Paid For! <br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/re/gr/adzookiepainthouse.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/re/gr/adzookiepainthouse.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This photo was digitally made; <br />
no homes have been painted yet.</td></tr>
</tbody></table> <br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Don't want to pay your mortgage anymore? Turn your house into a billboard! A new advertising firm Adzookie says it will pay the house owner's mortgage every month for as long as the home stays painted. Adzookie recently launched the offer on its website, and they had more than 1,000 applications by noon the same day, according to Yahoo.com. One was even from a church. This simply underscores just how much homeowners are struggling to pay their mortgages. Adzookie intends to paint its logo and social media icons onto participating homes. Houses must remain painted for at least three months, and the agreement may be extended up to one year. Painting is expected to begin in a few weeks. Adzookie CEO Romeo Mendoza hopes "buzz" about the program will publicize his company. Let's not forget about the house-size ads, of course. Mendoza started the company 16 months ago and has been running it on his own funds since.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Wondering what Adzookie is? Well, it is a mobile ad network that places local businesses' ads for free if they, in exchange, allow ads to be placed on their own mobile sites. Ads can also be purchased for about $1 a day. The company currently employs just eight people, but Mendoza said he is looking to raise more money and expand his business. The home billboard scheme could raise the company's profile -- but Mendoza doesn't expect too many homes to obtain the subsidized deal. His budget for the entire program is $100,000, and he expects to spend about $8,000 per house on the painting alone. At the end of the agreement, Adzookie will paint the house back to its original colors. Leases and rentals aren't allowed, nor are homes in cities with bylaws that would prohibit the bright painting.</div><br />
So there you have it. Can't afford your mortgage? Get your house painted. The world just gets crazier and crazier. It's great.Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-24143183081947603982011-04-17T09:32:00.000-07:002011-05-30T19:28:48.661-07:00Oh, Women.So get this. Major General Maggie Woodward (<em>Major General!!!</em>) ruled the skies over Libya from her base in Germany, making her accomplishments another first for women in combat. How cool is that? Pretty cool, if you ask me. Anyway, I'll give you the summary of the article from Time magazine. Here goes.<br />
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Here's the mission, named Operation Odyssey Dawn: destroy as much of Gaddafi's (ruler of Libya) military and combat equipment as possible, specifically airplanes and jets and fighters. In order to do this (from Germany, I might add), Woodward "flashed orders to pilots and skippers from the Great Plains to the Dolomites. She scrambled U.S. warplanes from Italy's Aviano air base and ordered them to attack targets deep inside Libya. She dispatched secret orders to Marine amphibious ships in the Mediterranean, instructing their chopper crews when and where to stage for pilot search and rescue. She ordered electronic-countermeasures aircraft to broadcast radio messages encouraging Gaddafi's troops to mutiny. She sent B-2 bombers from their base in Missouri to destroy Libyan aircraft on the ground near Misratah. A week later, she dialed up a pair of B-1 bombers from South Dakota- which overcame a thick blanket of new snow, glare ice, and freezing fog-- to attack nearly 100 targets scattered across the North African desert." <br />
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This was the first time the "Reagan-era" B-1s had ever struck overseas targets from their U.S. base. This was also the first time in U.S. history that a woman commanded a military air campaign. Talk. About. Amazing. As a once wanna-be pilot, I was totally pumped about this article. Women rule the world! Okay, maybe not really, but I like the sound of that. Oh, and did I mention that she also stopped Gaddafi's tanks from entering a rebel-held city? Well, she did. Took her 12 hours to do it, but she did it, baby, with F-15Es to boot. She's probably my new hero, if I ever had one before. I hope to hear more about her, and I'll probably Google her, too. She's one of a kind, that's for sure. I'll leave you with her official bio from <a href="http://www.af.mil/">http://www.af.mil/</a>:<br />
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<span class="libtext">Maj. Gen. Margaret H. Woodward is Commander, 17th Air Force and U.S. Air Forces Africa, Ramstein Air Base, Germany. The command serves as the Air Component for U.S. Africa Command and has responsibility for all Air Force activities in the Africa theater spanning 53 countries, 11 million square miles and more than 900 million people.<br />
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General Woodward entered the Air Force in 1983 as a graduate of Arizona State University, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in aerospace engineering. Her career includes a variety of operational and staff positions, including command at the squadron, group and wing levels. She flew and commanded in operations Just Cause, Northern Watch, Southern Watch, Allied Force, Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. The general served in the Office of the Secretary of Defense as the Director of Protocol and military assistant, and she was the Deputy Director for Colonel Matters, Air Force Senior Leader Management Office, Washington, D.C. Prior to her current assignment, General Woodward was Vice Commander, 18th Air Force, at Scott Air Force Base, Ill.<br />
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General Woodward is a command pilot with more than 3,800 hours in the C-40, KC-135, C-37, T-38 and T-37.<br />
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Yeah. She's that awesome.</span>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8180391332904642532.post-63188599807243472122011-04-17T09:11:00.000-07:002011-05-30T19:31:33.621-07:00Gitmo Trial for Khalid Sheikh MohammedSo, I took this class called Famous Trials last year. Obviously, we studied famous trials. Among a bunch of really interesting trials such as the Charles Manson trial, John Hinckley Jr., and the Salem Witch trials, we studied a guy named Zacarias Moussaoui, one of the terrorists responsible for the 9/11 attacks. Of course we went even further to study the guys <em>behind</em> 9/11, not just the ones that carried it out. Just so happens Khalid Sheikh Mohammed was one of them.<br />
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It was announced earlier in the year that he would stand trial for his alleged planning of the surprise attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. That's great, right? Well, not so much. The Obama Administration went so far as to announce that it would hold the trials in a courthouse near Ground Zero in lower Manhattan. Why is this bad, you may ask? Because the guys responsible for killing some 3,000 Americans was going to get a fair, civilian trial. First, they're most certainly not civilians of the U.S., and they committed atrocious acts of war. That should've earned them a nice big Gitmo trial (consists of detention in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and trial by military authorities). The good news is that it has been announced, in the most significant policy reversal in the fight against terrorism, that the Obama Administration has decided to try Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four others accused of planning 9/11 in a military tribunal at Guantanamo Bay. This is because in December, Congress blocked funds to prosecute the suspects in civilian courts, which forced the White House to try them at the military base that President Obama pledged to close down, a feat he has yet to accomplish.<br />
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All I can say is... booya, Congress!Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738980017335490105noreply@blogger.com0