Thursday, May 31, 2007

Gentlemen, it's okay to wine

I remember taking a Canadian foreign policy course where the teacher asked us to describe what being Canadian meant to us. Most people said that playing hockey was Canadian or "drinking Molson Canadian beer" was Canadian. When I surveyed [unofficially of course] some Americans I know, they too decribed some type of a beer experience with being American. So, it's not a surprise that in a culture where it seems beer is the culture that this news would come as a shock. The news being that wine consumption in the U.S. has doubled over the last few years and beer sales have plateaued. For the first time ever, a 2005 Gallup pole revelead that Americans prefer drinking wine to beer. And although this number did flip in 2006, wine consumption is not slowing down. Some are calling this the great American beer crisis and they're asking how this could've happened. Why is this happening and will the good ol' pint ever make a comeback?


Mild brown ales, the knock-back drink of thirsty coal miners and dock workers, are not so appealing to post-industrial office workers, who are less thirsty and more aspirational.

Source: slate.com
PINOT NOIR Deers Head

Tags: wine vs. beer | wine more popular than beer | wine | Opinions | drinking wine in America | beer | american beer | Culture

Tuesday, May 29, 2007

Beijing student bullies teacher, video on Youtube

A five minute video that shows a Chinese student in Beijing bullying his 70-year-old teacher is causing outrage from people in China and online bloggers who can't believe this could ever happen. The video shows a young boy knock off his teacher's hat down over his face before the student returns to his seat. He looks directly into the camera and laughs, almost as if he was dared to do it. Since the incident, people have gone to the school and demanded that the student be reprimanded, supporting the teacher. The teacher says the boy has apologized and that he won't discuss the incident.


The five-minute video was later posted on a blog and picked up by numerous websites, drawing angry outbursts from web surfers shocked at the audacity of the Chinese youths.

Source: breitbart.com


beijing boy re: beijing boy the teacher interview 2/2 Re: beijing boy

Tags: China | video of student abusing teacher | beijing student abuses teacher | Crime | Beijing boy

Most emailed article on the BBC: Vancouver is the 'best place to live'

Congrats Vancouver! The most emailed article on the BBC today was about us. This year we're the third best place to live in the entire world [well out of 127 countries] based on a survey by the Economist Intelligence Unit. But in 2005, we were numero uno..and the Brits think it's fascinating! Factors like personal safety, infrastructure and the availability of goods and services were some of the areas where we beat out the other cities.


The survey has produced a mixed picture of the world's cities. London was ranked in the 10th group, on a par with Dublin and Los Angeles, but one place below Manchester, four behind Berlin, five lower than Tokyo, and six off Helsinki, Frankfurt and Stockholm

Source: news.bbc.co.uk
Hello There ! seabus False Creek (HDR) Go, Vancouver!

Tags: Canada | ranked number one | Vancouver | Cities | Vancouver is the best place to live | Life

Monday, May 28, 2007

Mother Nature vs. Sasquatch!

The Beastie Boys headlined this year's [6 and counting] Sasquatch! Music Festival that was held over this past weekend at the Gorge. The annual festival featured not only up and coming North American musicians, but also showcased musical genres of the international kind. Besides having to battle for the audience's attention, bands also had to deal with awful weather, as a massive wind storm caused the lighting rigs on stage to cancel shows in the middle of their sets. The line up included: Beastie Boys, Bjork, Aracade Fire,Manu Chao, Interpol, Neko Case, Blackalicious..and many more. Travis Hay has an awesome blog about it. And you can read it if you click the link.


But the good music wasn't limited to the main stage. The Yeti stage, which traditionally has exclusively featured Northwest artists, was moved to the plaza area, which is closer to the stage than the meadow area where it has been in the past

Source: blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com

The main stage was shut down for about three hours after massive wind gusts made lighting rigs -- some of which were suspended above the stage by wires

Source: seattlepi.nwsource.com
Ozomatli Ozomatli

Tags: the Gorge | music festival | entertainment | Washington | Sasquatch Music Festival | sasquatch

Once in a blue moon...

You know that song " Blue Moon?" I always thought it was along the same lines of Dean Martin's "When the Moon Hits Your Eye, like-ah, Big Pizza Pie," but actually no. It has merit to it. On May 31st, the second full moon of the month might appear blue. Depending on where you live in the world, you might see the moon turn different blue-ish and lavender hues because of environmental conditions, like smoke from a forest fire or soot and ash particles that are deposited in the atmosphere. Here are some more cool facts about the moon ( cause you really wanted to know):
  • The Moon was created when a rock the size of Mars slammed into Earth, shortly after the solar system began forming about 4.5 billion years ago, according to the
  • Perhaps the coolest thing about the Moon is that it always shows us the same face
  • The Moon's heavily cratered surface is the result of intense pummeling by space rocks between 4.1 billion and 3.8 billion years ago.

    Thursday, May 31 brings us the second of two full Moons for North Americans this month. Some almanacs and calendars assert that when two full Moons occur within a calendar month, that the second full Moon is called the "Blue Moon."

    Source: news.yahoo.com
I know we have a lot of full moon photographers out there, so if you're one of those people and can take a great photo for us and write a story about what you thought of the blue moon, please do so.
Rain, Rain, Go AWAY!

Tags: when is the blue moon | truth behind the full moon | Science | full moon | blue moon | Weather | May 31

Friday, May 25, 2007

Rosie disappears from The View

In a surprise move by ABC, they've announced that Rosie O'Donnell won't be returning to The View to complete her run on the daytime chatfest. It might be because of this catfight from a few days ago. Rosie and Elizabeth Hasselbeck went at it, no commercial breaks included, once again sounding off on 9/11 conspiracy theories, George W. Bush and the Republicans. Apparently, one of the chief writers was caught defacing Hasselbeck's photo in the View offices and was subsequently escorted out of the building. Rosie's blogged about it, everyone is talking about it and The View will have another mind blowing rating for the season.

nothing is loud enough today

i have blown too many speakers

as i try to climb into the notes

float
the goslings came quite close

2 day

alert parents watching

ready to protect

photographers again waited yesterday

by the ramp at abc

extra extra

the line between fake and real

Source: rosie.com

Yesterday, Rosie's chief writer, Janette Barber, was allegedly escorted from the building after she was caught drawing moustaches on photographs of Hasselbeck that hang in the "View" studios.

Source: nypost.com

In a surprise announcement Friday, ABC said that O'Donnell would not return to the show. The move comes at O'Donnell's behest, two days after an on-air shouting match broke out between her and cohost Elisabeth Hasselbeck and three weeks before she was due to end her run on the daytime chatfest.

Source: eonline.com
Rosie O'Donnell is gone thank God 5/23/07Cat Fight on the View, Rosie vs Elizabeth

Tags: Elisabeth Hasselbeck | entertainment | Rosie O'Donnell | The View | feud | rosie off the View

New York shoe store to get own ZIP code

I'm not ashamed to say it....this is the most exciting news I've heard in awhile. New York's Saks Fifth Avenue department store is opening a shoe store so big, [the entire eight floor of it's flagship store] that it's getting it's own ZIP Code. That's right. 10022-SHOE is the first floor in U.S. history to get its own ZIP code. Guess where I'm going in September?

New York's famed Saks Fifth Avenue department store plans to open a shoe department so big it has been granted its own ZIP code, 10022-SHOE

Source: news.yahoo.com
Saks & Company

Tags: plans | opinion | granted | entertainment | department | CODE | Saks | Reuters | Manhattan | New York

Killer banana rumour grips China

Someone really hates bananas. And now they're spreading a rumour about them.

Someone spread the bad news by text message claiming China's Hainan island bananas contained viruses similar to the deadly Sars virus. This has now caused a huge slump in the banana industry. Although the Chinese government has dismissed the claims, it's not helping. The industry has suffered greatly in the past, because the bananas have already been subject to rumours they caused cancer and generally fears are high right now after international concerns over tainted Chinese products, like poisons in pet food and toothpaste have been heightened in the last few months.


"There has not been a case in the world in which humans have contracted a plant virus, and there is not any scientific evidence."

Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Tags: China | TEXT | Rumour | message | grips | Banana | KILLER | Health | Hainan | Chinese

Thursday, May 24, 2007

Finger Length Predicts SAT Performance


Scientists have known that different levels of the hormones testosterone and estrogen in the womb account for the different finger lengths, which are a reflection of areas of the brain that are more highly developed than others,

Source: news.yahoo.com

Tags: Health | Science | SAT scores | finger legth

Cecilia Bolocco is the top (less) search on Technorati

Cecilia Bolocco, the Chilean former Miss Universe and the wife of former Argentinian president Carlos Menem has been snapped by paparazzi in her Miami home sunbathing topless. So she is the top search on Technorati today for obvious reasons, but really the shocker comes as she is not sunbathing topless all alone. Oh no, she is accompanied by Italian businessman Luciano Marocchino [who is not her husband.] Ah, Luciano what have you done to Cecilia. To add more fuel to the fire, the photographer who took the photos says he has more "explicit" images that he is yet to publish.


Bolocco, the 1987 Miss Universe and host of a popular TV reality show in Chile, was photographed sunbathing topless at her Miami home along with a man identified as Italian businessman Luciano Marocchino.

Source: chinadaily.com.cn


Cecilia Bolocco de "Vacaciones"___

Tags: topless photos of cecilia bolocco | exclusive photos | entertainment | cecilia and lover | Naked photos | Cecilia Boloco photos | Cecilia Bolocco

Wednesday, May 23, 2007

Jordin Sparks is my American Idol

For the next few hours, everyone [all of North America at least] it seems will be asking themselves this very important question: Who will win American Idol?
I feel like the show just started and we just finished watching the awkwardness that takes place before the final 12 are selected. But alas, the show is coming to an end in the two hour finale tonight. I would like Jordin Sparks to win, just because Blake's beat boxing annoys me, but either way it's not about their voices. They are both weaker than Melinda Dolittle, who should have won. So Jordin, sparkle on lady and good luck tonight.


All the judges agreed that Jordin outsings Blake, no question about it. Seattlest agrees. But as our friend eloquently advises, that's really not enough to make her win.

Source: seattlest.com

Watching last night's "American Idol," how could you not be frickin' proud of Jordin Sparks?

Source: salon.com
Jordan Sparks Slide Show

Tags: ai | American Idol | blake lewis | entertainment | American Idol winner | Jordan Sparks