| Healing Our World: Weekly Comment
In the gluttonous celebrations so popular today, we seemed to have forgotten the fasting and praying. The celebrations many of us get wrapped up in have little to do with honoring the Earth or our culture. Rather, the holidays present a huge challenge to the environment, our pocketbooks, and our health. A recent study by Environmental Defense calculated that 3.6 million tons of paper were used to produce the roughly 59 catalogs mailed to every man, woman, and child in the United States last year. According to the Worldwatch Institute, only three of the countrys 42 leading catalog companies surveyed reported using recycled paper in the body of their mailings, even though by switching to just 10 percent recycled content, the entire catalog industry would save enough wood to stretch a six foot fence across the U.S.
Playground on Wheels for Tornado Kids
The children showed no outward signs of the terror a few days earlier when tornadoes ravaged this area of western Kentucky. Instead, while their parents were busy reassembling their lives, the children were content playing inside a former school bus converted into a mobile playroom just for kids who have been through disasters. "It's the simple things in life that keep kids busy and keep them happy," said Kathryn Martin, the driving force behind the goodwill bus. "And during times like this, parents are not able to, so why not come here and help and do a small part." Martin's motivation to comfort kids in times of disaster sprang from her own tragedy. Her 2-year-old son, C.J., was among 25 people killed in 2005 by a tornado that struck the Evansville, Ind., area.
The Plague of the Witch Doctors
But it's a lot easier to criticize than to step up to home plate and swing the bat. This is what investors will NOT be doing for a while -- stepping up to the plate and taking lusty swings. In a recession, everyone pulls in their horns and goes to the sidelines. This is the natural, prudent, intelligent thing to do. Yet Vardy is trying to turn virtue into vice and make it look like all "bears" are a bunch of armchair quarterbacks with no stomach for playing on the field in the snow and cold. Don't buy it. The place to be in a raging blizzard is safely hunkered down inside a warm and well-stocked cave. Do we have a blizzard coming? Can't say for sure, of course. But when the temperatures are dropping to zero, and the winds are howling like the ghosts that haunted Ebenezer Scrooge, it is best to head for the cave rather than charge out to frolic in the night.
No more weekends off: P’s & C’s reporting
The great L.A. Times scribe Jim Murray once said, "Spring is the time of year when the ground thaws, trees bud, the income tax falls due — and everybody wins the pennant." And so it is that your correspondent, memorably dubbed as the faux "crusading everyman" by one of our angrier blog participants, has already done his taxes, an annual end-of-January ritual before heading to spring training and being immersed in a six-week world where normal life is put on hold and baseball takes precedence over all else. We'll be headed down Wednesday, a day before pitchers and catchers are officially required to report. Need some time to stock the fridge of the rental house and get a lay of the land in our new neighborhood, plus stop by the ballpark at Dark Star to see how many eager Braves arrived early.
U.S. candidates get set for 2 crucial primaries
Sometimes taking the short cut to save money ends up in the more expensive category? When in history has change come FAST without cost? Take the French Revolutions as one simple example. Yes, we all want change! However, change is a process–not a movement no matter how noble the outcry. America, itself, is the best example. We have both a black man and a woman running for President! How many years since the birth of this country did it take to bring it about? History bears many lessons and one must look to the past to understand the future and where it must go! Responsibly, Hillary Clinton has the best chance of any Democratic or Republican candidate to bring history to the present. Take away the "black" and the "woman" aspect and lay all the cards on the table from what you know about Obama and Clinton.
46 places for Valentine's Day dinner
Share a romantic dinner with a 12-inch, heart-shaped pizza, salad, ravioli, wine and dessert. Valentine's Day Dinner, 7605 E. Pinnacle Peak Road, Suite 1, Scottsdale. $75 per person. 480-585-6555. 56 East Bar & Kitchen: 6-9:45 p.m. Feb. 14. A five-course dinner that ends in a duo of heart-shaped chocolate desserts with coffee granita for dessert. Reservations required. Valentine's Day Dinner, 7131 W. Ray Road, Chandler. $40 per person. 480-705-5602. Alchemy: 5-8:30 p.m. Feb. 14. The three-course meal includes a choice of pork tenderloin, fish, duck or lobster tail, followed by dessert. Valentine's Day Dinner, CopperWynd Resort and Club 13225 N. Eagle Ridge Drive, Fountain Hills. $72 per person. 480-333-1900. Elements: 5:30-11 p.m. Feb. 14. A four-course Valentine's Day menu.
Russell Brand referring to the Queen and her naughty bits
We'll just chat in the playground about what we're up to and I'll just tell them I'm doing Ready, Steady, Cook the following week and that they'd better tune in! Then we all have a good giggle about the TV shows I have to do these days. Speaking of TV shows – let's talk about Hit Me Baby One More Time. What was it like to work on? Was everyone really competitive?
There was a mix of people. Shakin' Stevens is quite a strange fruit, anyway – I've known him for a while. Mica Paris took her work very, very seriously because she was really competitive and not very happy when she went out. Nick Heyward and I just sat in my dressing room drinking wine and trying not to giggle at everyone! How did they approach you for that show?
I work with various agents and they hunt you down.
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