Thursday, December 6, 2007
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Monday, December 3, 2007
Saturday, December 1, 2007
walk on
"I love the way you walk. Don't you know you're a cool motivator? Love the way you walk."-Marc Bolan, "The Motivator"
Friday, November 30, 2007
temper, temper
"Beware of him that is slow to anger: He is angry for something, and will not be pleased for nothing. "
-Ben Franklin
-Ben Franklin
Thursday, November 29, 2007
read, damnit!
"If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales."
-Albert Einstein
-Albert Einstein
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
an effective, if terrible, idea
Would you try the "Coworker Diet"?
A story in today's New York Post claims that the "Co-Worker Diet" is all the rage in Manhattan offices. Basically, colleagues try to lose weight... together! Jacqueline Dolly, a 38-year-old senior director of marketing for a non-profit, is doing it with 10 coworkers. "When you're trying to lose weight by yourself, it's hard to stick to a plan," she says. "But when you have support from people you work with, it's much more motivating." Theoretically, it's a great idea -- a lot of people eat breakfast, lunch and an afternoon snack at the office.That's three meals, three chances to cut back on carbs, ditch sugar or choose veggies over Oreos. The problem? Most of the time, you only want to shove chocolate in your mouth because you're at work. Dealing with your fuc(ing coworkers. Who are probably the ones who made you fat to begin with.
And while it's great if everyone's on the same page, counting calories and sticking to the program, as soon as one woman says to another, "Oh, you should have almonds instead of that Snickers bar," someone is going to get smacked. There are rules for sexual harassment in the workplace -- do we need food harassment guidelines as well? (Also, is there a phrase for someone who tries to stop you from having cookies? Like a cock-blocker, but for fatty snacks? Please inform, thanks.)
http://jezebel.com/gossip/chow-hounds/would-you-try-the-coworker-diet-326969.php
A story in today's New York Post claims that the "Co-Worker Diet" is all the rage in Manhattan offices. Basically, colleagues try to lose weight... together! Jacqueline Dolly, a 38-year-old senior director of marketing for a non-profit, is doing it with 10 coworkers. "When you're trying to lose weight by yourself, it's hard to stick to a plan," she says. "But when you have support from people you work with, it's much more motivating." Theoretically, it's a great idea -- a lot of people eat breakfast, lunch and an afternoon snack at the office.That's three meals, three chances to cut back on carbs, ditch sugar or choose veggies over Oreos. The problem? Most of the time, you only want to shove chocolate in your mouth because you're at work. Dealing with your fuc(ing coworkers. Who are probably the ones who made you fat to begin with.
And while it's great if everyone's on the same page, counting calories and sticking to the program, as soon as one woman says to another, "Oh, you should have almonds instead of that Snickers bar," someone is going to get smacked. There are rules for sexual harassment in the workplace -- do we need food harassment guidelines as well? (Also, is there a phrase for someone who tries to stop you from having cookies? Like a cock-blocker, but for fatty snacks? Please inform, thanks.)
http://jezebel.com/gossip/chow-hounds/would-you-try-the-coworker-diet-326969.php
Sunday, November 25, 2007
bigger world
Riders or repairs weighing down Small World boats?
The Disneyland ride will undergo a refurbishment because boats are sinking.
By SARAH TULLY, The Orange Register
ANAHEIM – One thing is clear: It's A Small World ride in Disneyland will undergo renovations partly because boats are bottoming out.
But the reason for the sinking boats is up for debate.
Disney officials claim that after years of piling on fiberglass repairs, the water pathway is shallower than when the ride was created in 1964.
A Disney watchdog blog, however, says that guests' ever-expanding girths are causing the boats to float deeper and get stuck, causing embarrassing evacuations that were happening almost daily.
Rob Doughty, a Disneyland spokesman, said the miceage.comblog is "just flat out wrong."
"Anything else is totally speculation, conjecture on somebody's' part," Doughty said.
Al Lutz, miceage.com editor, disagreed, saying internal memos suggest that Disney officials long have worried about the weight of guests pushing down ride cars and boats. Specifically, Small World was designed for the New York World's Fair, assuming adult men averaged 175 pounds and adult women averaged 135 pounds, the blog states.
The average weight for Americans has climbed to more than 190 pounds for men and more than 160 for women, accord to the medical Web site WebMD
"The problem is the boats are riding lower in the water," Lutz said.
Doughty said all rides have capacity rules. In water rides, including the Jungle Cruise, the ride operators must focus on the "distribution of guests." When visitors shift, the rides can stop. But he denied that this was because of the weight gain of guests overall.
Since word got out about the stoppages at Small World, Lutz said ride operators have been instructed to load the boats lighter so they won't jam up.
Regardless of the specific reasons, Disney will embark on a 10-month refurbishment of the ride of 300 animatronic, singing dolls with costumes from around the world, replacing the original water flume and the boats, Doughty said.
A few new undisclosed scenes will be added and others will be enhanced during the spruce up. Small World will remain open through the holidays when it is redecorated with a Christmas theme and carols.
Jan. 7 will be the first day the ride will be closed.
The Disneyland ride will undergo a refurbishment because boats are sinking.
By SARAH TULLY, The Orange Register
ANAHEIM – One thing is clear: It's A Small World ride in Disneyland will undergo renovations partly because boats are bottoming out.
But the reason for the sinking boats is up for debate.
Disney officials claim that after years of piling on fiberglass repairs, the water pathway is shallower than when the ride was created in 1964.
A Disney watchdog blog, however, says that guests' ever-expanding girths are causing the boats to float deeper and get stuck, causing embarrassing evacuations that were happening almost daily.
Rob Doughty, a Disneyland spokesman, said the miceage.comblog is "just flat out wrong."
"Anything else is totally speculation, conjecture on somebody's' part," Doughty said.
Al Lutz, miceage.com editor, disagreed, saying internal memos suggest that Disney officials long have worried about the weight of guests pushing down ride cars and boats. Specifically, Small World was designed for the New York World's Fair, assuming adult men averaged 175 pounds and adult women averaged 135 pounds, the blog states.
The average weight for Americans has climbed to more than 190 pounds for men and more than 160 for women, accord to the medical Web site WebMD
"The problem is the boats are riding lower in the water," Lutz said.
Doughty said all rides have capacity rules. In water rides, including the Jungle Cruise, the ride operators must focus on the "distribution of guests." When visitors shift, the rides can stop. But he denied that this was because of the weight gain of guests overall.
Since word got out about the stoppages at Small World, Lutz said ride operators have been instructed to load the boats lighter so they won't jam up.
Regardless of the specific reasons, Disney will embark on a 10-month refurbishment of the ride of 300 animatronic, singing dolls with costumes from around the world, replacing the original water flume and the boats, Doughty said.
A few new undisclosed scenes will be added and others will be enhanced during the spruce up. Small World will remain open through the holidays when it is redecorated with a Christmas theme and carols.
Jan. 7 will be the first day the ride will be closed.
Friday, November 23, 2007
Monday, November 19, 2007
technology
I don't own a cell phone or a pager. I just hang around everyone I know all the time. If someone wants to get a hold of me, they just say 'Mitch,' and I say 'what?' and turn my head slightly.
- Mitch Hedberg (1968-2005)
Friday, November 16, 2007
who'd've thunk with a name like herb
All Things Considered, November 16, 2007 · The University of California in Los Angeles announced the formation of the Herb Alpert School of Music on Friday. Alpert, the Latin crossover giant who headed up the Tijuana Brass and co-founded the A&M label, donated some $30 million to the school.
no conclusive proof...
ANAHEIM, Nov. 14, 2007 (KABC-TV) - Everyday thousands of people come to Disneyland to make life long memories. Apparently, some of those people want those memories to last forever, as in an eternity.
Scattering someone's ashes at Disneyland is strictly prohibited. But apparently that doesn't mean some people aren't trying.
Pirates of the Caribbean is one of Disneyland's marquee attractions. It's a classic ride reinvigorated by the blockbuster films of the same name.
But on Friday, the ride was closed temporarily. Security cameras caught a woman dumping a white powder into the water. The woman told Disneyland officials it was baby powder, but some aren't so sure.
"Well it's been going on for awhile, it started sporadically with the Haunted Mansion and lately because of the spectral nature of the 'Pirates of the Caribbean' films, there's been this been this connection between people and that," Al Lutz said.
Lutz runs MiceAge.com, a Web site dedicated to all things Disneyland. He says it's not unusual for people to surreptitiously scatter a loved one's remains at the happiest place on Earth.
"As you grow up with something, especially now that it's over 50 years old, you can develop an attachment to it," Lutz said.
If people get married at Disneyland, then spending an eternity at Disneyland seems to make sense, to some.
"I've just heard people joke about it, how much they love Disneyland and that they'd like to be buried there, have their ashes scattered there, I've even said it," Penny Atwood, a Disneyland visitor, said.
Other park visitors think the idea is well, goofy.
"It kind of bothers me, I guess, for someone to want to do that," Jerry James, a Disneyland visitor, said.
Park officials say there's no real way of knowing that what was dumped into the Pirates ride last week was actually someone's cremated remains.
A Disney spokesperson tells Eyewitness News that about twice a year people come forward and ask to spread a loved one's remains at Disneyland. They are told that it's against the law to do so. They say that there's no conclusive proof that anyone's ashes have ever been spread at Disneyland.
Disney is the parent company of ABC7.
Scattering someone's ashes at Disneyland is strictly prohibited. But apparently that doesn't mean some people aren't trying.
Pirates of the Caribbean is one of Disneyland's marquee attractions. It's a classic ride reinvigorated by the blockbuster films of the same name.
But on Friday, the ride was closed temporarily. Security cameras caught a woman dumping a white powder into the water. The woman told Disneyland officials it was baby powder, but some aren't so sure.
"Well it's been going on for awhile, it started sporadically with the Haunted Mansion and lately because of the spectral nature of the 'Pirates of the Caribbean' films, there's been this been this connection between people and that," Al Lutz said.
Lutz runs MiceAge.com, a Web site dedicated to all things Disneyland. He says it's not unusual for people to surreptitiously scatter a loved one's remains at the happiest place on Earth.
"As you grow up with something, especially now that it's over 50 years old, you can develop an attachment to it," Lutz said.
If people get married at Disneyland, then spending an eternity at Disneyland seems to make sense, to some.
"I've just heard people joke about it, how much they love Disneyland and that they'd like to be buried there, have their ashes scattered there, I've even said it," Penny Atwood, a Disneyland visitor, said.
Other park visitors think the idea is well, goofy.
"It kind of bothers me, I guess, for someone to want to do that," Jerry James, a Disneyland visitor, said.
Park officials say there's no real way of knowing that what was dumped into the Pirates ride last week was actually someone's cremated remains.
A Disney spokesperson tells Eyewitness News that about twice a year people come forward and ask to spread a loved one's remains at Disneyland. They are told that it's against the law to do so. They say that there's no conclusive proof that anyone's ashes have ever been spread at Disneyland.
Disney is the parent company of ABC7.
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Monday, November 12, 2007
Thursday, November 8, 2007
Big Blowout, Going Out of Business Yard Sale
The Perris man could face up to three years in prison for an ad directed at the Riverside County district attorney. He denies placing the ad on behalf of gang.
A Perris man accused of threatening Riverside County Dist. Atty. Rod Pacheco in a newspaper ad pleaded guilty Wednesday to making a threat and could face as much as three years in prison.
Chandler William Cardwell, 33, worked in the Riverside Press-Enterprise's classified advertising department when he placed an ad Aug. 25 for a "Big Blowout, Going Out of Business" yard sale with proceeds to benefit the "Rod Pacheco memorial fund." It listed the district attorney's home address and phone number.
Pacheco and police said the ad appeared to be a response to Pacheco's announcement the previous day that he was seeking an injunction to restrict members of Riverside's East Side Riva gang from gathering and to force them to adhere to a curfew.
Cardwell's brother-in-law is a member of the gang, officials say. Deputy Atty. Gen. Michael Murphy said Cardwell's ties to the gang remain unclear, but "he clearly associates with them."
Cardwell's attorney, Richard Carnero, said Wednesday that his client is not a gang member. The ad was not placed "in connection with any gang," he said.
"He was a little upset because Pacheco was getting these injunctions, and that was affecting a lot of innocent people," Carnero said.
"I don't think he viewed the ad as a threat."
"He's a jokester and a kind man; he'd never hurt anybody," Carnero said after the hearing.
"I think this could have been a little joke that got away from him."
Through a spokeswoman, Pacheco declined to comment.
Cardwell pleaded not guilty in September after investigators traced the ad to him through cellphone records.
With Wednesday's plea, Murphy agreed to drop an allegation that Cardwell committed the crime on behalf of the gang.
Another threat charge and a forgery charge, stemming from fake bank account information Cardwell gave when he placed the ad, were also dropped.
"The felony threat -- that was the heart of the case," said Murphy, whose office prosecuted the case so the district attorney's office would not have a conflict. "We got what we wanted."
When Riverside Superior Court Judge Thomas H. Cahraman asked Cardwell whether he "willfully and unlawfully" threatened to seriously injure Pacheco, Cardwell softly answered, "Yes, your honor."
Carnero said Cardwell was eager to avoid trial and return home to care for his pregnant wife.
Cardwell's attorney said he hoped that the judge would consider his client's remorse and his limited criminal record, which includes a 1994 conviction for misdemeanor assault with a deadly weapon.
"He's so sorry for what he did," Carnero said. "He's also sorry for what he put Mr. Pacheco and his family through."
Cahraman set sentencing for Dec. 10.
By Maeve Reston, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer November 8, 2007
maeve.reston@latimes.com
A Perris man accused of threatening Riverside County Dist. Atty. Rod Pacheco in a newspaper ad pleaded guilty Wednesday to making a threat and could face as much as three years in prison.
Chandler William Cardwell, 33, worked in the Riverside Press-Enterprise's classified advertising department when he placed an ad Aug. 25 for a "Big Blowout, Going Out of Business" yard sale with proceeds to benefit the "Rod Pacheco memorial fund." It listed the district attorney's home address and phone number.
Pacheco and police said the ad appeared to be a response to Pacheco's announcement the previous day that he was seeking an injunction to restrict members of Riverside's East Side Riva gang from gathering and to force them to adhere to a curfew.
Cardwell's brother-in-law is a member of the gang, officials say. Deputy Atty. Gen. Michael Murphy said Cardwell's ties to the gang remain unclear, but "he clearly associates with them."
Cardwell's attorney, Richard Carnero, said Wednesday that his client is not a gang member. The ad was not placed "in connection with any gang," he said.
"He was a little upset because Pacheco was getting these injunctions, and that was affecting a lot of innocent people," Carnero said.
"I don't think he viewed the ad as a threat."
"He's a jokester and a kind man; he'd never hurt anybody," Carnero said after the hearing.
"I think this could have been a little joke that got away from him."
Through a spokeswoman, Pacheco declined to comment.
Cardwell pleaded not guilty in September after investigators traced the ad to him through cellphone records.
With Wednesday's plea, Murphy agreed to drop an allegation that Cardwell committed the crime on behalf of the gang.
Another threat charge and a forgery charge, stemming from fake bank account information Cardwell gave when he placed the ad, were also dropped.
"The felony threat -- that was the heart of the case," said Murphy, whose office prosecuted the case so the district attorney's office would not have a conflict. "We got what we wanted."
When Riverside Superior Court Judge Thomas H. Cahraman asked Cardwell whether he "willfully and unlawfully" threatened to seriously injure Pacheco, Cardwell softly answered, "Yes, your honor."
Carnero said Cardwell was eager to avoid trial and return home to care for his pregnant wife.
Cardwell's attorney said he hoped that the judge would consider his client's remorse and his limited criminal record, which includes a 1994 conviction for misdemeanor assault with a deadly weapon.
"He's so sorry for what he did," Carnero said. "He's also sorry for what he put Mr. Pacheco and his family through."
Cahraman set sentencing for Dec. 10.
By Maeve Reston, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer November 8, 2007
maeve.reston@latimes.com
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